Journeys with my Gun

(49) Greece and Italy

Photo ©️🆎 Athens view from the Acropolis.

Onwards to Santorini to be met with our second lost opportunity to go ashore due to high winds preventing the ships tender boats from departing. So, a nice view sitting in the volcano bay, I really wanted to climb the stairs and I don't think that a third opportunity will present itself.
Then too soon we were weighing anchor and setting sail for the beautiful Greek Island of Mykonos, an absolute postcard Island where we spent a very pleasant day.

Eventually we came alongside in the port of Piraeus Greece and as the ship was void of passengers we were offered an opportunity to cruise on for peanuts however, our onward trip was pre planned so that was the end of that.
We settled into the Grand Bretagne hotel amongst the beautiful state buildings and faced the Greek tucker (food) not being a fan and always accused of being hard to please, I starved a little until departure - Me no likee Greek tucker..
We enjoyed the city and touring amongst very friendly natives. We also traveled to Corinth and cruised it's famous canal which we were informed has a tiled bottom (wouldn't that be nice) The canal is 6.5km in length, 25 metres wide and construction commenced in 1882.
Disaster struck the canal due to landslides in 2020 and 2021 when massive boulders carved out from the high narrow and steep sides toppled into the canal obviously blocking commercial and tourist vessels from navigating its length. Although reopened it is not expected to be completely restored until 2024/5.

The canal is an artificial construction connecting the Gulf of Corinth in the Ionian Sea to the Aegean Sea.
I must admit it was a little unnerving cruising through such a high and narrow pass. As well we may have expected Jason and his Argonauts to emerge from the deep.

Located within the City of Athens is the Parthenon, built with fine marble and dedicated to the Goddess Athena. As well other temples  of significance are located within the Citadel, the temple of Athena and the Erechthion, 421 BCE dedicated to a mythical king of Athens with an association to Athena and Poseidon, God of the Sea. The statues in the construction site are of certain women which relates to the area they came from.
It was a great pity that the museum didn't open until 11 am !  Very poor management, Who do they think they are, the Australian Post Office !

Just to be smart I ran around the marble Panathenaic Stadium in Athens a 6th century BCE racecourse and later the site of the first modern Olympics in 1896. I won my event just like I was first over the line in the 14km Sydney City to Surf years ago, although I started there two hours earlier than the official field.
            
ITALIA Roma ! by Alitalia, an airline now gone and replaced by ITA. In and quickly out of our dreadful hotel and on to the Colosseum (Collisio) this arena soaked in blood is Rome's biggest tourist drawcard and was awash with hucksters, shysters and a variety of sly characters. I even saw two Collingwood supporters there 😳 no wonder this memorial keeps its poor reputation.
The Colosseum seated 50,000 and the splendour of the structure in its full glory is difficult to imagine and as like most ancient monuments, decay vandalism and pollution have taken their toll.
The arena has been stripped of almost all of its marble and it is noted that the Colosseum was used as a mine for many years. Some say the arena should remain in existence to remind us of the extreme cruelty of the time. I say tear it down, bomb it ! history has taught the world absolutely nothing, it is sickening  ! get rid of it.

Italy, is a country we loved visiting, I threw a coin into the Fontana Di Trevi and met its promise in returning to Italy twice (my coins were gone 😳)
We moved on to the old Roman City, the Forum of Rome (Foro Romano) absolutely fascinating like most of the ancient world and of  course we never tired of the history of the city and times, cruel, splendid and powerful.
The city even had a snob suburb just above the peons, the Hill of Palatine,
Where neighbours Augustus and Romulus resided.
The House of Lydia is still standing amongst the ruins in all its (reconstructed) glory.
Part of the history of this area is that it was the most important of the seven hills of Rome.
It is said that German and Spanish residents due to the trouble in the city was the main reason for so many Germans fleeing to America.