A Few of Our Favorite Must See in Athens!
There truly is so much to see in Greece! We spent a couple weeks there in 2009 & let me tell you – unabashedly – there are hundreds of heavenly sights you must see in Athens Greece that we did not touch simply because of time constraints! Having said that, it is honestly one of OUR favorite trips!
It was time for another meet up with The Big Guy & Greece was the answer. Okay, I admit “Mamma Mia” played a huge part my desire to visit Greece! Ha.
We walked thru endless ancient ruins, drank cappuccinos & espressos galore [yes a lot like in Italy coffee consumption wise], saw a couple protests [calm ones], got lost one day [more on that below] & enjoyed a boat cruise one day. In short there is no shortage of sights to see…here are a few we enjoyed tremendously!
Island Hopping
We woke one morning to find it cloudy & cool so we decided to walk to the harbor to see what was going on? It was very quiet with the storm coming in but we did find one little shop open & in chatting with the owner, he told us if the weather was good ‘tomorrow’ the ships would be going out back out to sea. We ended up buying tickets for an island cruise & were told to be back at 10 the next morning if skies were clear. Luck was with us & we were able to board for a cruise adventure to two Greek Islands – Hydra & Paros! These will give you just a taste for island hopping in Greece! After all, there are only thousands of Greek islands so I’m sure you could easily find something waiting to be found by you!
Oh, before I forget, automobiles are not allowed on the Island of Hydra which, to me, made it one of the best hidden gems of Greece & how romantic is that! Horse & buggy rides [yes, we did], pack mules, or a slow leisurely walk….only truck allowed on island was the trash truck! As you can tell from the first photo below the walkways between buildings was barely wide enough to pass thru with your arms out.
Changing of the Guard Ceremony at Parliament
The Changing of Guards at Syntagma is ceremonial & takes place every hour every day & something that is more easily watched than explained. The Tsoliades [Guards] are a specially selected team that guards the Monument of the Unknown Soldier that sits at the Hellenic Parliament. They have to be certain heights, build, etc as every movement is synchronized with the partner guard which makes the movements slow & very specific. I wondered why the slow movement in the changing of guards but it is all part of the ceremony! Imagine watching a video in very slow motion. Nonetheless, it is still quite the show & really is a must see!
Acropolis Ruins
There is a reason that the Acropolis is also known as ‘The City in the Air’! It sits high on a rock plateau overlooking Athens downtown. The first day we left the hotel for a walkabout had us looking down the street & up to the Acropolis. We easily walked the distance from downtown but there are quite a few steps so wear comfortable shoes. The plateau is home to several building which make up the Acropolis. Some were undergoing major facelifts during our trip as you can see by the scaffolding equipment below. Even with the fences up due to work being done, the architecture was amazing! Here are a few shots.
All in All
Our trip to Athens occurred several weeks after some not so friendly protests over I can’t tell you now but upon our arrival we saw boarded up shops & a few remains of fires. During our time there we even witnessed a couple calm protests of hundreds of locals over local politics at that time. Having said all that, we loved Athens. We found the locals very friendly. Two gentlemen who owned a jewelry store came out on sidewalk everyday & I swear they knew when we were walking down the street – always with a smile on their faces & eager to discuss country politics with The Big Guy!
On one of our walkabouts we were walking in circles it seemed. In old town Athens a lot of the streets run around and into each other around ruins & after a while it just made our heads swim trying to figure out where we missed our turn. All of a sudden the quietest little Nun in her brown habit appeared out of what seemed no where & simply motioned for us to follow her. We did. In & out of side streets until she got us back on the main street & as quiet as she first appeared, she was gone out of sight. Very surreal moment.
We would love to go back to Greece! Traipsing around other islands would be awesome but, even if we don’t get back there a second time, we have memories to last us a life time of this gorgeous country. It is definitely Bucket List necessity!
Safe travels, Holly & Horace