After evacuating from Egypt to Athens, the day went by in a blur. Instead of recovering from our insane week in Egypt, we spent the day touring around the Athens. I hadn't expected to find myself in Greece but life has a crazy way of sneaking surprises on you.
Athens is beautiful, and after living in Cairo, it felt unnaturally quiet. It was odd to be walking on sidewalks and following traffic signs once again. I remembered what it's like to cross the street without having my life flash before my eyes. The air was fresh and the streets weren't bustling with people. But Athens can never compare to the vibrancy and excitement that brings the city of Cairo alive.
While there are stray cats everywhere in Cairo, Athens is full of huge stray dogs that like to bark at random people and follow them. They even abide by traffic lights. Apparently when you decide you don't want your pet anymore, you can just set it free on the streets. Since we didn't have any set plans while we were touring, we just let the dogs lead the way. There's always some kind of strike going on in Greece and today it was public transportation so we did a lot of walking.
Like any other tourists, we visited the Acropolis which is 150m above sea level and overlooks the entire city. On the climb to the top we were met with breathtaking panoramic views of Athens. The Parthenon sits at the very top of the Acropolis, a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena and is one of the most ancient sites in Greece.
We also visited the ruins of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, which was built sometime in 400BC and is located in the most famous sanctuary in Greece. It once housed the statue of Zeus, the chief of gods in Greek mythology, and once an ancient world wonder.
In between the two major historical sites we passed the National Garden, the Parliament building, and the Olympic Stadium. We had lunch and dinner at Greek restaurants, and their moussaka dish (eggplant) was amazing. We had dinner at a restaurant called Alexander the Great. I had lerada, beans stuffed with dry vegetables. The feta cheese was amazing, as was the flaming cheese and the Greek salad.
My flight to Morocco is at 7am so I'll be leaving for the airport in a few hours. I've slept about 3 hours in the past 2 days so I desperately need a nap before the airport process begins again.
