Athens was our final stop before we headed back to the states for good. We spent five nights there at an apartment in Palaio Faliro. This was our final home exchange as well — the family we swapped with stayed at our apartment over New Year’s while we were in Rome.   The apartment was right across the street from the beach and just a short cab ride from the center of the city.  I mean, not a bad view right?? KC surprised me on one of our last nights in Prague by coming out of the bathroom with a suddenly shaved head. It was especially surprising because he had done it himself… with a beard trimmer. So, it was.. less than perfect, let’s say. Luckily I was able to even things out (the back looked like an insane hack-job) and got him back to looking presentable, but it was a little bit of a shock, I’ll admit. (Luckily he’s cute with and without hair)We had kind of a tough travel day getting from Prague to Athens. The girls were a little nuts on the plane (hey, it happens) and we ended up taking a cab to the wrong place when we arrived. Apparently there were two places with the same address about 2 miles apart and in our haste to get the hell out of the airport with the two crazies, we didn’t realize this and ended up at the wrong one. (Like, unloaded all our luggage and sent the cab away. Oof.) Luckily that stroll along the beach did all sorts of wonders for our mood. As did the stop for ice cream, haha.

We visited the Acropolis, the Parthenon, and the Acropolis Museum, among other sites while we were in Athens. We made the smart decision to get ourselves out of the house early and arrived at the Acropolis before 9am and just barely missed the arrival of the hoards of tourists.  Arriving early also meant that we weren’t there in the middle of the day when the sun was unbearably hot. There’s basically no shade near the Acropolis and the whole expanse is just rocks and stone, so I can’t imagine it’s pleasant around 2pm when it’s over 90 degrees out.  Prim is very into matching me or Lark these days (can you tell from our navy striped shirts above?) and while I know it’s maybe a little over-the-top-cute, I am totally running with it for the time being. I’m sure that the day will come soon enough that she wants to have nothing to do with me and my style, so I’m going to enjoy it while I can.KC ended up reading about a famous Greek sandal maker, and we made a special trip on one of the days to check out the sandals in his shop. The shoes were surprisingly affordable (even though he custom-fits them to your feet!) so Prim and I each got a pair.  Twins! (Oh and PS: the sandals are WAY comfortable.)  Those steep stone stairs with the little cafes and shops tucked into the hillside — can you even?? I was channeling those Mama Mia vibes all the way. That right there is museum with kids realness. We did brave the Acropolis Museum (which is awesome!) and the kids did pretty well, but museums with toddlers in general is like a special level of hell.  Thankfully the museum had a nursing lounge, which had some toys that the kiddos got to play with for a few minutes after I changed Lark (while KC and I had a moment to sit down and exchange looks about how much work it is to travel with kids sometimes).  Larky with her ice cream propped up on her belly — she is living her best vacation life, you guys. This girl really knows how to do it up right.Getting to Athens was a bit rough, but getting OUT of Athens was another thing altogether. A post about our final travel day is coming up. Stay tuned!