Athens, Greece

November 15 - 23, 2019

Day 0 - Arriving in Athens

Day 1 - Neighborhoods & Acropolis Museum

Day 2 - Acropolis & Ancient Agora

Day 3 - Delphi

Day 4 - Peloponnese (1)

Day 5 - Peloponnese (2)

Day 6 - Filopappou Hill

Day 7 - Home school

Day 8 - Ferry to Santorini

Voyagers tips: Plaka is a touristy neighborhood if you want lots of actions, but we really enjoyed staying at the quieter Koukakis neighborhood, which is still close to all major attractions and has great selections of restaurants. Be sure to go to Acropolis early through the southeast entrance to avoid long lines. It’s definitely worthwhile to rent a car for road trips when in Athens: Delphi, Peloponnese and Cape Sounion were all great places to visit. Just don’t keep the car for your time in Athens; the city is very walkable and parking is difficult. Food is delicious and affordable once you move away from major attractions. Lastly, the Athens pass provide deep discount to the regular summer prices of individual museums/sites, but most individual sites offer half prices in the winter, so Athens pass (no winter discount) is not worth it in the winter.

Day 0 - Arriving in Athens

Alitalia is a budget airline, but our flight was smooth.

The five of us didn't fit in a regular cab, so we booked a van, and it was nicer than expected.

We headed straight to dinner after checking in. This restaurant was awesome! The Moussaka is a Greek dish, like a baked meat pie filled with eggplant, potatoes and ground beef.

Ouzo, a Greek clear liquer. It was strong!

The owner saw M playing Wordscapes and says he plays the same game, but in Greek. Then he took out his phone to show us. The waitress said he plays it all the time. They were so friendly!

Dio Dekares i Oka Restaurant - We loved this restaurant, highly recommended.

We flew in from Rome and went looking for dinner right after checking into our apartment. Our restaurant on the first night was also the best one we had; delicious food, reasonable prices and the most friendly hosts imaginable.

Voyagers tips: Our Airbnb host booked transportation for us, which was convenient but also pricier. You can also call a cab once you arrive with the apps Beat or iMove if you have four people or less.

Day 1 - Neighborhoods & Acropolis museum

Hadrian’s Arch & Temple of Zeus

syntagma square, Plaka & Anafiotika

Acropolis Museum

Hadrian’s Arch & Temple of Zeus

When they built this arch, they considered the eastern side of this main street "New Athens".

Temple of Zeus is right next to Hadrian's Arch. They left this fallen column in place, which was neat. You can see that the columns are made of these discs.

Only a minor part of the original temple remain standing, unfortunately.

Of course we had to do these shots.

A enjoying the view.

This shot didn't work as well as we'd like.

Syntagma Square, Plaka & Anafiotika

The parliament building, with the tomb of unknown soldiers in front.

There is exchange of the guards at 11am each day, but we missed it, so we watched a recording on YouTube instead.

Two guards in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, one on each side.

Syntagma Square is on the other side of the street from the parliament building.

The fountain is the centerpiece of this spacious square.

We walked farther away from the busy Syntagma Square to find restaurants with better values. The gyros plate here was fantastic!

Plaka. You can't go ten steps without someone luring you into a restaurant or a souvenir shop.

Halloween costume for next year?

A nice graffiti mural on our way to Anafiotika.

The path to Anafiotika runs along the Acropolis walls.

Some picturesque streets.

Not every street here is pretty. Some look like this.

Nice view at the top of Anafiotika. You can see Mount Lycabettus in the distance.

Heading down to go to Acropolis Museum.

Plaka is the most touristy place with tons of shops and restaurants, whereas Anafiotika is a small neighborhood next to Plaka that has some picturesque streets and a great vista point. Syntagma Square, opposite to the parliament building, is a nice hangout place with many shops and restaurants nearby as well.

Acropolis Museum

The museum has a grand entrance.

