Departure
We left our house in Goshen at about 4 AM and with little traffic, made it to JFK Long Term Parking by 5:15 and into terminal by 5:45 (for 7:45 AM flight). There is some confusion on where to check-in as the kiosks are all shutdown. But we get directed around a corner and find the business class check-in. There is no Fast Track open at security, so we wait a bit there and then up to business class lounge. Lounge has been remodeled since last year and has just been open for a few weeks. We have a good breakfast, coffee, and Facetime Maddie a little after 6 Am as she gets up early for school. Margi finds champagne and OJ and has has one mimosa before we leave for the gate around 7:15.
On the plane, we are upstairs. We have Kir Royale and champagne once in our seats. It must be 5 pm somewhere!! Good selection of movies but as we are now retired we have seen most of them already. Margi re-watches A Star is Born and something else. I watch a documentary on Andre the Giant and then go to sleep (too many champagnes??).
In Heathrow, we go to a BA desk near the gate and find that we have to go from section B of terminal 5 to section A which requires a ride on the tram, some walking, and another trip through security. So we are only in the business class lounge for about 30 minutes and can only manage a quick bite and a glass of wine. As it is late afternoon, the lounge is crowded.
The three plus hour BA business class flight to Athens is a disappointment. There are no special seats or section for business class. They simply leave the middle seat empty and maybe give you a little more leg room. Service of dinner and drinks is ok.
Arrival
We arrive in Athens at about 2:30 AM which is basically on-time. At this hour of the morning, customs was quick and our luggage comes pretty quickly. As we exit with our luggage into the main terminal area, we find our hotel arranged driver with an “Electra Palace” sign. We walk down the terminal and out to the parking area. There is no traffic and the trip to the hotel is about 40 minutes. The driver speaks very good English and he points out sights as we travel into the city. We check-in and room is ready as we had booked the room for that evening.
We get into the room a little before 4 AM, unpack a little, and try to get some sleep.
Hotel
Electra Palace Hotel is one of Rick Steves upscale recommendations and we were very happy with it. it is located in the center of the Plaka district which is the old town part of Athens. The room is quite large with a queen bed and separate sofa; toilet, bidet, and tub/shower are separate room from the sink. There is a large closet with locking safe. As we have seen in other European hotels, the shower “doors” only go about halfway along the tub and so the bathroom floor gets wet when the shower is running. There is WiFi and the English selection of channels on the TV is better than expected. Our room is in the back, with a small balcony and a view of the Acropolis off to the right. The room includes breakfast and is quite good. Hotel has an outdoor pool which we never used, except to locate our hotel looking down from the Acropolis (LOL). Staff was very friendly and accommodating. Pictures of the hotel.
Day 1 – Wednesday
Normally on a trip to Europe, we arrive in mid-morning and attempt to stay up for the first day, with maybe just a short nap. This first day “pain” makes the time zone transition easier. In this case, with a 2:30 AM arrival, we had to try to get some sleep. The breakfast ends at 10:30, so we rise about 9:45 AM, after getting little real sleep. We are down to breakfast at 10:15 and the breakfast selection is very good.
Here are some general thoughts about Athens. Everyone speaks English. The city is very walkable. Except for a few lazy ass taxi rides, we walked and did not use the Metro at all. Plaka is the old town and in our opinion, is the best area in which to stay. Carry small bills; I could not buy an o,80 Euro water with a 20 Euro bill. WC’s, despite some reports to the contrary, were not a problem. Greeks eat late, like 9 pm. We came close but failed on this one. Except for our breakfasts in the hotel, we always ate or had coffee/drinks outside, which we love.
So for our first day, we have decided to follow Rick Steves’ City Tour, but not in the same order. We request the hotel to get a taxi to Monastiraki Square which is near a flea market and the food/fish markets. It is within walking distance, but as we know we will be walking a lot today, we opt for a taxi. The square is packed and we take a picture of a fruit vendor with cherries and strawberries artfully arranged.
We walk down the flea market street and find some antique shops, but mostly this is just shops selling clothing as well as all manner of touristy stuff.
We walk down another street labelled Turkish Market and find more of the same. We loop back toward the square by going down a street that Steves calls Souvlaki Row because of the number of restaurants.
We attempt to buy a water for 0,80 Euro but get rejected because we only have a 20 Euro note. Luckily, we spot a Starbuck’s on the adjacent corner and we go in to buy Margi an Athens mug for her collection and get a water at the same time. We sit outside of the Starbucks for a few minutes to take a break.
