A nice and cool Sunday in Athens!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Hello!

Today we were up and out early as the Acropolis Museum opens at 8. We were there by 7:45 a.m. and the gates opened precisely at 8 a.m. and we were in! WOW!! Is the reaction we both had – it is truly the most incredible museum in the world! (Although R insists the Louvre is still better, he does admit that for a “special” museum, it is incredible.) For the first 20 minutes or so, we had the ENTIRE museum to ourselves! It goes up three floors, and is lit mostly with natural light. We’ve taken a few pictures from the outside, but unfortunately no photos are allowed inside! The museum actually starts before you even walk in the door! There are large areas of excavation that were uncovered when they first started building the museum. For the most part, these have been excavated and then covered over with heavy glass panels that you can walk on. It makes for an incredible display. Not only does the museum contain artifacts discovered at the Acropolis, it is in direct line of sight of the Acropolis itself. We were really, truly impressed. Everything is absolutely first class; a sight very much worth seeing. We were very lucky to have the place to ourselves or with very few people – because by the time we were ready to leave, the lobby was packed, the line for tickets was outside the door, and tour groups were everywhere! Decided to postpone breakfast temporarily until we’d toured the museum, which was a good idea. Settled in to the restaurant and had sandwiches and fresh orange juice.

The most incredible part of the museum was the third floor, which is devoted entirely to the marbles and friezes from the top of the Parthenon. It is laid out in precisely the same orientation – and actual measurements – of the Parthenon itself. Then, the pieces that the Greeks have are put precisely into place where they had been, and the parts that have left the country – mainly the Elgin marbles which are in the British Museum – are put in as casts. It’s an amazing picture. Had not realized that Elgin had taken so much – how it all got to England, I have no idea! But the Vatican and the Louvre also have pieces that should be returned. R feeling very strongly about this – and he has included a few words that I will add here.

In the early 1800’s, Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin and British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, was granted permission to remove inscribed stones from the Parthenon in Athens. In the process, he acquired about half of the sculptures, including the frieze, from the site and sold them to the British Museum where they are now on display as “the Elgin Marbles”. Over the past several decades, Greece has been calling for their return to their homeland.

Several countries – including Greece, Italy and Egypt – have been actively seeking the return of antiquities from their territories and now in museums around the world, especially if the provenance of these treasures cannot establish that they were acquired legally. Personally, I don’t hold a great deal of sympathy for these efforts. In a sense, the items at issue belong to the world, not just the governments that happen to presently control the sites of their origin, governments that – in some cases – have not demonstrated an ability to properly care for the antiquities they already have. Consequently, I would not have supported the idea of returning the Elgin Marbles to Athens – up until now, that is.

I have just seen the new Acropolis Museum in Athens and it is absolutely spectacular - a magnificently designed building in a magnificent site. Most important, though, it is a fitting home for the Parthenon sculptures – especially the frieze. Here they will be protected, here they will be beautifully displayed, here they belong, within sight of their original home. It is time for the British Museum to do what is right and find a way to work with Greece to make this happen.

So…Thoughts from Robert!

After the museum, we wandered down the pedestrian avenue at the bottom of the Acropolis. It being an absolutely beautiful Sunday – sunny, warm but not hot, with a great cooling breeze! -- it seems like everybody was out for the afternoon. Stopped for a coke (which turned out unfortunately to be Pepsi) at one of the outdoor cafes; nice rest! Then decided to visit the Kerameikos, one of the oldest sections of Athens including a part of the old city wall, two important gates to the city, and one of the principal cemeteries of ancient Athens. Walking over there was interesting, as it appeared that some sort of Greek “swap meet” was going on! Unreal! People spread things out on sheets or blankets on the ground, then other people just start pawing through things! Clothes literally heaped up in two foot high piles; used shoes spread out – you name it, you could probably find it there! Very odd, as lots of people mingling, shouting out, etc. Wild! The Kerameikos itself was quite an unexpected find, and quite lovely. They also had a museum which was great! It contained findings from a 2002 excavation by a German archeological group. Some amazing carvings! We were also able to find the original Athens river, although there’s not a lot left that’s above ground.

All in all a great day for museums and sights! Decided to head back to the hotel for a rest!

More later!
Love,
m
x

Okay…I screwed up, I admit it! Seven hours of sightseeing this morning obviously wasn’t enough! I had to drag Robert out to the National Archeological Museum late this afternoon! And this is a HUGE museum! Walked there from the hotel – about 15 minutes, and then started looking through the collections…and boy, talk about leg and foot weary! The museum has a superb collection, but I only lasted through a quarter of it! Fortunately, it is open tomorrow afternoon, so we will be able to finish the collections…hmmmm…

From there, we walked to Omonia station where we caught the metro back to the Acropoli station. Crowded with all sorts of people, and headed into the Plaka area of Athens to look for dinner. Came upon a lovely Grecian ruin, the monument of Lysikratos, with a nice tavern next to it, where we decided to eat. We split an appetizer of blue-cheese stuffed mushrooms, which were delicious, and then we both had – yes, again! – chicken souvlaki. This time it came with piles of potatoes, carrots and zucchini and everything was terrific! Just love the chicken here! By the time we had finished, the wind was picking up, and it was really getting chilly! And we are still in shorts and t-shirts! Decided under the circumstances (weather and total fatigue!) to head back for an early night…so, back to Victoria and now we’re comfortably ensconced in the Centrotel with a soccer game on TV! How could it get better than that?!

Much love,
m