Athens: A Weekend and a Wedding, June 2008

Above: Clarine and Dimitris (holding hands); her sister, Michelle behind her and her dad (in pink shirt) and step-mum to right of him; Dimitri's mum sat by him, his dad second left; Pat third from left at rear (Alan took the photo); and other members of the families.

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We went to Athens at the end of June for the wedding of one of Alan's ex-students. From the airport the Metro train runs through to Thissio. The Jason Inn Hotel, where we stayed, has a rooftop restaurant - see the Athens panoramas on another page - with a tremendous view all round, including of the Acropolis,

Acropolis: 'high city'. This, the Parthenon, the largest temple on the site.

The temperature reached 39C - 110F - that day.

Dig. Discover. Solve. See. S'fascinating.

In the Monasteraki district of Athens, immediately to the north of the Acropolis. Tourist shops, flea market, historic streets and lanes. It's the authentic Athens - of tourist Athens of the 21st century.

That film projector (middle top picture) is a French Pathescope Baby 9.5mm projector with some of its characteristic film loaded - sprocket holes down the centre. Grrr! - there would have been no chance of getting it on the plane.

The boy in the rather blurry shot lower left was playing a traditional stringed instrument and hoping for loose change.

The wedding was at a club and open-air restauraunt overlooking the sea. The Greek Orthodox ceremony took place in a small church close to the water's edge. Formal tables were set out on lawns between planted borders, with lights hanging from posts. The meal was buffet style. Traditional musicians and a dance group from Crete performed before disco-style entertainment and dancing took over. Speeches are not part of the programme, but bride and groom and other members of the family walk round the tables to greet families, friends and other guests. It was a lovely, gloriously hospitable and quite emotional event. The ceremony began soon after 8pm. We left, amongst the last to go, at four in the morning.

Clarine's dad, Iracles, took Pat and myself to the top of the prominent Athens hill, Lykabetus. The views are magnificent, even though there's heat haze. We looked down on the Acropolis (unusual angle!) and in the far distance could see Greek navy ships gathering for a special event off Piraeus.