Wed. July 10, 2013: We arrived at the port city of Piraeus, Greece early morning.
After our usual in-room breakfast, we made our way through security and met our tour group leader who led us and a dozen other shipmates to one of the many large luxury buses lined up in the parking lot. Nike (pronounced 'Nicky'), a lovely local woman was our guide. We traveled through Piraeus, a suburb of Athens to the city center as Nike pointed to various modern and historic features.
Our first stop was the Olympic stadium, site of the first games of the modern era in 1896. I should say, the gleaming white stadium, for the seating and architectural features were all marble. A statue of the politician who drove its construction greeted us at the entrance on the open end of the structure.
Our next stop was the ancient Acropolis on a high hill in the center of Athens. The ruins of the Parthenon, built in the 5th century BC, are the focal point of this sprawling metropolis of 10 million souls. Along the way we passed other ancient structures: Hadrian's Arch and the Temple of Zeus most notably, but these were relatively new structures finished in the second century AD of the Roman era.
Several cruise ships were in port, which accounted for the throngs of tourists visiting that day. The walk up to the Parthenon was somewhat steep, but the marble steps were slick and treacherous. A member of our family group (who shall go nameless) experienced this first hand in a dazzling display of acrobatic calamity, but survived with nothing more than scrapes and bruises. :) [Note to self: Do NOT try to shoot photos or gaze in awe at the towering marble, but keep eyes down and on the path while moving.]
As we approached the Parthenon, our guide described its various features and history. When she mentioned the statue of Athena that was dismantled and carted off in antiquity to Constantinople, I resisted the urge to speak up about our Parthenon replica in Nashville and the towering gilded statue of Athena housed there. (Aron later thanked me for showing restraint. *wink*) It also occurred to me the money-making opportunity for some entrepreneur to hawk photos of the recreated Parthenon and Athena (*wink-wink*) to the Acropolis visitors. Perhaps drum up a little tourist business for our fine city....
and even into the 20th century. How could they? Of course, earthquakes caused a lot of the damage.
From the Acropolis our tour bus drove us to a popular shopping district where we enjoyed a traditional Greek meal. Stuffed grape leaves have always been a favorite of mine. We bought a few minor souvenirs and then reconvened with our tour group to return to the ship. I'm happy to say that my feet (with the help of Carol's compression stockings) held up very well. I had gotten a roll of surgical tape and pre-emptively wrapped the areas in most need. It was reminiscent of days when I would wrap my toes to prevent blisters when I danced in toe shoes. Excuse my obsession with feet....
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