May 2 - Arriving in Athens

We made it! After what seemed to be an endless journey, we are finally here - our first trip to Greece.

The flights were basically a pain - seated near the throne on both legs - but Jane met a very helpful guy on the second half. 'John' pointed out all of the relevant sights from his window seat.

Poor guy just finished his masters in England and was coming home to fulfill his two year military obligation.

The rumours of some Greek taxi drivers are not exaggerated - the taxi driver that we had from the airport drove like a madman. To be perfectly honest, he would have scared Jacques (Villeneuve, that is) had he picked him up, but after all those hours of travel we were fine with his driving.

We checked in at the lovely Hotel Plaka and were soon strolling about Athens. The view from our room is one we will not soon forget. The Acropolis seems to be within arms reach!

The view from our room

After an impromptu tour of the Plaka district, we decide that Athens isn't nearly as bad as we had heard. We found a square with plenty of happy people, and decided to join them. We must have become somewhat delusional at that point, because an old man with a polaroid took our picture and charged us $7.50 for it (1,500 drachma).

After a few Heinekens, and a gift of owl's eyes from a jewellry store proprietor (blue charms for luck) for Jane, we're back to the hotel. Going to see the Acropolis and the museum in the morning.

Amphoras near the base of the Acropolis

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Related articles of Interest

• Greece opens its Acropolis Museum (cbc.ca)