Athens, Greece!

   

A great city, whose image dwells in the memory of man, is the type of some great idea. Rome represents conquest; Faith hovers over the towers of Jerusalem; and Athens embodies the pre-eminent quality of the antique world, Art.  ~ Benjamin Disraeli

A full day in Athens: we found a cab driver right outside the terminal at the port of Piraeus- Demetrius- who, for 200 Euro, agreed to take us to as many sights as possible, given the austerity measures stripping many places of their docents, and general accessibility. Using Em's manual chair, we climbed into the taxi and sped off for the Acropolis, before the heat started to set in.
The main entrance leading up the hill to the ruins is a series of switchbacks, on slippery stone with a mix of steps and slopes. Fortunately, the site has accomodated wheelers with an... interesting... way to the top.

Up the stairs via the platform, then into the tiny open-box elevator to scale the wall...

                                  

Working archeology students on the site...

                                     

The Changing of the Guard, in front of the Greek Parliment at Syntagma Square... (love the shoes!)

Demetrius then hooked us across town to the Byzantine and Christian Art Museum, which was very accessible and the staff happy to help. The exhibits span the area's religious art history from the 3rd Century AD to the modern era, but Andy's favorite was the collection of Icons...

Demetrius then took us to the smaller harbor in Piraeus, where we could find a good lunch, and did it by way of the National Library, Academy of Athens and the original building of the Athens University, a bustling set of neo-classical buildings in the heart of of the city.

Greek graffiti near the Library



Then came the meal, where, though completely inacessible due to several levels of stairs down to the seating area at the water level, Em was swept up in her chair right out of the cab by several Greek waiters, and we were given a table by the open floor-to-ceiling windows to the water. We had the place to ourselves, and the staff was friendly and very professional... we definitely recommend Zorba's!

Good view from the table...

GREAT view from the table!


Exceptional Garides sti Shara...

Our choice of the local morning catch- we went with the broiled sea bream fish!

After our incredibly relaxing and delicious meal- a brief respite from the 42 degrees heat (107 in Fahrenheit!), Demetrius took us to the Ancient Greek Agora featuring the Temple of Ares, Altar of Zeus Agoraios and Odeon of Agrippa, among other ruins. This was around the corner from a busy shopping distrist, where we found ouzo (an anise apertif), baklava (filo dough with honey and walnuts) and olive oil soaps...

By this point, we had a had a long, hot and fairly expensive day in Athens; it's size and history is too big for a single day, and so we will only barely start to cross that amazing place off our bucket list...


Next stop: Kusadasi, Turkey!!