1 the best full-day tours
TRANSCRIPT
1 The Best Full-Day Tours
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Previous Page: A statue of a discus thrower, a take on the classic Greek Discobolus ofMyron bronze, watches over Panathenian Stadium.
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1 ★★★ Thissio Square. It’s aspecial occasion, so stop at thisconvenient-to-the-Metro square foryour (rather pricey) morning coffeeor cafe-frappe and a toast (which inGreece means a grilled cheese orgrilled ham-and-cheese sandwich).Go for a table (try AthinaionPoliteia, 33 Apostolou Pavlou and 1Akamantos sts.; y 210/341-3795)far into the square toward theAncient Agora at the back (east) and soak up the sight of both theAcropolis and Lycabettus Hill. Theview is also magical at night, whenboth edifices are lit up. ApostolouPavlon & Iraklidon sts.
2 ★★★ Grand Promenade.Nobody calls it that, but the strollalong the cobblestone walkway that connects the ancient sites andmonuments in the historic center istruly grand—especially the partaround the Acropolis—and a popu-lar lovers’ lane in the evening, whencouples straddle its low walls. Mean-der past or even through ancientpine, olive, and cypress groves andenjoy the views of the Acropolis,Lycabettus Hill, the Observatory onPnyx Hill, and the Filopappou Monu-ment atop Filopappou Hill on yourway to the Acropolis. ApostolouPavlou/Dionysiou Areopagitou sts.
3 ★★★= Acropolis. The2,400-year-old temple to the city’spatron saint, Athena, is an architec-tural masterpiece and a belovedsymbol of Greece. It was intact until
1687, when the Venetians tried todislodge the long-ruling Turks. Amajor controversy revolves aroundthe marble statues that originallydecorated the Parthenon and otherbuildings on the Acropolis: At thenadir of the scramble to amassantiquities while Greece was underoccupation in the early 19th cen-tury, Britain’s Lord Elgin chiseled offthese friezes, which are now dis-played in the British Museum—though Greece claims they rightfullybelong in Athens. Greece has built anew museum to house them upontheir longed-for, and many believeinevitable, return.
9
If you’ve only got one day in town, get a good night’s sleep,because you can see most of the big sights, enjoy the shopping,
and sample the foods of Athens in one fell swoop—if you work for it.The historic center—encompassing the neighborhoods of Monasti-raki, Plaka, Syntagma, Psyrri, and Thissio—is quite compact andeasy to orient yourself by, as the Acropolis is visible from just aboutanywhere. Just remember to put your walking shoes on, pack a cam-era, and fill your water bottle. START: Metro to Thissio.
The Best in
On
e Day
Four Caryatids (“maiden” columns) supporting a porch on the Erechtheion.
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10Th
e B
est
Full-
Day
To
urs
Propylaia
BeuléGate
Temple ofAthena Nike
Parthenon
Erechtheion
Old Templeof Athena
HerodesAtticusTheater
Asklepieion
Chalkotheke
Sanctuary ofArtemis
A C R O P O L I S
Statue ofAthena
Promachus
Pandroseion
Propylaia
BeuléGate
Temple ofAthena Nike
Parthenon
Erechtheion
Old Templeof Athena
HerodesAtticusTheater
Asklepieion
Chalkotheke
Sanctuary ofArtemis
A C R O P O L I S
Statue ofAthena
Promachus
Pandroseion
3A 3B
3C
3D
3E
The Acropolis
The Parthenon—the all-marble tem-ple of Athena Parthenos (“Athena theVirgin”) atop the Sacred Rock of theAcropolis—was built to mathematicalprecision between 447 and 438 B.C.,marking an apex in Doric architec-ture. The architects, Ictinus and Calli-crates, made curved surfaces appearlevel, bulging columns appearstraight, and inclined columns appearparallel. Once housing a 12m (40-ft.)gold-and-ivory statue by Pheidias (asmall Roman copy is in the NationalArchaeological Museum), it has beenused as Orthodox and Catholicchurches, a mosque, and a munitionsstorehouse, which was its undoingafter 2,000 years. It is now undergo-ing its most extensive restoration todate. After the ticket entrance, youfirst pass through the sBeuléGate—built by the Romans in A.D.267 but known by the name of theFrench archaeologist who discoveredit in 1852. Beyond lies the tPropy-laia, the monumental 5th-century-B.C.
entranceway. The little u Templeof Athena Nike (“Athena Victory”),a beautifully proportioned Ionic tem-ple built in 424 B.C. where citizensprayed for success, is perched abovethe Propylaia. It was restored in the1930s and is being rebuilt once more.Off to the left of the vParthenon,the temple of Athena the Virgin, isthe w Erechtheion, which theAthenians honored as the tomb ofErechtheus, a legendary king. @ 1 hr.Dionysiou Areopagitou St. y 210/321-0219. www.culture.gr. Couponbooklet 12� adults (many categories,including archaeology students, areadmitted free; ask or check websitefor free-admission days) valid for 4days; includes the Acropolis, AncientAgora, Theater of Dionysus, southslope, Kerameikos cemetery, RomanForum, north slope & the Temple ofOlympian Zeus. Daily 8am–7pm;reduced winter hours. Metro: Akropolior bus: 230.
