At 1:00, George arrived and we began our tour in downtown Athens. Our first stop was the National Archeology Museum. We saw loads of artifacts and sculptures with huge peeps. Seth giggled a lot and Jamie got yelled at because Seth told her to go through a door she wasn't allowed to. We narrowly escaped prosecution and a Singapore style cane beating and made our way to watch the changing of the guards in front of the President's House. According to George, the men who have this job are members of the Army, and are specially chosen. He told us they must be tall and handsome and suggested that Seth apply. The ritual we watched was very cool and included some synchronized stepping by the guards and some yelling in Greek. George also told us that the President is very popular and modest, he doesn't even live in the President's house, he only works there. This would be like Obama living somewhere other than the White House. Our next stop was to see the Olympic Stadium where the first games in 1896 were held. It is right in the middle of the city. George also took us to one of the highest points in the city for more panoramic pictures. We walked up a ton of stairs (and burned off last night's tzatziki) and saw a church that was more then 700 years old.
Finally, we were off to the ancient ruins. We started at Zeus's Temple and then went to the Acropolis. Both structures are difficult to describe without being there. You come across these gigantic columns made so long ago in the center of this bustling city that are still standing. Imaging the history made us awestruck. The Acropolis sits on the edge of the city (which is what Acropolis means in Greek) and is way above everything else, so the views are amazing. We took some fantastic pictures. We read about the restoration projects and listened to all of the different languages being spoken around us. We learned the international sign for "please take my picture" which consists of waving and gesturing. Jamie is apparently a magnet for such requests.
If you can believe, all of this was jam packed into 4 hours and we were ready to start our trip up the coastline to Cape Sounia and Poseiden's Temple. First, we needed to refuel from the serious walking workout we had. George started driving along the coast out of Athens where we stopped at a grill to get souvlaki and gyros. We got pork and chicken with salad and tzatziki inside and were in total heaven. At the meal, George told us about his family and his travels and when we told him we are lawyers he treated us to some lawyer jokes. (One was actually funny). After that excellent meal (a snack for Seth and George) we made our way back to the car for our scenic drive up the coast. George drove for about 60 km and we saw the most beautiful coastal homes and towns (in between snoozes). We decided that when we can afford 7000 euro per meter we would buy a house there. We finally arrived at Cape Sounian and Poseiden's temple right at sunset. We climbed up yet another hill (the Greeks like to build structures up high) and were treated to a gorgeous sunset. The sky couldn't have been more perfect. It was quite romantic and we took loads of beautiful pictures.
We got back to our hotel around 9:30 and somehow Seth managed to drag us out for dinner. Apparently 10:00 is the magic hour for eating as the tavernas were all packed. We ate at an old taverna off the beaten path in the Plaka known for its seafood. We scored a table outside up a small hill with a lovely view. Seth was quite adventurous and ordered greens despite the waiter's warning that only Greeks like them. Of course, Seth ate the entire portion himself. We walked home after dinner, enjoyed a glass of champagne and went to sleep. A great end to a busy day!
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