The old and the new

 I love historic Athens, but new Athens, no, not so much.

 This will probably shock Greeks and Europeans in general, but when it comes to the sea and sun, it's almost impossible to impress a Caribbean person!

You see we are accustomed to a warn beautiful sea and powdery white sands, but that doesn't exist anywhere on the Mediterranean or Aegean coasts, where the water is damn cold year round, and the sand, gravely.

However, It's places like this that the late Aristotle Onassis and Jackie O,  (Jackie was John F. Kennedy 's widow and she married the Greek billionaire Onassis) and other billionaires, millionaires and pretenders have frolicked for decades, regarding it as heaven on earth, I guess!

So, at the exclusive seaside area on the Aegean called the Athens Riviera, around 20 kms away, there are at least 23 major hotels numerous  lavish holiday homes, luxury cars etc.

We only visited this 'haven', as it's included in the Hop on Hop off system though.

You know, my life has really ironic, for when it was necessary to learn history (to get ahead in school), I hated it😡. 

I think it was only when I got to my thirties, that it became an obsession with me, so former great civilizations such as in Peru, Guatemala, Mali, Greece etc, flew to the top of my bucket list!

So, excuse me if modern cities and coastal beauty just don't excite me.

Unfortunately though, since I am having difficulty winning the lottery, most great historic areas will have to remain unvisited until I reincarnate!😥

But that's an aside.

After visiting the 'Riviera,' it was wonderful to return to old Athens with its amazing architecture and living history told through fantastic marble statues and ruins, and learning about their significance centuries ago.

 Incidentally, Athens has so many ruins, that when they were excavating for their subway system, they ran into numerous previously undiscovered treasures, so they had to change plans often. (See 2 of the accidentally discovered sites above).

This old parliament building is now used to host small conferences.

The Archeological Museum

It was great to return to the old city and especially to disembark at Hadrian's marble arch, constructed 131- 132AD. (Below).

Hadrian was considered the 'benefactor emperor' and his arch is part of the wall that was built around Athens.

Yesterday, they had a taxi strike, but they were back at work today and that is when we experienced Athenian gridlock, for many older streets are very narrow.

Now I understand why these tiny cars and  scooters are so popular here!

Despite how narrow and winding they are, I love their character and none more than the cobblestone pedestrian street below  Syntagma Square. 

Don't ask me its name though, as it's Greek to me 😊.

However here, you can get a taste of everything from roasted corn, street musicians and hustlers to high end brand name products, at the luxury shops on this street.

Man roasting his corn right there.

A musician, no doubt hoping to be discovered, performs.

And of course, internationally famous Greek dishes are available at every turn as there is no shortage of restaurants and sidewalk cafes in this beautiful old city.

Yup, this is my scene!😊

It was fun

The Tamarac Concert series on the Greens, tend to be quite good. Tonight it was Smooth STB band with a tribute to the great Santana. 

They are really a Latin band as it's members are from: Puerto Rico, Cuba, Peru, Dom Rep and a few others, though of Latin descent, are from New york.

As usual, our activist Mayor Michelle was on the ground, welcoming the attendees personally. 

She is such a people person, I would be shocked if she ever loses an election in Tamarac!

Smooth STB played quite a few of Santana's popular tunes and to tell the truth, once or twice I couldn't just rock in my chair but had to get up and move on the grass😁.

to

My 93 year old friend Cora caught the vibes too!

It was fun but when they say 7-9 pm, there is no deviation.

Yup. We all enjoyed it.😊

Machu Picchu Exhibition

One country that was way up on my bucket was Peru.

You see, I am a history buff, especially when it comes to the life of indigenous people.

Peru is replete with this kind of information as it has one of the longest histories of civilization of any country, going back as far as the 10th millennium BCE. 

Their civilizations ranged from the Norte Chico civilization to the Inca Empire, the largest state in the pre-Columbian Americas.

The most famous relic of Inca civilization is Machu Picchu, often referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas". The Incas built it around 1450 and occupied it until around 1532 when they abandoned it after the Spanish conquest, according to the radiocarbon-dating.

Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historic Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 and in 2007, it was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide internet poll.

Their capital is Cusco, centered on the Andean Mountain ranges, and having heard so much about that empire, it was my main drawing card to that country for years.

This desire was driven even more, when my best friend, a flight attendant, went there and told me what a wonderful experience it was, despite having to travel on narrow, winding roads atop deep scary ravines, to get there.

Although I hate heights, that description did not scare me one bit as my desire to see it for myself was overwhelming.

Boca Raton mueseum of art

However, I had not been able to realize my dream due to lack of funds. So, when I learnt that a Machu Picchu exhibition would be on display near me at the Boca Raton Museum of Art, wild horses could not prevent me from attending.

So, I went and it was everything I had expected. But guess what, when I saw the actual height of this fabulous archeological wonder in3D, I knew immediately that the trip to get up there was not for me! For, it brought back such vivid memories of the time I climbed a pyramid in Mexico. Going up, no problem. Looking down, major trauma!

So, thanks to Boca Raton Museum for the wonderful exposure to the wonders of that ancient empire but more importantly, curing my desire to make a trek to somewhere that would have scared the hell out of me!😁

But if you are not a scaredy-cat like me, it must be an awesome place to visit.