Day 7: Today we walked in the footsteps of ancient Athenians...like, all of their steps!!!

 

Traditionally, in this blog, I will provide some type of step count for the miles we've walked. Our pace has been pretty chilly (except for changing hotels) and our feet have been spared. Today, Athena took her toll.  It really wasn't even close the most steps I've taken on tour, but it was by far the most we've taken on this tour.  On the bus ride back to our hotel, I saw 13k steps. Some of the kids reported their devices clocked 8-10 miles. Our feet are sore, lol, but it was all worth it.

We woke fairly early for this tour and went to breakfast. It was open at 6:30, so the real early birds lucked out big time! It was actually my favorite breakfast of the trip. It wasn't the best, but it had pretty cool options. They even had french toast...so I had to try it.

After breakfast, we promptly hopped on the bus and began our trek into the capital city of Greece. It was a long ride through traffic but as we approached the city, we stopped to pick up our guide for the day. Her name was Anathesia.  She told us to call her Nancy.  Like most of the bus/city guides I've had while traveling with kids, Nancy understands the assignment. She was relatable and tried to use humor to get the kids excited about the things we were seeing. The city, as you expect, is filled with history.  I snapped some photos from our ride. I don't remember all of the things we saw though! I am tired, lol.

We got the Guards of the Tomb Of the Unknown Soldiers changing their rotation

I thought I had a picture of the Olympic stadium, but it doesn't seem to be in my camera roll. One thing I remember her saying is that it is built of white marble. It is also built to the same specs as the original one. 

After the bus tour, we began our ascent to the Acropolis.  This is commonly mistaken as the building, but it is the entire thing. The acro translates to edge and the opolis translates to city.  It is on the edge of the city. See how that works! Politics comes from the affairs of the city.  Sometimes the politics of Saugopolis focus less on the affairs of the city and more on personalities, but that's a topic for my retirement book, not this blog. 

It wasn't that bad of a march up the hill, but it was super crowded. I am going to dump a bunch of photos without much comment. My listening device wasn't working well and I missed much of what Nancy said, sorry.  Because of the crowds, I stayed near to the end of our line to ensure no one got totally separated. We had an hour of free time and kids enjoyed every second of it. 

Our next stop was lunch and free time. Half of the kids, including the Canadian kids, seemingly went to McDonalds. My group of 6 went to a spot not far from the Acropolis Museum. It was delicious and another group sat right next to us. I ordered a mini pork souvlaki.  It was three tacos made up with souvlaki ingredients. It was not mini.

Our next stop was the museum and I never saw so many kids geek out for a museum, or should I say greek out. Quite a few of our kids really like their Greek Gods and they loved seeing the artifacts on display. On the third floor, there was a whole bunch of metal columns. They are placed in the exact dimensions of the Acropolis so you can see it in scale. They also show the reliefs that adorned each panel along the way. It was super impressive. As they built this museum, years ago, they uncovered a medieval town. They excavated what they could and you can tour it under the museum itself, how cool!

After the museum visit, we followed Laertis across the city to the Greek Cathedral, pictured above. It is right in the middle of a shopping district that also greeked out most of our kids. We had ample time for shopping, snacking, and people watching. Quite a few souvenirs were purchased and lots of kids had more bags with them than when we left the hotel.  Someone may have even purchased a suitcase for their souvenirs!!!

With free time over and the day nearly complete, we went to a restaurant in the same area. It served open faced gyros with shaved pork and a kebab made of beef and lamb. It was yummy. It was also fun watching a bunch of kids try it, like it, and then eat it all. It was funnier still, to watch them try it and not like it, lol!

We met our bus driver for dinner and went over tomorrow's plan for our final full day in Greece. We will be taking a single days' cruise to three of Athens' islands. It should be an amazing experience, but it is an early departure...so its early to bed for them all. 

I was really happy with today. These long walking days are tiring and can test peoples' nerves sometimes, but these kids passed with flying colors!

Mr. Lavoie, currently sitting in a hotel lobby with very few kids around and enjoying a Coca-Cola Light. 

