25 December 2010. 11am, Athens. My 3rd and last day away. So far, it has been a fun day. First up was a run before breakfast – up Lykavittos Hill. Fantastic. While the rest of the city is stretching and yawning, I’ve run 65 minutes.
the hill
The views from the top were spectacular. The pain to get there almost as spectacular. The route took me past the Temple of Zeus, the Panathaneic Stadium (that’s the original Olympic Stadium, reconstructed for the 1896 Games) and the Presidential Palace.
the stadium
The guards at the Palace did a double take as I went past the first time. They just smiled in disbelief at the sweaty monster going past on the return leg.
inscrutable
A special and memorable run.
The rest of the day? Well I’m in no hurry. It’s fun just chilling out and knowing how bad it gets back home at this time. Even without the sub zero weather, snow and ice. I have warm sunshine (20c predicted for today). The BBC website expects a high of -3c at home. Seems I’m 23c ahead of the game.
The plan is to jump on the metro and head for the coast. Get a late lunch there, and just hang out.
© iain taylor 2011