A highly unsatisfactory return to the Archaeological Museum

Thursday I spent a full seven Euros on a ticket to the splendid National Archaeological Museum, where I'd spent some informative and entertaining hours in December. I'd come back with a specific goal: To take pictures of the naked satyr that I now knew was in the museum's possession. In December I'd had no idea, and possibly strolled right by it, but this time I was alert.

I searched and searched like a man lost but refusing to ask for directions. Finally, after passing the same nekkid bronze statue for the third or fourth time, I broke down and asked at the information desk. The first attendant did not understand the word "satyr", which I'm pretty sure COMES from Greek, but the second one understood what I was talking about and cheerfully informed me that this particular section of the museum was closed.

Upon further inquiry she had no idea WHY it was closed off, nor WHEN it would open again. She then explained that the information department were not... uhmm... informed about these things, they just happened. I got the feeling even the very existence of the museum was something upon which her administrative branch was not ready to make any pronouncements, in the absence of instructions from some higher authority.

Some pics, most of them slightly blurry, since the museum did not allow flash photography.

Some old figurines. Like, really, really old.


Possibly some vessels containing sumfin'.


This looks like a genetic experiment gone horribly wrong. Possibly it involved a raccoon, a tiger and some household objects.


The Emperor Augustus. He can haz cheeseburger.


This young fella's had all the cheeseburgers he can stand.


No hands, no cheeseburgers. Nice nipple, though.

Mycenae

Wednesday, I again braved the sheer lunacy that is Athens traffic to go south, to the Peloponnese peninsula; to ancient Mycenae to be more precise. Once there, I could not muster the strength to climb all the way to the top, so my photographic loot is less than complete. Still, the surroundings are beautiful, as is most of Greece.

The citadel. Once, this city held 30,000 people.


Looks a lot like California, right?


There be purdy mountains.


Lots of 'em in fact.


The sea.


The Cyclopean wall from around 1,350 BC. So called because legend had it, the builders of the city had employed cyclopes to make it.


The famous Lion Gate. Built around 1,250 BC if I'm not mistaken. The two lions on top have long since lost their heads.


Just inside the gate is the granary.


The road not taken.


Women had a much more active position in old Mycenae than in later day classic Athens, where they were largely confined to their homes. Also, the art itself is clearly influenced by the Minoan culture, with whom they traded.


There be gold in dem dar hills. The first civilization at Mycenae collapsed sometime in the 12th century BC; the reason why is not known; possibly an invasion by the "Sea Peoples".


Solid handcraft.

Delphi

Tuesday morning, I went down to the AVIS office to pick up a rental car and do some sightseeing. This was complicated by the fact that I had slept for about 2 hours that night. Still, I bit my teeth and resisted the urge to nap during the afternoon and had a good night before going to Mycenae on Wednesday.

I had ordered a GPS gadget and managed to not get lost more than a couple of times. Traffic out of and in to Athens was insane and it took me the better part of an hour to get out of town Tuesday morning. The speed limits on the motorways are a pleasant 100-130 km/h (appx. 65-80 mph), and most of the vehicles will happily cruise along at speeds upward of 30 km/h (20mph) faster than that. On the other hand, once you get off the motorways, the rural routes can be slow and will take you through villages with very narrow streets, sometimes even with two-way traffic and big tourist buses doing their best not to drag whole buildings to the ground in their wake.

My destination for Tuesday was Delphi, where there was an oracle in ancient times, and where they would hold games every four years. The oracle was an elderly woman chosen from local peasant stock who would go into a trance; her ravings were then "interpreted" into ambiguous statements (in verse) by the priests. There has been speculation that the trance was due to toxic fumes coming out of the ground, but nothing has been proven for certain.

Thousands of "prophecies" of varying historical accuracy are known from Delphi; perhaps the most famous is the answer supposed to have been given to emperor Julian the Apostate when he tried to reawaken the cult as part of his (sadly unsuccessful) attempt to crush Christianity - here in a translation by English poet A. C. Swinburne:
Tell the king, on earth has fallen the glorious dwelling,
And the watersprings that spake are quenched and dead.
Not a cell is left the God, no roof, no cover;
In his hand the prophet laurel flowers no more.

