Of course, let's not forget one of the most important places in Greece. Athens also played a great part in Greek mythology.
It was said that Athena and Poseidon once competed to become the patron of this wondrous city. Athena won in the end and the city Athens was named after her.

We were in Athens for about 2D1N before we departed for Mykonos and another 2D1N after our trip to Crete.


Changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier



The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Greece is located at Syntagma Square, which houses the Greek Parliament building.
Dozens of tourists gathered around the square around 11am Greek time to watch the ceremonial changing of guards that are stationed in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

EVERYONE WAS SO TALL OMG. AND I CAN'T EVEN WATCH PROPERLY WHILE TIPTOEING. However, there's still some space and I could watch from the gap. Sometimes it's good to be short though.



I had to wiki to find out more about the guards and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as the tour guide didn't say much nor explain more (and also because I was busy watching and photographing under the hot sun).

For those who are unfamiliar with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, there are similar tombs all around the world, remembering those who have fallen in wars or battles. A single soldier without identifications was buried, representing all of the unnamed soldiers in the war.

Dressed in their traditional uniforms, the Evzones guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Greece. The dress-like garment and the shoes.. definitely made them unique.


Panathenaic Stadium



The Panathenaic Stadium is one of a kind as it is the only stadium to be fully built with marble. I suppose sitting there under the sun would be cooling enough.
It hosted the first modern Olympic Games and also the more recent 2004 Olympic Games.

We didn't stay long as we were running late for lunch (ugh, the rush) and also because admission tickets were not included in our package.


Plaka





This has to be my favourite place in all of Athens. Plaka is the old neighbourhood in Athens. It's a beautiful place with shady trees and colourful flowers, somewhat like a garden.
It also has labyrinthine streets like most old neighbourhoods so it's fun to explore and discover (and easy to get lost in).







Pic above creds to aunt. Totally not that camera-ready. LOL







There are lots of different shops, selling myriads of goods, from souvenirs to clothing to edibles. Truly a good place to shop at. The edibles are a little more pricey compared to other parts of Greece (cause 1Euro is almost equivalent to RM4). Olive soap bars are cheap though.





Plaka is not short of taverns (cheaper food places) and restaurants. You could have your meal and continue on with your shopping after that.



People all about, even at night. Was a little crowded at the dining place. Also because it's a small place.


Monastiraki Flea Market



Situated at a walking distance from Plaka, the Monastiraki Flea Market is not really your traditional flea market. Instead, it comprises dozens of shops with low prices (well, most of them are low).



Surprisingly, macarons here are way cheaper compared to Malaysia's as I thought the exchange rate would skyrocket the prices. The macarons were just 0.70Euros each whereas macarons in Malaysia cost an average of RM4 each.
So we bought about 8 macarons. LOL. One of each flavour.



You could find antiques and cheap souvenirs too! Bought a Poseidon figurine for about 6Euros and I'm happy cause he's my fav. Heh.


Street Art / Graffiti



Another thing that I sort-of like in Athens is the street art / graffiti there. Some of them are plain vandalism but most of them brought colours to plain old walls.



Such as this pretty piece in front of a shop (maybe minus the white spray paint).





Some of them deliver strong messages.



Or they are just plain pretty.


Acropolis and the Parthenon





Time to take a tour around the Acropolis of Athens, to go back a few thousand years. The buildings/ruins here are practically ancient and date back to the beginning of civilisation. The once great Greek civilisation is still standing on top of a hill overlooking Athens.
No building in Athens should be taller than the Acropolis of Athens.



The structure is truly fascinating. Restoration in progress though.



The famous Parthenon, dedicated to Athena. The rocks in front of the building is damn slippery though. Be careful to not slip and fall like I almost did.



Technology is definitely awesome as someone developed an app to reconstruct the buildings and let tourists and locals alike see what the place was like thousands of years ago. They even have the details on the top of the temple. It helps a lot, especially to those who lack imagination.
Yep, that's a rented iPad.



The Erechteion, dedicated to both Poseidon and Athena.





The Parthenon still standing magnificently.



You could see the whole of Athens from up here.



That awkward king-of-the-world-every-one-and-every-thing-is-under-me pose.







There's only one way up and down and lots of people about. It is truly marvelous to have seen the Parthenon and the Acropolis with my own eyes. I'm no expert and there are quite a number of temples there that are now ruins and I didn't really go through them one at a time. Oops. I do know, however, that some of the parts were reconstructed while the originals are preserved at the Acropolis Museum.



