Athens

Having only ever been to Greece by visiting Crete with my parents when I was 7 years old, it was quite overdue that I would visit Athens, a city packed with heritage and culture. The opportunity presented itself with three days off from work in mid-March. The timing was perfect as I left Switzerland when temperatures there dipped below freezing. Meanwhile, Athens was sunny and enjoying warm spring weather.

Sunday

Departed Zurich for Athens on Aegean Airlines. I had rented an apartment through Airbnb and agreed to meet the owner at midnight. With metro trains leaving the airport every 30 minutes, and a scheduled arrival at 10:40 PM, I figured I’d get on the metro by 11:30 PM. I would be in a rush to get the one leaving at 11.

Due to a fully booked flight, I had to check-in my carry-on at the gate. I would have to pick it up at the baggage claim in Athens, not at the arrival gate. At the time, this seemed like a minor inconvenience. But, our flight departed on schedule and arrived early, so suddenly the 11:00 PM metro was realistic…if I could just get my hand luggage back in time.

There were several cabin-sized bags on the band at the baggage claim when I got there, but not mine.

Finally got my bag at 10:52, and now I needed to find the metro, get a ticket, and get on to the right platform. I had only a rough idea of where to go. Oddly, there were only “trains” mentioned in English on the airport signs, with metro written in Greek letters above. At 10:58, I sat down on the metro. Made it. Phew.

Met with the owner at the apartment just past 11:30 PM, and didn’t spare much time before getting to bed. I had been up since 4:10 AM (due to work) that day, and needed to get up no later than 7 AM to get to the Acropolis in the morning. I mean, I could’ve slept in, but then I would have had to queue up behind dozens of tour groups.

Monday

Bright and early Monday morning, I went on the metro downtown to visit the Acropolis, one of the most important historical sites in the Western world. Got there as the morning sunlight highlighted the fading colors of the marble. Also, there were just one or two tour groups there, so the place was much more quiet. I didn’t even have to queue up to get a ticket, and I could just walk straight into the site.

Unfortunately the site has been in disrepair for hundreds of years, so parts of the Parthenon temple are covered by scaffolding, as restoration continues. In the middle of the ancient temple now stands a modern construction crane. Still, it’s an impressive sight, and the history of the place is inspiring. The Acropolis has been inhabited for several thousands of years, and the vast majority of its buildings are from the 5th and 4th centuries BC.

The Caryatids of the Erechtheion Temple. This was one of the more actively used temples at Acropolis.

Continued on to the Acropolis hill’s south slope, passing the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, built by Romans in 161 AD. It is really well-preserved, thanks in large part to restoration. Maintenance works allow its continued use as a music venue during the annual Athens Festival.

Not far east of the Odeon is the Theatre of Dionyssos, the birthplace of drama performances as we know them today. It was built for the Dionysia festival, which first took place in the 6th Century BC.

Continued towards the Acropolis Museum, which houses most of the better preserved statues, sculptures and artefacts from the Acropolis. It’s great for a more in-depth look at the history of the site. The museum’s cafe very conveniently served breakfast, as I still hadn’t had any food yet. Obviously, staying in an apartment I don’t have the luxury of a hotel breakfast buffet.

Next up, I walked further east towards the Temple of Olympian Zeus, passing Hadrian’s Arch on the way. This arch used to denote the border between the Roman and Greek parts of Athens.

Looking through Hadrian’s Arch towards Acropolis. In ancient times, one of Athens’ major roads would have passed through this spot.

The Temple of Olympian Zeus used to be the biggest temple in the Greek world, but only 15 of its 104 columns are still standing. It took almost 700 years to build, as the project kept running out of funds. The base of the building is the best evidence of its former size.

For my next point on the itinerary, I took the metro for a couple of stops over to the Keraikimos cemetery. It was partly a residential area, partly a cemetery during ancient times. Some of the more prominent people and soldiers from thousands of years ago are buried there.

After Keraikimos, I walked over to a taverna, Kalnterimi in the centre of Athens for lunch, and enjoyed an inexpensive, delicious meal.

Not far from this taverna was the Aristotle’s Lyceum, a school of philosophy that he had founded. The opening hours had been shortened, so it was closed.

Instead of Aristotle’s school, I decided on going to the Museum of Cycladic Art. I have mentioned in previous posts on here that I usually don’t visit art museums, but this place is different. It brands itself as an art museum, but it could just as well be labeled an archaeological museum. The museum shows artefacts from the Cyclades, an archipelago in the Aegean sea, and most of their objects are from a range of centuries BC.

A bust of a bearded man, from 6th century BC.

Next up, I walked downtown to stop by the Athens Cathedral.

Just west of the Cathedral is the Monastikari Flea Market, which is a nice place for a stroll. It reminded me a bit of a bazaar, but didn’t fully have the same atmosphere as you’d find in the Middle East.

Before the sunlight vanished, I went up to the Areopagus Hill, immediately west of the Acropolis, for some panorama views over the city, as storm clouds rolled in from the west. My last stop for the day was a quick photo stop at the neo-classical architecture trio of the National Library, Athens University and Athens Academy.

The Athens Academy.

The National Library.

When I went out for dinner, the storm clouds had arrived in full force. Even though I could ride the metro over to one restaurant, it was fully booked. I had no other options but walking through a downpour to a different place. Well, I could have just walked into any next-door tourist trap, but I preferred getting drenched and making it to one of the more popular, recommended places in town. The food experience at Tzitzikas & Mermingas was worth the trouble.

