Yes, Athens is all that. It’s gritty and graffitied and old. A living history of culture and landmarks so ubiquitous that it took a moment to process that we were actually there. In real life. We may have been mesmerized by the heat though, 101 degrees in the blazing sun. Probably even hotter by the time we hoofed it to the Acropolis. And it was worth every, sweaty step. Yep, we were really there and it was incredible.

But before our sun-soaked adventure in Athens, we zipped out to Santorini and Mykonos. Here’s how we planned the trip in case anyone is interested: We flew into Athens from Charleroi airport just south of Brussels. And lucky us, we had an eight-hour layover until our 11:30 pm flight to Santorini. So we did what any normal family would do spur of the moment and rented a car. First stop: Lake Vouliagmeni. After devouring my first official (life-changing) Greek salad at the little resort cafe and swimming with the exfoliating fish we were polished and ready for some history. Onward, to see our very first sighting: the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion!

I’ll never forget it, looming in the distance, perched high on a hill keeping watch over the sea. We were awestruck and still buzzing from the fact that WE WERE IN GREECE. When we reached the top Chris painted a historical portrait for us from the signage and his encyclopedic brain. 30 minutes and 500 photos later we were off, chasing the sun back to catch our midnight flight. We’ll see you on the flipside Athens, for more sights, changing of the guard, a few beverages, some shopping and souvlaki.