The entire museum is built on a site of ruins. They did a great job of not only preserving it but also showcasing it to visitors.

The building itself is an impressive work of art.

These rocks provide color pigments for ancient art.

The maidens from Maidens Arch of the Erechtheion. 4 original + one new addition.

These are pieces that belonged to the top of the Parthenon. They’re very incomplete, as you can see. These were the only pieces they could find.

The complete model of what was once on the front fascia of the roof.

The outdoor cafe at the museum... no significance whatsoever, but it sure looked nice.

We went to a Greek grill house afterwards. The food was amazing!

The Greeks got their meat figured out. They're so flavorful and tender.

Oinomelo, a hot drink consisting of honey and fruit in hot wine. It was interesting and sweet. Probably won’t order it again.

The Acropolis Museum, at the foothills of the Acropolis, has a collection of art pieces excavated from the Acropolis. Most of the Acropolis was ruined during the Persian war.

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.

Day 3 - delphi

We rented a car in Athens and drove two hours to Delphi. The visit starts with the museum.

Entrance to the archaeological site.

Delphi is the center of the world in Greek mythology. Zeus sent two eagles to fly from the opposite edges of the world, and this is where the two eagles met. It’s high up in the mountains.

The rocks are of irregular shapes but fit together perfectly.

The view from up here is amazing. This is what remains of the famous Temple of Apollo where people come to seek answers.

A more complete view of the temple ruins. There was also a treasury here, to keep all the donations people gave in hopes of a good answer from the priests.

The theater of Delphi fits 5,000 people. But who would come all the way up here for a play??

You can see the theater and Temple of Apollo from here.

The stadium of Delphi, built around 4th century B.C., used for the Pythian Games, second only to the Olympics. This is the best preserved ancient stadium in Greece.

This was our favorite spot. Gorgeous view of the archeological site and of the mountains under tree shade. We sat here on the way back down and didn’t want to leave.

We found a nice restaurant on the way back down.

Greek coffee... The trick is to stop drinking when you see coffee grind at the bottom of the cup. I tried to stir up the grind to get another sip and ended up with a mouth full of coffee grind!

The Oracle of Delphi. All important decisions needed the blessing of the priests of the Oracle. Kings and other important people used to travel for weeks to go ask a simple question. But the priests were highly respected, not like the creeps that were portrayed in the movie 300 ( https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CfGIeNALguE). Oracle was a real place, and people really did travel for weeks or months to come ask for their wisdom in the Temple of Apollo, the god of prophecy. The priestess would go down to a chamber, smell some gas, and get into a trance that allows her to speak the words of Apollo. The priests would then interpret the priestess’ words and give answers to the answer seekers. They later found out there is a fault line, so they believe the gas is actually some sulfurous gas from the ground that would give people a high. It’s crazy how much power these priests had.

Voyagers tips: Park on the side of the street when you drive up to the museum. Start your visit at the museum before walking over to the archaeological site. One ticket covers both places.

Day 4 - paloponnese (1)

corinth canal & Epidavros (Epidaurus)

fortress of nafplio

Nafplio

Peloponnese, a large peninsula in southern Greece. We drove there for a 2-day trip and stayed in beautiful Nafplio, the former capital of Greece before Athens. The town of Nafplio is a great base for exploring the peninsula.

corinth canaL & Epidavros (Epidaurus)

Corinth Canal. The Peloponnese peninsula is connected to the rest of Greece by a narrow strip of land (Isthmus of Corinth).

The narrow 4mi canal was dug through to connect the Saronic Gulf to the Agean Sea.

Due to its narrowness and occasional landslide closures, it never gained commercial importance, and is used mainly as a tourist attraction today.

This is the car we rented to explore Peloponnese.

Theater of Epidavros (Epidaurus), considered the most perfect Ancient Greek theater with regards to acoustics and aesthetics.

Built in 4th century B.C. And seats 14,000.