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4 ★★= New AcropolisMuseum. The brand-new museum(expected to open in 2009) faces theAcropolis on Dionysiou AreopagitouStreet. Some 300 marble statuesweighing up to 2.5 tons each weremoved off the hill for the first time in2006 and 2007. Four of the originalCaryatids, sculpted women takingthe place of columns or architec-tural supports, from the Erechtheion(see p 10) have been moved here(one had disappeared duringOttoman rule; another is in theBritish Museum), together with theentire collection from the oldmuseum, including sculptures fromthe Parthenon burnt by the Per-sians, statues of korai (maidens)dedicated to Athena, figures ofkouri (young men), and many otherfinds from the Acropolis, comprisingsome 4,000 works altogether—tentimes the number previously on dis-play. An area is set aside in anticipa-tion of the return of the Elginmarbles (see p 27). @ 1–2 hr. 2–4Makriyanni St. y 210/924-1043(info only). www.newacropolismuseum.gr. Metro: Akropoli.
5 Hadrian’s Arch. Facing Plakaand the Acropolis is Hadrian’s tri-umphal arch, on a main Athens thor-oughfare (Amalias Ave.). This gatefrom the “old” city of Athens to the“new” Roman one is made of Pen-telic (from nearby Mt. Pendeli)
marble and Corinthian-capital-toppedcolumns, built in A.D. 131–132 inhonor of Emperor Hadrian. It bearstwo inscriptions: facing west (towardthe old town), THIS IS ATHENS, ONCE
THE CITY OF THESEUS, and facing east(toward the new town), Hadrian’srebuke, THIS IS HADRIAN’S, AND NOT THE-SEUS’S CITY. Amalias Ave. & DionysiouAreopagitou St.
6 ★★★= Plaka. Stop forlunch or an early dinner in thispedestrian zone; the food is nothingspecial, but the atmosphere makesup for it. Do some souvenir shop-ping, too, especially along Adrianou(Hadrian’s) and Pandrossou streets,before or after wandering through
11The B
est in O
ne D
ay
The entrance to the New Acropolis Museum overlooks the Makriyanni excavation site.
A whitewashed winding backstreet inPlaka, the oldest district of Athens.
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any number of the island-village-likealleys. Adrianou & Kydathineon sts.
7 ★★= Changing of theGuard. The Presidential Guardkeeps watch over the Tomb of theUnknown Soldier, and two soldiersengage in elaborate ceremonial exer-cises on the hour. See p 33, 2.
8 ★★★ Ermou Street. You can’tleave Greece without buying a pairof stylish leather shoes, or at leastthe iconic sandals. PedestrianizedErmou (Hermes) Street has alwaysbeen one of Athens’s busiest, and all the main chain stores are here,alongside Greek shoemakers. Thestreet goes from Parliament all theway down (west) past the Monasti-raki and Thissio Metro stations tothe ancient Kerameikos cemeteryand old gasworks-turned-cultural-center Technopolis in Gazi. Ermou &Athinas sts.
Dervishes danced in the tower. Thesurrounding ruins of the Agora alsocontain the photogenic 15th-centuryFetiye mosque, built to commemo-rate Mehmet II the Conqueror’s visitto Athens in 1458, but you can’t goin. @ 20 min. Aiolou & Pelopida sts.
y 210/324-5220 or 210/321-0185.Daily May–Oct 8am–7pm; Nov–Apr8:30am–3pm; closed Jan 1, Mar 25,Easter Sunday, Ayiou Pnevmatos(Whit Monday), May 1 & Dec 25–26.Admission 2� or w/Acropolis ticket.Metro: Monastiraki.
! ★★★ Thission Open-AirCinema. The Thission cinema isone of the few places where youcan still see a film under the stars inlicensed comfort. Most cinemas likeThission have been declared culturalsites and cannot be used for anyother purpose, but big cinemachains have also bought in, provingthat outdoor theaters remain viableoptions, screening first-run as wellas classic movies. Buy popcorn anda beer or glass of wine during theintermission, and bring them toyour cafe table, interspersedbetween directors’ chairs, in thebreezy garden. See p 50.
