“We approached Athens from the north in early twilight, climbing a hill. When we reached its peak, we were dazzled to look down and see the Acropolis struck by one beam of the setting sun, as if posing for a picture.”
Donald Hall
This was always illegal – but now it isn’t. The Greek government had passed a law that only Greek flagged ships could sail round-trip from the country. As there were no truly upscale Greek passenger lines, this was hurting the economy and was quite a boost for Istanbul. Over the years, so-called cruises to the Greek Islands began or ended in Turkey.
But now that has changed and we’ve arrived in Athens for a bit of exploration before beginning our round-trip from Athens sailing with a nearly perfect itinerary.
At the moment, I am sitting in a contemporary multi-level glass and stone called Dionysus, which sits at the edge of the main bus parking lot opposite the main walkway leading up to the Acropolis, a site I have visited many times and, perhaps, my favorite of the world’s Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
While sipping a perfect cappuccino freddo served with miniature almond cakes, and writing notes to myself, I keep looking up. It is impossible not to.
The Parthenon sacred temple sits posing high above at the confluence of two perpendicular ancient stone walls. From my viewpoint, it looks poised on the edge and I can see the sunlight passing through the columns. I see no people. They are hidden below the top of the walls. I only see the structure, posing center stage left, giving me still another travel gift I can never forget.
The building’s open columns hide a treasure trove of memories. It was an ancient munitions storage center, then a church, and it later became a mosque. It was an army barracks, later attacked by the Venetians, and it was thoroughly looted by the British Ambassador to Constantinople, Lord Elgin.
But it still stands – an amazing act of defiance and perseverance, much like the city itself.
I always keep a notebook of “best strategies” when I travel. Today I advise myself that clients should skip a large breakfast and meet their guide in the hotel lobby at 7:30 am. That way they will arrive at the Acropolis at 8:00. When it opens, and before crowds occupy the grounds and the bus parking lot fills up. If the gods are with us, my client’s may not be too late for a partial; sunrise. I will then have them brought to this wonderful café for brunch and an opportunity to savor and reflect on the building in front of them.
Athens is easily Europe’s oldest city and one of the world’s oldest cities as well. The city can be traced back about 3,400 years ago. But there were local inhabitants for over the past 4,000 years.
And still the city functions. In fact, the traffic seems more controlled. The streets are cleaner than I have ever seen them. The “new” airport is certainly an improvement. The restaurant scene is active and the Kolonaki shopping district is still trendy and crowded.
Kolonaki is an aristocratic neighborhood in central Athens. It is situated at an exclusive location, encompassed by Syntagma Square, Vasilissis Sofias Avenue and the southwestern slopes of Lycabettus Hill. Sitting proudly on the corner of Syntagma Square is Athen’s best hotel, the Grand Bretagne. Across the street is the Parliament Building where the changing of the guards takes place hourly. Huge demonstrations were held here eight years ago when the new austerity program was introduced after the country’s debt became unmanageable. The Grand Bretagne has seen it all, a strong lady with a thick façade. But I cannot pass the hotel without remembering that it served as Nazi Headquarters after the German occupation in World War 11.
There are so many secrets buried beneath this ancient city. Even the name is shrouded in myth. The mythology says that Athens and Poseidon each wanted to be the official guardian of the city. To ingratiate themselves to the people, as well as the gods, they each selected a gift. Poseidon offered a salt water spring but Athena’s gift of olive trees won over the population.
Today, it seems, every Athenian tourist guide is an unemployable archeologist. Each lectures visitors on the medicinal value of olive oil. They seem not to know that when we purchase olive oil in the States that is “Made in Italy” there is a good chance that Greek olives are being bottled somewhere in the country.
I spent some time learning my way around Kusadasi. The Turks simply place antiquities on a higher level than the Greeks. I remembered that fully 60% of the wonderful archeological find on Santorini, called Akrotiri, remains uncatalogued. The government simply doesn’t have the money to fund ventures devoted to saving the antiquities.
What, I wonder, must it be like to do a construction dig in this city? Some of the greatest archeological finds of all time occurred when Greece decided to build a new Athens Metro for the 2004 Olympic games. The unimaginable finds included more than 50,000 catalogued artifacts.
As I married a totally entertaining, proud Greek family thirty-four years ago, I have been rather involved with Greece and this city. On this trip I expected to find despair. I found none. Instead, there is a kind of stubborn optimism.
An Economics Professor at the university told me “The crooks were kicked out and we replaced them with someone with little experience. But he is young and somewhat good-looking so we are hoping he is less of a crook than his predecessors.” A university student told me that the Greeks can’t believe how poorly the Prime Minister speaks English. Greeks begin studying English in the third grade and by the time they are entering university most speak three or four languages.
The guides still smile when discussing the average Athenians relationship with their government. They no longer blame the Germans for pushing for strict austerity to pay off the country’s massive debt. Everyone seems to understand that tourism is the key to the country’s future. Many of the taxis are new Mercedes, and the country is not overpopulated. There are about 11 million Greeks and a bit more than half of them live in Athens. The small villages are just barely hanging on. There is little heavy industry. And unemployment hovers around 38%. State funded colleges are free as is health care. But ……………………
You have to pass a rigorous test to gain entrance to a public college and if you want a uniquely qualified doctor or surgeon you will have to pay for it.
Greece has been a stepping stone for refugees headed north and Athenians are generally proud of the way they have handled the crisis. Of course, it has been made easier by the fact that the refugees want to keep moving toward Germany and, hopefully, Scandinavia. They are not looking to settle anywhere where four out of ten adults can’t find employment.
I went to the villages and they each told the same story. Boarded-up homes or small properties with a sprinkling of olive trees sold to foreigners for cash far below what they were worth just ten years ago.
I remember once visiting Athens and going out to dinner with a group of friends. The men went out into the street after dinner to try to hail a taxi to take us back to the hotel. The taxis would slow down and you had to yell where you wanted to go through the open window on the passenger side. On this night none would stop. There were too many of us – a problem best avoided. We only got home when the women volunteered to stop three taxis. It took them less than five minutes.
Today, the taxis have meters that actually work and the drivers seem more intent on taking passengers where they actually want to go. They are trying to make a good impression. They really are. Given that they invented Democracy (for men only I should point out) let’s see what we can do to support them in their efforts.
The Greeks have ample historical reasons to be proud of their heritage. As my late father-in-law once told me “We Greeks invented everything worth anything in this life and a few things that aren’t worth much.”
I am pulling for this city.
