After 4 nights in Athens we are now leaving for a villa outside the small town of Marathonas, 26 miles north of the city. This is where the Battle of Marathon took place around 500 BC between the Athenians and the invading Persians. I know it's 26 miles from Athens because this is where, supposedly, Pheidippides ran from the plains where the battle took place into the city to announce the great victory for the home side, thereby running the first marathon. The story isn't one hundred percent true but it works in Greece. The villa is managed by a local couple, Stavros and Rosa, that lives right next door and they offered to pick us up straight from our hotel in the centre of Athens. The trip takes about an hour and the traffic is
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