The Athens Walkabout - of sights and sounds

The Greek flag billowing in mighty blue splendour next to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Captured on the Acropolis, this picture reminds me of the Iwo Jima memorial in Virgina.
Don't you think the resemblance is quite uncanny?

Poppies are in abundance in Athens, growing freely and wildly especially on slopes of the Acropolis.
Photo credit: Adeline Wong

Checking out lemon trees growing neatly along the sidewalk

And tangerine trees too! All beautifully lining the streets surrounding the National Gardens

Whitewashing the pavement in the Anafiotika neighbourhood next to Plaka. The unique whitewashed houses, terraced walkways and smurf-looking doors afford beautiful views of the city from their prime elevated location on the slope of the Acropolis. Worth millions in real estate these days, Anafiotika was built by stone masons from the island of Anafi in the 1800s.

The Athenians also have a propensity for graphic imagery (aka graffitti) - some of these artistic talents manifest themselves in rather marvelous splashes of colour, paintings and social messages all throughout the walls of Athens. Whilst frowned upon in Singapore, the Greeks seem to thrive on the vibrant colours (although unsanctioned) that scatter across their infrastructure.

And I have to say - whilst being brought up in a squeaky clean environment like Singapore has helped me appreciate the fact that our country is so clean, I can't help but envy the social and cultural identity that such graffitti create. It's like an invisible social bond that glues the fabric of Athenian society together. United in colour. Bound together by images.

This piece of work looks like it belongs on a piece of canvas in an art gallery, rather than on the wall of a small alley

And they don't spare what they really think of the political institutions either....





Photo credit: Adeline Wong

 

A souvenir shop liberally extending its storefront to display its overflowing wares



Chic private galleries are hidden between touristy souvenir shops and luxury brand names along the streets of Plaka.

Sunset on the rooftop of our Herodian Hotel

The Athens Walkabout - Of ancient sites and history

Armed with the Kindle version of Lonely Planet, a desire to see as much as we could in what little time we had, and to maximize our travel potential (maximizing any finite resource is an occupational hazard…) – we basically walked almost all of Athens.

Except maybe from the airport to downtown.

But pretty much everywhere else. From one neighbourhood to another, up and down cliffs and alleys and tourist attractions located within proximity…we walked.

This is when I have to put out a satisfied customer review for Fit Flops. Those are undoubtedly amazingly comfortable and durable walking footwear. Considering that much of Athens is still covered in the occasional cobblestone, I never once felt a pebble under my foot through my rubber Fit Flops.

But I digress.

With Addii the tour guide and me the bumbling tourist in tow, we saw way more than the average tourist, and paid much less too J

Towering palm (coconut??) trees creating a majestic and imposing entrance to the National Gardens. Located right next to the National Parliament Building, the Gardens were originally intended as the Royal Garden of Queen Amalia, who filled it with 15,000 domestic and exotic species of horticulture in 1839. The Gardens were opened to the public in 1923.

An elderly couple taking refuge in the shade with pigeons for company - at the periphery of the National Gardens.

Situated just behind the National Gardens is the Panathenaic Stadium (aka Kallimarmaro Stadium) - originally built in 330BC for the Panathenaic games. It was restored in 1895 and hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.

The symbol of the Olympic rings have stood the test of time...

The Zappeion (located within the National Gardens) was the first building to be built specifically to cater to the revival of the modern Olympic Games in the late 19th century. Officially opened in 1888, it is named after its benefactor, Evangelis Zappas.
Interesting tidbit: the Zappeion was used as the main fencing hall in the 1896 modern Olympic Games.
Nowadays, it is mostly used for events and ceremonies.

Temple of Olympian Zeus - or what's left of it: 16 columns from the original 104. In its prime, the Temple housed 2 colossal gold and ivory statues - 1 of Zeus, and the other of the Roman Emperor Hadrian (who is credited with completing the construction of the Temple after almost 700 years of delay due to political turmoil since 515 BC).

The view of the Temple of Zeus from the Acropolis. See the empty green field in the middle of otherwise crowded buildings - that's the original size of the Temple.



In appreciation of Hadrian's success in completing the Temple of Zeus, the Athenians built this two-storey arch which acts as a kind of gateway entrance to the grounds of the Temple. The inscription on the west side of the arch reads, "This is Athens, the ancient city of Theseus"; and on the east side of the arch, reads, "This is the city of Hadrian and not of Theseus". It thus names both Theseus and Hadrian as founders of Athens but also draws a distinction between old and new Athens.

