The starting point

The starting point

Monday 13 May 2024

6/5/24 Athens hop on off day 2

 

   Wow , what a day yesterday was , another good sleep till we woke with sore body parts - caused by the mattress - we are definitely not used to normal mattresses !

  Fed & ready to go again , down to the museum stop and onto the bus for day 2 - today was out to the beaches line . There was a way to go , so we decided to sit up top to get the views - great idea !! The views were pretty spectacular driving along the coast , until we hit some of the freeway type roads and the speed got up . The windchill was bloody cold even though the sun was out , glad we took our jackets with us .

  Our first views are outstanding .



  Nice day at the beach , but not many on it , yet !


   Another section of beach had lots of umbrella's & chairs .


   The Beach's Line ends at Lake Vouliagmeni , it's a lake fed from 3klms underground , and is very salty water apparently . The Greeks love it and it got busier & busier when we were there . They also charge to go in - 19 euro for adults !!


   For that you get access to the lake , and these decks , umbrella's & chairs . There's also a restaurant .


  Walking across the road , the sea greeted us - nice clear water and a few people on the rocky beach and a few in swimming .


   Walking down the path along the shoreline was quite pleasant , somehow we'd forgotten to bring our swimmers ! This next bay is very pretty , lots of restaurants on the other side of the road , with a few on the coast side 


    We decided to stop & have lunch , also to find a toilet - that's one thing over here , public toilets are few & far between and signs for them even scarcer . After some Pork Gyros and Chicken Souvlaki , we walked back across the road to continue our walk along the beachfront . The traffic is getting very busy now , carparks have filled up and it's getting crazy ! The beach sections have high fences , and we found an entry gate area , and yes , you have to pay to use the beach , this section was 5 euro's entry fee - if you leave and want to go back , you pay another 5 euros .


    Here's the carpark for the beach .


   This is the beach 


  Back onto the bus and away from the chaos , or so we thought . The other section was the port line - Piraeus , so we went for a look there .  The trip goes to the port terminal , then follows the coast back again . There are many expensive boats out along this coastline .


   After that run , it was back into Athens , and while it was still light we headed to the Panathenaic Stadium . It has been carved between 2 hills , and was the site of the 1st modern olympics .


    There's an awfully large amount of marble in Athens - and a fair chunk of it is here - paths , steps & seating .


  Looking back down to the running track , you wouldn't want to be sitting here for too long !!


    Here's the 2 official chairs and a curved back section for the next most important officianadoe's .



    Inside the tunnel leading to the stadium .


At the top of the tunnel is a museum with all the olympic torches on display , as well as the sun 's rays concentrator used to light the flame and the stand that also stays alight .


   Time for the bus back to the museum again - we go past the university and library on the way .

   Another big day out , time to go back for some dinner and a beer !

Here's map link :- https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1CGXj0zkbZOhwX4sddTXDq5pAAkAmyJ4&usp=sharing

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