 

Tuesday

Having been unable to get into Aristotle’s Lyceum Monday, I got in Tuesday morning instead. There’s not much except the foundations of the walls left. Nonetheless, it’s awe-inspiring to know that one of the greatest thinkers of ancient times worked there during the 4th century BC.

I continued towards the National Historical Museum, which displayed plenty of objects starting from the 16th century occupations of Greece by the Venetians and Ottomans, up until World War II.

Next stop was the National Archaeological Museum, which has an enormous collection of archaeologically significant objects from Greek regions, as well as an Egyptian gallery. Examining every one of the over 11,000 pieces in detail would take literally all day. Some of the highlights include Mycenaean items from before 1000 BC, many of which are in gold.

The 16th century BC Mask of Agemnon.

Various decorations and jewellery.

A bronze statue from 460 BC, archaeologists aren’t sure if it’s Zeus or Poseidon.

I went into the heart of the city, the Monastiraki district, for lunch at a traditional Greek place inside the flea market. Good food, even better people watching.

After that I got on the metro for a few stops towards the east, stopping by the Byzantine Museum before it closed. Large portions of the museum weren’t open due to renovations, so it turned out I wasn’t short on time after all.

South of the Byzantine Museum is the Panathenaic Stadium, where athletic games have been held since the 4th century BC. It was restored to host the first modern Olympics in 1896. It was part of the Olympics in 2004 as well, and serves as the finish line of the annual Athens Marathon.

You can enter the stadium and walk around all of the rows of marble seats, or walk along the track itself. There’s even a small museum underneath the seats in one corner.

I continued westward to an excavated Roman bathhouse, then north through the National Gardens. I continued towards Syntagma Square, before watching the changing of the guard at the Greek Parliament. The guards of the parliament are known for having some very unique outfits, and the ceremonial changing of shifts is quite a performance.

By then it was 6:10 PM, and I had sort-of considered going up nearby Lycabettus Hill to watch the sunset, which would occur at 6:35. According Google Maps, it was a 19-minute walk to the foot of the hill. Public transport was no faster. I needed to hurry up.

Almost running my way through the surrounding neighborhoods and maintaining a good pace for the hike up the hill, I got there just in time. With just a few minutes to spare, I made it all the way to the top. The view did not disappoint.

On another side of the hill was a funicular, which I decided to take for a much more relaxed trip back down the hill. The funicular runs down to the nearby Kolonaki neighborhood, which is one of the pricier places to eat in Athens. I found a spot, Oikeio, that was very affordable, yet quite tasty, and enjoyed some fried squid for dinner.

Wednesday

Wednesday morning I started at the Ancient Agora of Athens, the old Greek city’s gathering point for arts, sports, business, religion and politics. Essentially this was the city center during ancient times. It had been built initially sometime during the 6th century BC. It was destroyed by the invading Persians in 480 BC, then immediately rebuilt thereafter. One of the best preserved buildings is a temple built in the Doric architectural style. In all of Greece, you won’t find a better preserved temple of this type.

Not all too far from the Agora was Filopappou Hill, one of several hilltops in Athens that I wanted to explore. There’s a small monument on top dedicated to the Roman administrator whom the hill is named after.

Next up was a stop at another Agora, namely the Roman Agora. This area served the same functions as the Ancient Greek Agora, but during the several hundred years of Roman occupation. Rather than simply taking over the Greek buildings, the Romans preferred to build their own.

Unfortunately there’s not too much remaining, except for the Tower of the Winds above, which served mainly astronomical and meteorological functions.A couple of blocks away, there are also some remnants of Emperor Hadrian’s Library, built in the 2nd century AD.

My plan for the afternoon was to take a bus to the Temple of Poseidon, about 70km southeast of Athens. The public bus was scheduled to depart a bus terminal north of the city center shortly past 1PM. With well over an hour to go, I stopped for lunch at a local kebab place just off the Monastiraki Square.

I got to the nearest bus stop to the city center well in time. Interestingly, the bus company simply lists a departure time from the bus terminal, but not at individual stops. If you are getting on the bus somewhere en route, you’d have to guess how long it takes the bus to get to your stop. That’s obviously depending on how bad traffic gets in Athens. The roughly 2-hour bus drive to Cape Sounio was an enjoyable trip along the beautiful Apollo Coast. For the last 30 minutes we had to change into a smaller bus, perhaps because the roads got narrower.

The Temple of Poseidon was built in 444 BC, around the same time as the Parthenon at Acropolis. It’s in a great location at the top of a seaside cliff. The God of the seas was worshipped with just a 65m/200ft drop separating the Temple from the waters.

The bus ride back to Athens was a great opportunity to get to know some fellow travelers, as mostly everyone had gotten on the same bus from Athens to the Temple anyway.

For my last meal in Athens, I stopped by a restaurant in the heart of the city. Melilotos has a modern take on Greek food, with some creative ingredients, and it was quite nice. Who doesn’t like caramelized apples?

Thursday

Thursday morning it was time to depart Athens to return to Zurich. I was off to the airport by metro. However, because it only serves the airport every half hour, I needed to switch to a suburban rail line. This seemed a bit unnecessary, as there were just three stops left, but I’m sure they have their reasons.

Taking me back to Switzerland was Aegean Airlines again. It was an enjoyable experience with superb views of the Alps on a clear day.