Αθηνα!

Greece--you know, the rocky place where all that historical stuff used to happen. Immediately apparent is the fact that many of those noble cities, like Sparta, Corinth, Thebes, and Argos, have been destroyed quite thoroughly over the past two millennia, and what remains in their stead are small rural towns which usually contain some rocks, a herd of goats, and a handful of folks who had no idea that an immense, world-famous temple once existed where their tavern now sits.

Athens somehow escaped this giant Eraser of Awesome, however, and we were quite pleased to find that it not only still exists, but has grown to shamelessly cover most of Attica. From the lookout point of the Acropolis, we found that the nearly identical apartment blocks spread out over the city's hills and beyond the horizon. And amidst this mass of humanity, Athens' great landmarks remain intact. The ancient city center holds many wonders, and we happily trotted between them and basked in their timeless glory. The Agora, with the renovated Stoa of Attalos and the well-preserved Temple of Hephaistos; the Odeon of Herod Atticus and the Theater of Dionysos; the Areopagus and the Temple of Olympiad Zeus (a cluster of columns with some grass around them); and of course the Acropolis, with its famous centerpiece, the Parthenon. The Parthenon! What an incredible building it must have been. It's big; real big.

Sunday afternoon then found us in the Peiraias, the city's harbor and rich-people magnet. The sun was kind enough to show itself at this point, and we were treated to a pleasant view of the sunlit Aegean.