Parthenon

Our final day in Athens proved just as busy as the others, as we visited the last of the “must sees.” We ate lunch at Thanasis, which was the most Greek restaurant so far, and the meal was absolutely delicious (see pictures below). If only the house wine in the states tasted this good! We entered the Kapnikarea Church in the Monastiraki area, where we paid tribute to the living and the dead in true Orthodox manner. Afterwards, we walked up to the Parthenon, which is truly breathtaking. It was very cold and windy today, so we stopped by Piazza Duomo for coffee (Sasha went Irish, naturally). Then we walked another 2 miles (uphill, oh heavens) to the highest point in Athens – Mt. Lycabettus. We were winded when we got to the top, but it was worth it for the views. We drank tea and coffee at the restaurant, then rode the funicular to the base and wandered through the Kolonaki area on the way back to the hotel. Another amazing day – wine tour in Corinth tomorrow!
Sasha, loving his Greek beer, ready for the most authentic meal yet at Thanasis

The spicy green peppers proved too hot for my darling (a true Semple “man down”)

The most beautiful Greek salad ever

Amidst renovations of the Parthenon, with his man purse

An amazing view of Athens from the Acropolis

We finally made it to the Parthenon (but almost didn’t for the third time…)

Sasha with Mount Lycabettus in the background – our next challenge – which we conquered

Greek history everywhere you look – such an amazing city

A wet and windy day doesn’t damper our traveling spirits 🙂

A lot bigger than you think – a true Kodak moment

I loved the Turkish flag pic so much, I had to…

The entrance to the Acropolis

Deep thoughts atop Mount Lycabettus (we climbed up more than a mile, as we didn’t see the funicular – oh boy)

My wilderness man at the restaurant on top of Mt. Lycabettus

City as far as you can see

St. George Church on top of Mt. Lycabettus (highest point in Athens) – destination wedding?

Wind like you’ve never felt before

And finally, two iPhone pics:

5 o’clock somewhere – Irish coffee time

We arrived in Athens around noon, bought metro tickets, then realized the metro workers were on strike. Go figure – only in Greece! It was a pain at first, but then we realized it was just “typical Greek,” so laughed about it and hopped in a taxi (a nice yellow Mercedes CL500!) to go the hotel. We ate at the nearby Oroscopo for lunch and had a baked feta cheese appetizer that was to die for (see picture below). Afterwards, we walked about a mile and a half to the Acropolis to see the Parthenon, which was already closed so we took a bunch of pictures from the base and went to the Acropolis Museum, which is a must see. We ate dinner at Strofi, which overlooks the entire Acropolis – absolutely stunning. They served us complimentary kefi, which is a Greek liquor. Our meal was amazing – Greek salad to start (of course). Sasha had a craving for frozen yogurt, so I googled it, thinking we’d have little luck, but we found one a mile away. We walked to Yogolicious – real Greek froyo – unparalleled anywhere else. We found ourselves in the Monastiraki area, which is totally hustle-and-bustle. Lights, people, music everywhere – we loved it. We have heard mixed reviews about Athens, but it’s truly one of my favorite cities in the world.

Baked feta cheese with fresh tomatoes – we had to have this as our first Greek appetizer – it was heavenly!

Guards protecting the President’s house (with pom-pom shoes on)

This is my trademark: climbing trees in foreign cities

Sunset on Athens

The cliffside view of the Parthenon – going back today for pictures and viewing!

In the Acropolis – at the base of the Parthenon

Strolling through the streets of the Monastiraki area at night was amazing – lights, people and Christmas music!

Above is the real Greek frozen yogurt shop we found when wandering home. And a few photos from my iPhone: Strofi, where we ate dinner, had a rooftop room with the most amazing view of the Parthenon. And deadly Greek liquor (complimentary – geez, thanks!).

And finally – the Parthenon

Opa! in Athens, Greece