Athens
Finally, the summer is here! Okay, maybe not here where I am now, but in Greece, the summer has certainly got full power. We went on our first summer vacation to Greece and Malta. That’s why this post is called Mediterranean Triangle.
The boarding of the flight was going perfectly smooth until our captain said that someone didn’t show up after check-in and sent 2 large bags to the plane. Of course, it is not secure to fly with someone else’s bag in a plane’s belly. That’s how our arrival to Athens was delayed by almost an hour.
Nevertheless, after some time, we saw it for the first time. And on the same day, even after waking up at 2:30am, we wanted to go to the heart of Ancient Greek culture. The Acropolis.
Slopes were steep, of course, and stairs were polished to the shine. Nothing could stop us. So thousands of other people decided to go all the way up. It is somewhat different here. Much fewer ropes here and there and almost no control. And you are climbing the real stairs from thousands of years ago to see what was a pinnacle of human architecture and possibilities back then.
But inside, of course, the renovation is never stopping. We were lucky to see the whole Parthenon being renovated. It immediately reminded me of a cover for the history class book. It had the Parthenon on the cover. Just not in the process of renovation. And I wasn’t even upset or something, no. Renovation is a part of the history of that building so, why not just observe it?
The colors of the marble and sky are unbelievable. There is something really magical about Greece. Before visiting it, I couldn’t understand it. But now I do. Greece, from the first hours, went straight to the list of places to explore more and visit again as soon as the ticket opportunity will appear again.
Streets
Going from the Acropolis area we went to the old town’s part called Plaka. This neighborhood is so colorful and full of small cafes and restaurants. People all around, some enjoying their first days in Greece like us, some getting souvenirs for siblings and already tired of the hot weather.
This time I didn’t really care a lot about film simulation recipes. I just chose the Fujicrome standard one and was looking around more for composition. Turns out the colors are slightly too green to my taste for such light. But after a small correction, it really went well and looks the way I want. I wanted those photos to give a feeling of hot dry weather in a bit chaotic, but relaxed city center where there are some hiccups, but the overall kindness and openness of Greek people make it charming and welcoming for everyone.
Right next to the restaurant around the corner, there can be an old church, or next to the busy street there is a park where the cat can’t decide if he (or she) wants to hunt or just chill in the sun. Those streets are truly an adventure!
And here it is. A long time ago, we were playing with my best friend a computer game called Need for Speed Carbon. The starting car there for the street racer’s career was Mazda RX-8. It has something that still catches my eye every time I see it. Very rarely, unfortunately. It has a known weak side, carefully covered by a shiny hood. But this doesn’t matter. This car is just a beautiful piece of engineering.
Metro
Like in many other cities, we used public transport extensively in Athens. And especially for longer distances, it was a metro. Distances pretty quickly became huge in Athens since the city is huge, and although we were living very close to the metro station on the map, still, it was still almost a 20-minute walk. Before coming there, I didn’t even calculate the walking time to the center because it seemed like We Were in the center. But apparently, it was almost 1 hour of walk. So, of course, we were using the metro every day.
It has somewhat unusual rolling stock. Each train from line 1 has a unique livery given by street artists. Sometimes, it was hard to say that those color splashes were really an art, but who am I to judge someone who wanted to express himself so badly that he went right into the metro tunnels risking his own life to paint this? Crazy? Maybe. But this, without hesitation, the unique look of the metro, this contrast between Parthenon columns and a weird mix of orange, silver, acidic-green, blue, white, and whatever other colors made this particular system stand out, and I wish to come back here again to make more photos of it from different perspectives and different locations. Urban mix with historical context. That makes me feel something.
Nature
One of the differences I noticed between Greece and Spain is that here I saw many more flowers and green oases in the city. They are giving many of its colors a look not just being painted for the sake of liking the color, but complimenting some parts of living things that you can see here and there in Athens.
At some point, no further words are needed. Just nature living in front of everyone. Together with everyone.
In peace.
Macro photos can be tricky as they work pretty well on wide aperture, but at the same time, the focus range becomes hair-thin. Sometimes so not the whole flower can squeeze into it.
Time in Athens truly flies. This place has so many: color burst, context-rich, history on every step, kind and nice people, great tasty food, somewhat thought through infrastructure, maybe a bit simple, but delicious wine. Hope to come visit some other places in Greece soon. I think I already wrote it a couple more times here. Maybe it just confirms the thought. Pleasure remembering this time.
Echo 