12Th
e B
est
Full-
Day
To
urs
The frieze atop the Tower of the Winds inthe Roman Agora depicts Greek winddeities.
9 Thanasis. One of 3 or 4mageiria (“cookhouses”) at the end of the pedestrian section ofMitropoleos Street (aka “KebabStreet”), Thanasis spills out intoMonastiraki Square, selling minced-meat souvlaki in a pita to go for1.90�. Or eat at an outdoor tableamid the throngs at this bustling cor-ner of Plaka and the flea market. 69Mitropoleos St. y 210/324-4705. $.
0 Tower of the Winds. Built byastronomer Andronikos Kyristes, theoctagonal 1st-century-B.C. Tower ofthe Winds at the end of Aiolou Street(“Street of the Winds”), inside theRoman Agora (a forum or market-place constructed under the reign ofJulius Caesar and Augustus), depictsthe eight wind deities. Once contain-ing a water clock and topped by aweather vane, the area, Aerides, isnamed after this unique monument.In the 18th century, Whirling
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@ ★★★ Psyrri. Psyrri, favored byflower-selling Roma children, wherebars and restaurants are crammedon narrow pedestrian streets, is themost lively of the central districts ofAthens, positively hopping at night.You can sit outside and watch Athe-nians coming and going to and fromtheir favorite night haunt or abouzouki-filled (that is, accompa-nied by the traditional Greek guitar)dinner. Iroon Square.
# Iraklidon Street. From Psyrri,walk to Iraklidon Street in Thissio(walk across Ermou St. and up thecobblestone walkway past theThissio Metro station to Thissio Sq.,and down Iraklidon), which is abuzzwith outdoor cafe-bars. If it’s winter,get cozy under a gas heater, and insummer cool off under mist
machines and fans. Drinks areexpensive, but you can sip (and sit)for hours. Iraklidon & ApostolouPavlou sts.
$ ★★ Technopolis. If you hearmuffled music as intermittent soundwaves in Thissio, chances arethere’s a free open-air concert atTechnopolis, the former gasworksand now exhibition-and-event spacerun by the city of Athens. The oldbrick smokestacks glow red at nightand provide an orienting beacon, asdoes the Acropolis. Restaurants,cafe-bars, and clubs have sprung upin the surrounding (somewhatdecrepit) area known as Gazi, nowundergoing gentrification. @ 2 hr.100 Piraeos St. at Persefonis St.
y 210/346-1589 or 210/346-7322.Metro: Kerameikos.
13The B
est in O
ne D
ay
Shaded outdoor cafes along Iraklidon Street in Thissio are heated in winter andcooled in summer.
Original 1857 gasworks pipes are now decoration for the Technopolis exhibition spacein Gazi.
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Fidiou
Akadimias
Omirou
Amerikis
Voukourestiou
Valaoritou
Vas. Sofias
Kanari
Solonos
Solonos
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Skoufa
Likavitou
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uPindarou
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Charilaou Trikoupi
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Aristippou
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Spefsipou
Ploutarchou
Alopekis
Karneadou
Patriarchou Ioakim
Loukianou
Ipsilantou
Mourouzi
Likiou
Stiic
horo
u
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lis
Irodo
u A
ttik
ou
Vas. Georgiou
Isiodou
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Archelaou
ArrianouArktin
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Herodotou
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2
1
3
4
5
6
2
Aigaion
National Archaeological Museum
Exarchia Square
Lycabettus Hill
Kolonaki Square
Dora Stratou Theater
4
3
6
1
5
1/4 mi0
0 1/4 km
14
The Best in Two DaysTh
e B
est
Full-
Day
To
urs
14
05_285671-ch01.qxp 8/21/08 6:51 PM Page 14
1 Aigaion. Fill up at Aigaion, anAthenian institution, where you cansit in an old-fashioned, cafeteria-likebasement to eat the specialty of thehouse, loukoumades (just-out-of-the-deep-fryer doughnut holes drizzled inhoney and sprinkled with cinnamon).Cheese pies or homemade rice pud-dings and custard creams are also onthe very limited menu (that’s all theymake). If sitting inside doesn’t appeal,take it to go for 2.90�, or buy it bythe kilo (18� for 2.2 lb.) and gorge enroute. 46 Panepistimiou St. y 210/381-4621 or 381-4622. $.
