EUROPE - Part 2

GREECE

Our visit to the Parthenon

Okay, so I know it's been a while, but if you go back and read about our HORRIBLE flight situation from earlier, you'll remember that it took us 3 days to get to Athens, Greece.  My group was a group of 12.  I had already sent a group of 5 early that day, so I had prayed that they made it safely.

Now, Steven is MUCH better at words than I am.  So....in his own words (from his own diary...yes, that's right.  He was the official photographer & journalist for the trip.  What else do you expect?...I had to try and manage the whereabouts of a group of 45, with the majority of them being hormonal teenagers!!):

"Sometime in the early a.m., Tuesday June 15 - Greece. A very appropriate label right now. It not only describes the country we have just entered, but also the relative condition of our personal cleanliness. We are/feel/look/smell so gross right now, not even the livestock-bathing stall that is our hotel room shower can dissuade us from washing. The room is small and Spartan but the air conditioning works and the water runs, and we are content."

That's right.  We took NO PICTURES of this day.  We were smelly and just plain 'ol gross.  We arrived sometime around 2 a.m., and got up at 9 a.m. to see the Acropolis.  Well, let me just tell you that communication was NOT the best attribute of our tour director, Holda!  So...there my group is (all 12 of us), ready to leave by 10:30 a.m. (as directed to before heading off to bed the night before).  At 11:30 a.m., another member of our group (who got re-routed through London, and had landed at 5:30 a.m.) came down to get breakfast and informed us that we were now meeting at 12:30 in the afternoon.  Needless to say, we went back to bed for another hour.  Yes, this was only the beginning of a SUPER STRESSFUL DAY!

Again, in Steven's words:

"10:32 a.m., Tuesday June 15 - The Acropolis. The Parthenon. A symbolic cornerstone of civilization, and we have to hike there? In the hot Greek afternoon sun?" (I know he wrote 10:32, but we hiked to see the Parthenon at 2:00 in the afternoon, when it was well over 100 degrees outside.  You can't even BEGIN to imagine the number of headaches, achy stomachs, and complaining that was going on...not to mention that we had skipped lunch that day--don't forget, my group had eaten at 9 that morning, and hadn't eaten since).

"The darkness of flying in at night kept us from enjoying what surely would have been spectacular views of the ocean, Athens and mountains. Whereas Frankfurt was delightfully unfamiliar, Athens feels utterly alien. The language both spoken & written, is indecipherable. Yet our joy to be here, all together, and at last, is tangible.

That, my friends...was our first day in Greece.  EXTREMELY hot. EXTREMELY long. And EXTREMELY frustrating. Although the view, and the experience of walking around the Parthenon was breathtaking.

Pic 1: the view of the Parthenon from the bottom.  Yes, it was REALLY HOT.  We were all thinking "are you kidding me?  We have to walk up that thing now"  And all the kids were thinking, "do they have an elevator?"

Pic 2: As you can see, the only way up/down is to walk.  It is quite the hike, especially in the heat of the afternoon...but luckily our tour guide took us up bit by bit, and we got to sit and listen to her tell us about history in partial shade (which you can see....there is little to no shade).

Pic 3: We are so glad to have made it to the top!  :)

Pic 4: The view of Athens, from the Parthenon.

Pic 5: The Parthenon, in all it's majestic glory.  Amazing.

(you can see them doing small repairs to it on the left. They are trying to keep it in good condition.  The tour guide said they are ALWAYS restoring bits & pieces of it. You can see some of the columns have white patches in them...that is the part that is restored.  But by the time the crane finishes and makes a full circle...it is time to start all over again! ha!)