This is really amazing. When you step onto this white rock at the center of the stage, you hear a loud echo of everything you say. This is a sign of perfect acoustics.

Corinth Canal is an easy stop, as the gateway to Peloponnese. Epidavros theater’s acoustics is still amazing today!

fortress of nafplio

This place is quite big. The beauty of off-season traveling, very few visitors.

Great view of the city and the sea from here.

The Fortress of Nafplio, perches high on the seaside cliffs.

Nafplio

M is caught butt-bumping her sister while walking around in Nafplio.

We went to a seafood restaurant where you can pick your fish. We got a dorado and a sea bass. This was our splurge meal.

Greek salad is very refreshing. Not a fan of the big block of feta cheese though, the flavor was too strong for us.

Fried cuttlefish, more interesting than calamari.

This place we stayed at is insane! 5,200 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 2 kitchens, and on a massive lot with a gorgeous view and an electric gate, just 5 miles from the city.

We really didn’t need a place this huge, but at just 165 euros, I couldn’t say no. The beauty of off-season travel.

Two balconies with beautiful views of Nafplio and the fortress.

After a bad haircut experience in Croatia, Ivan decided to let Megan cut his hair. The end result wasn't a disaster.

The girls enjoyed the trampoline outside.

We each brought just one pair of shoes and one pair of sandals with us, and have been using and abusing our shoes. M literally wore through the soles, we took her shopping for new shoes.

Ivan's sneakers ripped in the front, but given the difficulty to find shoes for his wide flat feet, Megan just sewed up the shoes and kept them going.

Trendy Grill in Nafplio. Service is mediocre, but food and value were fantastic.

The city of Nafplio, the previous capital of Greece and a touristy seaside town, is pretty dead this time of year (November).

Day 5 - Peloponnese 2

Mycenae

Cape Sounion

We visited Mycenae, major center of civilization in the Mycenaean period (1600-1100 BC). We then drove to the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion before heading back to Athens.

Mycenae

The Lion Gate, the entry to the citadel of Mycenae.

This site is quite big. The round site is a cemetery.

The high location of the citadel is a good defensive position.

This underground path leads to a well.

Most buildings are destroyed down to the ground level so the visit required quite a bit of imagination.

Mycenae, major center of civilization in the Mycenaean period (1600-1100 BC).

Cape Sounion - Temple of Poseidon

The view as we approached Cape Sounion and the Temple of Poseidon for sunset. The rays were shining through the clouds.

We’ve arrived at the Temple of Poseidon, just in time for sunset.

The columns and frame remain, but there are no signs of the statues of Poseidon.

This is a great spot for sunset. Even though it was cloudy, the sunset was beautiful.

M’s glowing head.

The view to the left of the temple is also beautiful. We took a last glance before heading home.

Cape Sounion is at the southernmost tip of the Attic peninsula. Temple of Poseidon is perched on top of Cape Sounion.

Voyagers tips: Park near the end of the road or at the cafe parking lot, then walk up to the temple. There’s a minor fee for entry. The small peninsula next to it is also worth a stop for a different view. This is a great place to view the sunset.

Day 6 - filopappou hill

The walk from our apartment in Koukaki to the top was not well mapped but turned out to be a pretty easy hike.

The Monument of Filopappou at the top of the hill.

Great views all around from here.

A found her resting spot.

On top of the world.

Signature cartwheels in Athens.

Nice view from up here.

On the edge enjoying the view.

A clear shot of the Acropolis from here.

Random picture - We tried Quince for the first time in Athens. It's sour, need to cook it and add sugar to make it edible.

Filopappou Hill is a nice park next to the Acropolis in Athens. An easy hike to the top rewards you with fantastic views. A great way to enjoy nature and wrap up our visit of Athens.

Voyagers tips: The side entrances and paths inside the park are not well mapped in Google Map. We just kept looking for paths that lead to the top and found the Filopappou Monument pretty easily.