Greece: Athens (Αθήνα)

So, I’ve not written about anything for a little while because I’ve been out of the country! To be fair I was around at the weekend and could have done a few articles by now, but I am lazy, so I haven’t, because playing the demo of FIFA 12 was more important.

I am going to do a bit of a series on the things I did in Greece, starting with this page. Then what I’ll probably do is set up some kind of link at the top there so that if you ever decide to go on holiday to one of the places I’ve been you can have a look through all the stuff I did and decide if it sounds any good.

I’ll do a separate post on each of the individual things, so apologies for the very general nature of this one. As I write a review of each aspect, I will add links to the below. There’s more below the itinerary!

The Parthenon in the evening.

Itinerary

Day 0
09/09/2011

National Express Coach: Woking to Heathrow (T5)
Hotel: Sofitel – Heathrow (T5)

Day 1
10/09/2011

Breakfast: Giraffe – Heathrow (T5)
Flight: Heathrow (T5) to Athens – British Airways
Transfer to Athens by ‘limo’
Hotel: Divani Palace Acropolis (5*)
Visit to Temple of Zeus
Dinner: Dionysos
Cocktails at the bar on the roof of Divani Palace Acropolis

Day 2
11/09/2011

Transfer to Ancient Olympia by ‘limo’
Hotel: Hotel Europa (4*)
Guided tour of the site of Ancient Olympia and Museum
Dinner: Hotel Europa

Day 3
12/09/2011

Transfer to Athens by ‘limo’
Hotel: Divani Palace Acropolis (5*)
Dinner: Plaka – Kosmikon Grill House

Day 4
13/09/2011

Transfer to Acropolis by ‘limo’
Guided tour of the Ancient Acropolis
Guided tour of the Acropolis Museum
Lunch: Acropolis Museum Restaurant
Transfer to Megara Airfield by ‘limo’
Flight over Athens (Global Aviation)
Dinner: Plaka – Estiatopion Taverna

Day 5
14/09/2011

Kalamaki Beach
Lunch: Kalamaki Beach Bar
Dinner: Diogenes
Cocktails: Grande Bretagne Hotel – Roof Garden Bar & Restaurant

Day 6
15/09/2011

Tour of Panathenaic Stadium
Transfer to Athens Airport by ‘limo’
Lunch: Everest (Athens Airport)
Flight: Athens Airport to Heathrow (T5) – British Airways
National Express Coach: Heathrow (T5) to Woking

Athens

Having never visited Greece (or the surrounding countries) before I didn’t really know what to expect, in fact, even my experience with Greek food was limited to pitta bread, so I was going in pretty blind.

My assumption was that, as a mediterranean country, there would be some similarities with Spain, with white buildings, swimming pools-a-plenty and olive-skinned locals. I wasn’t far off, although Athens as a large city doesn’t have many pools and the like.

The airport is a fair distance from the city and was built with the 2004 Olympic Games in mind. Once you arrive, you are immediately struck by the state of the city in general. Whilst many cities have areas which are in a poor state of repair, Athens is a city which, outwardly, really looks like it is struggling, with graffiti on almost every building and many in a poor state of repair. There are no high-rise buildings, with the majority of the city restricted to 3 stories and, the centre (Syntagma), not exceeding around 7 stories tall. This all relates to the Acropolis and a requirement to keep every building below the height of the iconic hill.

However, once you begin to explore the city, your impression changes. The best way to look around is almost certainly on foot, particularly if your base is towards the centre of the city (known colloquially as Downtown). The first thing you will notice is that it is hard to walk for more than 5 minutes without stumbling across an ancient building or relic of some kind. Syntagma Metro Station has a whole area behind glass reflecting what was found when the station was built as part of a network also needed for the 2004 Olympics. South of there you will find the Temple of Zeus and in between, if you walk via the Plaka you will stumble across once or two fenced off areas with excavated columns and buildings. The Acropolis Museum and even our hotel are built on top of ancient buildings which have been excavated and preserved behind glass.

The city centre has a number of areas which are well worth visiting for their individual charms. Many of the areas worth a visit are pedestrianised, however, this isn’t quite as strict as you might expect and you will often find mopeds or city vehicles travelling up and down, sometimes with scant regard for public safety! Whilst there are a number of places to visit, the must see areas are as follows: –

Plaka (πλάκα)

Plaka is where you will find a glut of restaurants and Tavernas. Based at the foot of The Acropolis on the Eastern side, it is an area which is buzzing every night, generally with tourists. As you walk through in the evening you will find that every restaurateur is quite happy to promise you the best food in all of Athens and won’t leave you alone until you come in for dinner. All I can say is a good wall through will give you an idea of what’s there and help you decide where you want to eat; don’t be bullied! The two restaurants we visited there were both generally good and I’d suggest there are some bargains to be had, but you also get what you pay for in general. There’s also a small outdoor Cinema in Plaka playing newly released films in English with Greek subtitling, if you’re looking for something to keep you entertained, it’s an option!

