Where to start… We got to Athens and were excited to have 7 nights to explore and get some work done. Turns out there was some major conference in the city so most hotels were booked. The first night we found a room near the beach. The area was very crowded and far from the city center with all the tourist attractions. Athens is a big city with over 35% of all Greece’s population living here. We were surprised at how dirty the city is. Abandoned, crumbling buildings, graffiti everywhere and some terrible traffic. We weren’t impressed. The hotel was booked for the next 2 nights so we found a “luxury apt” in another neighborhood a block from the 2004 Olympic Complex. Our new landlord gave us a hard time checking in and wouldn’t allow us to check in until 6pm. So we took our laptops and found a Lebanese restaurant that had hookahs and we spent 3 hours enjoying some amazing ethnic food and getting work done. Our new room was huge and very luxurious however there were ants in the kitchen and none of the equipment in the gym worked. Strike 2 Athens. One positive thing was we found a hypermarket like the they have in the Philippines and did some shopping so we could cook for ourselves. The next morning we walked through the Olympic Complex and I was starting to enjoy Athens finally. I am an Olympics fanatic and was in heaven except that I couldn’t fly my drone there. From there we went to the Olympic Museum. When I entered I asked if I could film and they said not without permission so I asked for permission and was told as long as it was for personal use it was ok. Great. In we went. We got there the minute they opened so we had the place to ourselves. For 30 minutes we walked around filming and having a blast. The whole time security followed us from a distance watching our every move. It was so creepy. Then finally a rude security guard came up and demanded we stop filming. I was pissed but agreed and went on enjoying the best museum I have ever been in. As you walk along you learn everything from the first Olympics through the modern day Olympics. It was on cloud nine. We decided not to give Athens a chance to ruin this high I was on and just order delivery for dinner.
The next day we were so excited to be moving into the tourist area and staying at the $300 a night Wyndham Grand that we had booked using our reward points as a treat. When we checked in I allowed the doorman to take my main bag but as always I didn’t put down my day bag that has all our valuables. The guy checking us in said, “ You can put you bag down, your safe here”. That should have set off warnings. Soon I knew why. We walked 3 blocks to dinner and saw dozens of people shooting up heroin in the streets. Right in front of children and cops with people just ignoring it. It was horrifying watching people inject then just drop to the street. This became something we would see over and over for the next few days. We even moved to another hotel and found the same thing in that area. We learned that as long as you stay on the roads that connect the tourist attractions things aren’t too bad but stray one block and you need to watch you back. People warned us to protect ourselves from thieves and not go out at night on several occasions. We spent 1 day sticking to the safe areas checking out the acropolis and all of Athens main attractions. All of them surrounded by ghettos and slums. Covered in graffiti and hidden amongst abandoned buildings. None of them compared to Rome, Istanbul or even Cairo. I’m glad we got to see these historical places but can’t recommend Athens as a place to visit. I hate that I have to write something negative but it’s the truth. And a shame. Here’s a positive though. Before giving up on Athens I made one last stop. The Panathenaic Stadium. It’s the site of the first Olympics. The only stadium in the world build from all marble. It holds 60,000 people and is still used from time to time. Recently it hosted a basketball game that holds the record for the largest crowd at a pro basketball event. It’s in amazing condition and I was able to go in the tunnel and run out onto the field then climb the stands. I ran on the track and stood on the gold medal podium. I left literally chocked up and speechless with a perma grin on my face. For a brief moment I forgot all about Athens and was brought back to another time where I could live out a personal dream. It was a travel moment I will never forget. I rare experience. Usually I share these moments with Alyssa but this one was all mine for personal reasons. She filmed me cheering in the stands like a crazy fan and posing for my gold on the podium like a senseless child. We had a spectacular Bulgarian dinner to top off the day. The next morning we went to a beach and were disappointed again. We spent the next day working and laying low. I did some research and found out that these problems started when the Greek economy crashed in the early 2000’s. The government was forced to cut funding to healthcare, infrastructure and education and ever since then things have gone downhill effecting the over populated city much worse then the rest of the country. We loved the north and as you read had a blast before arriving here. Next stop we are going to the Greek islands of Mykonos and Santorini for a week. Can’t wait. Our plans after that have changed. We were originally going to Morroco for 3 weeks but the weather there has been near 100 F everyday so we decided to go north and try Prague, Germany and Luxembourg before heading to Spain Portugal and Andorra. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
