Our journey to Athens on the Speedrunner IV was quick and uneventful. Lynda used the time to read her novel and Craig exercised his brain by doing some Suduko. There was a football match playing on the TV, but we weren't really paying attention to it. The red and white team was playing against the green and black team. When the ferry docked, we were at the front of the line to disembark. Roula had helped us book the Hotel Astor from Milos and we needed to get to Syntagma Square. We could have taken a taxi, but Craig wanted to save some Euros so we headed to the train station. As it turns out, it is very reasonable to ride the train into the city - only 1 Euro each. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Not a chance. The glitch is that part of the train line is closed for repairs. After a few stops you have to get off the train and take a bus to another station, then reboard the train and go several more stops as well as switching lines along the way. The second glitch is that the football match has just ended in the stadium beside the port. It turns out the red and white team is from Piraeus. (They were playing against the team from Thessaloniki.) So we must do all of this with our packs on, amongst thousands of football fans who are all trying to get home by public transportation. Based on the mood of the fans, the home
team was victorious. Everyone was happy and singing their team song loudly, and especially loud when a couple of Thessaloniki fans boarded the bus. In the end, we arrived at the hotel safe, but exhausted.
The Astor Hotel was a good choice for us. It was reasonably priced and centrally located to all of the major sites. We had a view of the Acropolis from our room, although it was partially obstructed by a crane. There was an even better view from the restaurant on the 10th floor. We ate a huge breakfast up there (included in the price) every morning before going out to do some sightseeing. Our hotel was very busy. We spoke to many people who were stuck in Athens because of the problems with the volcanic ash that had closed down airports in most of Europe. Many of them were waiting for news or trying to find alternate ways out of the city. We were happy that we weren't trying to get home. We were only trying to get to Croatia. How hard could it be? We knew it was a sixteen hour journey from Patras to Bari, Italy by ferry. Once we arrived in Bari, we could catch another ferry to Dubrovnik. Lynda was not thrilled about the prospect of being in a seat for that long so she convinced Craig that we should get a cabin. Nothing fancy, just an inside cabin for two. We heard that if we bought a seat, we could wait and purchase an upgrade on the ferry. If we were lucky, we could end up being two people in a four person cabin. We had a plan. Full of confidence, we went to the Superfast ferry office in Syntagma Square. It turns out, Bari was one of those alternate routes out of the city. There was only one cabin left and it was the most expensive one. After a half hour of humming and hawwing, we decided to fork over the money and book the cabin. Let's face it men...if your wife is happy, you are happy. Even if it means paying for a cabin, to travel a long way, in the dark..jpg)
Back to Athens...Our first day there, we took the train one stop to the Acropolis station. We found the entrance gate and paid 12 Euros for a pass that covered the fees to seven sites, over four days. Many of the sites are within close proximity to the Acropolis. We saw the Theatre of Dionysis, the Parthenon, the Agora, the Temple of Zeus and Hadrian's Gate. It's all a bit overwhelming actually. (Perhaps we should have had Preet give us a refresher course in Ancient Civilizations before we left Canada.) What we can say is that it was great to actually see some of these things in person. You see them and hear about them your whole life, but it is different when you are standing in front of them. They are so impressive. We also enjoyed our trip to the National Archaeological Museum on the second day. We saw sculptures, bronzes, vases, and Egyptian and Pre-historic artifacts that date as far back as the 7th millenium BC. We think that our modern society is responsible for so many things, such as mechanical clocks, medical equipment, and fine jewellery, when in fact they have been around for a very long time and the skill level of the craftsmen was amazingly high. .jpg)
Athens is a massive, sprawling city. We barely had time to view one small part of it, however, we are satisfied with what we saw. Our departure is well-timed. There is a lot of unrest in this country due to its financial problems. It is more noticeable in Athens than on the islands. A general strike has been called for the 22nd of April and we fear that if we don't get out now, we will be marooned for days. We are taking the Superfast bus to Patras (about four hours away) where we will board the ferry for Bari. With the added luxury of a private cabin to look forward to, this leg of our journey, should be most enjoyable.
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team was victorious. Everyone was happy and singing their team song loudly, and especially loud when a couple of Thessaloniki fans boarded the bus. In the end, we arrived at the hotel safe, but exhausted.The Astor Hotel was a good choice for us. It was reasonably priced and centrally located to all of the major sites. We had a view of the Acropolis from our room, although it was partially obstructed by a crane. There was an even better view from the restaurant on the 10th floor. We ate a huge breakfast up there (included in the price) every morning before going out to do some sightseeing. Our hotel was very busy. We spoke to many people who were stuck in Athens because of the problems with the volcanic ash that had closed down airports in most of Europe. Many of them were waiting for news or trying to find alternate ways out of the city. We were happy that we weren't trying to get home. We were only trying to get to Croatia. How hard could it be? We knew it was a sixteen hour journey from Patras to Bari, Italy by ferry. Once we arrived in Bari, we could catch another ferry to Dubrovnik. Lynda was not thrilled about the prospect of being in a seat for that long so she convinced Craig that we should get a cabin. Nothing fancy, just an inside cabin for two. We heard that if we bought a seat, we could wait and purchase an upgrade on the ferry. If we were lucky, we could end up being two people in a four person cabin. We had a plan. Full of confidence, we went to the Superfast ferry office in Syntagma Square. It turns out, Bari was one of those alternate routes out of the city. There was only one cabin left and it was the most expensive one. After a half hour of humming and hawwing, we decided to fork over the money and book the cabin. Let's face it men...if your wife is happy, you are happy. Even if it means paying for a cabin, to travel a long way, in the dark.
Back to Athens...Our first day there, we took the train one stop to the Acropolis station. We found the entrance gate and paid 12 Euros for a pass that covered the fees to seven sites, over four days. Many of the sites are within close proximity to the Acropolis. We saw the Theatre of Dionysis, the Parthenon, the Agora, the Temple of Zeus and Hadrian's Gate. It's all a bit overwhelming actually. (Perhaps we should have had Preet give us a refresher course in Ancient Civilizations before we left Canada.) What we can say is that it was great to actually see some of these things in person. You see them and hear about them your whole life, but it is different when you are standing in front of them. They are so impressive. We also enjoyed our trip to the National Archaeological Museum on the second day. We saw sculptures, bronzes, vases, and Egyptian and Pre-historic artifacts that date as far back as the 7th millenium BC. We think that our modern society is responsible for so many things, such as mechanical clocks, medical equipment, and fine jewellery, when in fact they have been around for a very long time and the skill level of the craftsmen was amazingly high. .jpg)
Athens is a massive, sprawling city. We barely had time to view one small part of it, however, we are satisfied with what we saw. Our departure is well-timed. There is a lot of unrest in this country due to its financial problems. It is more noticeable in Athens than on the islands. A general strike has been called for the 22nd of April and we fear that if we don't get out now, we will be marooned for days. We are taking the Superfast bus to Patras (about four hours away) where we will board the ferry for Bari. With the added luxury of a private cabin to look forward to, this leg of our journey, should be most enjoyable.
View More Photos
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