Anthens - Agora, archaeology and olympics

With only a few days in Athens we needed to make the most of Friday as well. We started with a trip back to Acropolis Station and a walk to Hadrian's Arch and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. We then found our way around to the other side of the Acropolis to visit the Roman Agora and Temple of the Winds. We then walked on, in the heat, to Hadrian's Library, the Ancient Agora (market place), Museum of the Ancient Agora in the Stoa Attalos and Temple of Hephaestus. Sophie and Will hit temple overload, so John took them back to the hotel via Thission Station for a swim. I wandered on through town and caught the metro back from Syntagma Station. After recovering from the morning with some lunch from the local bakery we headed out again, this time to the archaeological museum nearby. According to their website, they rank as one of the best 10 museums in the world. I'm not sure how they claimed that rating but the museum was certainly impressive. Many items dated from the 14th and 15th century BC. 

On Saturday we packed our bags and stored them at the hotel, then caught the metro back into town. We walked up to the marble stadium where the modern olympics commenced in 1896. The audio guide was superb, Sophie and Will had a chance to run around the track and stand on the dais. We also saw torches from various olympics and the stand where the flame is lit to commence each games. After collecting our bags, we caught the train from Larissa Station out to Piraeus and were exhausted by the time that we bought ferry tickets for the following day and walked to our hotel. The staff were wonderfully welcoming, greeting us with a glass of water and taking our bags up for us. They also immediately arranged a free transfer back to the port for us for the following morning. We had to be up at 6am to catch a Blue Star Ferry to Santorini!

Greek Carrefour supermarket -water and pastry

Hadrian's Arch

Temple of Olympian Zeus

Columns on Temple of Zeus

Temple of the Winds

Keystone in the Temple of the Winds

Hadrian's Library

Church in the Agora

Iliad and Odyssey

Stoa Attolos

Items from the 14th and 15th century in the Museum of the Agora

Museum of the Agora

Temple of Hephaestus

Central modern day square at Monastiraki Station

School in the street near our hotel

Archaeological Museum

Items from 2800-2300 BC

Active museum sharing artefacts

Posseidon from Mitos 123-100 BC

Bronze statue in the Archaeological Museum

From the Tombs of the Kerameikos excavation

The Spring Fresco from Akrotiri on Santorini showing the landscape before the volcanic eruption

Dais in the Panathinaikon Stadium

Doing the Dab

After a lap of the stadium

In the royal seats that were moved to centre stadium

A lot of marble for the seats!

Dreaming of running in the 1896 Olympics

Tunnel through to the 'changing rooms'

Melbourne Olympics - torch and banner

Acropolis from the stadium

Listening to the audio guide in the stadium

Posing for a photo

Parthenon frieze in the metro

Relaxing in Piraeus after another big day