Athens, Greece and Home

Once we got into the Port of Piraeus we were entertained on stage by these Greek dancers who came on board.  They were accompanied by a four-piece band and changed into three different native costumes during the performance.  We loved them and the music.

Once we got checked into our hotel we went on a guided tour of the major sites in and around Athens.  Here is the Greek Parliament Building.

This was our tour guide, Roula.  She spoke excellent English and made the tour entertaining as well as educational.

This was Hadrians's Arch.

We went, of course, to the Acropolis and the Parthenon.  It was amazing to see up close.  Acropolis means "high place" and it can be seen from all over Athens.

The original Acropolis was destroyed during some of the wars here.  The ruins of the one above were rebuilt around 500 BC.

We visited the Acropolis Museum near the ruins.

Photography was restricted in many areas, but these goddesses were allowed.  One of the originals was taken to Great Britain many years ago and never returned to complete the set.

 These surviving treasures of the original Acropolis are about 2,500 years old.  

This is the World's only all marble stadium.  It was built to hold the first modern Olympics in 1896.  Sporting events are still held there.

About one out of every ten cars on the Athens' streets are yellow taxis.  Most are built by Mercedes Benz.  Traffic here is crowded and crazy.  Parking is at a premium.

 We are posting this last "Selfie" before we head home to Michigan tomorrow.  The weather has been absolutely perfect except one cloudy day in Venice.  People have been friendly and helpful and we never saw one mosquito!  Holland America is a first-rate cruise line.   Thank you for spending some of your time with us while we traveled on an excellent Mediterranean cruise and adventure.

We hope to see you again the end of December as we head to the Southwest U.S. to find out what is happening out there.

Bill and Karen

🚢