After our short layover in Rome, it was finally time to head to Athens, Greece!
After an uneventful flight, we landed in Athens around noon. I was planning on taking the bus to get to the city but my friends wanted to take one of the private shuttles. It was 90 euro (!) to take the shuttle to our hotel but my friends really wanted to get there as fast as we can so I gave in. After around 40 minutes, we arrived at our hotel, Hotel Pergamos. It was a typical 3-star hotel and we got a really good deal on the rooms. They also offered free breakfast and the concierge really helped with tips to get around the city.
We got settled pretty quick and soon after set out to find something to eat. We stumbled across this amazing local resto which served incredibly greasy but tasty food!
We came back to the hotel and had some much needed rest before heading out for the night. Myself and Rac decided to purchase Hop-on Hop-off bus tickets and took it to get to the Acropolis Museum.
Note to other travelers, museums and attractions around Greece close really early. Most around 2pm-5pm so plan your days accordingly. Also the Hop-on, Hop-off bus is good for 2 days so it’s perfect to see all the sights in a short time!
The Acropolis Museum was amazing! The rest of the guys met us there to tour the rest of the city by foot. This was the first time I had the famous Souvlaki!
We just spent the rest of the night walking around the city. We walked back to the hotel after dinner and drinks as we expected a very busy next day.
The next day, we woke up early to maximize our time in Athens. Our first stop for the day was the world-famous Archaeological Museum. It was amazing seeing everything they had!
Next stop, Acropolis! Finally we would get to see the Pantheon and the other structures in the area. It cost 12 euro to get in and it was definitely worth it!
Afterwards, we took the bus to the other side of Athens, Piraeus, where we saw other attractions and the port where cruise liners dock.
After seeing the other side of Athens, we took the bus back to the Panathenaic Stadium, the site of the first modern Olympic Games.
Afterwards, we took the bus to the city center where they where selling antiques and trinkets in the streets. Definitely a sight to behold!
We stumbled upon this local resto to grab something to eat. We ended up staying there for quite sometime as everyone was so friendly. This Greek guy kept offering us free drinks and we gladly accepted. Later on, we asked for his name and he said Sabba which was the name of the restaurant. Turns out, he owns the place! Everyone was amazing and the meal and the whole experience was one of the highlights of the trip.
We walked back to the hotel and slept pretty early since our flight back to Venice was early the next day. We ended up taking the bus for 5 euro each to get to the airport this time.
Overall, Athens was really a great experience. The food, sights and the people are really worth experiencing. This is definitely now one of our top European cities to visit and we will definitely be back!
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