Another Day in Athens

After a day of exploring some of Athens' most famous sights, we started our next day in Athens at Syntagma Square in downtown Athens, where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is located.



Greek soldiers dressed in traditional uniforms guard the tomb, which is just in front of Parliament. Every hour, there is a changing of the guard ceremony.



Two soldiers guard the tomb at all times. Here, the incoming and outgoing soldiers approach the tomb and salute.



The guards perform a series of dramatic high steps and salutes, executed almost perfectly in sync. And with stockings to die for!



After watching the changing of the guard, we walked to the National Archaeological Museum. It houses incredible finds from all over ancient Greece, including thousands of artifacts, sculptures, and pottery. One of the things that was most impressive was the gold leaf that ancient Greeks hammered out to use as jewelry for both the living and the dead. Many of the items in the museum were from tombs and graves, like this gold breastplate. It's incredible to think how much we can learn about the lives of a civilization from how they care for and bury their dead.



This statue was missing a head, so who better to supply one?



We had to travel all the way to Greece to show you any artifacts from Egypt! The museum had an entire exhibit devoted to Pharonic Egypt.



These sculptures were part of a much larger piece that was originally located at a temple honoring the ancient gods and goddesses of Greece. Not sure why they couldn't just put one on top of the statue missing a head. The one on the far right would work perfect!



Greece is known for its black and red pottery. There were many pieces like this one throughout the museum.



It is believed that nearly 98% of the Greek population belongs to the Greek Orthodox Church. Walking through the narrow streets of Athens, we came across several beautiful churches. We stopped at this particular church one evening, hearing singing from the street as we walked by. The churches we've seen are fairly small, with room for 20 to 30 people. At this church, many people stood outside the doors of the church, listening to the priest and lighting candles. Easter is one of the most important holidays in Greece, but unlike in other parts of the world, Greece celebrates Easter later this month, so unfortunately we won't be here to see the celebration. We also won't be in Italy for Easter. Where have all the eggs gone, long time passing?