Athens trip

12 November 2009-  With my Wordless Wednesday, I was limited in my saying thank you to all for Armistice (the end of the Great war) and Veterans Day.  With several friends and family serving the country, I am proud to be an American.  If anything my location betrays nothing, I am still all American!

On to Athens trip.  We were late leaving Paris, flight to blame not the bus.  The bus is very convienent and will be used again tomorrow.  Turns out the Monday strike has turned into the entire week of perturbations of the line we would use.  Good thing I had planned for us to be out of town.  My dad didn't pay much attention to his favorite song, Never on a Sunday and went to the hospital on Sunday night before our trip.  He is doing much better and getting a call from me shortly.

Our cheapo apartment is just that, cheap.  Wouldn't recommend anyone using this one.  Not for the faint of heart.  But hey, cheap and surrounded by very good nightly dinner restaurants.

The Peruvian pan flute bad has arrived in Greece, the world will continue to turn and not get invaded by giant WHAT (fill in the blank).  Bonus points for that reference!!

My Chad at the Acropolis.  We got trapped up there during a rainstorm.  Good thing, no one in any of our pictures.  Bad thing, no shelter what so ever up there.  No roof on that old Parthenon so we got soaked.  I didn't get too bad as I was wearing my Houston goretex jacket.  But jeans and a bit of squish in the shoes.  Awesome to see.  We got some supercool shots of the city and the Odeon with the fisheye lens.  Later posts will have those.

Annoying with the dots on the glass but this is the coolest.  The New Acropolis Museum is over some excavations and they have put down glass floor panels.  You can see all the way through some parts of the building.  And at one euro a head admission fee, get there before the price goes up.  So worth it and lovely to the friezes and most of the pediment statues (besides those pesky Elgin ones residing in London) in the place built especially for them.

The lovely olives of Greece.  We got a market guy to package up 4 euros worth of his best.  Turns out 4 euros is a lot of freaking olives.  4 varieties, we will have a party in Paris to celebrate with our pitas and other purchases.  We saw the Athens market with the hugest beef livers I have ever seen.  They just went on and on and on.  Plenty of lamb heads, chicken feet and some writhing eels.  I wish I could come back with some cheese.  There was a good deal to be had on mizthera but the Philly cream cheese is easily half the price in Paris. 

We have been eating well indeed.  I think our best dinner was at our local Pita Pan (get it?) and dining on all things meat in Greece.  Literally all things meat on a grill plate with pita and sauce.  Yum.  We have eaten many soulvaki, many pita and even some fried Feta (had to try it and yes it is so good).  We have saved money by having our coffee at home in the morning.  Every bit saved counts.  Next time, I will spend more on the lodging.

More tomorrow upon our triumphant return to Paris and reasonable portion sizes.  Me gusta Greece!