Exploring Athens via “Eco Tuk Tuk” with Carlos
We did alright last night, jetlag-wise. Woke up by 9 am and had a relaxing morning — some reading, some journal writing, some Yahtzee.
James.
Around noon we walked outside to meet Carlos and his “eco tuk tuk” for a tour of Athens. Carlos is a Portuguese ex-pat who bought a giant electric golf cart in 2019 and uses it to take tourists like us around the city — not just the go-to sites, but into residential neighborhoods with tiny winding roads. The equivalent of the Upper East Side and East Village, among them.
Carlos was more “friendly driver buddy” than “serious tour guide windbag,” which our family always appreciates. It was a quiet, easy, fun outing that also had the benefit of being extremely efficient. It would’ve taken five days to hit all we did had we been on foot.
Lunch was at 3 pm at Aiolou 68, a cool outdoor spot in Plaka, near our neighborhood of Monastiraki. We ate more Greek salad, grilled shrimp and some tuna sashimi. Teddy and I got a glass of rose.
From there we took a ($4!!!) Uber over to the giant city park near the Presidential Palace, where we wandered around, stopped at a playground and stretched our legs. It was leafy and fragrant and filled with the loudest birdcalls. Teddy dozed on a park bench while James and I played catch.
By then it was 6 pm and we wandered back over to our neighborhood and stopped for a drink at a cute spot before walking home to shower, eat cheese and crackers for dinner, write this blog post and crash!
Misc
We like Athens. It’s like Madrid meets Cairo (or something). It seems gritty but soulful, with good food, nice people. Plus everyone here is just so damn grateful to see deep-pocketed American tourists arriving in town. It’s not crowded.
Covid protocols require masks everywhere and prohibit indoor dining, which is like traveling back in time to March. Then again, no one seems to wear masks outside at all so it’s not too terrible. Most people have them under their chins or not at all. Given what we know about how this disease spreads, I’m fine with it.
Some parts of traveling feel so familiar – like setting out for the day in a hot new city, me in my fanny pack, James in his O’s hat, Teddy navigating on his phone, Willa skipping along. Other parts are different: The kids are so tall and big! They’re so mature and chill! Who are these giant humans?
Tomorrow: Acropolis!