The site is located on a hillside with majestic views over the Pleistos valley.


Just lovely.


The mountain above is known as Mount Parnassus, and is heavy with mythological significance.


The Sibyl rock, where another medium (not related to the cult of Apollo) is said to have given her prophecies.


The stadium.


The temple of Apollon, which was the center for the whole building complex. The Delphi area was said to have been decreed "the navel of the earth" by Zeus himself.


The views towards the west and the port city of Kirrha. Not so shabby.


That's the Mediterranean sea down there.


Nice.


The area just above the Castalian spring.


There is a museum just west of the ancient site. It has separate ticket sales from the archaeological digs, but you get a discount iffin you buy access to both.


Lots of loot has been found and put behind glass.


This is the most famous item found; the Charioteer of Delphi was buried by an earthquake around 373 BC if I remember correctly, and thus preserved till modern times. Most bronze items of any size in ancient Greece were blatantly stolen by the Romans and brought to Italy for the perusal and enjoyment of the filthy rich.


Kitteh! Naturally, the area is teeming with homeless cats. This little angel was so trusting, she remained still while I manuvered my fat ass onto the chair to the right.


At first, I thought these were spider nests, and shuddered. But the bartender at the sports bar in Athens said they were made by butterflies.

Returning to Greece

I've booked flights and eight nights in the same hotel where I was for Christmas. Athens, here I come, whooooo hooooo. Hoping a combination of good weather and no public holidays will give me the flexibility to rent a car and drive out to see some sights, either up at Thermopylae and Delphi, or down on the Pelopponesian peninsula, with Mycene and Olympia. Either way I am bouncing with excitement!

Odds and ends from Athens

Some bits and stuff that doesn't fit in with other posts, for your education and amusement.

First of all: The Bush Bar. Best food, nicest people in Athens. I went down there on Sunday Dec. 21 and while sitting outside, sipping diet coke, somebody stole my backpack. The first I knew of it was when the waiter came running out the door and asked me if I had a black backpack, to which I answered yes. He then took off down the street at some speed. Two minutes later he came back with my backpack, which had been stolen by a gypsy. That's the kind of service and commitment you'll get at the Bush Bar. These past two weeks I've talked with just about everybody who works there, and they're good, decent people. Iffin you're in Athens, you could do worse than give'em your business.


This is their signature dish, the peri-peri chicken. OMG.


Huge and very tasty dessert I had at a place by the southern entrance to the National Gardens. Don't judge me.


Outside the same place, this white wagtail was attacking his own image in the side mirror of a motorcycle. He was at it for 20 minutes, and was still going strong when I left.


Even in Athens, Hell can be found.


There's an area just north of Acropolis called "the flea market". It's more a collection of small shops, mostly selling souvenirs and such.


There are tons of homeless cats and dogs in Athens. Again, the climate makes it livable year round here. A guy in the National Gardens was feeding some of 'em, and told me those that had collars had been sterilized by the city authorities.


A completely white dove eyeing me with suspicion.


Whaddya do iffin you find yourself down on your luck in Athens, but you just don't feel like you have what it takes to become a beggar? This. It's the saddest sight in the world.


Pancakes. With nutella and all kinds of goodies for a pittance.


That whooshing sound you hear is Euclid spinning in his grave.


A moose shitting out strawberries. I got nothing.

Starting the year with a bang

I took some pics of the fireworks over Acropolis last night. It was raining and blowing, so I decided against Lycabettus Hill and instead went down to the Bush Bar at Monastirakis together with a Belorussian and a Ukrainian who were in a hotel room just across the hall from mine. We stayed at the Bush Bar for a few hours, but popped out to catch the fireworks at midnight.

COMET! AAAAAAAAAAAAH!


Note the Parthenon in the back.


It was nothing like Carcassone in July 2010, but nice all the same.




So 2014 is history and 2015 is the future. May it be a bright one.