10/13/2015 Athens (Cruise to Mediterranean & Israel)

After Mykonos, our next port of call was Piraeus, the port city of Athens.

Athens is considered the cradle of Western civilization.  During Greek’s Golden Age, Athenians pioneered immeasurable advances in democracy, sciences, philosophy, art, and architecture.  Its influences shaped the foundation and formed the cornerstones of our civilization that still inspire us today.

We joined a private tour arranged by Jackie from New Jersey.  Our tour guide was already at the dockside waiting for us when we disembarked.  On the way to Athens, the bus took us through many seaside condominium complexes overlooking the Piraeus harbor.  Our tour guide told us that a small two-bedroom unit would still sell easily for more than 1 million Euro.  It’s in direct contrast to what we’ve seen on TV where Athenians took to the street to protest belt-tightening measures because of the Greece financial problem.  I guess wealth does bring the privilege of being immune to world worries, even when the whole country of Greece is in dire straits.

Our main destination for the day was the Acropolis, a plateau high above Athens.  The Acropolis of Athens is the most important ancient site in the Western world.  Many temples sit on this site, among them Parthenon is the most magnificent.  The Acropolis is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Before we visited the Acropolis itself, we first came to the Acropolis Museum, a glassy modern temple with relics from the Acropolis.

The museum was built on top of a ruin.  The walkways outside were built with clear glass panels to allow viewing over the ruin below.

The corridor on one side of the museum offers a clear view of the Acropolis.  There appears to have some hiking trails leading from the foothill toward the hilltop.

Cameras are not allowed for most of the exhibits on level 1 and 2.  On level 3, five of the six original caryatids (lady-columns) from the Erechtheion temple are displayed.  The sixth original caryatid is in London’s British Museum.  These ancient ladies are camera-friendly (no surprise!).


The most amazing display on level 3 is the decorative friezes that once adorned the exterior of the Parthenon.  On display are a few of the original friezes, the forever lost pieces (marked by blank spaces), and replicas of the pieces that are stored in London’s British Museum, Paris’ Louvre, and Copenhagen.    

Some original statues from Acropolis can be seen on Level 3 too.

After the museum visit, we went to the Plaka district for lunch.  The bus dropped us off at the Monastiraki Square.  The old mosque in the background is now the Museum of Greek Folk Arts.

A small church, The Church of the Virgin, is also on this square.

This short street, Souvlaki Row, is full of restaurants with outdoor tables.

Our group had lunch together occupying many of these outdoor tables.  With restaurant’s free WIFI, I managed to check in on Facebook.

On our way to Acropolis, we passed the Arch of Hadrian.  This arch was built by Roman emperor Hadrian to segregate the old Greek district and the new Roman district in 132 AD.  Hadrian, one of the Five Good Emperors, seemed to be omnipresent since we had just seen the Temple of Hadrian in Ephesus across the Aegean Sea two days ago.

We also got a glimpse of the ruin of the Temple of Olympian Zeus.  This once massive temple took almost 700 years to build by various emperors and kings.  It was finally completed by Hadrian in 131 AD.

        

We started from the bottom of the Acropolis.  First, we saw the grand Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a venue for musical performances.  The Odeon was built in 161 AD with a capacity for 5000 people.


Before climbing the big steps to reach the top of the Acropolis, we had to pass the Beule Gate.

Then it was a steep climb toward the Propylaea. The square pedestal on the left is the Monument of Agrippa.  Marc Antony and his lover Cleopatra’s statue once sat atop this pedestal until Marc Antony was defeated by Agrippa.

Propylaea is an imposing building with many tall fluted columns.  It served as the gateway to the Acropolis.       

The Parthenon is an architectural masterpiece that was erected 2500 years ago.  It was a temple dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their patron.  The Parthenon is regarded as an enduring symbol of Ancient Greece, Athenian democracy, and western civilization.

The east side of the Parthenon, with 8 columns.

The south side of the Parthenon, with 17 columns.

The north side of the Parthenon, with 17 columns.

The west side of the Parthenon, with 8 columns.

Next to the Parthenon is the Erechtheion, an ancient Greek temple dedicated to Athena and Poseidon.


On one corner of Erechtheion is the Porch of the Caryatids.  Six lady-columns support the roof of a protruding porch.  These six caryatids are replicas.  We saw five originals in the Acropolis Museum this morning.    

The Parthenon and The Erechtheion.

Theater of Dionysus is an open-air theater right at the foothill of the Acropolis.  This theater had 17000 seats and was built in 4^th century BC.


The Acropolis offers spectacular views of Athens.  In this picture, the Temple of Olympian Zeus is at a far distance.      

A closer view of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, from the Acropolis.

Another spectacular view of Athens. In this picture, the glassy Museum of Acropolis is on the left.

Our last stop of the day is the Panathenaic Stadium.  This is one of the oldest stadia in the world, and the only one built entirely of marble.  It was used for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, and again when Greece hosted the 2004 Olympic Games.




After Athens, the ship cruised one day at sea before it reached our next destination Malta. On this sea day, we had our third, and the last, formal dinner.  The big succulent lobster was on the menu and we all stuffed ourselves.

-Joe