Greatest Hits of the
day Changing of the Guard at the
Tomb of the Unknown soldier - Shopping for the “Evil Eye Stone” amulet - Plaka
- cute neighborhood, restaurants and a very old churches & ruins - Sunset
on the Acropolis.
Pompoms and
Circumstance – It only happens
once an hour and we hit it spot on, by accident. The changing of the guards at
the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Syntagma Square in front of the Greek
Parliament Building should be on your list of things to see in Athens. The
guards wear tan pleated kilts, white tights and very impressive pompoms on the
toes of their shoes. They look silly to modern westerners like us… but are part
of an elite infantry unit called evzone. Their high-stepping march is carefully
choreographed and timed. Have a look at our pictures.
If Looks Could Kill – Folks around the Mediterranean believe a
malevolent look from certain people can cause bad luck. If you want to know
more, look up “Nazar” in Wikipedia. We just found the hand blown glass “lucky
eye” pieces used to ward off evil, completely irresistible. They look like
water drops within water drops, with dark blue first then white, light blue and
dark blue respectively. Besides, you can never be sure…
Hillside Plaka
Village area – The Plaka is by
far one of the coolest places to wander around in. You will meet locals sitting
on their porches mixed in with terraced Taverna-style restaurants. The cobbled
streets are often lined with marble curbs. Marble must be cheap as dirt because
it is everywhere in Athens. A few Greek Orthodox churches, many centuries old,
pop up here and there as do Doric and Ionic columns that once held up stately
buildings predating Christ by 500 years. The Plaka is littered with antiquity.
Athens makes us feel like we have no history in the USA.
