Advertisement
Parthenon
At the Acropolis in AthensMay 3, 2011
All packed and ready to go.
7 interchangeable outfits in 2 space bags: check
2 dresses in 1 small space bag: check
Toiletry kit: check
1 bathing suit and 2 beach wraps that can double as shawls: check
3 pairs of shoes: check
1 Bag weighing less than 40 lbs. for a 21 day trip: Priceless !
Flying to Athens today for 2-days and then sailing on board Azamara Quest to Mykonos, Santorini, Rhodes, Cyprus, Ephesus in Turkey, Ashdod and Haifa in Israel. A 6-day trip in Israel with visits to Jerusalem, Galilee, Tiberius and Tel Aviv before heading home. Please join me via daily posts as I visit sites from ancient civilizations and sample the food, beer and wine from these fabulous Mediterranean destinations.
Our Delta flight was quite comfortable. Each seat had individual monitors with programming and we scored good seats; aisle seats in the area where the row changed from 4 seats across to 3. This gave lots of room next to my feet for carry-on items, and no one bumping into me as they walked down the aisle. After typical airline food and a complimentary glass of chardonnay, I settled in
Caryatids
Erechtheion at the Acropolis for 40 winks on the 9-hour flight.
Athens airport was much more modern than I remember when I was here 20-years ago. We breezed through immigration and customs and scored a limousine for 90 Euros for ourselves and another couple for transport to our hotel.
The Divani Caravel makes a nice first impression with its pull up drive, white marble lobby and very friendly reception staff. Luckily, our room was ready when we arrived at 10:00 AM. A nice large room with premium bedding and sizeable bathroom greeted us.
We headed out to a great take away chicken souvlaki restaurant and enjoyed sitting outside at an umbrella table. We took a stroll in the neighborhood to check out the new metro (very impressive) and the recently renovated Hilton Hotel (where we stayed last time). The weather was a beautiful 75 sunny degrees.
We enjoyed a delicious Italian dinner at a street side café around the corner from the hotel with mostly local business people. The Divani Caravel is located in a residential neighborhood that provides access to quite a few local’s eateries.
We climbed to the hotel’s rooftop for a fabulous view of the Parthenon
and Mount Lycabettus lit up at night and enjoyed a Mythos Beer before heading to bed.
We enjoyed a sumptuous Mediterranean style breakfast buffet that included eggs made to order (a rarity in Europe). That served as good fuel for our tour to the Acropolis this morning. We met our guide Lula and drove by bus to the Acropolis parking lot in the rain. Acropolis means high city.
It was a slippery climb to the top. There is nothing worse than worn, wet marble. We stepped gingerly as we went, eventually making it to the top. The amazing site of the Parthenon before us was the prize for our efforts. It sits atop the ieros vachos (sacred rock) and was built during the time of Pericles (447 to 438 BC) by the sculptor Pheidias and architects Iktinos and Kallikrates. The temple was dedicated to the goddess Athena and was built high and large to also commemorate the Greeks victory over Persia. It was reserved for the aristocracy. The most interesting architectural feature is how the columns lean towards the center and taper to hold the extra weight of the marble entablatures. The horizontal lines of the temple are
Me and Billy
At the Parthenon also slightly curved so the eye interprets them as perfectly straight (optical illusion). The temple has served as a Florentine Palace, an Islamic mosque, a Turkish harem and a WWII sentry over the years. These days, pollution is its enemy. A major renovation project is ongoing scheduled to be completed in 2020.
The Temple of Athena Nike is the other fabled temple atop the Acropolis. It was designed by Kallikrates (427 to 424 BC) to celebrate peace with Persia. Nike is the goddess for wingless victory and the Greeks believed victory will stay forever because she has no wings. Across from this site is the Erechtheion completed in 406 BC. This was built as Athena’s holiest shrine for the populace. This is the location of the famous Caryatid Porch, supported on the heads of six strapping but shapely maidens wearing draped Ionian garments, perfectly folded to resemble fluted columns.
We climbed back down past the Odeon Theater of Herodes Atticus. It was built in 160 AD into the hillside. It is now used for summer music festivals. The PBS Yanni concert was filmed here several years ago.
Our next stop was the new Acropolis Museum at the
foot of the hill. From the outside it looks like a futuristic slab of steel and glass, but the inside is one of the most impressive museums I have ever seen. Special glass lets in natural UV-safe light that provides the perfect display of the Acropolis’s statues and monuments. One of the best displays is the Frieze of the Great Panathenaia. It is a 524-foot long slab of hand carved marble with a procession of 400 people including maidens, magistrates, horsemen, musicians and animals in honor of Athena. It was unusual for that time to show ordinary mortals in sculptures. Another interesting display was the laser cleaning of the pieces of carved marble from the Temple of Athena Nike. These will eventually be reassembled at the actual site on top of the Acropolis. We also enjoyed a delicious Alpha Beer at the museum café with floor to ceiling windows that overlook the Acropolis.
