as the ferry pulled out of Santorini and headed for Athens, i had a feeling that the next 8 or so hours were going to suck big time. i hate crowds at the best of times and it was just my luck that the boat was packed full of people and so there wasn't really enough room for everyone to sit comfortably. i got a seat at one stage but it was far from relaxing, infact it reminded me of a food court in the middle of Christmas shopping panic. the 8 hours couldn't come quick enough, not even a book and a newly charged iPod could get me through it, i had to escape to the corridors of the sleeper cabins to get some peace and quiet so i could read my book. but even Hunter S. Thompson and a newly charged iPod could get me through this pain. i was tempted to throw myself overboard in an effort to save my sanity. as the boat rocked from side to side, i caught a glimpse of myself in the window, looking at myself dead in the face and seeing the life almost drain from my eyes, i said to myself 'i am never going on another boat ride again'.
when we finally came into the port the whole crowd cheered (i'm glad i wasn't the only one who felt the excitement) jumped off the boat, found a cab to my hostel that i ended up sharing with an older couple from New Zealand. as soon as i got there i checked in, when into my room and fell into bed.
the next day i woke up in a better mood than the one i went to bed with and began sight seeing. because i was only here for a couple of days i decided to do a walking tour. something that put me into an even better mood was that day all the museums and archaeological sites in Athens were free - talk about good timing!
the guide took us around to a number of different ruins like the 'Agora' which was originally a market place type thing, and the place where they had the olympic games (which is now a newer stadium) and couple of other buildings. i noiced the Hadrian built a number of them, geez he was a busy boy, if he wasn't building a giant wall in England he was building something else in Greece.
as i've said before you see ruins everywhere and Athens is, in my opinion, the grand daddy of ruins, they are everywhere. it seems no matter where they dig they seem to find something. for instance in the metro they have exhibitions of columns and pots that they found while they were digging for the metro. one of the metro stations was built over a old burial site so there is an exhibit of an open grave where you can see where someones bones! but after a while you see so many of them, you tend to turn off or be like 'oh yeah, there ANOTHER ruin...'
of course you can't go to Athens and not visit the most famous ruin of them all, the Acropolis. i was pretty surprised how much stuff was there, i always thought it was just the Parthenon. there were theaters and temples but of course the one that everyone is here to see is the Parthenon. its a pretty amazing sight during the day, but i think it looks best at night when its lit up. it was a lot bigger than i thought it was. most things you visit are generally smaller than what you think they are, but the Parthenon was pretty big. but it did have something in common with the other sights in europe, it was covered in scaffolding. i always thought that the way the parthenon looks is pretty much how it would've always looked, except more complete. but they think it would've been plastered and have been painted. the Acropolis is on top of one of the main hills here in Athens, and you get some brilliant views from up there too.
the building where the president lives they have traditional guards out the front. i think its every hour on the hour they do a little march for the people. i saw it, and its pretty funny. they wear a dress-like costume and they have pom-poms on there feet, which is funny enough, but to top it off they kick there legs out when they march! when they have finished they stay still and have there very own stylist (probably not the real name for them) to come and fix up there uniform. i asked why they have pom-poms on there feet, apparently it was to make there feet look bigger so when the enemy saw them they were scared. now, if i cast my mind back to the days of the school yard i remember kids getting laughed at for not wearing the latest in cool shoes by some snotty faced little bully, imagine if they turned up in shoes with pom-poms! seriously, if they don't pass the 'school yard test', what hope have you got in battle? apparently if your a boy you have to join the army for a period of time. which i kind of find strange, but what i find strange is you have to be 180cm (6 feet) tall. when you think about it, wouldn't you prefer a little guy? my logic is they would be a smaller target to hit.
before i got here, i didn't hear to many people giving Athens a good wrap. i kept hearing things like 'only spend a couple of days, maximum!' and 'i wouldn't want to walk around at night'. and to be totally honest i know exactly what they are talking about. apart from the sights there really isn't much keeping you here, and i think i could've done them in a day. you don't have to wander too far out of the touristy areas to find parts of the city that are really dirty. and of a night, areas full of prostitutes and drug dealers. i did find one area that was pretty cool, they had a couple of good clothing stores and also some great antique stores, full of old radios and gramophones, lamps, cameras etc. ever since i stayed with Viv in Edinburgh (click here to see my Edinburgh blog) i've been obsessed with this kind of stuff, i'm definitely going to start collecting these kind of things when i get home!
its been pretty hot here in Greece, so much so i've unleashed my hairy legs and started wearing shorts. i hate shorts with a passion, i can't really explain why, i guess its just a pet hate i have, i suppose i just prefer wearing pants. also my legs are incredibly hairy, but i seem to fit right in here in Greece, i'm pretty sure i've seen some old women with better facial hair than me.
i get the feeling that the Greeks are quite religious. while i was checking out some of the Greek orthodox churches i noticed a lot of people stopping to give the sign of the cross when they walked passed the church, there was even a guy going by on a scooter that stopped!
when we finally came into the port the whole crowd cheered (i'm glad i wasn't the only one who felt the excitement) jumped off the boat, found a cab to my hostel that i ended up sharing with an older couple from New Zealand. as soon as i got there i checked in, when into my room and fell into bed.
