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Hi Friends!!
I am sorry that I am so bad at this blog thing, but to be fair, I did warn you :)
Right now I am in Nafplion, Greece in the Peloponnese. I just arrived here around 4:30pm, from Athens. But I will back up...
I finally made it to Athens, arriving on July 2nd..I hoped on a bus, hopped off the bus and made my way through the streets to my hostel. I was very proud. Oh, and guess what? I got FIRST CLASS on the plane ride over to Athens...SO AMAZING! I have never ate so well in my entire life! The hostel was very nice, but since I got there around 11am everyone was already out seeing the sights...so I kinda stood there for a bit thinking...okay, what do I do now? And then I said, your in Greece - get out there and see it!! So I spent the first day just kind of orientating myself to my area...the Plaka area of Greece. It is this amazing old area of Greece with very narrow streets and overflowing tavernas and patios everywhere. So beautiful. It was so nice to be in that area when a few streets over it was crazy Greek traffic (honking ones horn is common practice for everything!). I walked around the Acroplois and other ancient sites but didn't go in. It was just amazing walking down these city streets and then suddenly there would be these huge collums infront of you and you are like, oh hi there 2,000 (+) year old collum...nice to see you! You can't even walk around a park in Athens without stumbling across an ancient relic just laying amongst the bushes. It is stunning and so surreal. That night I went out for dinner and a movie with a guy who was in my room too...it was his last night in Greece after spending a month travelling around the mainland alone. We say "Public Enemies", but this is Greece remember...so it is a ROOFTOP movie theatre...with THE ACROPOLIS right beside you, glowing in the night lights. AMAZING.
My second day in Athens I spent seeing all of the major sights...I started with the Acropolis, and then went into the Ancient and Roman Agoras (Agoras being the marketplaces...city centers back in the day), the Temple of Zeus (Disney's Hercules anyone?!), Hadrian's Library...and a bunch of other stuff! I just really tried to take it slow and enjoy everything, and really take in what I was seeing. It was sooooo hot though that it is hard to focus at times! And guess what I discoverd when I went off the beaten path? The party spots of all young Athenians...thats right, young Athenians get drunk in ANCIENT RUINS...we do it in our friend's basements! That night I just wandered up and down this street that runs underneath the Acropolis that was just teeming with people, trying to blend in. Didn't work. Even on a dark and crowded street a man came right up to me and was like, "English speaker?" -I was like, Come On and I that obvious!!?? Fail.
My third day in Athens I went to the new Acropolis museum. They have all the millions of treasures that have been found around the Acropolis over the years, as well as pieces of the Parthenon roof...Incredible. It is astonishing the work that goes into both finding and then identifying all these relics. I also went to the Panathenaic Stadium which held the very first modern Olympics in 1896..as well as the finish line for the 2004 Athens Olympics marathon. EPIC. You know me, even the most normal of tracks make me giddy..so this was overwhelming. Too bad you can't go on it though... I also climbed this hill that gives you a view over all of Athens...also amazing. But not as amazing as the track! My last night in Athens was amazing...I met some Canadians and ended up hanging out with them. We climbed his huge rock underneath the Acropolis that was used for Judical court in Ancient Times, and now is an amazing hang out for young people. Honestly, it wass stunning...you could see all of Athens spread out beneath you, sparkling (and sooo hazy!) with the Acropolis to your left. We then headed where I was wandering last night, and spent the rest of the night on a roof-top patio overlooking an excavation site...only about 2 other tables there and we stayed until 4am! And didn't get home until after 5am due to confusing Athens streets, and too many people with too many opinions!
Ok, computer is running out...I will continue tomorrow!
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