BOS -> ATH (by airplane): We take off at 3pm on Monday and arrive at 7am on Tuesday
a journey of 7000km begins on the subway |
Gina waiting at the uncrowded gate at Logan |
it is raining, but we are hopeful for the future |
we're off! obligatory Deer Island photo |
playing fields on Long Island |
lighthouse on The Graves (end of inside-baseball Boston Harbor Islands content) |
somewhere up the Atlantic Coast |
sunset on the plane |
sunset progressing |
city lights somewhere in France |
the Italian coast |
approaching Athens airport |
ATH -> Athens (33km, by metro): We learned that we could take the subway from the airport, and it worked great. We didn't have to wait too long, it was easy to get a seat, and it was still quite early when we arrived at Sygrou-Fix station near our hotel
on the metro from the airport |
the view is neat, but it's still pretty dark out, so you can't see it |
toll plaza |
suburban valley and lightening sky |
you can tell we are in Greece because this truck is labelled in Greek |
changing trains at Syntagma |
exterior of subway car at Syntagma |
around Athens (4.3km, on foot): it was several hours until we could check into our hotel, so we dropped off our luggage and set off to get coffee and breakfast and wander around. We met up with Beth and Ashley at AthensWas where they were staying, and then went to a bookstore, and then to see the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Syntagma.
on Falirou Street, having dropped off our luggage |
description of archeological site half a block from our hotel |
archaeological site half a block from our hotel |
church at Misaraliotou and Dimitrakopoulou (i don't know what church, and neither does google) |
it's a little early for gelato, but hold that thought |
lime trees are everywhere! |
baskets of breads at Takis Bakery |
side door of Takis Bakery, after we waited in the rush hour line for pastries |
olive trees at an entrance to the Acropolis Museum |
coffee is very important |
first view of the Acropolis |
mysterious Acropolis elevator lobby |
trees on Acropolis museum grounds |
nice roof, though |
people milling around in line for an Acropolis tour |
pedestrian street |
flaky pastry with peppers, mushrooms, and onions, from Takis |
apartment building balconies |
it's also a little early for both yogurt and cults |
look, a rainbow! |
balcony and graffiti |
wall of spices |
art store awning |
fig and nut shop |
outdoor staircase (spot the cat) |
base of the Lysikrates' choreogic monument on the restored Street of the Tripods (lookit, corinthian columns); the top, which you can't see at all from this angle, apparently shows Dionysus turning some pirates into dolphins |
in case you didn't spot the first cat, here is a bonus cat |
a brief period of rain, and our first glimpse of Hadrian's arch |
a miscellaneous column |
an archaeological site |
there are pomegranates here too |
bringing it all together: a pomegranate tree in front of a miscellaneous column at an archaeological site |
approaching Hadrian's arch |
tree branch with spiky seedpods |
owl of Minerva |
underside of Hadrian's arch |
graffiti on Hadrian's arch |
information about Hadrian's arch |
Greek-style arch on top of Roman-style arch, here we go |
huh, a mysterious set of buildings on top of a mysterious tall hill, in the middle of Athens. hold that thought too |
this road is under construction, and also a construction worker has located a stray cat |
okay, so. Byron. got involved in the Greek war of independence, and is considered a folk hero in Greece. hence, among other things, this statue |
columns on the under-restoration Temple of Olympian Zeus, visible through trees |
mysterious berries, do not eat |
olives, eat if you want (but you don't) |
informational sign about the Temple of Olympian Zeus restoration situation |
this tree is trying very hard |
the first of many magpies |
temple of Olympian Zeus |
prickly pear |
if you point Hadrian's arch the right way, you can see the Acropolis through it |
triangles on the side of a building |
statue of actress, musician, activist, and politician Melina Mercouri |
more olives, and also, if you look closely... |
one of the Quaker parrots which have been taking over Athens |
we join Beth and Ashley at their hotel, and enjoy the view of the Acropolis from their porch |
pedestrian street, from above |
mourning dove |
rooftops of Athens, mountain in the distance |
Little Tree bookstore |
Athens has not yet developed round manhole covers |
dolls in a souvenir shop |
chicken dolls in a souvenir shop |
instructional signage about using the curb cut |
pretty sure this is a production of Twelfth Night, but no idea what's up with the steampunk cat |
pop culture matryoshka dolls |
Greece had more brown pigeons than i'm used to |
what is growing on these trees? |
jugs at an archaeological site |
this was the Zappeio Roman Baths archaeological site, which was just hanging out next to the street, and was very cool |
so, we saw a lot of pro-Palestine graffiti in Greece; i thought this one on the wall next to the baths was a little yikes... |
back to the baths, though; apparently they started digging to build the Syntagma Square metro station, and just found all this |
arch at baths |
overhead view of several rooms at baths |
history of the baths |
pillar near Syntagma |
still not sure about this tree moss situation |
Sophocles |
graffiti: 'we support the hunger strike of Panos Routsi'; this is related to a deadly train crash in 2023 |
we've reached Syntagma Station |
marker at the entrance of the Library of the Greek Parliament |
our timing is good, and we arrive at the square as a crowd is gathering for the changing of the guard ceremony |
ornate hotels across the street in Syntagma Square |
facade of the Hellenic Parliament building |
the changing of the guard ceremony is about to start |
the kilt in the uniform resembles those worn in the Greek War of Independence |
guard in motion, in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier |
guards in motion |
around Athens (5.6km, by subway, foot, funicular, taxi): we took the subway one stop to walk up to the funicular to Lykabettus Hill, a walk which involved several blocks of staircases. After appreciating the views at the top of Lykabettus, we opted to take a taxi back to the pedestrian area north of the Acropolis, where we got good food, but too much of it, at a pleasant Greek restaurant.
