Again we were part of a group of 8 Cruise Critic friends. We met our guide at 7:30 a.m. at the port terminal of the city of Piraeus, Greece to begin our day of tour of Athens, Greece.
This is the early morning view of our port area. The drive from the port to the city took approximately 30 minutes.
The city of Athens was “on alert” because civil demonstrations that, it was feared, might become riots. (Sorry, I can’t remember the issue for these demonstrations. I don’t remember it being directly related to the economic crises—Euro-related--even though those issues were in the news at that time).
Our first stop was in the downtown area of Athens at the site of the Panathenaic Stadium. In ancient times this stadium was used to host the athletic portion of the Panathenaic Games in honor of the Goddess Athena. Originally the stadium had wooden seating. In 329 BC it was remade in marble and in 140 AD it was enlarged and renovated to accommodate a seated capacity of 50,000. The remnants of the ancient structure were excavated and restored for the revival of the Olympic Games that were held there in 1870 and 1875. The stadium was refurbished a second time for the 1896 Olympics.
Back in the van we traveled a short distance up the Acropolis Hill to the Parthenon where work continues on restoration.
Note the dog near Sylvia. Everywhere we traveled in Athens we saw what appeared to be stray dogs. We inquired about them and were told they were fed, neutered, and given proper medical attention including a microchip—all paid for by the government. You will notice other dogs in additional photos. All of them appeared to be well-fed and happy in their environments.
Here is some examples of the latest restoration work that is ongoing…
And, the restored (to date) Parthenon. The Parthenon is a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their protector. Its construction began in 447 BC and was completed in 438 BC. It is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece. The Parthenon is regarded as an enduring symbol of Ancient Greece and of Athenian democracy and one of the world's greatest cultural monuments.
In the 5th century AD, the Parthenon was converted into a Christian church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. After a Turkish conquest in 1460 it was turned into a mosque.
Shown below is the view looking down on the city of today from the ancient Acropolis Hill.
While the Parthenon was the most impressive temple on the Acropolis, another building, The Erechtheion, was built to accommodate the religious rituals that the old temple housed. Construction of The Erechtheion began in 420 BC. The elegance and delicate forms of The Erechtheion contrast sharply with the neighboring Parthenon. The temple faces east and its entrance is lined with six long Ionic columns. To the north and west the wall of the temple drops dramatically to almost twice the altitude of the front and south sides.
The temple is unusual in that it incorporates two porches; one at the northwest corner which is supported by tall Ionic columns, and one at the southwest corner which is supported by six massive female statues, the famous Caryatids.
The Caryatids have become the temple’s signature feature, as they stand and seem to casually support the weight of the porch’s roof on their heads.
Back in the van we traveled away from Acropolis Hill to the ruins of the Temple of Zeus. The Temple of Zeus, built between 472 and 456 BC, stood in the most famous sanctuary of Greece. It was the very model of the fully-developed classical Greek temple.
(Note, the structures and ruins of Acropolis Hill are visible in the background just to the left of this group of columns).
On the right, notice the height of the person as it relates to this temple. Also, pictured are two more of the happy dogs.
One of the obviously happy dogs…
Pictured above is a couple, Hasamuckh “Has” & Pushpa “Push” Parikh. Prior to the cruise we became acquainted with “Has & Push” online on the site Cruise Critic.com. We were on tours together at almost every port of this trip and became good friends with them. Over 40 years ago they immigrated to the USA from India and live in New Jersey. “Has” worked on the 35th floor of tower #2 of the World Trade Center. He was at work on 9/11/2001 when the tower was hit. He followed instructions and immediately began the descent in the stairway to get out of the building. He evacuated successfully without any injury. “Has” continued to work in New York City for a couple more years after the tragedy before retiring. Since his retirement he has, each year, made a trip back to his homeland of India and spent about a month each time, working with the people of his home village there. At the end of this cruise, “Has” was flying from Barcelona to India while Pushpa was traveling home to New Jersey.
Back in the van we traveled to the site where the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, (2004 Summer Olympics) were held in this stadium.
From that location we could look across the city to Acropolis Hill.
Below is a member of the Greek Presidential Palace Guard known as the “Evzones”. Though the Presidential Guard is a predominately ceremonial unit, all Evzones are volunteers drawn from the Hellenic Army's Infantry, Artillery and Armored Corps. Prospective Evzones are usually identified at the Army Recruit Training Centers during Basic Training; there is a minimum height requirement of 6 ft. 3 in. to join, and the soldier must serve a minimum of 6 months with an operational Army unit before beginning Evzone training.
The first Evzones unit was formed in 1868 as the royal guard and continued its role after the abolition of the Greek monarchy. At their height, the evzones comprised five regiments and were considered the elite of the Hellenic Army. As such, they were frequently used as shock troops. The units suffered horrific casualties in the Balkan and world wars, and were disbanded in 1944 except for the ceremonial guard unit.
The Guard always takes precedence in all military parades. They always march in slow time, and always strike ground forcefully with their right foot.
Today the Evzones’ duties include: guarding, on a 24-hour basis, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Presidential Mansion and the gates of the Presidential Guard training camp. Also, the official raising and lowering of the flag (at 9am and 6pm respectively) every Sunday at the Acropolis, and marching in an annual parade on New York’s 5th Avenue in celebration of Greece’s National Day, March 25th.
The main parts of the Evzone uniform are: the red hat with a silk tassel; the shirt, white with very wide sleeves; the waistcoat, hand embroidered with great skill. Various designs of great traditional and folklore importance are embroidered on the waistcoat in white or gilt thread; the kilt, made from 33 yards of material, with 400 pleats, representing the 400 years of the Turkish occupation; the breeches, the white woolen stockings; the cartridge belt and a semi-automatic battle rifle, with bayonet; the garters, black and the inside garter, which holds the stockings in position, the fringe (blue and white colored braids, the colors of the Greek flag) and the traditional shoes. The shoes are completely hand-made from hard leather and each sole has 60 nails. Each pair weighs over six pounds. The toe of the shoe turns up in a point which is covered by a black pompom.
Here are three members of the Evzones in the changing of the guard ceremony at the Greek Presidential Palace.
And, behind the fence is the Presidential Palace .
The changing of the guard ceremony here took place at 11 a.m. each day.
After this, we traveled through the downtown area of Athens. This photo shows the guards on the street corner in anticipation of the possible riots.
And, then we passed the Greek Parliament buildings shown below.
From the government area we traveled to a shopping area called “The Plaka”.
The Plaka is in the oldest section of Athens. Most of the streets have been closed to automobile traffic, though there are still speeding motorcycles and the occasional delivery truck. This is an area of restaurants, jewelry stores, tourist shops, and cafes. The tourist shops are crammed full of stuff, some of it junk, but plenty of interesting items if you feel compelled to bring back gifts to everyone you know.
We stopped in a street café for lunch. The food did not impress us very favorably. (Perhaps it’s just Greek food that we don’t like!)
After lunch and a half hour of strolling through the shops, we arrived at the Acropolis Museum.
The walkway leading into the museum was suspended over these unearthed treasures. No pictures were allowed in the museum. The exhibits were informative and worth spending the time there.
This ended our time in Athens. Our driver transported us back to the ship.
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