Heidelberg and Beyond: I WENT TO GREECE! Part 1

Sorry in advance for the length of this post- but come on! I was in Greece for a week!

SPRING BREAK WOOHOO! Early (5:55am!) on Saturday March 30th I got on a bus to the Hauptbahnhof, a train to Mannheim, a train to Frankfurt Flughafen, to a flugzeug all the way to Athens. PHEW! I arrived in Athens at 1:30pm local time (12:30pm my time) and was surprisingly awake. Maybe it was the plane breakfast that helped energize me? Well from there I got on another piece of public transportation- a one hour subway ride into the center of Athens proper. After being impressed with myself for figuring out the correct subway stop, I then used my EXCELLENT sense of direction to get to my hotel. The fact that this morning went off without a hitch was a small miracle, and a huge confidence boost that my travel senses were beginning to become trustworthy. Second hump to get over: I am in a foreign city alone for the first time! Not only did I just travel thousands of miles alone, but I also have no one to go sightseeing with me until my sister and J got there later that evening.
What I learned: traveling alone is actually quite fun! I was able to let my mind go blank and not feel rushed, pressure to enjoy myself, or have any set plan for the afternoon. It was thrilling walking around without a purpose- only to see everything that I possibly could! Rather than hitting the big touristy sites that I knew I would see with my family, I decided to go into my first Greek Orthodox church, stumbled upon some great views of the Parthenon up in residential hills, and found a hidden creek complete with it's own church tucked away from the bustling city.

Restaurant Stairs- a cute outdoor seating environment

Hadrian's arch- same guy who made a wall in Northern England!

Zeus' Temple

Theater on the way to the Parthenon

D+J and the Erectheon!

THE PARTHENON!

View of Athens and the Temple of Dionysus

Acropolis- Temple of Hephaestus

After Athens, we all piled into a rented Toyota Prius and drove North to Meteora. The drive along the Greek countryside might have been the prettiest drive I have ever been on. Lush mountains with blue sky and puffy white clouds- it was honestly breath taking. But not quite as breathtaking as Meteora. This site was definitely my favorite place in Greece that we visited- it differed from many of the other sites in its natural wonder, rather than historical and architectural amazement. Meteora is filled with Hoodoos (a pillar of rock, usually of fantastic shape, weathered by erosion -Dictionary.com). A top these already magnificent rock formations are Byzantine Monasteries still being used today.