April 16, 2024 - Athens, Greece

April 16, 2024 Athens

Following breakfast this morning we tour Athens, the foundation of democracy. We visit the Acropolis, the Parthenon, and Erectheum before viewing Athens atop Mars Hill where Paul stood and preached the truth to the Gentile nation. From atop Mars Hill we view the Agora below, the ancient marketplace and center of Athenian public life. Additional sites viewed during our panoramic bus tour are the House of Parliament, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Olympic Stadium, and the Presidential Palace.

Ronnie's FaceBook post:

Sorry to overload you with frequent posts on our "steps of Paul and John" pilgrimage but maybe you'll get a sense of the rush we've experienced. We were off from the hotel in Athens at 7am to try and beat a hot day on top of the Acropolis. 

 

 

The Acropolis, Greece

 

Public transportation in Athens was scheduled to strike soon and that would make traffic even worse. The city has four million people and a lax graffiti code that views it as "artwork." It's everywhere but I didn’t understand any of it since it looks like Greek to me. Haha!

 

Here's a photo of the Acropolis as seen from our hotel. Arriving early beat the heat but not the crowd. We arrived before 8am, but the line to enter snaked down a long stone path. People visit the Acropolis from all walks of life, young and old, rich or poor, thief or beggar. We were warned about pick pockets and everyone had a tight grip on their valuables as we entered the main gate.

 

 

 

On this journey we've noticed the "influencer" pose many young women (and a few men) strike while making a selfie or having their photo made. Why does one want to take a glamor shot in front of antiquities?

 

 

 

I included a photo of the Acropolis from our hotel. On the right you can see the buildings near the west gate. In the center is the Pantheon or temple to the goddess Athena. She was worshiped as a god of wisdom. Athens was the place for philosophers. I included a photo of a rare coin with her image on one side and an owl on the other side.

 

 

 

We walked all over the Acropolis but the highlight for me was hiking down to Mars Hill or the Areopagus, where Paul reasoned with the Athenians (Acts 17:15-34). Paul must have walked up the steps in my photo.

I could share much more but it's already late and we have an early start in the morning. 

 

 

staircase to Mars Hill

 

 

I'll close with a photo of the original Olympic stadium. It would have been fun to enter and run the track but we were not allowed to do such a thing.

 

 

Olympic Stadium, Greece

 

 

 Jan: I'll include a few more photos made at the Acropolis.

 

 

view from Mars Hill

back of the Parthenon undergoing restoration

dedicated to founder of Athens

extremely rocky terrain as we climbed, very slippery marble in places

 

 

Pastor Craig Bollinger teaching atop Mars Hill

 

 

He spoke on Acts 17:15-34 about how Paul reasoned with the Athenians after seeing their altar to the "unknown God", explaining to them the good news about Jesus and the resurrection (vs 24-31). It was exciting to know that we were sitting in the place where this took place.