This is the second post in a series about my trip to Greece, June 30-July 20, 2016 — an amazing journey of history, family and discovery. Previous posts can be found here.

The Acropolis Museum is the beautiful new home of the artifacts, friezes, statues and archaeological treasures that graced the Acropolis’ magnificent edifices. During my first trip to Greece in the 1996, fragments of the friezes graced the top of the Parthenon, enabling me to visualize its magnificence during its days of glory. Now, only the columns remain.

left: Parthenon, 1996; right: Parthenon 2016

The Museum has 50 meters of the original frieze, with 80 meters in the British Museum. How sad that so many pieces remain outside Greece!

Frieze, replica. Acropolis Museum, July 2016

Just walking up to the Museum is an archaeological wonderland. A clear glass pathway reveals the treasures beneath; remnants of everyday life, millennia ago, have been meticulously preserved. It made me wonder how man could build on top of the historical cache below.

Under the Acropolis Museum, July 2016

Wandering through the halls and viewing the displays is a historical feast. The photos below are but a sampling of the riches within. Photography is not allowed in most sections of the Museum, so our pictures are very limited. However, the Museum’s website has many magnificent photos:  http://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/en.

Artifacts, July 2016

The Metopes, depicting battle scenes; July 2016

Andrew Soper, Kathy Lynard, Ben Soper in front of the Karyatides, July 2016

Ancient beauty, July 2016

Windows encasing the museum provide astounding views of the area around the Acropolis, known as the Plaka. Waiting until the cool of evening to explore the Plaka is a wise move in July! The area is filled with hundreds of shops and tavernas. Both tourists and locals throng the area long into the night; shops don’t close until midnight and the tavernas stay open long after. You can buy anything from trinkets to precious jewelry to replicas of ancient artifacts. Accenting the streets are yet more monuments–a constant reminder of where you are and what this city has been, as well as what it is today.

A constant reminder of where you are! Plaka, July 2016

Plaka, July 2016