decorative pillar on display at the Syntagma metro station |
little storage containers |
these loom weights from the 1st century BCE are looking at you |
fragment of a mosaic floor, 4th century CE |
wine amphorae, 1st-2nd century BCE |
think fast: doric, ionic, or corinthian? |
slice of an archaeological dig in the Syntagma metro station, walled off for display |
looking down at the metro station turnstile entrance |
Ashley, Beth, and Gina, in front of the archaeological dig wall |
we're taking the metro one stop towards the airport |
subway tunnel, with bonus subway |
storage container at Evangelismos metro station |
archaeological dig at Evangelismos |
construction ladder on the side of a building |
on a residential street, we face our first staircase |
Gina ascends a rainbow-colored staircase |
approaching staircase number three |
finally at the top, looking back down staircase number four (?) |
we are now somewhat above the city |
also, an attractive cat |
here, at last, is the funicular |
view from inside the funicular |
for some reason, there were miscellaneous words projected on the walls of the funicular tunnel |
first view from Lycabettus Hill |
we are way above Athens now |
view of Athens: you can see a small green space behind Syntagma Square, and the round park at Strefi Hill with a larger park behind it |
the Lycabettus Theatre, on top of this hill with us |
stone wall and hilltop restaurant |
there are a lot of churches in Athens, and i cannot tell you which one this is |
pretty sure this is the Acropolis, though |
also you can see the southwest coast, including several beaches and the port city of Piraeus |
in this direction (northwest?), the city extends up into the mountains |
green space in Athens is very concentrated; here's a big park extending from the Acropolis |
Beth and i, on Lycabettus Hill |
interior art in church on Lycabettus Hill |
ceiling decoration in church |
the business part of the belltower |
the part of the belltower through which you can see Athens |
Ashley, in front of the church, photographing the view |
Gina has discovered a staircase to the unknown |
the unknown turns out to feature some graffiti, and a cat which may or may not be happy about its choices |
looking straight down the hillside to Athenian buildings |
some graffiti in case you forgot where we were |
a taxi ride back to the Acropolis area later, i am eating this salad with rusks at an outdoor restaurant |
crucially, i am also drinking this espresso |
around Athens (4.1km, on foot): After lunch, Gina and i walked back to our hotel to check in, then met up with Beth and Ashley for our timed Acropolis entry slot. We didn't make it to the museum, but walked around the site, which was interesting, but also very crowded and pretty warm. It was only 6pm when we got back to our hotel, but we decided we'd achieved a sufficient victory over jetlag, and called it a night.
a cool octagonal tower in front of the Acropolis |
hard to argue with this graffiti |
people milling about at the entrance to the Acropolis |
we are milling purposefully though |
we followed the instructions for building the Parthenon really carefully, but this piece was left over |
maybe you'd like to read about the restoration of the retaining wall for the theatre of Dionysus |
stones in the retaining wall for the theatre of Dionysus |
these look like pretty good seats |
close-up of that opening in the wall we looked at earlier |
theatre of Dionysus |
there was a lot of signage about the restoration of this retaining wall, and you can see the results here, not even a little buried in a landslide |
arches! |
Ashley and Beth, on the climb |
a Byzantine cistern! |
some engraved bases |
we're not nearly as far above Athens as we were earlier, but we're somewhere |
... and we have a little further to go |
sky arches! |
looking down into another amphitheatre, the odeon of Herodus Atticus |
someone is not taking any chances about those landslides |
looking down on the climb |
looking over at the Philopappos Monument on the next hill to the south |
arches full of city |
don't go in there, it is forbidden |
boats in the sun |
city and coast and boats |
Gina approaches the Propylaia |
more leftover column parts |
underside of a square arch |
we eventually asked someone knowledgeable why these reconstructed stone pieces look like legos, and got an answer, but helpfully forgot it |
columns, clearly constructed from many segments |
the Erechtheion, the 'old temple' of Athena |
the Porch of the Maidens |
Parthenon, now with more cranes |
a lot goes into holding these columns up |
Gina in front of the Parthenon |
a column |
many tourists at the western part of the Acropolis |
final face-off against the Parthenon |
city of Athens and mountains |
a plaque about how in May 1941 two Greek teenagers took down a Nazi flag |
our friend the Temple of Olympian Zeus under construction, now seen from above |
many stones, being stored inside other stones |
earlier, we took a funicular to the top of that hill. time is a funny thing |
looking down at some roofs |
stone walls |
i don't have the instruction manual, but i'm pretty sure that's where the beams go |
caryatids overlooking the city of Athens |
possible descendent of the sacred olive tree of Athena |
there are a lot of impressive columns here |
and really the Parthenon is very large |
here also are some lions |
the port of Athens, visible in the haze because of all the loading cranes |
lots of humans on a rock |