Tuesday, June 18, 2019

A walk around tourist Athens

We spent our first full day in Athens walking around the maim tourist neighborhoods of Plaka, Anafiotias and Monastiriaki, following a audio guide narrated by Rick Steves.  We began with a lazy morning, catching up on sleep, adjusting to a new time zone seven hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time, breakfasting on yogurt with granola.  We did not emerge from our apartment until nearly noon.  It looked cloudy and threatening rain, but buoyed by a weather forecast that put the chances of rain as no more than 10% or 20%, we took no rain gear.

We began by checking out a small Russian Orthodox church just across Fililennon Street from the street where our apartment, the Ekklisia Agia Triada Rosiki







Sunday, June 16, 2019

Our first day in Athens


Having spent an entire semester studying classical Greece as part of my first year Humanities program at Reed College, Greece has long been on my bucket list of places to see during my lifetime, and this summer we are gathering with our family in Greece, planning to spend roughly a week in each of Athens, Crete and Naxos.  We arrived in Athens this afternoon after a flight in on Scandinavian Airlines by way of Copenhagen.  We have taken a three bedroom apartment near Syntagma Square; after unpacking and winding down for am hour or so, we set out to get our first taste of the city.

We strolled out along Mitropoleos, pausing for an ice cream near the Syntagma Square and getting directions for a grocery store where we could stock up for the next few days’ breakfasts.  Proceeding back in the direction of the Acropolis, we came upon the 19th Century Athens Cathedral

Athens Cathedral with Acropolis in rear

Athens Cathedral

Square in front of Athens Cathedral

Five days on the beaches of Guanacaste Province

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