Tree and I got an early start the next morning, taking the subway to the Acropolis. The system is new and gleaming, with the Acropoli station featuring replicas of the Parthenon frieze (1). Only the keener tourists were about, and we took turns taking photos of each other with the Doric temple in the background (2). The Parthenon is under reconstruction, which meant that the structure is all but obscured under the scaffolding and cranes, and all the sculptures have been removed to the adjacent museum. One corner still exhibited an original (I think) carved metope (3).
    The view outward was of a vast jumbled metropolis, ringed by hills and the sea in the distance (4). From our elevated position a panorama of the city was visible, but sometimes, when appearing through holes in the ancient walls, it surprised you in small ways (8).
    The Porch of the Maidens (5) on the Erechtheion stands around the corner from the symbolic olive tree planted by Athena to win the dedication of the city (6). The caryatids on the porch are replicas, the originals having been removed and put behind glass in the museum (7). The original frieze also witnesses the endless flow of museum visitors (9). The tourists are kept in check by docents in each room who prevent you from taking flash photography and forbidding people to pose with the sculptures. About mid-morning, we left the Acropolis to the growing crowds and tour groups, and the gathering heat of the day (10).

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© D.Tan