We have had a trip to Greece on our “Bucket List” for many years. Linda’s sister Debbie is married to Angelo, who grew up in Greece. During their visit to Fort Myers Beach in March 2026, we finalized our plans and booked our flights to Greece.
May 31, 2026
Linda and I flew out of nearby Central Wisconsin Airport, caught a connecting flight in Minneapolis to Atlanta. Debbie and Angelo drove from their home in Bluffton SC to Savanna GA to catch a short flight to Atlanta. We had seats together for our long, 10 hour flight to Athens.
June 1, 2026
Flight landed slightly ahead of schedule. Took a taxi to our hotel in Nea Makri. Greece is very mountainous and dry, but the flowers were blooming along the road.
Marathon Beach Resort is right on the coast of the Aegean Sea. Bright blue skies and 80 degrees. Checked into our room with a nice view of the pool and the Sea before enjoying a drink at the pool.
Easy to walk along the coast, past fishing and pleasure boats in the harbor and surrounded by many restaurants.
June 2, 2026
Drove to the nearby town of Marathon. The famous Battle of Marathon in 490BC was a turning point in the Greek defense against the Persians.
At the 1896 and 2004 Summer Olympics, Marathon was the starting point of the marathon races. Marathon is also the starting point for the annual Athens Classic Marathon. There is a blue stripe painted on the main road for the runners to follow. We sat by the statue of the famous race.
Nice seafood dinner along the coast.
Moved into a larger suite with a better view of the Sea.
June 3, 2026
Drove to the southern tip of the Greek mainland see the remains of the Temple of Poseidon in Sounion.
Linda and I walked to the top to see the impressive structure and the beautiful view of the Sea.
Enjoyed a wonderful dinner at a nearby restaurant on the coast.
June 4, 2026
Our tour guide Michael picked us up to for tour of Athens. Traffic and parking in Athens is crazy. We were glad to leave the driving to Michael. We started at the impressive Acropolis, which towers over the city of Athens. Linda and I walked to the top to see the remaining structures and to learn about the history.
The Theater is still used today.
From the sight of the scaffolding and the crane, it was clear that they were actively working to restore the ancient structure.
The Erechtheion or Temple of Athena has impressive statues of Athena.
It is a very popular attraction and a point of pride for the Greek people.
The view of the city of Athens from the Acropolis is impressive.
An overhead view of the Acropolis Museum, our next stop.
The Acropolis Museum is built over the top of an active archeological site.
The statues of Athena are impressive.
We watched the changing of the guard in front of The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Old Royal Palace which still houses the Hellenic Parliament.
Steve Pelton 