Athens: The Amiable and the Ancient

Ok, I know the title is a bit cheesy, but it truly describes my experience in Greece. The place is full of friendly people and magnificent ancient history.

I spent these past three days in Athens, Greece, my final travel destination of the season. On Friday morning, we had our traditional American pancake breakfast in our kitchen with a number of our friends. Then that night before heading off to the airport, I joined in on the annual Kent Uni Christmas Carol service held in the Canterbury Cathedral. It was a candlelit evening with traditional English Christmas carols for the students of my university and I am so glad I was able to go to before getting on my train for the airport. To see the cathedral lit by candlelight and filled with the sound of carols was stunning. Check out the video Spencer took below:

A candlelit carol service in the Canterbury Cathedral (kind of a tongue twister to say)

After the service it was off to Athens! We arrived Saturday evening with empty stomachs, so we went straight to finding a restaurant. We had one of my favorite meals of all time at a place called Scholarhio. They came out with this giant platter full of smaller plates, each with a different dish on them. You pick out the few that you like, with some bread, water, and wine, all for a flat rate. It was so delicious; I have fallen in love with Moussaka! After dinner, we took a walk through the Plaka district, a very quaint and relaxing tourist center, and then went off to our hostel.

Platter from Scholarhio

Now, there are a few main tips I have for anyone planning on traveling to Athens:
1. If you are a student, be sure to ask about student rates for transportation, museums, and more. We found that almost all transportation and museums are discounted or free for students.
2. In the winter, try and hit all the famous sites and the museum (Acropolis, Archaeological Museum, Ancient Agora, etc.) on Sunday. They are all free on Sundays between October and March.
3. Try and stay near the Plaka/Acropolis area. We stayed in a hostel called Athens Backpackers. It was my favorite place I've stayed in for my travels. The people were extremely friendly, the place was very nice, and everyone staying there seems to want to get to know you. Also, being right by the Acropolis is very convenient.
4. Eat at Scholarhio near the Plaka district. It was one of my highlights of Athens. It costs 14 Euro, so a bit pricier than other places (food in Greece is not usually expensive) but it is well worth the money.

Athens from the Acropolis

Back to the trip - The next day, Spencer and I decided to check out all the historical sites and museums since it was Sunday and they were all free. One of my classes I've been taking here at Kent Uni was on Greek Art and Architecture, so seeing all of these beautiful sites and works of art was such a treat after studying them for three months. At the Archaeological museum, we saw a number of very amazing pieces, including Agamemnon's Mask and the Artemision Bronze statue of Posiedon. Then, we hiked up the Acropolis and took in the experience of treading on such a well preserved ancient site. It was an amazing thing to see! We also were sure to check out the Ancient Agora, the Roman Agora, Hadrians Library, the Temple of Zeus Olympius, and the newly built Acropolis Museum. We packed in a lot, but I never felt rushed, and I really got to enjoy a pleasant day of site seeing.

View of the Acropolis from Philopappou Hill

Boxing Children Fresco

The Artemision Bronze

Our last day, we enjoyed some shopping and exploring the streets. My favorite part was simply interacting with the Greek people. They were all so friendly, and actually showed interest in getting to know you, even if only for a few minutes. I had a random lady on the street even come up to me because she heard my "accent" (which makes her sound a bit sketchy but she was not at all). She asked me where I was from, and if I liked Athens or LA better. Of course, I answered "Athens", and she gave me a pat on the shoulder and laughed heartily. Another older lady saw Spencer and I sitting looking at a map. We weren't lost, just tired, but she came up to us and asked us if we were lost and needed help with directions. She didn't even speak a lot of English but she still wanted to help us. Yet another woman, who owned a little shop in Plaka, helped Spencer and I get directions to another shop for some local cooking supplies. Most tourist shop owners would just try to sell you their stuff, but she genuinely wanted to help us. As much as I loved seeing the beauty of Athens in it's ancient history, I loved seeing its beauty in its people's kindly manner just as much.

View from Philopappou Hill

After three days, I am now back in Canterbury for my last few days before I head home for Christmas. I am a bit glad to be done traveling, so I can really enjoy these few days with my friends here before I must say goodbye. I have enjoyed my classes this term so much, and I am so thankful that God blessed me with a wonderful professor while I was here; she was so knowledgeable, approachable, genuine, and caring, all of which are things I highly value in an educator. Thank you Efrosyni for making my educational experience here at Kent as great as it was. I am also so thankful for the friends I have made in my time here. I don't want to say goodbye to them, but I know I will return again to see them as soon as I can. They have been such a blessing in my life and I have learned so much of how God can bring people together so perfectly; He has done that so much in these last three months.


As sad as I am to leave, I am so excited to be coming home and seeing friends and family. Six more days, and my adventures abroad will be coming to a close. Oh, what a bittersweet time.