ATHENS, GREECE

THE BLONDE WANDERS ATHENS, GREECE

I can now say that I am a huge fan of Lufthansa airlines. Our 8+ hour flight from Chicago to Munich, Germany was about as comfortable and pleasant as flying could be. Lots of wine, meals, snacks, amenities, and professional + friendly flight attendants. Made it to Athens without feeling like I had the life beat out of me, which is basically what it feels like to fly domestic in the US these days.

While Athens was really just a quick stopover for us (36 hours or so) en route to Santorini, I was pleasantly surprised with this historic city.  We didn't expect to actually really like it! It was easy to get around, there was plenty to do, tons of food at every turn, and y'all....IT WAS CHEAP. I can definitely say that now that I've been in Santorini for several days. My husband and I placed a quick coffee shop order of 2 espressos, 2 waters, and 3 gourmet chocolate truffles (helllllooo, vacation) and audibly "WHAT!?"ed when the barista asked us for 4.50 euro. That would have cost us $25 in Austin (and 40 euro in Santorini as we'd come to learn). 

THE ACROPOLIS

If you'll be in Athens, the Acropolis is the most obvious thing to do. I tend to *not* enjoy the obvious tourist spots, but at the same time, things as important and historical as the Acropolis must be seen. It did not disappoint. The earlier in the day you visit, the better due to long lines (and the heat in the summer).  Going in with a tour guide will allow you to scoot in passed the line, but then you'll be at the mercy of the guide's agenda. We opted to wait in line and escort ourselves around the grounds, which left us waiting in line for about 35 minutes midday, but thoroughly enjoying our time at the Acropolis more than any of us thought we would.  

ACROPOLIS TAKEAWAYS:

*Go as early in the day as you can muster.

*Admission was 20 euro per person with kids being free

*Paying a tour guide will allow you to skip the line but may prolong parts of the experience that you wish not to spend so much time on, and you'll likely have a mess of people with you.

*WEAR SNEAKERS. Just do it. I know, I know...we want to be cute in photos and in life. But take it from the temporarily handicapped and monumentally inconvenienced blonde, here, those marble steps are SLICK and you'll be climbing up and down tons of them.  I watched people slipping at every glance. I, fortunately, was not one of them, but I was already injured going into it...and it is not easy on the feet/ankles. 

THE ACROPOLIS MUSEUM

The Acropolis museum is a MUST.  We went just before sunset on a Friday evening and had no wait and no massive crowds to contend with. This museum was absolutely beautiful. 

Athens was quick but incredibly pleasant. A few takeaways:

*Plan to get to a restaurant BEFORE you're actually hungry.  Really long meal services are a reality for much of Europe, so I hear, but we did find Athens to be particularly leisurely at mealtime. 

*Cab services seem pretty reliable and cost effective in Athens. The driving is crazy there, but the cabbies seem to be pretty excellent at navigating and dodging pedestrians, rogue buses, and also pointing out good information about the city.

*Plan for the Acropolis at the cooler times of day and the Acropolis museum at the hottest. 

*Athens was pretty English language friendly. I didn't have to do a whole lot of pointing and charades, which is awesome, because the Greek language is one that I can't even begin to comprehend. 

*Be prepared to hunt for eggs and bacon. One of the obvious benefits of Europe travels, in my opinion, is the plethora of incredible baked goods/pastries at insanely low prices.  UNFORTUNATELY, myself and my husband have to avoid gluten (I know, BORING.). We were lucky to find one item on any given menu that was not bread served on top of bread dipped in cheese.  Again- that sounds like heaven to me! But you may have to do a little digging if you're looking for a breakfast that doesn't involve croissants.  Our friend ordered an "Athena Breakfast" thinking it would be a little sampler of a few things, and it was literally a bread basket with 4 different breads, 2 different croissants, and jam. Equal parts YUMMMM and BLOAT. ;) 

Overall, I rate my stay in Athens pretty dang high. I felt that 2 days was pretty perfect and wouldn't have needed to be there much longer. 

Next up:  Oia, Santorini.