Athens I

An early morning bus took us from the port at Piraeus into central Athens, where we were able to visit the Acropolis and Parthenon.

Acroplis from below

We had it nearly to ourselves, as most tour groups didn’t show up until about the time we were leaving. The winds the night before had cleared out the usual pollution, so the views were incredible!

The Erechtheum

After being given a guided orientation by our tour director, we got our photos and walked down to the huge amphitheater of Dionysus, which is now being restored.

Theater of Dionysus

Then it was onto the bus for the long ride to Kalabaka (Meteora), in northern Greece.

Parthenon

We passed through mountains and flat agricultural areas. The farther north we traveled the less prosperous things began to look. In fact, the towns became downright shabby. But as we entered the valley near the “forest of stone” rock formations we came to see, the Greek reliance on tourism as an economic engine became obvious once again.

Ancient Greeks

The area around Kalabaka once again looked very prosperous. The snow-capped mountains to the south came down to a river valley reminiscent of the Platte River of Nebraska – a mile wide and an inch deep. The setting sun bathed the rocks, and we could see at least one of the monasteries perched on top.

Meteora

The hotel was a few miles out of town, but quite nice. We walked a muddy path through the woods and farm fields back into the little village nearby. It had rained a great deal earlier in the day, but it was very pleasant and sunny. The frogs in the mud were making an awful racket that we thought, at first, must be some sort of large bird. However, despite the noise, we never actually saw a frog.