2 ★★★ National Archaeologi-cal Museum. Most recently reno-vated in 2004 following damage froma 1999 earthquake and in anticipation
of the Olympic Games, the finearchaeological specimens of thisancient civilization’s giant legacy arehoused in a handsome 1880 neoclas-sical building. It has had many alter-ations, but the facade is courtesy ofErnst Ziller. The museum is dividedinto sections—the prehistoric collec-tion, the Santorini findings, sculp-tures, vases and minor objects,metallurgy, the Stathatos collection,the Vlastos collection, Egyptian art,and Near Eastern antiquities—andworks range from the Neolithicperiod (8500–5500 B.C.) to the lateRoman (1st century B.C.). Highlightsinclude Trojan artifacts excavated byGerman treasure hunter HeinrichSchliemann, Mycenaean gold work(also uncovered by Schliemann), andCycladic sculptures.
15
You can’t come all the way to Athens and skip the museums.(Well, you could, but you would be missing an opportunity to
fully explore the culture of a city not uncommonly called the “Cradleof Western Civilization.”) The National Archaeological Museum inparticular is considered one of the world’s great collections, housingstunning Mycenaean antiquities, Cycladic sculptures, and Minoanfrescoes, and your second day should be primarily devoted to it (itwill probably take half the day). This one really is worth the trip.START: Metro to Omonia.
The Best in
Two
Days
ArditouHill
National Gardens
SyntagmaSq.
Klath-monos
Sq.
Strefi Hill
LycabettusHill
First Cemetery
PanathenianStadium
Zappeion
Parliament
PresidentialHouse
NationalLibrary
NationalArchaeological
Museum
Nat’l. TechnicalUniv. of Athens
Temple ofOlympian Zeus
L. Vouliagmenis
Zappio
Syntagma
Syntagma
Panepistimio
AthensConservatory
War Museumof Greece
Byzantine &Christian Museum
LycabettusTheater
Univ. ofAthens
Ardittou
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oussourouMeletiou Piga
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Voul
is
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alia
s
Vas. Olgas
Stadiou
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Lekka
Perikleos
Othonos
Kapodistriou
28 O
kt.
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Kani
ngos
StournariSolomou
Tositsa
Boum
boul
inas
Zam
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V. Irakliou
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PetsovouIrinis Athineas
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Panepistimiou
Sina
Ippokratous
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Fidiou
Akadimias
Omirou
Amerikis
Voukourestiou
Valaoritou
Vas. Sofias
Kanari
Solonos
Solonos
Navarinou
Skoufa
Likavitou
Dimokrito
uPindarou
Iraklito
u
Didotou
Charilaou Trikoupi
Anagnostopoulou FokilidouRongakou Ilia
Valtetsiou
Arachovis
Mavromichali
Themistokleous
Koleti
ChersonosIsavron
Smolenski
Tsimiski
AsklipiouDafnomili
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Spefsipou
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Karneadou
Patriarchou Ioakim
Loukianou
Ipsilantou
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Likiou
Stiic
horo
u
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lis
Irodo
u A
ttik
ou
Vas. Georgiou
Isiodou
Aminda
Archelaou
ArrianouArktin
ou
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Elanikou
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amou
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anas
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kour
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rou
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Polid
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dos
Herodotou
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Academy ofAthens
ou
The bronze statue of a horse and jockey in the National Archaeological Museum wasrecovered from a shipwreck off Cape Artemision.
05_285671-ch01.qxp 8/21/08 6:51 PM Page 15
16Th
e B
est
Full-
Day
To
urs
Vase andMinor Objects
Collection
Temporary Exhibitions
EgyptianCollection
BronzeCollection
PrehistoricCollection
Sculpture Collection
Floor 1
Ground Floor
Entrance
2A
2B
2C
2D
2E
2F
2G
2H
The NationalArchaeologicalMuseum
The museum’s jNeolithic Col-lection houses ceramic pottery andfigurines that date from 6800 B.C.Grouped with the Neolithic is the kMycenaean Collection, high-lighted by the golden “Mask ofAgamemnon” death mask. This royalfuneral mask, uncovered in a grave atMycenae, may actually be too old tohave belonged to Agamemnon, wholed the Greeks in battle to Troy. Followthis collection to the razor-planedmarble figurines of the lCycladicCollection. Amazingly, these mod-ern-looking milky-white statues werecarved some 4,000 to 5,000 yearsago. The m Thera Collection ofcirca-1700-B.C. frescos from Akrotiri,on the isle of Santorini, emphasizethat volcanically preserved settle-ment’s connection to Minoan Crete:For an island town, Akrotiri—Greece’sown Pompeii—had a wide network of external relations. The large nSculpture Collection shows the progression from the wooden
Egyptian to the fluid Classical, theangular to the anatomically correct.Also upstairs, represented in the oVase and Minor ObjectsCollection, are the famed red andblack figures from Attic pottery.Exquisite jewelry and silver are alsofound here. The pMetals Collec-tion contains the bronze Horse andJockey and Poseidon (or Zeus) ofArtemision statues, from the 2nd cen-tury B.C. There is also a Virgin Marylook-alike, the Lady of Kalymnos.Finally, the q Egyptian Collec-tion covers that civilization from5000 B.C. up to the Roman conquest.
