Our Day in Ruins

We begin the journal of our second full day in Athens with another photo of Wednesday's great adventures. Somehow missed this picture because I was too tired to figure out how to access it (at one in the morning.) But it's a nice way to introduce yesterday's trip when we drove southwest to the ancient city of Corinth, the Corinthian Canal and other ruins in the area of Argolis on the Peloponnisos. We call it "Our Day in Ruins."









First stop: the incredible achievement of the late 1800's, the Corinthian Canal which saved ships hundreds of sailing hours by cutting through the isthmus between mainland Greece and the Peninsula. Begun in 1880 it was finished in 1893.










The ruins of ancient Corinth where St. Paul visited, chastised and cajoled these early Christians. The mountain in the background is the Acropolis of Corinth. About 700,000 people once lived here, 400,000 of whom were slaves. St. Paul had lots to do.





Here's an architecture lesson: The first column, simple in design is from the Doric period, the second (snail design) is Ionic and the third, more complicated design is Corinthian. (You will be tested later.)








The plan of the original city.


We discovered this carving depicting a man in a boat. Makes sense in Corinth since many of its inhabitants were hard-living sailors. (Another reason Paul was faced with obstacles here.)


The Lion's Gate at Mycenae, built in 13th century BC. (That's 3,300 years ago if you're counting.) The heads of the lions were plundered.



Mycenae had a commanding view of the countryside.



The girls try out some modeling poses for their "life in the ruins" shoot. Hmm, could they be getting tired of posing for me?


The Northern Gate (the city's back door).


The Treasury of Atreus, a beehive tomb, often referred to as Agamemnon's tomb. It dates back to the 14th century BC. (This information comes from National Geographic Traveler provided by Clare, the Historian.)


The charming seaside town of Nafplio, original capital of Greece following the War of Independence from Ottoman rule in 1821. (Make your reservations now. Tourists have discovered its a great place to get away from it all.)


Gelato beautifully presented and gratefully consumed in the afternoon heat.



The Palamidi Fortress, a castle on the hill built by the Venetians in the 18th Century.


Another favorite resting spot.











Another proclamation by Isabelle. "OPA!"


The acoustically-perfect theatre at Epidaurus, built in the 4th century BC and still used for performances.


We were shy about performing, so we executed a few dance steps. A group of Italians, however, were not so shy and entertained us with snippets from various operas. They could be heard in the top row.


The adjoining sanctuary dedicated to Asklepios, god of healing, son of Apollo.


Papa "heals" the girls who are suffering from heat exhaustion. (It's either 103 or 95 degrees, depending on our driver Cosmos' interpretation or Papa's science education. We're going with Papa - it's 95, but felt like 103.)


One last photo of the Acropolis (taken at 10 p.m.)



A balmy evening, Chamomile tea and a lemon meringue tart. Once again, does it get any better than this?

Location:Argolis

Athens

We're here! This sign greeted us inside the Athens Airport. (We learned later that WIND is a mobile internet provider in Greece.)








In the Arrival Hall we were greeted by Spiros of the Aegean Tour Company. He loaded us into two taxis and took us to our hotel, the Athens Gate.








On the way into the city we managed to snap a picture of this reminder of the 2004 Olympics.








The Roof Garden Restaurant at the hotel has a spectacular view of the Acropolis! Our first meal was Greek Salad Sandwiches with creamy feta cheese, ripe tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, red onions and green peppers on slightly crunchy, toasted buns. (This information is for Clare and Isabelle's mothers who are curious about what we're eating.)

















In the other direction there's a view of the Temple of Zeus.








The girls couldn't wait to visit the Plaka (we thought the word meant "market" in Greek, but we learned it refers to a "flat area" or the old area of Athens.) They jumped right into shopping mode.








Rather than a description of dinner, here's a picture. This Greek Salad tasted as delicious as it looks. We ate in the Plaka on the street under a tree and people-watched. Groups of young people from the Special Olympics - which had concluded the day before - strolled by. Wearing their team t-shirts proudly was Team Singapore.








Wednesday, July 6th - Breakfast at the Roof Garden Restaurant and another look at The Acropolis, this time in morning light. It's hard to resist taking pictures of this legendary site.









This is the third floor of the new Acropolis Museum which opened in 2009. It's spectacular. Designed by a Swiss Architect it incorporates the ancient Athenian village discovered at the site. Glass floors cover the village so you can look down at a place that existed long before the birth of Christ. In two months people will be able to walk through the village itself.




















Entering The Acropolis!









The world's most beautiful building - the Parthenon.








The air was clear enough to let us see Athens and beyond. We didn't miss the smog that smothered Athens during our visit 19 years ago.









The large stone hill is the Areopagus mentioned in Acts 17. It's the site of St. Paul's famous sermon to the Athenians. We read the chapter before dinner and couldn't believe how current it sounded - as if Paul had been here just a few weeks ago.








Isabelle is giving her best impression of St. Paul on the Areopagus.








Clare told us that while she was descending the stairs and trying to keep the wind from blowing her dress up, a man said to her "Don't be afraid of the wind." He stuck out his hand and said, "I'm Dimitri," and then kissed her on the cheek! I was dumbfounded. I was thinking I would like to slap him, but instead asked "How old was he?" "Really old. About forty." (Clare's dad is going to love THIS story.)








Our favorite resting spot after surviving the heat of the Acropolis, the courtyard of the Church of the Apostles. A Danish woman took this photo.