At the foot of the Acropolis lies the Roman Forum - in 1 AD, the Romans moved the marketplace from the Ancient Agora to this site. The ruins are now surrounded by chic tourist shops and al-fresco dining restaurants and cafes.

Situated at the far end of the Roman Forum stands the Tower of the Winds. It was actually a water clock operated by a stream from the Acropolis - designed by Syrian astronomer Andronikos Kyrrhestas in 50 BC. It is named such because each side of the octagonal tower has personifications of the different directional winds carved onto them.

The grill iron fencing next to the Tower of the Winds bears several padlocks like this one shown here, engraved with names of couples as a sign of their undying commitment to each other. And one wonders why people see marriage as a deadlock....haha!



Tip: to visit the ancient sites, buy a combi ticket for a single price that allows entry into all. Otherwise, be like us: stumble upon a free entry day to the Parthenon/Acropolis (which, if you ask me, is the one ancient site that anyone must visit and walk through); take a walk to the other sites as well, but standing by the fencing provides more than sufficient view of the sites without needing to enter! Unless of course the Parthenon did not satiate your appetite for columns.....

The only other site we did not manage to view was the Ancient Agora because we kept missing the opening times – that site is rather huge and not viewable from the periphery though. Probably best to enter J

Sweets for my treats - Athens

Head to Ariston on Voulis 10  (nearest Metro stop: Syntagma) for some great tasting and very affordable traditional greek pastry pies. The store front could pass off as an electrical shop of sorts (if you ask me) but let your nose be led by wafts of freshly baked pastry and you won't be disappointed!

The pumpkin pie here is not to be missed - think of Thanksgiving encased in a flaky crust instead of the usual shortcrust. Yums! Also try the traditional Spanakopita (spinach) or Tyropita (spinach & feta cheese) - you will rediscover your love for Popeye's favourite veg! 

Each slice of pie is in the range of 2 euros. 
 

While trying to orientate ourselves after picking up some pie, we chanced upon dozens of boutique chocolate stores along Vasileos Georgiou street (right off Voulis) - also affectionately known as the "Chocolate Street" . 

Take your pick from the array of hand-made chocolate stores along Vasilous Georgiou.
Even big chains like Leonidas has a presence here.
Photo credit: Adeline Wong

But the best find was this dried fruits and nuts shop on the corner of Nikis and Vasileos Georgiou (the Greek name of the shop eluded me – right around the corner of Macdonald’s off Plateia Syntagma). Endless sacks (literally sacks!) of fruits, nuts and everything that you ever imagined the Greek gods had their fill of!

Endless sacks of nuts and fruits to relish

Easter candy!

I discovered the most amazing pistachios I had ever tasted in my life here - peeled, unsalted (or salted if you prefer) and so sweet like you'd never believe pistachios could be! And figs! There was plentiful delicious fresh figs!  It was with much self restraint that I managed to not buy up the entire store.  

The BEST pistachios ever! And even more amazing - no shells to crack or hurt your fingers with!

They're peeled!



Fresh figs. Mmmm. *chomp chomp*

As if that wasn't enough to satiate us for the rest of the day, the Greek gods sent us more goodies. While Addii and I were chatting to ourselves about buying some baklava inside our nuts and fruits store, a kind Greek local overheard our conversation and recommended one of Athens' most famous baklava shops just around the corner.

Karakoy Gulluoglu on 10 Nikis (yup, that's a mouthful to pronounce) is actually from Turkey, and the brand name carries widely across Istanbul as one of the best places to indulge in the sticky, nutty philo pastry delight that's baklava.

Let your eyes feast on tons of varieties of the much loved honeyed pastry, in all shapes and sizes, various flavours and types.

 

Rows of freshly made baklava entice the senses at Karakoy Gulluoglu



We got ourselves a few different pieces for sampling and sharing. Mmmm so delicious!!

And if the sugar craving needs even more fulfilment, go look up the restaurant Doris (Praxitelous 30), which whips up some of the most excellent loukoumades (greek donuts) in a very pink restaurant.

Colourful storefront signboard of Doris

These freshly deep fried pieces of dough are drizzled with honey and come with choice toppings like nuts and chocolate sauce. We got the honey and almond mix to share.

Ooooh.

Enough said.

Pair those deep fried sweet darlings with a cup of strong Greek coffee and you’ll have enough stimulants to get you bouncing off the walls.  

The chef-owner was incredibly generous and totally made our day by throwing in the loukoumades for free on our  bill too! Each plate costs about 3 euros. There's more than enough on that plate to make it worth anyone's while.

Go early though - Doris closes at 6.30pm.

