Athens for Thanksgiving

The room was nice, with a double bed, sitting area, and bathroom. The TV had an interactive menu system with movies, messages, and information. The bathroom was all marble and had a tub with a shower. It was a handheld shower and it was a little tricky to get it to stay in the holder. The room had a mini-bar, safe, and French balcony. It also had a large closet. The room rate included breakfast. It was a full breakfast with eggs, bacon, ham, breads, yogurt, etc. The fresh-squeezed orange juice was great! The lobby was nicely furnished and decorated, and included a sitting area and bar. Overall, it’s a great hotel in a great location.

In addition to the Acropolis, I would recommend the Temple of Zeus. There's not much left, but it is still impressive. It's so huge that it's unbelievable to imagine how they built it. Also, a trip up Lycavitos Hill is worth it. It's the highest point in Athens, and the views are spectacular. There’s an old church up there and a restaurant for the tourists. You take a cable car to get to it. You can take a taxi to the base or walk through the hilly neighborhood to get to it.

One funny thing about Athens: there are many dogs that just roam around loose. They are even at the ruins sites! We thought it was funny that we weren't allowed to touch the ruins, but they let the dogs just sleep there or even pee on them! I guess there’s no animal control there.

One more thing: I would highly recommend a visit in the off-season. It was so wonderful to not have to share these sites with 3000 other people. The weather was still very pleasant, in the 60's or 70's, nice, but not too hot. And at the most, there were maybe 100 people around. And that was at the Acropolis. At the other sites, there was just a handful of people -- it was wonderful. We got many pictures without anyone in them, and we could stay and enjoy the sites as long as we wanted.

But when I asked them they said definitely don't flush the paper. Most places will have a basket by the toilet where you put your used tissue. It takes a little getting used to, but you have to. If you flush the paper the toilet will overflow.

The trains are equally wonderful. They are wide with large door openings. There is a large standing area by the doors and comfortable seats throughout. Every train we rode on was very clean. Same for the stations. We saw cleaning people in the stations often. They have a map of the line with the stations written in English. The stops are announced in Greek, but once you ride a few times, you figure out which ones they're saying.

They are actively expanding the lines in preparation for the Olympics next year. But already you can get to all the major sites -- the Acropolis, Temple of Zeus, the market, Plaka, etc. There is a line that runs to Pireaus, the suburb which is the main seaport of Athens. And they are adding a line to the airport.

Overall, the Athens metro is the best metro I've ever ridden. It will be perfect when they complete the line to the airport.