We stopped in an art gallery owned by the artist, Moraitis. HIs assistant brought us downstairs to show us his studio in the center of which is a huge 2,000-year-old jar which stored wheat. When they dug the basement and discovered the pot, they tried to move it to the museum. When it began to break apart, they just left it. Athens is full of such juxtapositions of ancient and new, each living quite comfortably with the other.








We kept passing this poster of our friend George in the Plaka, saying hello each time we did. Finally, we decided to memorialize our time together with this picture.




















Our wonderful day in Athens had a perfect ending. We found the best restaurant, under a tree and near a park. There's that Greek Salad again plus calamari, dolmas, and spanakopita. THEN ------








the day reached absolute perfection when we decided to go to the Roof Top Cinema across from the restaurant and saw a funny, light-hearted movie directed by and starring Tom Hanks called "Larry Crowne." And to our left ---the magnificent Acropolis with a new moon above. Can it get any better than this?

Clare and Isabelle's Adventures in Greece

THE HICCUPS OF TRAVEL
You always wonder how it will go. The hope is for safe travel - smooth flights, smiling attendants, good food and great entertainment. But that's not the way it works. The stories happen when the unexpected happens. So, let me tell you about the trip to Greece with Clare and Isabelle. Anticipated for over a year, the girls' excitement was fed with Christmas gifts of journals and books about Greek mythology, outfits for the cruise to the Greek Islands for birthdays and emails to them and their parents throughout the year about various aspects of the trip:

"We're going to Mary's House near Ephesus." (The parents: "Wonderful.")
"Our hotel is near the Acropolis and the new Acropolis Museum." ("How lucky they are.")
"It's also near the Plaka." (The girls: "Hurray!!")

We couldn't help teasing the parents about our stop in Istanbul. "The girls will LOVE the bazaar. We think we can get a good price for them there." Okay, maybe not all that funny. But they perked up when we mentioned the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and the Spice Market.

So the planning and phone calls to tour companies, airlines and parents finally came to an end. We were ready. And that's when the Greeks decided to join in the dissension and unrest rippling through the mideast and Europe. We checked news stories, found the location of our Greek hotel and discovered it was about six blocks from Syntagma Square. We called Jean, our travel agent, who called the tour company who told us they could move us to the coast if events didn't improve. We held our breaths as well as our reservations at the hotel. Surely it would be okay.

It seemed so, and two days before our flight we were going through our itinerary at lunch with the Côté Family, reading it out loud and savoring the adventures to come. I glanced at Isabelle's flight itinerary and --- wait a minute! It says "July 16th" not the 15th. A quick look at all four itineraries, and it seems that Isabelle is booked to return the wrong day. How did this happen?! Thirty minutes later and a tense conversation with Rudy from Air Canada, and it is straightened out. It was their error. A close call. This is why itineraries are supposed to be inspected very closely.




And now comes a very sad part of our story Those who love their pets, especially cats, may want to skip this part. The day after we'd arrived in Kingston, it was discovered that Mama Cat, Chai, was under the weather. She just got worse. It didn't help that Celeste in California was dealing with having to put her cat down. This morning Kristin and Caroline took Chai to the Vet and left her there for tests. Then we put our packed suitcases in the car and left for the airport. About an hour later the Vet called and told Kristin that it would take extreme measures to help Chai, and she probably wouldn't make it in any case. The decision was clear. Isabelle and Caroline began to sob along with their mother. Clare comforted Caroline in the back seat, and I reached around the seat to pat Isabelle. They were inconsolable. Somehow this wasn't the way I had imagined our trip beginning those long months ago when we first envisioned the trip to Greece. `Finally the sobs subsided, and I told Isabelle that I was a bit concerned that her tears might alarm the Customs Officers who would suspect we were taking her to Greece against her will. The thought of her grandparents kidnapping her made her laugh.

Chai will be missed, but they will have her daughter Paprika to remind them of the great mother she was. Kristin said a lovely prayer for Chai and added prayers for a safe, smooth and uneventful flight to Greece.







So far it's all of those things because, it seems, as the sign says, we're going to our "Happy Place." For real.


And now Jerry and I are wondering about only one thing ---- why are the girls laughing uncontrollably across the aisle from us?





MORE FROM GREECE!




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Location:From Air Canade Flight 828 to Greece

Zimbabwe and Botswana

VICTORIA FALLS

- a wonderfall: majesty and mist, rainbows and rain, thundering water. We had come to the other side of the world to see one of nature's wonders - just as legendary explorers, Stanley and Livingston, had come more than 150 years ago. Thinking about their lengthy, exhausting expeditions reminds us to be grateful for our "mere" 24 four hours plus journey from home to here.

Do you know the story behind the famous greeting, "Dr. Livingston, I presume?" No? Well---

After discovering Victoria Falls in 1855, Dr. David Livingston returned to Africa in 1864 to search for the source of the Nile River. He wasn't heard from for seven years, and the world wondered what had happened. Had he been abducted? Did he die? In 1871 the editor of the New York Herald had the idea of sending one of its journalists, Henry Morton Stanley, to find the great explorer. During his eight months there Stanley began to hear stories about a white man with a long grey beard and finally, on November 10, 1871 he found him on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. It's a great story, and you can read a description of this epic moment in history in Mr. Stanley's words by going to

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/stanley.htm

We always enjoy visits to schools and watching the students perform. Our mutual curiousity and eagerness to know one another better is always a highlight of these trips. This is the Chinotimba Government School where the children's dancing, singing, energy and enthusiasm wowed us.
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"A Walk with the Lions" Gone Awry