Day 1 - Sat 13th June - Sydney to Athens

We knew it would prove to be the ‘longest day’ and it didn’t disappoint us!

It was great to have our daughter Sarah-Jane staying with us as we packed our bags, ran through the check-list a few more times before hurriedly driving to Canberra Airport. We had purchased decent back-packs for our six week journey ahead – the first two weeks joining about 30 others like us – Salvation Army ‘pastors’ who are completing approximately 30 years of active service as Salvation Army Officers.

We are about to retrace the Footsteps of St Paul in his 2^nd Missionary journey, well, at least that part of it which included Greece and Turkey. After that two weeks, Julie and I have planned to ‘head-off’ on our own – Istanbul, Romania, Moldova and finally Budapest.

God bless Qantas – no problems – booked all the way through to Athens from Canberra.  We wouldn’t see our packs again until we arrived in Greece. At Sydney we had time to eat at the Qantas Club before finding our group already gathered for the 14 hr Emirates flight to Dubai. It was good to catch up – but our minds were already ‘saying’ that we were not going to enjoy the next 24 hours.

Fortunately we sat next to a very lovely young lady, 15 years of age and travelling overseas for the very first time alone, to visit with her parents in Switzerland. She was very delightful company, and made the otherwise uncomfortable 14 hrs somewhat bearable. The first few hours seemed like an eternity, but we survived. We flew into Dubai just before dawn, to be greeted by one of the most spectacular sunrises on the far horizon that almost made the discomforts of the long flight pale into insignificance. It was good to shower at the Emirates Lounge, and have some of the sumptuous delights of the Emirates Lounge breakfast menu.

As we boarded again, this time a 6 hour flight to Athens, Julie’s boarding Pass, then mine, were rejected at the machine at the boarding gate. We thought it was because they were Qantas issued. In any case, they were reprinted with Emirates Boarding passes, and it wasn’t until we had gone through that Julie asked me ‘have I seen my seat allocation?’ It was 2E. Julie’s was 3E. We had been ‘bumped up’ to Business Class.!

It was luxury all the way. We were all very weary by now, but after a one hour bus trip into the city of Athens, we arrived at our ‘Parthenon’ Hotel. It was amazing to pass through so many wonderful sights – the magnificent Acropolis and Parthenon is still a superb structure, perched high above Athens. Our Hotel was right at the foot of the climb.

After an hour’s stroll in the early evening around the base of the Acropolis (we will explore it more fully upon our return), we met for a ‘Tour Briefing’, before sitting down to dinner at 7pm. Our ‘day’ that had started 24 hours sooner had now come to an end.

Tomorrow, we leave Athens to begin the ‘Footsteps of St Paul”. By God’s grace, our lives will never be the same again. Until tomorrow….

KRA