The World by Moonboot: Istanbul to Athens

After the cruise we briefly checked out the famous ruins at Olympus and then had a transfer to Antaglia. I wait for a standard 6 hours in the bus station before catching the overnight bus back to Istanbul. In the bus station I found a small barber and thought it would be a god idea to get a clip. Turns out it is a bad idea to allow someone to cut your hair when they cannot speak English... After some fairly competitive sign language the hair cut was transformed into something that didn’t look straight out of the Turkish army.

I arrived in Istanbul t about 9am and wanted some breaky. At the hostel you receive breakfast with your accomodation.I asked how much it would cost to buy breaky seeing as I didn’t stay. 20 Lira for breakfast. A nights accommodation is only 25 so apparently the majority of the cost of the accommodation is the breakfast. Strange.

Tired from the bus I went to sleep for a 'short nap'. 5 hours later I woke up and decided I should really make the most of my last day in Istanbul.

I checked out the giant water reservoir 300AD. It is underground and the original columns still support the modern roads and buildings of today.

I then went to the spice bazaar, a 1km area fully devoted to fruit, vege, meat and or course spices.

Another mosque.

As I passed a carpet shop the owner yelled out, “where you from?” in broken English.

I said “New Zealand”

“Kia ora bro” he said. “How many carpets are you going to buy from me today?”

I described my lack of funds to which he asked “Have you plastic?”

I said “Yes of course”

“Well then no problem”

I explained to him that ‘plastic’ would only fix my cash issues in the short term to which he replied,

“But with plastic, it will be fantastic.” He gave up on me at this point and asked what I do.

When I said I studied law he asked “So will you be a lawyer or a liar?”

Very good from the lonely sole-trader in the backstreets of Istanbul.

8/9/11

Today I rose early to try and go for my first run since my operation. It was more of a 5 minute run then 5 minute walk affair but still progress I guess. My ankle is about where it was before the operation and has not improved for about 2 weeks. Hopefully it gradually recovers.

I then took the bus/train out to the airport and departed for the euro-zone.

Another retarded alphabet

I found my way to the hostel and there were 4 of us all checking in at the same time. Winston from Melbourne, Paul from Lebanon and ***** from France.

9/9/11

Paul and I headed off early to make the most of Athens. First stop was the colossal Acropolis Museum. I managed to convince the ticket office that the ‘University of Otago’ is in Spain so had free entry. The top story is incredible. It is the same size as the Parthenon and displays the full 360 degree freize. There is one big section missing from the frieze which is sitting in the British Museum. A British archaeologist ripped it all off in 1880 and pleas for it’s return are being ignored. In the 3 hours at the museum I lost Paul and would not see him again until evening.

Next stop was the ‘Ancient Agora’, the heart of Athenian social and political life back in the day.

Hadrian's Library

The Uiversity of Athens, bit of a step up from Otago...

Lunch: a greek salad of course

By this stage it was 5pm, I had tried to time my acropolis visit with the end of the day. The light would be better and the sun less severe. The acropolis sits 150m above the city giving incredible 360 degree views. Unfortunately the main attraction, the Pathenon, is under reconstruction so there was a massive crane concealing the view but still awesome.

Temple of Athena Nike

I spent about 2 hours up there wadering around reading the lonely planet and trying to get a sense of the place. It was a good idea to visit the acropolis museum first to really understand what each building was and what I saw.

Erecthion and porch of aryatids

The sunset was incredible, first from the acropolis itself and then a nearby hill

On the way back home I caught the changing of the guards at Parliament. Hopefully will see it in daylight at some stage.

I headed to try my first Gyros for dinner with Winston. If the double down is heart attack waiting to happen then a Gyros would be considered a quadruple heart bypass… Pita bread, pork, sour cream, one piece of tomatoand chips.

Winston chowing down.

10/9/2011

The next morning I visited to Athens Archaeology Museum with Louis, a student from Spain who was also travelling alone. I studied classical studies at school and I think my whole Athens experience has been enhanced by the background int4erest and knowledge. The archaeology museum was probably the highlight of Greece for me with a floor solely dedicated to vases and one to sculpture. The museum had fantastic and guided you through time with a commentary on the small changes in technique and technology. I spent 4 hour there and probably would have spent more if I didn’t have a date with my cousin.

I met sophie at her skux hotel a nd we had a drink for a couple of hours.

Hadrian's Arch

Paul, Winston and I went to the local pub to watch some footy. The pub was full of greeks watching various football games. I was desperate to watch the US Open semi-finals but according to the pub all of the 5 TVs had very important Greek 3^rd division football games on…

We retired to the hostel to find a live feed over the internet. Winston is a chef by trade so cooked us up a stunning pasta for dinner set with fresh olives.

Paul was having a nightmare cooking at the start before Winston's assured hands took over