Night Life

July 8/9,2022, all blended into a long 36 hour day.  The Anseth family left Minneapolis/St. Paul at 7:45 PM on Friday night.  We were destined to arrive in Greece for a Mediterranean Vacation.  We ended up flying Air France which was not as painful as I expected.  My biggest complaint was that I could not find a comfortable spot in the seat to fall asleep.  I was twitching and twisting, hot and cold, putting my foot rest up and down.  I am sure the guy next to me thought I was a meth tweaker.  

The obligatory plane photo.

Our flight from MSP to Paris was uneventful other than our inability to get any sleep.  The connection at Charles de Gaulle Airport was seamless even if it did involve a crazy long bus ride and what felt like a walking maze.  Our connection was a little late leaving Paris but the flight was smooth and the Diet Coke was pretty cold so it was all good.

At the Athens Airport all are bags arrived  without any hassle and we were on our way to the city center of Athens before we knew it.  The drive in light traffic probably took us 30 min.  

Our hotel the Grande Bretagne was waiting to welcome us with open arms.  It is a beautiful hotel right in the city center.  The Greek Parliament is located just across the street and you can watch the changing of the guard there every hours as the Greek army guards the tomb of the unknown soldier.

Our room

A little welcome present from the hotel.  The little statue is white chocolate. 

Once we got a little cleaned up we left the hotel and wandered around the Palak district of Athens.  It is the oldest district of the city and the hotels sits right next to it.  Not even a little rain could dampen our spirits to get out and move.  No one complained about the rain or the walk, I am not really sure what that means but it was a great start to our trip.

A little beer to get things started 

The girls had a pizza with prosciutto and feta cheese.  I tried the fresh fish and grilled vegetables it was great but more peppers and less eggplant would have been nice.  My picture is too blurry so you will just have to take my word on it.

After dinner we strolled the Palak district after the rain stopped.

Strolling in Palak.  If  I work on it - it might be a big hit just like Walking In Memphis.

The girls in front of a Greek Orthodox Church

The girls and the church

The church and the square

I think this church is from the 11th  century 

Inside the church

The ceiling

The fountain and Parliament in the background.  That is the Greek Parliament building not the Parliament Funk-a-Delic.  

Everyone thought their first taste of Athens was amazing.  Tomorrow we head to the Acropolis , looks like it will be a beautiful day for exploring.