Danielle Anderson and Kyle Anderson
My mother-in-law, Sandy, loves to travel, so she wanted to celebrate
the birthdays of many friends and family with a European trip. The
plan was Athens for four days followed by a seven-day cruise of the
Greek Islands and Turkey. I never imagined going to these countries.
How am I going to communicate? I don't speak Greek or any Turkish
language! There are endless landmarks to see and explore, but where
do you start? I realized I would be in a country and touch the same
ground as historical figures that I have only read about in history
and mythology books.
We arrived in Athens around 3 p.m. and were exhausted from the
flights. We were eager, however, to begin our sightseeing. Our first
lesson, between the hours of 2 and 5 p.m. is the time for a siesta.We
walked the narrow, steep streets, we listened to the beautiful Greek
language from the few locals who were out and about.
Our first few steps in the city were quite a blur since the
majority of the shops and restaurants were closed, but we became
accustomed to some familiar shops like Starbucks, grocery stores and
a pharmacy. As the city began to wake up, we found a restaurant down
several steep streets and underneath the road. The authentic Greek
cuisine of chicken, lamb, stuffed peppers, pita bread with tzasicki,
pork, salad, etc., was delicious. And beware: many restaurants
automatically bring out strong, high-proof liquor called Ouzo before,
during and after dinner. Our small Greek dictionary did not prepare
us for this adventure and we had to learn quickly how to speak the
basics.
The next day we took a quick bus tour with the guide calling out
landmarks as we sped by. It truly felt like the movie "National
Lampoon's European Vacation" when the dad gets stuck in the
roundabout in France and calls out a landmark each and every time
they speed around it. One scheduled stop was the Acropolis, and the
view from the top looking down at the city was spectacular, including
many condensed colorful buildings and ruins like the Temple of Zeus.
Athens was undergoing a major renovation for 2004 Olympics. There
was scaffolding surrounding several ruins and buildings. Behind the
scaffolding, each temple has towering pillars, beautiful statues and,
although worn from age, there is unbelievable detail in writing and
art on the limestone for each individual ruin. The temple of the
virgin Athena, the goddess of wisdom, in the Parthenon was certainly
the largest. The beauty of the Caryatids (statues of women) on their