We continued on to the Grand Bretagne Hotel for a travel agent site inspection. This is the most exclusive hotel in Athens that has hosted royals, rock stars and heads of state. It recently completed a total refurbishment that has restored it to its original 19th
century elegance. The rooms are large and luxuriously furnished. Most rooms have French balconies with several that overlook Syntagma Square. The new all-service spa is a homerun, including the surgical shoe covers you need to put over your shoes before entering the premises. The roof top terrace provides a spectacular view of the Acropolis and there are several plush bars and restaurants to choose from.
After enjoying a pomegranate punch we loaded up the bus and headed to the port of Piraeus to embark on our cruise ship the Azamara Quest. It was a 30-minute ride in traffic laden streets, but the traffic and air quality has greatly improved since my last visit 20 years ago. Completion of Athens’ Metro system has improved the quality of life.
We had to wait about 30-minutes for the immigration check to open. From there is was a 5-minute process for cruise ship check-in and boarding. We were greeted on board with a glass of champagne and headed to the outdoor grill by the pool. We ordered burgers which were paper thin and tasted like mystery meat. The grill chef said they ran out of the regular burgers and were expecting delivery
Frieze of the Great Panathenaia
Marble Panel from the Parthenon today.
Our staterooms were ready by the time we finished lunch and we were pleasantly surprised by the roomy feel the large picture window provided and the layout of the furniture and large closet. The decorations were simplistic elegance and it was easy to pack away all of our belongings in the closet and drawers provided.
Headed out to the cruise terminal where they advertised free wi-fi. The wi-fi would connect but would not allow internet browsing except for skype calling. We saw a lot of the crew members talking with their friends and families at home. A touching moment was watching a tear drop fall from a new father who got to see his newborn son for the first time via a computer monitor; amazing stuff this technology. It also reminds me how much the cruise crew misses at home since most of them work 9 to 10 months a year on a cruise ship contract.
We had a private group cocktail party in the Horizons Lounge located at the front of the ship. Floor to ceiling windows grace the lounge that is decorated in warm woods and Murano Glass. It’s a great place to relax
and enjoy a drink.
Dinner followed in the main dining room with an array of delicious menu selection. Service was on the slow side. It took us 3-hours to get through a four course meal, but we enjoyed conversation with our group participants which made the time go by quickly.
The next morning we woke up in Kusadasi, Turkey. We had free time in the morning, so headed to the Starbuck’s for free wi-fi.
On our way to the tour start meeting point, we bumped into Carlos Bordon, our bartender friend currently working on RCCL Splendor of the Seas which was also in port. We had time for hugs and a quick photo before starting our tour with Meander Travel. We had a short chat with the owner, Atinc, and then met our guide Hakan.
Our first stop was the Virgin Mary’s House where we lit some candles and bottled some spring water said to have healing properties and tied paper wishes on the wall. From here we traveled to Sirince for a delicious traditional lunch of metzes and Turkish meat balls. We also got to sample several delicious wines made from pomegranate, peach, and other
Parthenon View at Night
From roof top of Divani Caravel Hotel local fruits. A nice stroll through the town to shop and purchase olive oil followed before heading to Ephesus.
Ephesus was once the second largest city of the Roman Empire with 250,000 residents in 1 BC. It is also famed for the Temple of Artemis built in 550 BC and was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The city and Temple were destroyed in 401 AD and was rebuilt by Constantine who added public baths. The city was partially destroyed again in 614 AD by an earthquake. Ephesus was also one of the seven churches in the Book of Revelation and it is believed that the Gospel of John may have been written here.
We toured the site with Hakan and visited the recently excavated Terrace Houses that used to house the governor and other aristocrats. It was interesting to see the recently unearthed jigsaw puzzle pieces scattered over table tops waiting to be assembled into beautiful Byzantine era mosaics.
The next stop was at the public bath and toilets. We all claimed a “hole” and had a chuckle when Hakan told us that the slaves would have to sit on the toilets to
Greek Parliament
Athens Syntagma Square warm the marble seat for their masters when the weather got chilly. Talk about a “crappy job”!
The amazing Library of Celsius was our next stop where everyone posed for a nice group photo. The Library was built in 125 AD in honor of one of the past Greek governors of Ephesus. It used to house 12,000 scrolls and was built facing east to make best use of the natural light.
Our last stop is the large theater that could seat 25,000. Built by the Romans, it served to stage dramas and converts and gladiator spectacles.
There was time for shopping at the Genuine Fake Watches stall, souvenir stalls and time for a well deserved Efes Turkish beer. From here we headed towards the dreaded carpet shop. We enjoyed the weaving and silk collection demonstrations, and then watched the carpet display team go into action, rolling out carpet after carpet. A couple of people in the group purchased a couple of carpets.
We headed back to the port and Billy and I spent some time strolling around town and enjoyed some fresh grilled calamari and a couple of beers at some neighborhood cafes. We bumped into
the local fire department changing light bulbs in the street lamps using their cherry picker trucks. It was an interesting use of city resources.
We returned to the ship about ab hour before she set sail at midnight.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.31s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 14; qc: 59; dbt: 0.0839s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