the next day i woke up in a better mood than the one i went to bed with and began sight seeing. because i was only here for a couple of days i decided to do a walking tour. something that put me into an even better mood was that day all the museums and archaeological sites in Athens were free - talk about good timing!
the guide took us around to a number of different ruins like the 'Agora' which was originally a market place type thing, and the place where they had the olympic games (which is now a newer stadium) and couple of other buildings. i noiced the Hadrian built a number of them, geez he was a busy boy, if he wasn't building a giant wall in England he was building something else in Greece.
as i've said before you see ruins everywhere and Athens is, in my opinion, the grand daddy of ruins, they are everywhere. it seems no matter where they dig they seem to find something. for instance in the metro they have exhibitions of columns and pots that they found while they were digging for the metro. one of the metro stations was built over a old burial site so there is an exhibit of an open grave where you can see where someones bones! but after a while you see so many of them, you tend to turn off or be like 'oh yeah, there ANOTHER ruin...'
of course you can't go to Athens and not visit the most famous ruin of them all, the Acropolis. i was pretty surprised how much stuff was there, i always thought it was just the Parthenon. there were theaters and temples but of course the one that everyone is here to see is the Parthenon. its a pretty amazing sight during the day, but i think it looks best at night when its lit up. it was a lot bigger than i thought it was. most things you visit are generally smaller than what you think they are, but the Parthenon was pretty big. but it did have something in common with the other sights in europe, it was covered in scaffolding. i always thought that the way the parthenon looks is pretty much how it would've always looked, except more complete. but they think it would've been plastered and have been painted. the Acropolis is on top of one of the main hills here in Athens, and you get some brilliant views from up there too.
the building where the president lives they have traditional guards out the front. i think its every hour on the hour they do a little march for the people. i saw it, and its pretty funny. they wear a dress-like costume and they have pom-poms on there feet, which is funny enough, but to top it off they kick there legs out when they march! when they have finished they stay still and have there very own stylist (probably not the real name for them) to come and fix up there uniform. i asked why they have pom-poms on there feet, apparently it was to make there feet look bigger so when the enemy saw them they were scared. now, if i cast my mind back to the days of the school yard i remember kids getting laughed at for not wearing the latest in cool shoes by some snotty faced little bully, imagine if they turned up in shoes with pom-poms! seriously, if they don't pass the 'school yard test', what hope have you got in battle? apparently if your a boy you have to join the army for a period of time. which i kind of find strange, but what i find strange is you have to be 180cm (6 feet) tall. when you think about it, wouldn't you prefer a little guy? my logic is they would be a smaller target to hit.
before i got here, i didn't hear to many people giving Athens a good wrap. i kept hearing things like 'only spend a couple of days, maximum!' and 'i wouldn't want to walk around at night'. and to be totally honest i know exactly what they are talking about. apart from the sights there really isn't much keeping you here, and i think i could've done them in a day. you don't have to wander too far out of the touristy areas to find parts of the city that are really dirty. and of a night, areas full of prostitutes and drug dealers. i did find one area that was pretty cool, they had a couple of good clothing stores and also some great antique stores, full of old radios and gramophones, lamps, cameras etc. ever since i stayed with Viv in Edinburgh (click here to see my Edinburgh blog) i've been obsessed with this kind of stuff, i'm definitely going to start collecting these kind of things when i get home!
its been pretty hot here in Greece, so much so i've unleashed my hairy legs and started wearing shorts. i hate shorts with a passion, i can't really explain why, i guess its just a pet hate i have, i suppose i just prefer wearing pants. also my legs are incredibly hairy, but i seem to fit right in here in Greece, i'm pretty sure i've seen some old women with better facial hair than me.
i get the feeling that the Greeks are quite religious. while i was checking out some of the Greek orthodox churches i noticed a lot of people stopping to give the sign of the cross when they walked passed the church, there was even a guy going by on a scooter that stopped!
i dunno if you would put Mythology on par with religion, though in some ways its the same, you know, the whole making up stories to explain things ie: creation. if you've been reading this blog for a while you would notice i'm not such a fan of religion, but i do like Mythology. probably its because its not taken very seriously. but i think the main reason i like it, is because it kind of childlike and reminds me of when i was a kid. i remember if i didn't quite understand something as a kid, and i would come up with my own conclusions, and i guess thats whats the Greeks did except my versions a little different to theres, for instance i used to think that when it was raining i used to think it was god taking a leak...
when i travel i do the best to get a bit of an understanding of the country, they way people live and there feelings on certain issues, generally i get this information from speaking to locals and asking questions. while i was here in Athens i ended up sharing a room in the hostel with a, surprise surprise, gay guy. i swear, i'm a magnet or something! anyway, we got talking and after a while the subject of gay rights in Greece came up, it turned out that he did an interview with the BBC about the subject (click here to view the video) when i saw it i was pretty shocked the video and heard his side of the story, of how another people tried to run him over and hurt him just because of hit sexuality. then again, i'm sure there are similar instances in Australia, its just that i'm not aware of it. its pretty sad to hear that some people are so insecure about the whole thing that they act in such an extreme way.
even though i wouldn't rave about Athens, i guess its still one of those places you should visit, even if it is for a little while. now i'm off to London...
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