Hello / Goodbye Athens

We thought four days was plenty of time for Athens…every other time I have been to Athens, I have only spent one or two days, so 4 days seemed generous! But 4 days was not enough

I have always loved Athens!  On my first visit, 25 years ago, people warned me… “it is dirty and polluted” but I didn’t see that…I felt a unique energy that sucked me in!  The history!  And the views in every direction are breathtaking! Combine those two elements with the same friendly people, delicious food and incredible architecture you find all over Greece and I think Athens rivals any city in Europe as #1!  We could have easily spent two weeks exploring all the different neighborhoods, vistas, museums and monuments.

We stayed in the Plaka neighborhood at the AVA Hotel which we picked off Trip Advisor. We selected AVA for the location but the service was better than almost  any hotel I have stayed in! Free breakfast, a view of the Parthenon from our bedroom balcony and tons of amenities. Sandwiched between the Acropolis and The Temple of Zeus, AVA is a perfect choice for Athens. We spent a day visiting the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum. The museum is relatively new so if you haven’t been to Athens in a while, it is worth the trip just to see it. The Parthenon is undergoing a massive renovation which is kind of cool to see in process.  Each time I visit the ruin it is different but still magical.  Wescott wrote a killer blog post on the Acropolis if you want to read more.

Cliff and I snuck away one evening for a “parent dinner” and left the kids with Dominos Pizza (yes! they deliver in Athens!) and a movie.  We went to an elegant restaurant with the highlight being an “ouzo mojito!” Ouzo, mint and lime….AWESOME!

We also were fortunate enough to catch up with Manos, our host from Santorini, and his wife and two kids!  We had an amazing meal in the Plaka and the kids had fun running around and playing tag together.  Manos and his wife drew us maps of Athens and gave us tips on the most interesting sites to try to compress into our 4 days.  Thank you Manos for being such a wonderful host in Santorini AND Athens!

 

Too quickly, our days whizzed by and it was time to pack up and head to Crete! We didn’t want to leave! Athens seems much more sophisticated than it was back in 1987 but, more likely, I am older and wiser and can appreciate the wonders of the city more than I did at the age of 21.  Or perhaps we have both changed for the better