Greece in March

Well, I am only a month behind - still haven't finished my posts on Rome but decided to go with Greece while it's fresh on my mind.  Originally Jay was going to go on his own to do some work at Corinth but the more I thought about it the more I couldn't stand not joining him.   So, we took the girls out of school and headed there by Swiss Airlines on the 12th.  (Dayna captured some pretty cool views of the Alps from the air.)  The trip  ended up being voted one of our favorite trips so far (our trip to Switzerland is still ranked #1).  We stayed the first 3 nights in an apartment at the Greek Bible Institute, a school run by a DTS grad in a suburb of Athens.  They gave us the royal welcome and we got to live like a local - riding the bus into Athens, going to the market etc.  The girls enjoyed interfacing with the students there from all over the world and also made a new kid friend - Erastos - the son of one of the professors.  He coached them on the finer points of soccer there on the school grounds.  Dayna also participated in a ladies quilting group at the school with some of the local Greek women.  She ate up the attention afforded a little blonde girl in a country with all dark hair!!

We spent our first full day in Athens at the Acropolis.  It wasn't crowded at all and the weather was pleasant and partly sunny.  We enjoyed a picnic lunch overlooking the city - a crowded and dense panorama.  We are so spoiled with space in the U.S.!!  A hike up to the top of the neighboring hill - Filopappos Hill provided some great views of the Parthenon.   We found Athens much nicer than when we were there in 1988.  A lot of improvements took place for the Olympics in 2004 including the nicest subway stations we have seen-complete with ancient artifacts displays.  Other than the stray dogs EVERYWHERE (which were there in '88 as well!) we felt safer walking all over the city.  They have really made the area around the Acropolis and Agora very friendly with outdoor cafes, pedestrian only streets and even a playground!  It's amazing that the Athenian kids grow up playing in the shadows of such famous
monuments!!

Our second day of touring Athens included a trip to the National Archaeological Museum which was chock full of some incredible artifacts.  It was pretty amazing and overwhelming.  It really is an incredible museum and you could spend days there.  After that and lunch at McDonalds (Jay gets his American style coffee and the girls get their burgers) we went to the newly opened Acropolis Museum which holds many of the original items from the Parthenon.  Architecturally the building is amazing and is designed with incredible views of the Parthenon.  (You can see the modern museum in the background of the picture above with Dayna) The top floor is a re-creation of the Parthenon using many of the original pieces that have been recovered.  It was pretty interesting and sad to see how many pieces are missing to the British Museum!  Unfortunately they don't allow photography in the Museum so we can't bore you with any pictures!



We ended the day with the all important souvenir shopping (hey, they have to have some payback for putting up with touring ruins and antiquities!) and ice cream (NOT to be compared with Italian gelato!).  Jay was yearning for American coffee after he endured a cup of Greek coffee with its 1/2" thick layer of grounds at the bottom.  Although it was a quick tour through Athens we were ready for some open space - the allure of the city had worn off...on to Corinth.

Rome in February

The girls started "Fasching Break" on Feb. 13 but Jay was taking a German class so we didn't get to leave for Rome until Thursday the 18th.  We flew out of Stuttgart for an hour and a half plane ride on German Wings - kind of like the Southwest Airlines of Germany.  It was actually cheaper than taking the train and much faster!!  We stayed for six nights in an apartment right on Piazza Barberini (see above for a view from our balcony) in the heart of the ancient city.  It was a bit of a challenge contending with the noise at night but the convenience and fun of being in the heart of things was worth it!  Rome does not sleep!

The ride in from the airport with Mr. Enzo (a great old Italian employed by the lady who owns the apartment) was exactly as I remember - Romans drive like they talk - lots of movement!!  At first I thought that maybe there was a law saying that you had to straddle the white line!!  They are crazy drivers and it took us forever to get to the apartment - it has become an extremely congested city and everyone loves to use their horn!!  We couldn't believe that we only saw one accident while we were there.  There are cars and scooters everywhere.  Parking is a nightmare and the Smart cars even squeeze by parallel parking in a new way!!



That first night we got settled, got some groceries at a little market and took off down the street a few blocks to the famous Trevi Fountain.  It became a nearly nightly ritual as you'll see from future posts!  The night was nearly 60 degrees and every person in Rome was out on the streets - they come alive at night!!  They stroll!

On our first day, we got up and walked a few blocks down a different street to the Spanish Steps. (In the picture you can see the obelisk down the street from our balcony) It is another famous place to sit and watch the crowds, we enjoyed the same and were especially pleased when the sun came out.  We did a little window shopping on the Via Condotti (the most exclusive shopping street in Rome) and enjoyed the guys selling roasted chestnuts along the street.  We had some lunch and then boarded the bus to Piazza Venezia.

Piazza Venezia sits at the base of the "wedding cake" monument to Vittorio Emmanuel - the first President of Italy.  He had it erected much to the chagrin of most Romans and it's considered the sore thumb of Rome because it is so big and opulent in contrast to the fabulous ruins around it.  We climbed its step to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and got some good views.  Around the corner we climbed the steps up to the top of the Capitoline Hill - considered to be the center of the Ancient Roman world and where we get our word "capitol" as in Washington D.C.  The piazza was designed by Michelangelo and was beautiful with it's patterned paving and great statues.  From the top of the hill we got a great look into the ancient Forum including the Arch of Septimius Severus from A.D. 203 and the Sacred Way.

From there we walked down the street toward the Colosseum from A.D. 80 built by Emperor Vespasian.  We rented the audio phones and headed right in.  It was a great time to be there as the lines were very short and the weather was really pleasant.  The girls enjoyed climbing around the great structure and we even saw some real live gladiators!!  Its pretty amazing to think that it's so old.  The reason it's half there is because it was plundered of its marble, bricks and statues to build other buildings after all of the games were outlawed (first the gladiators and then the wild animals fights were finally banned in 523 A.D.).  We headed home on the Metro which took us right to Piazza Barberini - when in Rome do as the Romans!