Hill-tone

A few days later, and here I am! I’m sitting outside on my patio at my hotel, listening to some Young MC and composing this brilliant installation. Enjoy.

I spent this past weekend in Athens, which was brilliant. And exhausting. I have no idea how many miles I walked (I’ve tried to sit down and do the math but I scare myself with how the mile count rises).

I rode the Ktel bus into the city with Kostandina and Manti and met the rest of the group at the ticket booth at the Acropolis. As always, the vist was great…I never get enough. My roommate, who is a certified archaeologist (awesome!) gave us all a tour, but it was cool because everyone else had information that we volunteered throughout the course of our visit. Even lil old American me! I didn’t take many pictures because I was with a more professional, not-just-another-group-of-tourists group, but I wasn’t too bothered. I had this calm about it, knowing for certain that I’d be back again to take all the silly uber tourist pictures I wanted. The air was relatively clear so the view across the city was amazing. Also, they’d removed all of the scaffolding on the Athena Nike temple (one of my favorites on the hill) which was a nice bonus as we reached the top. We spent most of our time learning about the Propylea and Erectheion and brushed past the Parthenon, which was nice since you always learn about the Parthenon anyway – it and the Acropolis have almost become synonymous (in the minds of those who don’t know any better). It was nice to mix it up.

After the Acropolis, we went to visit the nice new Acropolis Museum, saw all the pieces you learn about in art history and humanities classes, like the Kritios Boy and Pallas Athena and the Parthenon frieze (the pieces that aren’t in the British Museum). After a quick stroll we ended up, as you always do when walking around with Greeks, at the cafe, enjoying the view and an espresso freddo. Eventually we split ways, and I made my way around the city by myself, visiting Hadrian’s Gate (duh.), I walked an area called Plaka which is winding cobblestone streets with tourist traps, divine food, cute little leather good shops, lovely colors, and city chatter. I made my way to a cafe where I watched the World Cup last summer and settled down in my usual seat. The waiter, Christos, actually recognized me from all my meals of white wine and bread and brought me a plate of stuffed tomatoes (tomates gemistes) and a complimentary ouzo. Holler. The view was incredible: the Acropolis from the Northern side with the Agora below, one of the best in Athens, methinks.

After my meal, I wandered some more. I didn’t really keep track of where I was. I eventually ended up at Syntagma Square with an ice cream in hand, sitting on a bench people watching. After getting my fill of city hubbub, I walked back toward Hadrian’s Arch, just wanting to get away to a little more peace and quiet, to commune with my history crush. The following is an excerpt from my walking travel log that I wrote will sitting looking at the arch: “Why the love for all things Hadrian? Can’t explain it. Admiration of accomplishments, of blatant disregard for all preceding mores, god-like assuredness and therefore immortality and invincibility?” I did a few sketches, took a few people’s photos, and while sitting there I got word from Dr. Z that she had returned and since I was tired and my legs ached and I was no longer in the mood for hustle and bustle I headed to her flat in Mets where I ate some melon, watched a movie, and fell asleep.

Sunday morning I got a taxi to the National Archaeology Museum (once again seeing all the things you learn about in school), but unfortunately only a few of the wings were open due to understaffing. Boo. I walked through those galleries for a while, got to see the burial mask of “Agamemnon”, some amazing golden jewelry, ancient wall paintings, and an incredible bronze statue of a boy riding a horse.  I sat out on the front stairs for a while just enjoying the view and sun, and then caught another taxi to the National Gallery. The taxi driver didn’t understand me when I asked for the Hilton Hotel (which is across from the gallery) but eventually I risked cultural insensitivity and said Hilton like “Hill-tone” and Bam, homeboy understood. Then he teased ME for saying the name incorrectly the rest of the trip. “No, no, it’s not Paris Hil-tin, it is Paris Hill-tone!”  I sat back and let him. Whatever, dude, have your day’s victory over a native English speaker.

Anyway, I wasn’t overly impressed with the gallery because I feel like I missed some of their collection (although I wandered looking to see if I’d missed something), but they did have a few artists’ work that appealed to me, particularly Nikophoros Lytras and Nikolaos Gysis.  There was also an exhibition on Yannis Moralis, a creative artist that I really enjoyed. He spanned many different styles of painting, which I always appreciate – he didn’t play by just one set of rules. I took down a few notes on my favorites so I can look them up later (and share with all y’all), then I headed out and took the long walk back toward Syntagma. My legs were tired and I was starving so I took the Metro to Monastiraki, one of my favorite spots, bought some fresh strawberries from a Sunday fruit stand, bought an iced tea and a gyros, and sat down next to the site of Hadrian’s Library. Perfection.

After eating I explored the site for a bit, which is nestled below the modern street level, the size of a city block. It was Hadrian’s home for collections of the empire’s volumes, as well as the later location of a church and the eventual first floor of a much later political ruler. I stumbled across some remarkable mosaics, was followed around by a stray dog as I explored the columns and marble tiles, and found some lovely little details hidden in the overgrowth. My favorite moment, though, was when I was leaving I looked up at what I thought was just a mark of weathering beside the beautiful pillars. After further inspection, though, I saw that it was actually the last few remnants of an amazing original fresco from when that wall had been a part of a church. Amazing, and to think I almost missed it! Goodness, I love exploring. I had just about reached my legs’ physical limit when I decided it was time to catch the Ktel at Thissio and head back to Eleusina.

This week we start the digital scanning of the site, so I will surely write to you to try my best to explain the process. We’ve been doing a lot of walking around the site, and I’m becoming more and more impressed on the importance and uniqueness of the site. It really is a jewel, and I feel honored to immortalize it.

I’m finding myself on the brink of homesickness, but am trying to fight it off, not letting myself concentrate on what I can’t fix right now. I need to be a big girl and suck it up. Chin up, love, keep calm and put the kafe on, and all that.

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