Since 2020 is not a great year for so many things, we stayed home for Halloween this year. Meg had a few of here close friends that she sees every day at school over for a party.
Athens day 2: Aristotle’s Lyceum (school)
And the National garden. Saw a changing of the guard at the President’s house. There wasn’t much left of Aristotle’s school. It was recently unearthed when breaking ground for a new museum in 1996.
Athens day 2: Olympic Stadium
We had the all marble stadium where the first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896 mostly to ourselves.
Athens Day 2: Temple of Olympic Zeus
Exploring the ruins of the largest Greek temple up close.
Athens day 1: Hadrian’s library
Ancient knowledge was stored here. Partial mosaics left in places.
Athens Day 1: Roman Agora
The Tower of the Winds is a water clock and eight sided building depicting the wind directions.
Greek breakfast
Today was our last breakfast in Greece. For the first parts of our trip on the islands we mostly ate simple food we got from the grocery store. In Athens there were so many cheap and tasty takeout options that we mostly did that. A taxi driver told us about the excellent pastries that Greeks usually have for breakfast, so we tried them in Athens. They are layers of filo dough with various fillings such as spinach, cheese, mushrooms, meat, or some combination. They also have some sweet ones with cream or chocolate. They also have their own version of sesame seed bagels, which Meg really liked. The pies are very filling, which was good, because we did a lot of walking in Athens.
The Greeks also make several different tasty coffee drinks. Greek coffee is similar to Turkish coffee. The grounds are very fine, and simply left at the bottom of the cup. It is surprisingly smooth and not too bitter. They also make several different frozen coffees. We enjoyed the blended frappe.
Around Athens: day 2 – the Temple of Zeus, the all marble Olympic stadium, Aristotle’s school, the National Gardens, and the National Archeological Museum
We had another full day of touristing for our last full day in Greece. So grateful for all the history and beauty. More details in individual posts to come.
Around Athens: Ancient Agora
This complex includes the Temple of Hephaestus (the best preserved of the Ancient Greek temples), an early water clock, a museum constructed in Greek styles in the twentieth century, and more roots of democracy, religions and culture from through the ages.
Around Athens: Acropolis
We explored the Acropolis. Plenty of theaters and temples on the path up the hill. A great view of Athens, lots of wind, dust, and reconstruction work at the top. Beauty and history all around.
