Our 4th port of call was Piraeus, Greece. This is the port of Athens, just as Civitaveccia is the port of Rome. However, unlike Rome, you can actually “get there from here”. As part of hosting the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, Greece made a massive investment in infrastructure and there is a metro line which can take you from the port all the way into the center of Athens. However, we were exhausted from our excursion to Olympia and looking forward to a busy day to follow, so we opted not to go to Athens. It would seem a shame to be so close and not get to see the Acropolis and other ancient sites of Athens, but our school is tentatively planning a trip to Greece and Turkey for our long trip next spring and we feel hopeful we will be back. If that doesn’t work out, then it is a short trip from Rome and we will spend a weekend here at some point this fall. It was a good choice as the temperature for the day topped out at 105 with a heat index of around 112 F. We did get off the ship and took one of those silly little tourist trains around the port. Along the way we saw this really beautiful and imposing Greek Orthodox Church. Amy is in the foreground, lower right, of the picture which gives you a sense of scale.
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