Who let the dogs out

Our first night was rather rough for all of us. 

The apartment was quite spacious and there was a good bit of distance between the rooms. 

Bryan and I were in the bedroom at the back of the house. John and Larry were in the bedroom in the front of the house. And 

Joe and Alan were in the bedroom in the middle. Levi’s room was just across from Joes. 

By this time Joes coughing was continuous. Larry and Bryan were also coughing a fair amount so each bedroom had one person with a cough. 

Joe would go into a coughing fit, then Bryan would rouse and start coughing and Larry would follow suit. The three would hack on together for a bit and little by little they would slow and everything would finally calm down again. 

Just when the pillow was starting to feel comfy again Joe would start it all up again which again would jump start Bryan and Larry and off they would go. Like a rock tumbling down a hillside and creating an avalanche on the way down. 

This was the routine for the entire night. It was like a pack of dogs where one barking late at night will start a chain reaction that will eventually trigger the entire neighborhood. It felt like we were spending the night in a kennel.

And there was poor Levi right in the middle of it all wondering what in the world he had just gotten into. He came to celebrate his birthday and wound up sleeping in the intensive care unit. 

Last night the restaurants and bars were full and the parties could be heard going late into the night. This morning everything was quiet, it was a holiday. 

October 28th is Oxi Day. This is a significant national holiday in Greece commemorating the country's rejection of the Axis powers' ultimatum during World War II on October 28, 1940. The word "Oxi" means "No" in Greek, and it symbolizes Greece's refusal to submit to the Axis demands.

Oxi Day is a day of national pride and remembrance of Greece's resilience and courage during the war.

Holiday or not we had a tour scheduled so we walked toward the Acropolis. 

The streets were really interesting. There were a lot of what appears to be just pedestrian streets lined with cafes and bakeries and shops and musicians. And limes. One street we walker had lime trees all the way down bearing unripe fruit. 

Also so many of the streets had what looked like trolly tracks although we never saw any trolleys. 

But what we did see was graffiti. Everywhere. And that’s not an exaggeration. Graffiti covered everything. Our guide talked about it also. 

Graffiti in Athens has become quite prominent, especially since their economic crisis in 2009. Artists turned to graffiti as a way to express their frustrations and aspirations to a broad audience.

Some cities maintenance budgets are stretched thin, making it difficult to keep up with the removal of graffiti so areas have embraced street art as a way to attract tourists and showcase local talent.

Athens is a hotspot for street art, with many talented artists contributing to the city's colorful and expressive environment and just one more thing that makes the city unique.

It has become such an attraction that there are Graffiti tours offered through certain neighborhoods of the city.