Greece: Day 1

Location: Athens

After I deplaned and got my Greece visa stamp (the Greek security guards were a lot nicer than the Canadian ones), I purchased a ticket for the bus that runs from the airport to central Athens, which was then never asked for. The destination was Syntagma Square, which I keep accidentally calling Stigmata Square.

One of many labor demonstrations I saw today caused the bus to stop and let us off a half-mile away, but a fellow bus passenger and local, an African man called Bertram, helped me find my way to the square. He showed me around town for a bit, and I really appreciated the help getting oriented. I felt like I had a more authentic Athenian experience than I would have just following my guidebook.

Athens is a paradox, both a dirty loud tourist trap and an historical spot so ancient beyond imagination it borders on sacred. As you walk around the city, the Acropolis on its hilly perch peeps out at you between modern buildings, fast food restaurants, and highways. Given that in America, the things we consider old are from about 1800, it's pretty surreal to be hassled by a street vendor selling "This is Sparta" t-shirts right next to the remains of a library built in 450 BC. I don't think I could live in this city.

Since it was about noon by the time Bertram and I made it through the storm of vendors in the Montastiriki Flea Market (an enormous disappointment, full of trashy souvenirs) to the square, we grabbed a quick lunch (I treated, to thank him for showing me around). Souvlaki, or σουβλάκια, is a native specialty; it is grilled meat (chicken, pork, beef, or veal) over a pita topped with French fries, onions, parsley, and tomatoes. It’s hard to get a bit of everything on your fork, and then get it all into your mouth, but it's delicious. I spent much of this vacation suffering from onion breath because of all the souvlaki.

Despite my not having slept on the plane at all, I managed to see quite a bit. Unfortunately, I gained an unwelcome "travel-buddy" in Bertram, who insisted on following me everywhere I went. I went on vacation by myself because I didn't want to worry about someone else. Suddenly my exciting independent vacation became a day of forced chit-chat and people-pleasing. I blew through the Acropolis at a hare's pace because I had this irrational worry that Bertram, my uninvited guest, would get bored. I plan on going back at my leisure when I return to Athens on Monday. I really have to learn to say No to people.

The Theater of Dionysus.

Speaking of the Acropolis, the tour guides are on strike, so I was unable to actually go up and see it (hopefully they'll have things a little more settled by the time I'm back in the city on the 24th). Instead I toured the open areas on my own (with my faithful shadow Bertram, of course) and got some cool pictures of the Theater of Dionysus, the Agora, the temple of Zeus, and the Parthenon (from afar). I also went to the Acropolis Museum because I noticed that Bertram seemed especially uninterested in it, and indeed, my decision to stop in there was the final straw for him, and he went home. Frankly, except for a couple of really large statues, the museum was kind of boring (not really my thing), but it was worth the five Euros just to lose my tail.

The Theater of Dionysus. 

The Theater of Dionysus.

Frieze on the Tower of the Winds, an ancient weather station.

However, I must wander around with the perfect damsel-in-distress look on my face because I unwillingly picked up *another* helpful gentleman, named Vanos, in the metro station as I was figuring out my route to Piraeus, where I would be boarding the ferry to Heraklion in the evening. He's in love with me, I am beautiful and he loves my voice, he says. What nonsense. After he followed me around all night, even riding with me on the metro to Piraeus (WTF?!), I agreed to hang out with him on Monday just to get him away from me, but I’m never gonna contact him.

Catching the ferry was easy, and I'm in the internet cafe onboard now. I really need to get some sleep, but I'm not tired at all; Greece is eight hours ahead of Colorado, so while it's eleven here, my body clock feels like it's about three in the afternoon. Additionally, my room is the size of a good-sized closet, it is stiflingly hot, I share it with three other women, none of whom speak any English, and this computer has CoD and CS on it, so I don't know if I'll be hitting the sack anytime soon.

Some more random things I wanted to record: there are stray animals everywhere in Athens, and they are like local celebrities among the people who live there. “This cat,” Vanos would tell me as we passed a gray tom laying under a tree, “used to run all over this street, now he just lays there, must be getting old.” Or “There is a very cute dog which lives on that street.” There is also trash everywhere, as the garbage collectors are currently on strike as well (ten days now).

Afterthought: Interesting, the way people view the US outside of it. Over our souvlaki, Bertram and I discussed our travel goals. Bertram is moving to Nants on Monday, but he is really interested in the United States (Florida, specifically). I told him about Antarctica, and my Kilimanjaro trip that fell through, and he was startled that I would go to a place like Nigeria. “Lots of big criminals there, very dangerous, you can lose everything you own, like in New York.” When I told Vanos I was an American, he smiled and said, “Ah, America - hunting and girls in bikinis!” I couldn’t deny it.

Athens from on high.