Day 2 - Acropolis & ancient agora

acropolis

areopagus hill

roman forum & hadrian’s library

ancient agora

Working our way around the ancient sites in counterclockwise direction, our itinerary worked out very well: Acropolis => Areopagus Hill=> Roman Forum if Athens => Hadrian’s Library => Ancient Agora. The two highlights are definitely Acropolis and Ancient Agora.

acropolis

The Parthenon, the most important temple and the main symbol of the Acropolis.

Our first stop after entering the Acropolis is the Theater of Dionysus. This is the oldest known theater...the very first theater in the world that all other theaters are modeled after!

The Propylaia, the monumental entrance to the Acropolis.

The Erechtheion was a place of worship for both Athena and Poseidon. According to Greek mythology, Poseidon and Athena competed for the city’s affection here. Athena won, hence the city name Athens.

The olive tree was a gift from goddess Athena to win the city's affection.

Most of the Parthenon was destroyed during the Persian war. Heavy construction is taking place to restore it to its former glory.

You can see the Temple of Zeus from here.

A looks tiny next to the base layer of one column.

Jumping over the Parthenon!

Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a legendary theater that was renovated in the 1950’s and is used today for some of today’s best musical performances. We couldn’t go in, bummer.

We made it to the Acropolis, the number one attraction in Greece. Greek’s worship of the Greek gods come to life here.

Voyagers tips: Use the southeast entrance (the path opposite to Acropolis Museum entrance) to avoid tour bus crowds. Go right when it opens to get some nice shots before the tour groups show up.

areopagus hill

The view from Areopagus Hill.

The girls found their resting spots.

We went for a Greek lunch. The souvlaki was tasty.

Aeropegus Hill, next to the Acropolis, is a great chilling spot with a fantastic view.

roman forum of athens & hadrian’s library

Roman Forum of Athens, a market place in the old days. The tower of wind in the back has a sundial, water clock and wind vane.

Hadrian’s Library, which includes a church as well as music and lecture rooms. One full side of the church remains as can be seen here. Most of the rest of the site was destroyed.

A gate inside Hadrian’s library. This is a famous site, but with little information posted and most of the ruins down to knee level, I didn’t find it that interesting.

Lots of olive trees around Greece. Too bad they're not edible without processing.

There are many shops and restaurants on the way to Ancient Agora, our favorite was definitely this place - Customized Greek frozen yogurt. Similar to Yogurtland in the US, with Greek yogurts.

Lots of toppings choices.

This was a welcomed rest for the girls.

You can see most of the Roman Forum of Athens from the outside. However, without going in, you will not be able to see the inside of the tower of wind.

ancient agora

The Stoa of Attalos here is fully restored, quite impressive to imagine this being built over two thousand years ago.

The downstairs of Stoa of Attalos.

This little stretch of ruins next to the metro rail is just ignored.

Temple of Hephaestus, the most prominent temple in ancient agora.

Most of the ancient agora looks like this.

The layers of a column are stacked together without grooves or nails, seems like they can shift. I wouldn’t want to be next to it when earthquake strikes.

Temple of Hephaestus viewed up close.

The Ancient Agora, the #2 ancient site in Athens behind the Acropolis. This place is big.