Round about this time of year we try and head off abroad to catch some early sun while the UK is bathed in cold rain. Normally, that would be to Seville, Spain but we fancied a change this year and Seville had problems with flooding earlier in the year so we looked elsewhere.
ChatGPT has Entered the Conversation
Looking for inspiration I turned to ChatGPT to see where it thought we should go and asked it:
And this was its response:
Seville, Spain, is located at approximately 37.4°N latitude. Here are some places in Europe that are roughly at the same latitude:
- Granada, Spain – Located a bit east of Seville, known for the Alhambra Palace.
- Murcia, Spain – South-eastern Spain, with a warm climate and rich historical sites.
- Malta – An island nation in the Mediterranean, south of Italy.
- Catania, Sicily (Italy) – A coastal city with views of Mount Etna and historical architecture.
- Athens, Greece – Slightly south but close in latitude, rich in history and culture.
- Izmir, Turkey – A port city with a blend of modern and ancient influences.
- Algiers, Algeria – Across the Mediterranean, on a similar latitude and known for its historical French colonial architecture.
These locations share a similar latitude, contributing to generally warm climates and Mediterranean characteristics.
This was an interesting list and contained some places that were too long a flight away or were too difficult to get to so could be immediately discounted. We quickly alighted upon Athens, somewhere we’ve been before but also somewhere we knew to be an interesting place. And so here we are.
And again…
Most of the day was taken up with travelling and not much interesting to report. With Athens being two hours ahead of the UK we didn’t much feel like going back to the hotel to retire for the night at 8pm so we repeated the ChatGPT trick by acking “Where is the best free place to see the Parthenon from central Athens?” which yielded the following response.
One of the best free spots to see the Parthenon from central Athens is Filopappou Hill (also called the Hill of the Muses). It offers a stunning panoramic view of the Acropolis, especially at sunset. It’s an easy walk from the city center, and the trail up the hill is scenic and not too challenging. Other great free viewpoints include:
- Areopagus Hill (Mars Hill) – Located right next to the Acropolis, this rocky outcrop provides a close-up view of the Parthenon and great photo opportunities.
- Pnyx Hill – A historic site where ancient Athenian democracy was practiced, with a clear view of the Acropolis.
- Lycabettus Hill (from the base or midway up) – While the very top requires a hike or a funicular ride, you can get good views from lower points.
Filopappou Hill was too far for this evening but Areopagus Hill was not far from the hotel so we headed there. It was popular with the local youths as a hangout and why not as it had an amazing view although it was not really of the Parthanon as it is usually seen. We will probably attempt Filopappou Hill this evening to compare and contrast.
I have to say that ChatGPT (other AIs are available) has been a fantastic help in planning our holidays of late and will certainly feature more going forward.
