Our Birthday Adventure - Part I

Since Tom and I have birthdays 10 days apart we decided that our gifts to each other would be planning a vacation.  When it came to choosing a destination there was no question where we would be headed.  This place had been on our "must see" list since living in Rome in 2001.  So, a couple days after my birthday we were off to GREECE!!!!

The first part of our trip we spent exploring Athens.  Tom, a huge history buff, was in heaven and absolutely in awe of the history in this beautiful city.  At one point he even commented that Athen's history puts all the history in Rome to shame because Athen's history is able to go back so much further.     ; )  We arrived on Saturday afternoon to gorgeous 75 degree weather.  We decided to grab lunch on the rooftop deck of our hotel and enjoyed greek salad, olives and wine.  Later than night we went out exploring and meandered through the Plaka area.  It is a great lively area filled with shopping, restaurants, scenery and more.  Tom was able to try his first of many Greek gyros.  On a side note, Did you know that the lamb gyro that is traditionally served in the States is not what is typical in Greece?  Greece is known for their chicken and pork gyros.  And, they are much smaller in size than the ones in the U.S.  And, the best part yet....they cost about 2 Euros a piece.  Perfect for a light lunch or small snack.

The next day was Labor Day across Europe.  It is similar to Labor Day that we have in the states.  But most Europeans take the opportunity to protest that day about work-related issues.  The square outside our hotel happened to be the central meeting point for the protests.  It was quite interesting to watch.  Apparently, the Greek folks were protesting about needing higher wages.  We spent the day walking all around Athens and exploring the sights and scenery.  We made a stop at the world's oldest cemetery.  And we finished the day with an amazing traditional Greek dinner at a restaurant with an outdoor patio with views of the Acropolis at night!

Monday we got up early for our guided tour of the Peloponnese region of Greece.  This area is about an hour outside of Athens and is an area that includes a number of ancient sites including; the Corinth Canal, the Ancient city of Corinth, the spot where St. Paul spoke to the Corinthians, the oldest Ampitheatre in the world that was built over 3,000 years ago and more.  It was a great day and was truly amazing to see all of the history.

Tuesday was our final day in Athens and we spent it touring the Acropolis and the Parthenon.  What awesome sights!  After that we made it to the tallest hill in Athens to check out the view of the entire city.  We followed it up with lunch at a local taverna before heading to the airport for the next part of our trip!