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View from the Hilton
From our room on the 12th floor. No complaints. They Crack Smiles
We were told by our very friendly Northwest flight attendant that the KLM stewardesses are very professional but would "not crack a smile," we found that this was not the case but that the airline is definitely stale, there is something unappealing and archaic about the color schemes of those KLM airplanes. Arrving at the Athens Eleftherios Airport was about the easiest international arrival we have ever experienced, it is not that big of an airport but more importantly there is absolutely no passport control which is shocking when you think about it. It makes you wonder what they already have in the country if they're not so worried about what might come in. We took a taxi to the Athens Hilton, 28 Euro with tip, our lady was doing 130 km/h in what was mainly a 70 km/h but I read somewhere that this new highway linking the airport to the city is, like Alligator Alley, one of the best speedways to open up your car's throttle. That aside, everything is very well indicated with information booths and English signs at the airport so you can be sure to not be taken advantage of.
Athens
Executive Room
At the Hilton Athens Hilton
The hotel shows its age from the exterior but the interior including lobby, guest corridors, and to a lesser extent, the guestrooms, are all done very very impressively. This is without a doubt the most attractive Hilton we have ever stayed at. The amenities are nice but as you may have figured out there is no computer station in the Executive Lounge and they charge 11 Euros per hour for wi-fi. Forget that. We were upgraded to an Executive Room on the 12th floor that has an amazing view of the Acropolis and the city below out to Piraeus. Despite our belief that we had had enough sleep, we crashed for two to three hours on the bed.
Possibly the Best City in Europe
This turned out to be a good idea as we finally got out of the hotel at 6PM and walked 15 minutes towards Syntagma Square, which is basically the main square in Athens which faces Starwood's Grande Bretagne Hotel and the Greek Parliament. Here we discovered that the Greeks also have Community Dogs, and even many more Community Cats, all of these being very friendly just as the people here have been. I
Hilton Athens
One of the first series of international hotels Conrad Hilton built as Ambassadors to America's goodwill and free commerce. had heard from people that Athens is polluted and a place to spend short time in but we found, walking around the city at dusk and night, that it is in fact a very livable, agreeable, even romantic city. In fact, with its winding alleys and many nooks, it is by our estimation the most romantic of any European city we have visited, which is further reinforced by a strong sense of safety and security which could not be said about Amsterdam earlier today. Yes, we are placing it over Buda and Montmartre's city vistas, Vienna's cafes, etc. Certainly we have not given Istanbul, Spain, or Italy a chance here, but the obviousness of the last two almost disqualifies them from the start.
It is about midnight Athens time when I am writing this and we just enjoyed some Greek wine and fruit from our little penthouse balcony but the city is so loud you really cannot spend much time out there, it seems that the balcony amplifies it. On top of that we noticed in many of the bars tonight that the Greek national basketball teams was playing and apparently they won because many horns have been honking
Greek Guards
They are no Greek Gods, in front of the Greek Parliament. and huge flags waving out of cars below all night and now we finally hear police sirens and blowhorns telling them to shut up (I suspect). On the flag waving, the Greeks could give Americans a run for their money on patriotism. Makes me think of the dad in My Big Fat Greek Wedding who has the Greek flag painted on the garage door.
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