Sightseeing in Athens then on to Cairo

Next morning we headed off for a day of sightseeing before our transfer to the airport and flight to Cairo.

We visited the Acropolis very early in the morning. It was very beautiful and miserably cold. A guard of honour had just raised the Greek flag.

A familiar scene on this trip, Leon with guide book

 

Acropolis

This photo is of a small but beautiful woman in front of the small but beautiful temple of Athena Nike.

Parts of the Propylaea. The blue sky was only temporary. The limitations of our fearless Kodak Instamatic are already obvious aren’t they?

Two views of the Parthenon ... fancy putting a crane in the middle

Also at the foot of the symbol of Athens’ Golden Age is some less uplifting architecture. This fascinated Lyn who was also fascinated by a dog kennel on the Acropolis and a cat eating the dog’s food.

 

Went to the Acropolis Museum and found the statues of the maidens beautiful – really lovely. I find their sculpture very graceful.

Today we went up the funicular at Lykabettos – great view and the most beautiful little church, complete with velvet confessional boxes and incense burning. I loved the walk down along a zigzag path through a shady treed area called Lovers’ Walk.

At 4.00 pm our transfer arrived for the airport. The flight was late, the food was good and Lyn slept after a long day of walking the city. At 8.30 we landed in Cairo.

Our driver from the airport was English speaking and cheerful. As we beeped our way into Cairo he explained that Egyptians found that 5 lanes of traffic fitted perfectly well onto a 3 lane expressway. Cairo was a city experiencing a population explosion. We got our first view of apartment blocks still unpainted and partly unroofed when the tenants move in.  A smear of smog hung over the city.

We were “Deluxe” in Egypt. Room 822 of the Ramses Hilton had a smoggy view over the Nile, soaps, a bath and a minibar.

Yahoo! The hairdryer works - Yippee! I feel almost a new woman.

The view from room 822