I remember back on the sofa in Colorado when we started looking at tickets to Istanbul. Jonathan glanced over the computer at me with a pretty significant grin on his face and said, “What do you think we can see in a 12-hour layover in Athens?” Months later, we can tell you, quite a bit!
Knowing the current state of Greece’s government and economy, I had limited expectations. I thought we would see enormous lines at the ATMs, trash flowing across the Acropolis, and disgruntled people throughout the city. Per usual, I was wrong… at least in the few places we visited. Athens has made, at least the tourist track, an easily accessible, clean, and friendly environment. It took nearly no effort to find the train out of the airport and make our way to the Acropolis and surrounding area.
We meandered through the pillars, stone steps, and mild crowd on this cold blustery day. The Acropolis has the unfortunate disadvantage of being severely built up in all of our minds as we think about the ancient people who built upon it and the amount of history that took place on it’s grounds. Though my Greek history peaked in Mr. A’s 7th grade world history class, it was easy to see as we looked upon the massive pillars of the Parthenon and the Temple of Athena Nike that this place was the peak of an incredible past.
The Parthenon is dedicated to Athena Parthenos (Athena the Virgin, patron goddess of Athens) and is the most important shrine on the Acropolis. Inside, a 36 foot gold and ivory statue of Athena used to stand and welcome priests and special visitors to this incredible site. Unfortunately, time, battles, and a major strike by the Venetians in 1687 took its toll on the structure leaving the Parthenon an airy set of ruins under constant renovation.
It took me some time to understand just how many years had past since life thrived on the Acropolis (nearly 2,500!) and grasp and appreciate the ruins that laid before me. My first instinct was disappointment as the scaffolding and crowds made it difficult for my imagination to take off and envision what once stood. However, with educational signs and a boyfriend sporadically telling me crazy Greek mythology stories, I ended my time on the Acropolis in good spirits.
My favorite part of the day was adventuring down from the Acropolis to the Agora, ancient Athens’ business, civic, and cultural center. We wandered, practically alone, through the square’s gardens and toppled over ancient pillars discussing ancient Greek mythology and the amount of labor required to construct these structures surrounding us. The Agora was a large open square where citizens (including those famously recognizable names of Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle) of ancient Athens assembled for market, elections, dramatic performances, philosophy discussions, and athletic competitions. Today, mostly overgrown with olive trees, cypress shrubs, and grass, Jonathan and I enjoyed our quiet walk occasionally looking up to the massive Acropolis above us.
We made our way to the Hephaisteion (Temple of Hephaestus), one of the best preserved ancient Greek temples – standing largely as it was built in 415BC. Hephaestus was the patron god of metal working, craftsmanship, and fire. Numerous metal working shops and potter’s workshops surrounded this temple in ancient times. This was exactly what I had in mind when expecting to see ancient ruins! We walked the perimeter admiring the reliefs of athletics and animals before realizing lunch time had come and gone.
After perusing the main strip of restaurants, we turned down a little street and popped into a crowded restaurant with paper tablecloths, beers on every table, and old men behind the counter creating some phenomenal smells. We stuffed ourselves with fries covered in feta, kebabs, and FIX Hellas beer before ending our day in Athens with Banofe ice cream (thanks Papa Rauk for instilling in me the need to try the ice cream everywhere I go despite the freezing weather). Athens in 12 hours – well worth the exhaustion that followed!
Eastbound and Down 