Athens, Greece

This is our second visit to Athens. The city has noticably regressed in recent years as a result of the economic downturn. During our first visit, unemployment was hovering around 12%, but the latest stats for 2016 (as of July) are reflecting 23%. The lowest number (looking at a 10-year trend) was back in 2006 @ just over 7%. You don't see it immediately from the port, but the farther you venture into the city, there are far too many boarded store fronts. Disappointing as well...the locals have had too much spare time on their hands as the closer you get to the Acropolis, the use of spray paint can be seen on nearly every building and pillar. There was a man on our bus from New York City, and he remarked that Athens makes NYC look clean!

One of my goals for the day was to get our blog up-to-date via land-based internet. We were specifically looking for Starbucks. Unfortunately, many around the port have closed up, and it wasn't until we were several miles across town that we found one. After we ordered our drinks, we were given the Wifi access code, along with the code for the restrooms. I don't think I've mentioned this, but in most European cities, restrooms are identified by the letters 'WC'...for Water Closet. And they are, by & large, tiny closets! At any rate, we settled at a table outside, I fired-up my laptop and Cheryl her iPad - absolutely nothing! Eventually, Cheryl was able to get into FB, but only for a few minutes before the system shut down. My laptop never had a successful connection. Wasted stop...except for the WC! 

We were back on the bus and on our way to the Acropolis. Surprisingly, the same scafolding being used for restoration efforts back in 2012 was still in the exact same position - no visible progress in 4 years. It sure hasn't put a damper on tourism though. The place was very busy, despite the sporadic rain & wind. We returned to the ship mid-afternoon and decided to try the ship internet again - it took well over an hour but I was finally able to upload & post around 450 photos from recent ports. So our blog's now up-to-date for this voyage, and we seem to have good connectivity this morning - I only hope it continues now. Can be very frustrating at times - were so spoiled at home (all of us are) with lightning-speed transmissions! You don't really appreciate it until you're on a ship trying communicate like normal - it just doesn't happen.

We're sailing now toward Katakolon & Olympia, scheduled to arrive at 10am. This will be our second visit & will forego a tour this stop, but when we return in two weeks we'd like to go back to Ancient Olympia, the beginning of the modern Olympic games - it's a stunning place. The most prized exhibit is a 4th-century Parian marble statue of Hermes of Praxitelis - just a masterpiece of classical sculpture from the Temple of Hera. Also on display is a sculptured head of Hera and the pediments and metopes from the Temple of Zeus. Today, we're meeting with an onboard cruise consultant at 9:00 - trying to string together a series of back-to-back voyages enabling us to visit the polar ice caps and some of the other northern-most ports we've never been to. I just need to make certain we don't miss our summer tour with Crown, or if we do, only a small portion. And equally, we can't miss the DCI World Finals. For our 'followers' who don't know what DCI is, go to: dci.org - and Crown is: carolinacrown.org

Next to our family & the Lord above, Carolina Crown is the most important aspect of our lives - a non-profit performing arts organization, developing lifelong excellence in young people. Cheryl and I do volunteer work - extremely rewarding & gratifying, with some of the finest, most genuine, caring folks you'll ever meet. And hey...if you'd like more info, would like to consider making a tax-deductible donation of any amount, or maybe interested in volunteer work, send me an email and I'll get you properly connected: bobcampau@cox.net - one of the top performing arts organizations in the world - we're just giving back to an activity that was so instrumental in molding my own values as a young adult.

   

   

   

   

   

   

     

          

          

         

         

         

Amazing City - Very Congested