I still can't read Greek except for the occasional alpha, beta, delta.


Acropolis Museum



The Parthenon from the walkway to the Acropolis Museum.





The original statues on the Erechteion.

Photography is prohibited in most exhibition halls and even when it is allowed, no flash photography is permitted.



The birth of Athena from Zeus' head, I suppose. Greek mythology IS interesting.



You could see the Acropolis from the Acropolis Museum. There's also a cafe at the museum where people could enjoy their afternoons and evenings.

We also went to the McArthurGlen Factory Outlet. Shopped till our boarding time. Heh. I did take some photos on my phone and it died. IT DIED. BEFORE I BACKUP THE PHOTOS. FRIED THE SDCARD TOGETHER WITH IT.
Phone died a second time after repairs. Ohwell. Got a new phone.
Lesson learnt: MUST BACKUP PHOTOS MONTHLY.

I guess that's all for my Greece trip. Greek food are hard to pronounce and I'm kinda lazy to look them all up. Sorry :x
Taiwan posts next? Heh (CAUSE I LOST MY PENANG TRIP PHOTOS TOO. UGH)

And we arrived at the home of the Minotaur one late evening on a ferry from Santorini. Beautiful sunset too but not as stunning as the one in Oia.



Heraklion Port in the evening (Koules fortress in the background). Went for dinner at the hotel, buffet style, which was quite a change from the usual taverna dinners.


The Palace of Minos, Knossos.





A trip to Crete would not be complete without a tour to Minos' palace is Knossos. Even though they are just ruins now, it was one of the greatest palaces back then.
If you are familiar with Greek mythology, this palace was where Theseus and the Minatour fought.



Random sunflower from our day-tour leader. Kinda cute heh.





It's amazing how some places were preserved and restored, not torn down and demolished like some countries (cough). This is truly a valuable site for archaeologists and historians alike, not to mention Greek myth lovers and tourists
The grounds are magnificent but at the same time, the sun was scorching hot and there was not much shelter there so we were quite happy when it was time to leave (sorry Minos!).

Take note though, it is forbidden to step on the ruins (of course you could step on the stairs) as you may cause some serious damage. Maybe reawaken Gaia just like in Rick Riordan's Heroes of Olympus. LOL P.S. That's still my fav Greek mythology fiction though.


Heraklion



Heraklion, the capital of Crete, is also the largest town there. There are quite a number of fashion boutiques and museums there. Shopping turned out to be on the top of the list for those in our small group. Oops.



Fountains from the Venetian era could be found in Heraklion, including the Morosini Fountain at Lions Square.





After a quick shopping trip, we went on the bus again. We skipped the historical part of Heraklion due to the tight schedule.



The clouds were pretty that day.


Arolithos





Arolithos is a traditional Cretan village which is privately owned, which allows tourists to experience the ways of the civilisation.





The village is filled with pastel colours and lots of flowers. I felt like I was somewhere far from the city and crowds even though Heraklion is just 11km away.



There weren't too many people around and it was a beautiful place to have lunch and some local Greek coffee with loukoumades (Greek doughnuts with honey). Ooh, my Greek improved a little. I managed to get the spelling right on my first try! Yay!



Bug and daisies. If only I could get macro lenses..



This colourful little village is definitely worth a visit, it's awesome for photos too!


Rethymno



Rethymno is quite the old town. There are traditional buildings, ports, churches but there are also hotels and beaches there. We did not have enough time to explore the whole town so... shopping time again.







The corner houses are often unique in Rethymno. The top floor of the corner houses are usually designed to stand out from the others, giving it a distinguished look.



We happened to bump into a wedding celebration while walking through the old town. OPA! (an expression used in Greek celebrations and stuff)



Ending the post with an obsession towards Pokemon (technically it's a pokeball but meh).

Crete is a nice place to spend a few nights in but unfortunately we only spent two nights there and only a day of exploring. Oh well. Many more places to visit!

Last post of Greece coming up soon (I have no idea how soon, to be honest. Will be a little busy for the next few weeks).

Here are the links to the previous posts on Greece if you've missed out any of them:
Breathtaking Santorini, Greece - Red Beach, Pyrgos, Kamari, Koutsoyannopoulos, Fira
Oia - The postcard of Santorini
A Trip to Mykonos, Greece