We decide to go slightly north of the square to find the city Central Market, for produce, meat and fish. As we walk, we pass the Melissinos Art Sandal Shop, whose clients included Jackie O and John Lennon. We look in the window but the place is already crowded and we aren’t in the market for sandals, so we just window shop for a moment.
We walk through the meat market which is different that anything in the US. There are full half carcasses of animals (goats, pigs, etc) hanging in each stall. And each place only seems to sell specific meats, like chicken, or goat. Meat in market
We smell the fish market but decide to bypass as the odor is a little too strong. Interestingly, there are young men at the end of each row, each selling garlic. Each seems uninterested, maybe because there are a lot of them. We walk back to Monastiraki Square passing streets jammed with cars and motor scooters.
Margi had bought new walking sneakers in the US but is now complaining that they are hurting her feet. Once back in the square, we go back down the flea market street to find a sneaker store that we passed earlier. We go upstairs and Margi picks a new pair of Sketchers that fit better (50 Euros). We take the original shoes with us, in hopes someone in family or someone we meet in Athens can use these virtually brand new sneakers.
Back at the square, we sit and watch a young, rather ragged guy lie face down in the middle for about 15 minutes.
Police come by but don’t make him move. Eventually he moves on. In addition to the still crowded area, we watch hundreds of pigeons on top of a low building on one side of the square.
It is about 1 pm so we decide to go back down Souvlaki Row and find Stratigos, which is one of Steves recommendations. Margi has a Greek salad and I have a small souvlaki along with beer and coke for 55 Euros. After lunch outside, we find a taxi and go back to the hotel. It takes longer to return as traffic seems to have increased, especially around our hotel. At the hotel, we rest a bit.
We are back up and out to Andrianou Street, the middle of which is just a few blocks down from our hotel. This is really a touristy street, but we do eventually buy a number of our gift/souvenirs here.
We walk down the length of the street to Hadrian’s Arch and the Temple of Zeus. It is really weird to see these truly ancient ruins in the middle of busy city streets.
At the Temple of Zeus, we buy our Acropolis Combo ticket which gets us in here and will also cover the Acropolis and some other museums. There is a discount for seniors but only if you are from EU, so our cost is full 60 Euro’s. We walk through the Temple of Zeus ruins which contains 15 columns that are over 50′ high and one column that was toppled by a storm in the 1800’s that allows you to see the stacked structure of the columns. It is a little warm in the sun; I can’t imagine how this would be in the heat of the summer. Not crowded, so we get some good pics.
We walk back the way we came, stopping at an ATM to get a bit more cash (again, remembering that in Venice, we need to pay cash for our hotel and there won’t be Euros in Dubrovnik). We stop for a coke light and wine at an outdoor cafe at the corner of Andrianou Street and the street to our hotel. As we sit enjoying life, a car comes up a side street and passes within inches of my feet. This would never be allowed in the US!! Got to love Europe.
We continue down Andrianou Street away from Hadrian’s Arch toward the Roman ruins (or Roman Agora). We look at them from the elevated area around them.
And again, stop for a drink right next to the ruins. We ask for directions to the Cathedral (Mitropolis). It is just a few blocks away. We go in and takes some pics of interior and then we find our way back to our hotel for a rest before dinner.
We go to dinner around 9 PM. Margi has selected a place from Trip Advisor which seems close to our hotel. However, we walk back and forth on Apollonos Street and can’t find until until Margi asks for directions. Turns out that the address is on Apollonos Street but the actual entrance is down 50 feet on a side street.
The place turns out to be a hole in the wall (shame on Trip Advisor), there is no one there when we arrive, and no one comes as we eat between 9 and 10. Margi has chicken on skewers (dry) and I have whole sea bass (tasteless). House wine is nothing special. Pay 25 Euros which was the only good part about the meal and head back to hotel for what we hope will be a good first full night’s sleep in Athens.
Day 2 – Thursday
We wake around 7:15 AM as we have a scheduled a private tour today. There is NO WATER in the hotel. Calling the front desk, we find that the water issue is not just in the hotel but rather in whole block around the hotel. They offer to bring up bottled water but we have enough to brush our teeth. Obviously, no shower or shaving this AM. Down to breakfast, which is again good and does not suffer from the lack of water in the hotel.
At 8:30 AM, we meet Marilena Xenou in the lobby.
