Ancient City Center, Ancient Library, and a Massage (Day 60 - GToE)

It's the final day of my Grand Tour of Europe. I head back to the States from Athens at 6:00am tomorrow morning, connecting through Rome and finally arriving somewhere mid-afternoon. I'll give a reflection of the entire trip in the next day or two but overall what an amazing way to spend 2 months. I recommend everyone do this at least once in your life. Plus I can very proudly say that I did not miss any daily blogs on my travels.

Today was a glorious weather day...naturally. My last day and it's beautiful blue skies with mild temperatures. <shrugs> What can you do? Not wanting to completely waste the day, I decided to do some touring of some more ancient ruins. Starting with...

Ancient Agora: If the Acropolis is the ceremonial showcase of Ancient Athens, then the Agora would be its city center and the heart of the city. For about 800 years, Agora was the hub of all the commercial, political, and social life in Athens, as well as its religious life. The Agora was the place to shop -- to buy clothes, dishes, or to get your wagon wheel fixed. You could make an offering to the gods at a temple during the day and then go see a play or a concert that night at the odeon. Unfortunately, not much survives from Agora, except one very well-preserved temple and rebuilt stoa (a covered walkway or portico used in public spaces). They have a pretty neat little museum (located in the rebuilt stoa) which showcases all the relics found on the site. Some of the interesting treasures I saw today were: a baby's commode (photo), an ancient "voting machine" (after all Athens was the birthplace of democracy), a kelpsydra ("water thief) - a water clock used to time speeches at council meetings (the speaker had exactly 6 minutes before the water ran out - I wish Congress had something like this), a couple of barbecue grills, and even some children's toys. On the second story of the stoa were some interesting statues and a fantastic view of the Temple of Hephaistos.

Located about 500 meters north-west of the Acropolis, The Temple of Hephaestus (photo above and right) is the best-preserved Greek temple in the world, although it is far less known than its illustrious neighbor. The temple was built in the 5th century BC in a district which contained many foundries and metalwork shops. It was therefore dedicated to Hephaestos, the god of metal working. The Temple of Hephaestus was designed by Ictinus, one of the architects who also worked on the Parthenon and it housed two bronze statues: Athena and Hephaestos. Approximately half the size of the Parthenon and less elaborate, the temple managed to survive for centuries because it had been converted into the Church of Agios Georgios (Greek's patron saint). During to Ottoman occupation, the Turks kept the church open but permitted services only once each year. At least they didn't destroy the building, although there are some bullet holes sustained mostly during the War of Independence. This temple is magnificent.

After leaving the Agora, I happened upon Hadrian's Library. Hadrian was a Roman emperor who  was an ardent admirer of Greece, so much so that he sought to make Athens the cultural capital of the Empire and ordered the construction of many temples in the city - The Temple of Olympian Zeus being one of them. Hadrian's Library was created by Hadrian in AD 132. The building followed a typical Roman Forum architectural style, having only one entrance, a high surrounding wall with protruding niches at its long sides, an inner courtyard surrounded by columns and a decorative oblong pool in the middle. The library was on the eastern side where rolls of papyrus "books" were kept. Adjoining halls were used as reading rooms, and the corners served as lecture halls. The library was seriously damaged by the Herulian invasion of 267 and repaired by the prefect Herculius in AD 407-412. As with so many things, there isn't much left of the building.

I then returned to my hotel to pick up my bags and headed out to the airport. Now, I'm not going to spend the night sleeping on the airport floor. Because my flight is so early (6am), I decided to treat myself to a night at the Sofitel Airport (a 5 star hotel which is a mere 50 meters from the airport) with a big comfy queen-sized bed, a gloriously decadent shower, and a spa where I could indulge myself to a much needed massage. Yes, it's an expensive evening but after 59 days of living in hostels and sharing bathrooms, I feel I deserve this treat. I knew that my body was achy and sore for the past few weeks, but until I got up from my massage, I didn't know how much I was hurting. I feel so much better now. I just wish that I had brought a bathing suit with me. There's a gorgeous indoor pool here. I just finished having an overly indulgent late lunch/early dinner in the fine restaurant on the 9th floor and now I'm going to curl up on my luxurious bed and watch some television and/or read.

As for Athens, I sort of feel the same way about Athens that I did about Naples. I feel a little sad about Athens. Due to the crushing economic problems that Greece has, the city is suffering terribly. Currently Greece has a 25.5% unemployment rate and young people continue to be the most badly affected, with unemployment in the 15-24 age range standing at 49.5%. Whether it due to boredom, frustration, or just ignorance, much of Athens has been "tagged" by vandals and it just seems like the city needs a good polishing. Athens is not as bad as Naples. The major tourist attractions (the Acropolis, the Plaka, Syntagma Square, etc.) are all beautifully maintained, but the rest of the city looks old, tired, and in need of sprucing up. Even in in the affluent areas of the city, graffiti is rampant. It would make Plato and Socrates very sad if they saw the state of their city.

My final day of photos can be found on my GToE photo site.  I am equally happy and sad to be heading home.