Day 6: Our journey has led us back to Athens, tomorrow we see the Acropolis!

 

Laertis said something to me on our first day that really sound good. He said this itinerary was a relaxing one.  An to his credit, each day has been pretty easy going. Tomorrow, we head into Athens to visit the Acropolis and the busy city. It will not be relaxing, lol, but each small village on this journey has brought charm and they will not be forgotten.  What hasn't been relaxing is our travel schedule. Checking into a hotel each night just to check out the next morning has been taxing on us all.  It is good to be back in Athens where we will spend the next three nights before heading home.

This morning, we had our most hectic departure of the trip. Our cliffside hotel was really nice, but it was hard to get to and from...this morning, our shuttle bus ran several trips and we hired taxis, they brought nearly 40 people with their luggage down to our bus. It wasn't chaotic. It was well organized, but is was hectic, if that makes sense.  The breakfast at the hotel was quite a nice spread. Similar options from our other locales, but seemingly fresher. I had a sampling of croissants and coffee...classic!

Adding to the noise of the morning, it was our coldest day and it had rained all night.  None of us really wanted that shift in weather.  It is, what it is...however, and we gathered on the bus for our ride to Delphi.  It was about a 45 minute drive and it reminded me again of how skilled these coach drivers really are. Long, wet, and windy roads, but expertly maneuvered.  We drove through the "Winter Mykonos" which is Greece'e best ski town. The one road isn't wide enough for two busses, but we lucked out and didn't need to back up at all.  It was a really expensive looking place too.

We soon arrived at Delphi. This is the famous resting place of the Oracle of Delphi. The fumes rising from the ground apparently gave the Oracle to see the future and to help the kings of Greek City-States make important decisions about their people. It existed, as a place for Ancient Greeks, at the same time as Olympia. That means it was around for 1200 years. When Christianity appeared on Greece, the favor of this place fell from grace and it soon disappeared into obscurity. Earthquakes, erosion, and vandalism all played a part, but most of this icon place fell to rubble and was forgotten. Our tour started outside. Elfie, I think that was her name, found a place for us to sit while she gave us most of the backstory.

A picture from inside the museum shows what it used to look like, for reference.

Elfie took us up several levels at Delphi. She explained how significant this place was to the Ancient Greeks and also explained that Oracle isn't just a person, it is a place.  It didn't matter who the "oracle" was, the power came from the place. She also explained that the fumes that inspired the wisdom of Delphi were hidden until excavated only about 50 years ago. Let's hope there is still some magic in that hot air as the EU was actually hosting an economic forum in Delphi this week. 

When Elfie wrapped up her portion of the tour, we had free time to explore higher sections of the grounds. I only made it to the theater, while others made it to the stadium.  As I descended towards the museum, I saw a couple of cute pups and as the moderator of "Dogs of Saugus, MA" on Facebook, I had to take their picture. They reminded me of a couple of Monty's friends at The Bow in Lyman, ME.  

The archaeological museum was packed when I got inside it. I snuck my way past tour group after tour group. There was lots of interesting stuff, but mostly in rooms filled with crowds. Laertis said it was busier than usual because of the conference.  I did find this room with gold and silver adornments and it was empty. It gave me time to take pause and reflect on what's really important. Its funny how gold and silver have always had value.  To me, though, its friends and family that really bring worth into the forefront. You just don't get to see that in museums. You can see it on trips like this, however!

It was a smooth ride back to Athens from Delphi, although we hit a little traffic. The kids slept for most of it, but there was a cheer when we drove past a McDonalds. Tonight, while I write the blog a group of us are at a Greek Family dinner show. I am at the hotel because the road has taken its toll on us.  Packing up every morning has exhausted so many of us, lol, so Mr. S took half of the group to the show and I stayed back here. We are hoping a good night's sleep and not having to pack up and move everything will bring some stability into our days.  Personally, I am glad to be able to get tonight's blog out. I hope to get some picture of the event from the kids and I will upload them later on if I do.

Mr. Lavoie, currently sitting in a hotel lobby realizing that there are a few other group leaders here doing the same thing...probably for the same reason.