Syntagma (Σύνταγμα)

Syntagma is the name for the centre of the city. It is here you will find the Parliament Building, which has a changing of the guards ceremony every hour. In front of the building is a large three level square, which is where the protests of recent times have been held, but for the majority of the time a good starting point and somewhere to spend lunch. Lining the square’s North and North Western sides are hotels including the beautiful Grande Bretagne, which has a fantastic view of the city, including the Acropolis and Panathenaic Stadium from the bar on the roof. Syntagma also has fantastic transport links, with the Tram lines starting from here, buses and the Metro station allowing you to reach almost anywhere in the city.

Ermou (Ερμού)

Ermou isn’t so much an area as a street. It is to Athens what Oxford Street is to London, the shopping destination. It’s a good place to have a look with a number of familiar names and a host of new shops to get your teeth into. Ermou runs from Syntagma, north of The Plaka, so if you have a spare day or even an afternoon before dinner, it’s easy enough to walk between the two via this street (free maps are available from the tourist board offices). Simply walk about 2 thirds of the way down and turn left, keep going until you’re past the flea market shops and it’s all restaurants and tavernas unless one takes your fancy on the way.

Kolonaki (Κολωνάκι)

Kolonaki is where all the hip young things go in the evenings! Unfortunately I am not nearly cool enough to go there, so I can’t give you loads of first hand knowledge, but it’s where the local celebs, the rich and the pretty people hang out. Got to be worth checking out, even if you do look like Quasimodo… Although you might find it hard to get in anywhere if you do.

Koukaki (Κουκάκι)

Koukaki is where our hotel was located. It’s just to the south of the Acropolis and boasts one of the most expensive residential streets in the city – the pedestrianised road Dionissiou Areopagitou. This road is the best way to get to the Acropolis, the location of the excellent Acropolis Museum and if you go down there, not far up from the main road, you’ll find a little yoghurt bar, which is great for a refreshing snack.

The Good

A few general things because overall Greece is a really great place, but you will be struck by…

• The people. Greeks are generally exceptionally friendly, but they are honest too. Many Greek people speak English and almost all of those I spoke to went through some higher education in the UK. I was amazed by how willing to help and to chat some of the people were.
• The food. I did have one meal I didn’t love, although that was probably more my taste than the food itself. In general though the standard of the food was excellent. I didn’t have to resort to ordering a burger once and the dry, hot heat leaves you wanting salad, which is almost enforced healthiness!
• The weather. It’s totally predictable. It’s going to be sunny! Everyone there will tell you that for 8 months of the year there isn’t a drop of rain. I am sure this is a bit of an exaggeration and there was the odd cloud every so often, but they were right, glorious sunshine every day, a lovely comfortable temperature in the evening and fortunately, not too much humidity, making the shade a welcome sanctuary.

The Bad

A confession. I am being entirely picky now, but I have to say something here, right?

• The roads. They are incredibly busy in the city and the drivers (and riders) care little about the safety of people on foot. Driving down the main highway out of Athens and into the countryside, it is not unusual to see cars weaving their way through the traffic, although where they are hurrying to in such a laid back society I do not know. In town, travel by public transport or on foot where possible.
• The taxis. I was lucky enough to have a driver in town, but the Taxi drivers do not have a good rep. They are known for ripping off punters, speaking little English and, at the moment, striking a lot. Make sure if you use one that the meter is on. The one way streets make it hard to tell if the route is the quickest, but it is good to try to get an idea of cost before you set off. Public transport is cheap and well worth taking advantage of.
• The civil service. Again, not something you’ll have to deal with unless you’re moving there, but they can’t be sacked and they aren’t happy about the cuts the government would like to make. The striking garbage collectors meant there were over-flowing bins outside of the most important areas, providing one example of the current situation.

The Ugly

• I am sad to say graffiti is a massive problem in Athens. There is a culture in Greece that people should be allowed to express themselves and there certainly does appear to be respect for ancient monuments and the like. However, little else avoids the spray can and with much of it taking the form of tags, rather than a proper attempt at art it has left some areas looking particularly shabby.
• For a city with so much history, much of it with a genuine beauty, it’s a shame to say that the architecture of residential Athens is uninspired and unflattering. A sea of low-rise cheap boxes in many areas let the city down. The height restrictions mean Athens is a low sprawling city.

As I have said, it’s easy to overlook the less good parts because, as a tourist, on foot, you see little of the negatives. The ancient monuments are well-preserved and the Olympics have brought some modern transport and architecture to the city. I really do recommend that you visit.

As a city break, I would have to give Athens 4/5, although you’d be able to achieve much of what you want to over the course of a long weekend with some good planning. However, the fact you can also visit some of the islands easily by boat, either for a day, or longer means that there is potential to have a top drawer holiday for a week or two, with Athens as your base.

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