Prague Journal

Sunday, September 19, 2004.

In honor of the Olympic Games, Athens had been dressed with sculptures, photographs, banners, open-air concerts and plays, music and light displays at various landmarks throughout the city. Information kiosks abound, manned with helpful multi-lingual attendants and stocked with city maps, metro guides, and Olympic venue locations, logistics and descriptions. There seem to be cats and pigeons everywhere, both noticeably absent on Prague streets, and ownerless dogs sleeping in the sun.
Our mission was to meet Barb at the Olympic Village, an easy but long trip from the city center via metro and bus. The Athens Metro is quite nice – nearly as easy to navigate as the Prague metro and much cleaner and newer. There is speculation about how long the metro stations will be free of debris and graffiti, but right now they are jewels. Syntagma Square (“Constitution Square”) is a central hub. Construction of the metro station beneath the square was halted several times because of the archeological finds here, but the station is a museum, explaining the Metro construction process and exhibiting ancient artifacts unearthed during its construction. We walked around the square – an interesting juxtaposition of old and new. Most of the surrounding “neighborhoods” look long-overdue for renovation, especially in contrast to the immediate vicinity of the square. Only a short walk away offers a view of the Acropolis.
We met Barb at the entrance to the Olympic Village, but were not able to get into the village itself because of the tight security. Barb had put us on the list for passes, but they only allow so many visitors on any given day, so we would have to wait until tomorrow to see the village complex. We were told that Greece spent three times as much as Australia (host of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney) for security at these Olympic games, largely due to post-911 fears and new regulations imposed by the IOC.
It was, by Rick’s measure, time for tea by the time we returned to the center of town. (Tea at the outdoor cafes ranges from 2.50-3.00 Euro; coffee is 2.50-4.50.) The major streets – even on Sunday night – are full of activity. Most news kiosks have an assortment of international newspapers and lots of pornography. Greek pornographic postcards, playing cards and statues are prominently displayed. After a leisurely stroll around town, we opted for dinner at the hotel – a nice full-course meal – and topped off our evening with dessert at one of the many 24-hour cafés and bakeries on Omonia Square.

posted by JWinn @ 7:32 PM