Changing of the Guard

Plateia Syntagma (Constitution Square) is the central municipal seat of government, where the Hellenic Parliamant, the Presidential Mansion and the Greek Tomb of the Unknown Soldier are situated.

These key government and historical installations are guarded by members of the Proedriki Froura (Presidential Guard), also known as Evzones (singular – Evzoni). Evzones are apparently selected based on physical attributes: only the tallest and handsomest in the mandatory Greek military service are selected. The elaborate ceremonial attire worn by the evzones draws its roots from the rebels who won the War of Independence for Greece (1821-1832). The short white poofy skirt apparently has 400 pleats symbolizing the years under Turkish rule!

Every hour, a changing of the guard ceremony takes place, rain or shine, in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

View of Syntagma Square from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Evzones marching in for the changing of the guards

An elaborate marching ceremony ensues where the previous guards handover to the incoming guards

Coordinated marching in their elaborate traditional uniforms. Love the fuzzballs on the clogs! :)

Evzoni are not allowed to blink, move or pose for pictures without the head guard's permission. So even if the guardhouse next to them goes up in flames, they are not allowed to move from their position! Visitors are also not allowed to make funny faces or instigate a reaction from Evzones on duty otherwise the head guard will come at you!

The Acropolis

In spring semester of freshman year, I registered for Classical Greek Archaeology as one of my electives. Twice a week, I’d spend 1.5 hours sitting in a rather dank, windowless basement classroom of the library, poring over pictures of sarcophagus, koroi and various ruins, learning the architectural and design period they belonged to, and wondering what I’d ever do with this information in my head.

10 years later, I stood before the Parthenon on the famed Acropolis. Vague memories of time spent studying pillars and carvings suddenly came to life as I slowly tried to pull out the differentiation between Doric, Ionic and Corinthian pillars from the dark recesses of my ageing mind.

The Parthenon was exactly how I imagined it would be, from the days that I had spent staring it from a glossy coffee-table book that doubled up as my textbook. You know how some legendary must-see-before-you-die sites in the world end up being disappointing compared to the reputation that they’ve acquired (eg. Mona Lisa in the Louvre)? Not the Parthenon. The grandeur of those white pillars that have weathered thousands of years, standing tall and proud on the top of the rock overlooking the rest of Athens...it deserved the fame that surrounded it. We were even lucky enough to get free entrance without planning for it! It was likely due to the Easter open house special or something like that since we went on Holy Saturday. Not complaining!  

Built in 5^th century BC (before Christ!!) during the Golden Age of Athens, the temples on the Acropolis Rock were built to honour Athena – the Goddess after whom Athens was named.

Pity the Ottomans and Venetians destroyed parts of the Parthenon during various stages in history, ending with Lord Elgin sneaking off a whole load of the metopes, friezes and sculptures to England in the late 19th century.

Greece is now making it a political stand, cloaked in cultural and historical claim to identity, to demand the return of the stolen marbles known as the Elgin marbles (now housed in the British Museum in London).

The Parthenon on the Acropolis Rock - view from the roof of our Herodian Hotel at night. Too bad didn't have a tripod to get a sharper shot.

 

Hand painted sign pointing the way to the Acropolis amongst the winding roads in Athens neighbourhood.



Herodes Atticus Theatre - a later addition to the Acropolis structures in 161 AD.

View of Athens from the Rock

Incessant tourists making their way up to the Propylaia - the grand entrance through which all visitors must pass through to reach the inner temples.

The Parthenon - the epitome of classical Greek architecture and the finest Doric order temple in its day. The name is dervied from Greek referring to the temple of the virgin Athena, who was represented by a giant gold and ivory sculputre inside. All that remains now of the north facade are 17 columns and some surviving metopes and friezes.

The famous caryatids guarding the Erechtheion. Legend has it that Athena and Poseidon battled for the patronage of Athens at the very spot where the Erechtheion is built. No prizes on who won that battle!
The Erechtheion 's design actually unites 2 separate temples to each of the 2 gods.

Proof of presence! In front of the East pediment of the Parthenon.

Addii and her nike shoe below the Temple of Athena Nike. Gettit??
The temple represents victory and sits next to the Propylaia, perched on the Rock most vulnerable to attack.



The Theatre of Dionysus - or what's left of it. Site of competitions of Greek tragedies and comedies in ancient Greece.

Advice: go early in the morning or late afternoon to avoid the crowds and also a sunburn!

Visit the New Acropolis Museum after for interesting information on the history of the Acropolis, the restoration efforts and the political and cultural efforts to retrieve the missing bits of Greek history from the British.