The Acropolis

We hiked to the top of the Acropolis today to see the ancient "city on a hill." It was very hot, and the walk to the top was challenging. However, it was worth the climb to see the Parthenon at the top. Although there were many tourists at the site, the view of Athens from the top was breathtaking. Athens is a huge modern city today, but it was easy to sit at the Parthenon and think about what Athens looked like long ago. We grabbed a quick cheese pastry for lunch, and headed across town to the National Archaeological Museum. The museum showcased many historic sculptures from various times in Greek history. I was amazed to see an ancient bowl inscribed with Aramaic writing, which was the language that Jesus spoke. I was also impressed at the Santorini frescoes, which were excavated from the island we will visit for four days of our trip. We returned to the Plaka this evening, where parts of it still look very old. I wouldn't be surprised if I saw Socrates himself walking by the restaurant where we ate Greek food and listened to music of the bouzouki.