Acropolis Now...
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Arrived in Athens two nights ago from London and was shocked by the freezing weather.. at around 3 degrees celcius, it was even colder than London!
Yesterday I saw the changing of the guard outside the Parliment House and visited the Acropolis in the afternoon. The Changing of the Guards were interesting. Every sunday morning at 11am there was an elaborate version, with a band of guards marching down the street, entering into the Syntagma Square followed by two parliment guards marching around their little guard house.. well, you gotta be there to appreciate it really.
The Acropolis stands at a hill overlooking the town and it's a pretty impressive reminder of where you are. It was a sunday and so the entrance was free.. unfortunately I was rushed for time and only managed to have a quick walk around and took some typical touristy shots. From memory I think the Roman Forum was more impressive, but the fact that everything was made in marble made the Acropolis quite beautiful to watch. Also, as a Greek Australian friend pointed out, the Romans copied the Greeks... A significant portion of the site was under restoration and thus resemble a construction site somewhat. Apparently they are going to restore the whole structure to its original form and in 20 years or so the Acropolis will no longer be a ruin but a whole proper temple!
Spent the last night walking the parameter of the Acropolis and seeing the touristy and local cafes. Today I caught a bus to the northern part of Greece, in order to see Meteora tomorrow, a land of mountain top monasteries. I'm staying at a little town of Kastraki, right at the hill of the Meteora cliffs. Unfortunately it was already night by the time I got to town so I can only see the shadows of the giant rocky cliffs surrounding the area, but it seems quite impressive... I'm staying at "Sydney Hotel", complete with boomerangs, a kangaroo statue and other little nik naks from Paddy's Market. It's the nicest hotel I've stayed in Europe thus far.
posted by Susan @ 1:19 PM
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