Athens

Athens
Friday, August 21, 2009
1:26 AM

Once I got into Athens I walked around a bit until I could find some WiFi so I could get directions to the hostel I had reserved in Sofia. It ended up being a quick walk from the train station but since I arrived so early they didn't have any beds ready. I figured this would be a great opportunity to check out the Acropolis early. After settling in a bit and catching up with my Dad, I headed out to see what there was to see.

The hostel was also situated on the main street of Athens, which runs straight into the Acropolis even though it’s a bit of a walk. I was skeptical of the claim that the city only needed as quick of a run through as you could do on your way to the islands but I quickly found out that there was a lot of truth to that statement. Athens is massive and full, of, concrete. Aside from the flea market around the Acropolis it is just urban sprawl with little or no character.

The ruins around the Acropolis were pretty damn cool though. Walking around the grounds that formed the core of Western society is pretty sweet. The one huge downfall was that I definitely realized that I was out of Eastern Europe as the crowds were absurd. I had taken Sarajevo, Belgrade for granted. I even griped a bit about Budapest being filled with tourists, but Athens brought me back to reality quickly, it was packed. The Parthenon itself is also very impressive just because its huge and it was made so long ago. As it is up on a hill, you can see the entire city of Athens which is a great sight.

After walking around a bit more I checked in to the hostel and took a nap as I hadn't gotten much sleep on the rough train. When I got up in the early evening I headed back down to the Acropolis and checked out the museum that had opened only a month before. Admission was free with a Student ID and only 1 Euro without one, it was pleasant to see that people weren't being gorged. On the way back to the hostel I ended up getting lost in the 'Old City' streets which was fine as it was great a great place to people watch. Back at the hostel I ended up going out with a few people and had a good time.