Ports, Psirri and Pops

Friday
We spent the morning exploring Pireaus, the port of Athens. We walked to the three different harbors and the city got increasingly beautiful the further along we got. The first harbor, where all the ferries come in, is pretty grungy. On our walk to the other two we saw remains of shipsheds and arsenals and visited the Pireaus Archaeological Museum. It's pretty hilarious, and a bit sad, but most of the remains now have condos on top of them. To see the arsenal we had to walk into a parking garage, and to see one of the ship sheds we peered through dirty glass windows beneath an apartment building.

Tomb, Pireaus Museum

The last harbor was lined with fancy restaurants that I would definitely take my parents to (well, I would have my parents take me to) if they were visiting :). One of the restaurants reminded me of an I Spy book...

Cute restaurant

Last night a group of us went to a Taverna in our neighborhood for dinner. Afterwards I went into the city with a few friends and sat on the giant rock near the Akropolis (whose name I can't remember) and enjoyed the beautiful view of Athens at night. The Akropolis was completely lit up and spectacular. Plus you could see the moon and some stars, which was completely unexpected given the smog that covers Athens. I was also surprised at the lack of light pollution. Yes, there were lights throughout the city, but in general the buildings keep their lights off--for example, in our apartment, the light in the stairwell is not always on, but there's a button on each floor to press that turns the lights on for about 20 seconds. What a novel, energy saving concept...why not jump on the bandwagon, U.S.?

Saturday
This morning I went to synagogue (well...I slept in, took my time getting ready and missed services), but I went to Chabad for lunch which was lovely. There weren't as many guests as the last time I was there but I still enjoyed it a lot. There were two other American women, both from New York (no surprise there). One was here for archaeological purposes and the other is a food blogger who is exploring Athens for the weekend before heading to one of the islands for a weeklong cooking course! So exciting, interesting and fun to chat with her :) If you're interested: http://kitchenconundrum.com/

Went out to a bar in Psirri in the evening. I love that neighborhood!

Sunday
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!
Got my dad a Dhani Jones Michigan bow tie. Other gifts included a new Tilly hat and a seltzer maker (that looks like a penguin!)

Dad

Slept in :) and worked on my paper for most of the day, then finally made it to the traditional Greek dance performance after getting mildly lost.

I hate Sundays...or at least Sundays filled with school work...I thought this was summer?Papers? What is this nonsense?

The dance performance was interesting though. The costumes and moves were silly but it was fun!

Traditional Greek Dance

Lesson of the Day
Greeks don't share beer. You order a liter and they bring it out in a gigantic mug.

Photo of the Day
Why is my smile crooked? The beer is still full...

Mach's Auf Deine Weisse!

The Count

Glasses of wine drinken: 101
Archaeological museums visited: 9 in Greece, 1 in Italy
Liters of bier drinken: 4.75, give or take
Photos taken: 3201

Tomorrow

• Back to the Agora for a special tour by one of the archaeologist working on the excavations as well as the author of many of the books we use for class, John Camp
• Finishing my paper