Mikes Blog

Athens National Archaeological Museum then home to Allgau
Saturday 12 May

Our last breakfast at the hotel 'Acropolis Select'. We are a bit late and miss our new friends Gino and Maria for their last breakfast as well. Gino and Maria are of Italian descent, grew up in Argentina and now live in Pittsburgh, USA.

We fly back to Munich later today. But we have some time this morning so we brave the underground and travel to the National Archaeological Museum. AT only E0.80 each this is very cheap. The underground system is really modern, classy and graffiti free. What a sense of lightness this brings. It must have been completely overhauled for the Olympics in 2004. I haven't seen better.

The museum is full of some of the wonderful stuff we have found everywhere in Greece. A well informed tour guide would help some understanding of so the wealth of exhibits that are here. It would quite often happen that I would be looking at some object while a guide was also talking about it with a guided group.

It is so remarkable, what beautiful vases, bowls, storage vessels prehistoric (pre-written history) peoples created. With the various displays and models I enriched my understanding and appreciation of the Mycenae Acropolis which we had visited a couple of days previous.

I found (thanks to Zita) that at least one Greek god had some kindness and a sense of concern for the welfare of others. It was Asklepios the God of healing.

I was deeply touched by the humanity shown in the Sculptures of family scenes where several family members would be gathered together. (valedictory stele). This depicted a leave taking (one member of the group had died) and they were saying farewell to each other. This was intended to go on the grave of the dead person. It was life size or larger. It displayed dignified suffering.

We walked back through town rather than using the underground, heading always towards the Acropolis and using it to keep our bearings as we knew that once we reached it's base we simply had to bear left to find our hotel. As we walked we passed many of the shops used by locals rather than tourists.

We picked up our bags from the hotel and returned to the Underground. Our ticket for the 1 hour journey to the airport for the two of us was E10. It had cost us E33 to come in by taxi and was alot slower. Everything to do with this underground and the airport was very modern and well maintained.

Our flight of 2hrs 10 minutes heads for Munich. We fly over Delphi, probably near where those two eagles had come together in the time of Zeus, and I recognise the genral landforms below. We can see the sea channel between the Penepolnese and the mainland of Greece. A little further north the mountains rise higher with more snow. We see Spit, Dubrovnek - places we had considered visiting but didn't have time.

At Munich Airport we arrange our two day car hire (including budget rather than full insurance! - suckers for punishment). We can't find our car among the hundred or more in the Avis section of the car park so walk past the cars repeatedly pressing the remore lock until one responds. It is the correct one.

We spend an hour or so with two friends who have come from the city to the airport to see us. Krista, who Zita has known for many many years and Leander , a youngish relative of Zita's who stayed with us for a time in New Zealand while on a world tour in 2005. It was great to see them. I especially enjyed talking with Leander about outdoor stuff like mountain walking (called tramping in NZ) and the mountains.

We were home in Eisenharz by 10.30 pm. Tomorrow is our last day in Germany on this trip. Man - things have gone well!