She was recommended by the hotel and we have emailed prior to the trip and agreed to a four hour tour for 200 Euros that will cover the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora. Marilena is excellent (you can reach her at Marilexe@otenet.gr). She is a 30 something mother of one and speaks excellent English. We take a taxi to the base of the Acropolis. When we arrive, there are people already there, but not packed. We go up onto the Acropolis and see the amphitheater, Parthenon, Temple of Athena, etc. The views of Athens are great, the temples awesome, and the crowds surprising. Marilena said it was even worse a few days ago because there were more cruise ships in port. She is a wealth of knowledge about the history and architecture. We take lots of pics.
From the Acropolis, we walk down to the Ancient Agora, which was the main public space in ancient Athens. On the way, we stop for a coke, coffee, and beer on Adrianou Street just before the entrance to the Ancient Agora.
For the most part, the ruins here are very fragmented. The main attraction is the Temple of Hephaistos,
which is the best preserved temple in Athens. We wander through more of the Agora, with Marilena pointing out the significant artifacts. We then go the the Stoa, which is a reproduction from 1950’s. In it is a museum with lots of artifacts in chronological order. Included are coins, recovered burial plots, and lots of pottery pieces (including a baby’s commode). More Ancient Agora pics.
It is here our tour with Marilena ends. She goes over the map again with us to be sure we know where we are and we say goodbye. She was excellent.
We walk down Adrianou Street looking for a restaurant that Marilena recommended as it is now close to 1 PM. We can’t find it, so we walk back to our hotel and look for wine bar around the corner that Marilena recommended. We find Oinoscent and sit outside.
As this is a wine bar, the waiter asks us about our preferences and brings out 4 half glasses and we go through a wine tasting. We agree on the one we like best, but drink the other three to be polite (LOL). Margi has a Greek Salad and I have beef tartar. Both are great. 41 Euros well spent.
We are literally right around the corner from our hotel, so we go back and take a nap. A little before 5 PM we leave the hotel and walk to 5 minutes to Syntagma to see the changing of the guard.
The changing lasts about 10 mins. We are among the crowd that has gathered, but as there are no ropes or other barriers, we have all apparently gotten too close, so we are moved back a few feet before the ceremony begins.
From Syntagma, we walk down Ermou Street back to the Cathedral and find a cafe across from it. We sit outside and have coke, wine, and fries. We walk back to hotel and do more resting.
We leave for dinner around 8 PM and head to Tzitzikas which is a Steves recommendation and for which we have had the hotel make reservations. It is just a few blocks from the hotel and is very full when we arrive. But they have a table outside available and we are seated quickly, even though we arrive at 8:30 for a 9 pm reservation. We get a bottle of wine. Margi gets a pork dish while I get fish. We have a leisurely dinner. Margi can’t finish her pork so we decide to take it in hopes of finding a stray dog to feed. Instead, we find a homeless person on a building stoop. Margi offers the food and he gratefully accepts. We are back at the hotel shortly before 10 PM. We leave tomorrow.
Day 3 – Friday AM
We are up at 8:45 AM, shower, pack and are down to breakfast at 9:15 This is our last day in Athens, as we leave for the airport around noon. Our original plan was to visit the National Archaeological Museum or maybe the Acropolis Museum, but we decide to blow them off and just walk down the Adrianou shopping area. We get a soccer outfit for Jack, some bracelets for Hailey and Maddie, and some olive wood spoons for someone. We walk all the way to the Roman Agora and find an outdoor cafe for a coffee. At about 11 AM, we walk back to the hotel and rest in our room for a while. The trip to Dubrovnik will be somewhat long as we have a layover in Istanbul.
Leaving a tip for the maids and also leaving Margi’s lightly used sneakers, we go down to checkout around 12:10 PM. Checkout is easy and I compliment Marilena, our guide, as she was arranged through the hotel. Our hotel arranged taxi arrives slightly early, so we depart for the airport at 12:20. We aren’t sure of traffic in mid-day, so we have left plenty of time.
We arrive at the airport at about 1 PM. We find the check-in for Turkish Air and there are people in line but the check-in does not start for about 10 minutes. We luck out as they open a second line and we get to the front of that line (all’s fair in love and airport check-in). We get boarding passes for our two flights and our baggage is checked through to Dubrovnik. We get something to eat and then walk around airport for a few minutes. Then we decide to go through security, which is quick, and enter the Duty Free shopping area, which is extensive. We buy some chocolate and water for the flight. Margi is trying to find Spartan olive oil and a nice lady takes us from one store down to another to recommend the best Spartan brand. Margi buys a small earthen ware container of olive oil. We depart Athens on time.
Hit back button and select Dubrovnik.