The Third Stop: Athens

Athens has been wonderful in some ways, challenging in others.  Let me explain. 

 We got caught up in the airline shutdown fiasco of '24, and did not arrive to our Athens hotel until 2:30 in the morning.  We had ferry tickets for the morning so we hardly slept that first night. We got to the ferry on time, but a British man named Nick sat next to us and talked non-stop. Lucky for me, Husbandman, with his superior conversational skills, dealt with Nick while I applied laser focus to my book.

We loved Hydra.  There are no cars allowed on Hydra.  Some people use donkeys.  We chose to walk.  We found a beautiful place for swimming and mocktails where we lounged for a good long while. We had no water shoes, so we had to walk across burning stones to the sea whenever we wanted to get back in the water.  Imagine a bed of hot coals.  After swimming, we headed to a delightful lunch spot on a shady terrace overlooking the port.  Greece gets high points for veggie friendly, tasty food items.  I love the food here.

The heat has been tough this week.  Not going to lie. I suspect I may have a serious heat intolerance condition.  Or I could just be pathetically out of shape. Not sure. Either way, the heat caused some changes in my typical tourism routines.

We did go to the Museum of Cycladic Art where we saw a terrific Cindy Sherman exhibit and learned about the artists who made these figurines.  From 2700 BC to about 2300 BC they were all made pretty much the same.  But then some wiseacres introduced variations. Moving one arm slightly akimbo for example.  I loved these figures and have nothing but appreciation for the ancient Creatives of the Cyclades.

We went to the Acropolis but the heat and the crowds were super unpleasant.  10 years ago, Husbandman and I came to Athens in February.  At that time I walked to the Acropolis twice in one week. No crowds at all.  Stray dogs lazing about.  A few small groups of tourists walking around chatting. Delightful.  But this time, my heat intolerance and social anxiety caused me to nearly have a cardiac arrest. That said, the Parthenon is crazy impressive.  It was built around 450 BC. You should go there if you feel like it.  Don't let my ridiculous heat intolerance stop you.

Husbandman has been working this week, grueling away at mathematics.  His colleague loaned us a cool, charming apartment near the city center.  Last night we walked out to this wonderful restaurant.  Another amazing meal.

We go to Crete tomorrow, the final stop of the journey.  

We've had our ups and downs, Athens, but I'm not mad at you. 

And we will return.  

But not in the summer. 

Antio kai efcharisto!