Athens, Acropolis Hill, Greece

The Acropolis [high city], one of Europe's most important ancient sites, consists of all the monuments built on the elevated area of Athens' Acropolis Hill, while the Parthenon is the crown, a temple [on the right] dedicated to Athena and also used to store monetary gifts.
It was finished in 438 BC. Inside, the statue of Athena was covered in gold plate and 12 metres high, holding - among other things - a small staue of Nike, the goddess of victory. [So now you can win some bets down at the pub].
The most astonishing feature of the Parthenon is how the lines of the foundations and columns were curved inwards or outwards to achieve the optical illusion of perfectly parallel, vertical lines. The building was originally painted with many bright colours, including gold
The spectacular new Acropolis Museum, was fully opened to the public June 2009. This magnificent new building, in sight of the actual Acropolis is a work of art itself and deserves a half-day visit at a cost of €1.

Athens Pictures © bugbog.com