Acropolis Now

Those of you of a certain age will recognize that I stole the entry title from a Joe Jackson song. I've always wanted to use it in some context and today is as good as any.

Today was our first day of sightseeing in Athens. Despite our gripes about having to move to the Metropolitan Hotel, they do serve an excellent (and, for us, free) breakfast buffet. Any parents reading this blog may rest assured that their kids will not starve to death here--unless, of course, they have to pay for dinner. Being a somewhat experienced business traveller, this hotel strikes me as the stereotypical "our-guests-are-on-expense-accounts-so-soak-them-dry" type of place that has a mostly business clientele. The dinner buffet is 27 euros--at today's exchange rate, that's a cool $38. Want a burger instead? That's 24 euros ($34). I wouldn't pay $34 for a good steak, never mind a burger. Good thing the cashews and pistachios at the bar are free. There are a couple of restaurants a few blocks away, but I'm guessing they are not much cheaper. I miss our other hotel locations where you could go next door or a few doors away and get a sandwich for a few euros.

Anyway, getting a little off track here. We left the hotel about 9 AM on our chartered bus and headed straight for the Acropolis, probably the most famous location in Greece. I did not know much about the Acropolis before coming to Athens, except that it was a bunch of ruins on top of a hill in the middle of town. The Acropolis, or "upper city", was the most important location in ancient Athens. Archaeologists believe that the Acropolis was first inhabited in around 5000 BC. Most of the structures built there were religious in nature. Among them:

1) The most famous strucure on the Acropolis is the Parthenon, built as a temple to the goddess Athena (the "patron saint" of Athens). It was built in the 5th century BC. At various times, the Parthenon has also been a Christian church and a mosque, and was used as an ammunition dump during a war between the Ottomans and the Venetians (a well-placed Venetian cannon shot ignited the ammunition and caused an explosion that severely damaged the structure). During our visit today we saw the ongoing reconstruction/restoration effort that will partially repair some of the centuries-old damage. The scaffolding and cranes unfortunately take away some of the romantic effect, but we still greatly enjoyed our visit.
2) The Erechtheion, the next largest building, was the tomb of the Athenian king Erechtheus. It is in excellent condition and we took lots of photos of it.
3) The Propylaia was the entrance built by the Greeks, built before the entrance (now called the Beule Gate) built by the Romans. As our guidebook says, "it is characteristic of the Roman mania for building that they found it necessary to build an entrance to an entrance."
4) The Temple of Athena Nike (goddess of victory). I was greatly impressed by this building and took several photos of it, so I was a little disappointed to read after our visit that it was heavily restored about 80 years ago. I'll still enjoy the photos though.

The Acropolis was rather crowded during our visit, and this is not even peak tourist season, so I can imagine what it's like at that time. Poor Joanie, between her cold and her sore foot, had a bit of a rough time getting around but she was a real trooper.

After our Acropolis visit (and a rather unsavory bathroom encounter that I will not detail here), we moved on to the Theater of Dionysius, built about a century after the Parthenon at the foot of the Acropolis hill. It held 17,000 people, more than a lot of professional basketball/hockey arenas today (and I bet the ancient Athenians didn't pay $7.50 for a 12 ounce cup of lukewarm Budweiser).

Our next stop was the Acropolis museum across the street. It contains many of the "marbles" (statues, friezes, etc.) recovered from the Acropolis site. The museum was completed less than two years ago and is partially built over an archaeological site, so glass panels were installed in front of the entrance and parts of the first floor so visitors can see the "dig". Some of the items displayed in the museum have been in storage for over 200 years.

At this point (having been in the vicinity of the Acropolis for about three and a half hours), we walked northeast along Amalias street, intending to walk until we reached the Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese of Athens, St. Dionysius (the Greek god of wine--how's that for the name of a church?!). It's a little over a mile from the Acropolis and a mostly uphill walk. About two thirds of the way, we stopped at Syntagma (Constitution) Square, considered the center of modern Athens, and stopped at a cafe for a break. The name of the cafe on the awning and on the placemat was written in Greek letters, which I cleverly (and probably incorrectly) interpreted as "Pantheon". Joanie had her favorite--Greek salad--while I put away three Mythos beers. Hey, it was a hot day and a long walk, so no aspersions please. Besides, they were served with a frosty glass and who can resist that? Incidentally, Mythos is an excellent Greek beer that I have never seen in the US, so if anyone has seen it sold in the Chattanooga area please let me know.

Joanie stayed in the square and relaxed while I continued on to St. Dionysius. I didn't know until I arrived at the church that "Dionysius" is considered the equivalent Greek name to "Dennis". I got the mass times for tomorrow and reported this intelligence back to Joanie. We then made our way to the shuttle bus stop for the ride back to the hotel. It was next to a McDonald's, where I had a Big and Tasty the size of a manhole cover. I may not have to eat for another week. While waiting for the shuttle, we were joined by a number of other students, and we realized that the bus would be at or near capacity. The shuttle arrived and Joanie, setting a good example for the students, allowed them to go first and maneuvered us to the back of the line. Joanie and I were about to get on when a middle-aged Greek couple literally elbowed us out of the way and climbed on. We were appalled and complained to the driver, who told us he would return in 20 minutes. I was skeptical because 1) the shuttle was not scheduled to return for almost an hour and 2) as we read in our guidebooks before the trip, the Greeks (to coin a British phrase) "take a large view of the appointed time." I told Joanie that he probably said that just to placate us and that his return would take much longer. Imagine my shock when exactly--exactly--20 minutes later, the shuttle came back around the circle to pick us up. I was pleasantly surprised--and then appalled again when ANOTHER local barged in front of us to get on the shuttle first. Luckily there were only three of us this time so there was no problem with space, but I've learned my lesson about the Greeks and waiting in line. Good to know there are even worse line-cutters than the Italians.

I did three miles on the treadmill back at the hotel to work out my frustrations and burn off as much of the Big and Tasty as I could, then joined Joanie for a nightcap in the lobby bar. Off to Mass tomorrow morning to thank God for safe and happy travels, no tear gas, good beer, and my wonderful wife.