@ 3 hr. 44 Patission & 28 Oktovriousts. y 210/821-7717. May–Sept Mon1–7:30pm; Tues–Sun & holidays8am–7:30pm. Oct–Apr Mon1–7:30pm; Thurs 8:30am–7:30pm;Tues–Wed, Fri–Sun & holidays8:30am–3pm. Admission 7� adults,18 & under free, discounts for stu-dents, seniors. Metro: Victoria or trol-ley: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 15.
05_285671-ch01.qxp 8/21/08 6:51 PM Page 16
3 Exarchia Square. If you don’twant to head back to your hotel fora rest, walk to the nearby studentzone of Exarchia. This area’s proxim-ity to the Polytechnic and its anar-chic reputation make it a magnet forartists (both fine and graffiti) andintellectuals, as well as students,who frequent the cafe-bars aroundthe square. Also check out the inter-esting Boho shops, especially onThemistokleous, Emmanouil Benaki,and Zoodochou Pigis streets.Stournari & Themistokleous sts.
4 ★= Lycabettus Hill. See p 35, 9.
6 ★★ Dora Stratou Theater.One of the most unusual experi-ences is to see Greek folk costumedancing in the outdoor theater onFilopappou Hill. It’s an adventure towalk there, and it’s memorable towatch and listen to the live singersand musicians as you’re sittingunder the stars. Look out for(increasingly rare) bats as they dartin and out of the light. See p 122.
17The B
est in Tw
o D
ays
One of Greece’s most recent dark periods was the 1967 coupby a group of midranking colonels. The military junta that took overthe nation where democracy was born was both absurd—there werelaws against miniskirts and long hair—and brutal. Secret police, torture, imprisonment, and exile were common practices of thedespised, and infamously American-backed, far-right dictatorship. In1973, tanks invaded the campus of the Polytechnic where studentswere protesting, leaving some 34 dead. It is commemorated eachyear—giving opportunistic anarchists more chances to vent—with amarch on the massive U.S. embassy, while the date has also beenadopted as the moniker of Greece’s deadliest leftist terrorist group.
The November 17 Uprising
The wealthy, chic Kolonaki neighborhoodof Athens, home to Kolonaki Square, islocated on the southwestern slopes ofLycabettus Hill.
5 ★ Kolonaki Square. This posharea of central Athens is the defini-tion of Athenian cafe society, wherethe restaurants facing the squaredon’t seem to have changed sincethe 1960s, where the movers andshakers live, where beautiful peoplehave to be seen, and where the artyitems in basement shops look as ifthey’re on display more to amusethe proprietors than to actually sell.If you want to be seen as well,DaCapo is a good spot, with finecoffees, snacks, and even cocktails.1 Tsakalof St. 210/360-2497. $.
05_285671-ch01.qxp 8/21/08 6:51 PM Page 17
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05_285671-ch01.qxp 8/21/08 6:51 PM Page 18
1 ★★ Central Market. Farmers’markets abound in neighborhoodsaround town (on Fri on XenokratousSt. in Kolonaki, and Zacharitsa orMatrozou sts. in Koukaki), but themain meat, fish, and vegetable mar-ket of Athens is here on AthinasStreet near Omonia Square 6 days a week. If you’re not in a proteinmood, it also offers cheeses, driednuts, and herbs, among otherthings. It opens at 6am, so you canstart your day here. See p 79.
2 Kerameikos. If you have time,continue down Athinas Street toErmou Street, and take Ermou westto this site, which includes theSacred Gate, funerary avenues ofgraves, and monuments of famous
ancient Athenians. (Pericles deliv-ered his funeral oration for the sol-diers of the Peloponnesian War herein 431 B.C. In reference to Athens’sconstitution, he said, “We are rathera pattern to others than imitatorsourselves.”) The on-site museumhouses organized exhibits withinteresting finds, mainly related toburial customs, such as urns andmonuments. See p 61, !.
3 ★= Ancient Agora. Youcan either zip through this market-place of antiquity or chill out andwrite postcards here using anAcropolis ticket coupon. Once thecenter of commercial life in ancientAthens, with temples, gymnasiums,odeons, markets, and councilhouses where the vouli (parliament)legislated for the world’s firstdemocracy, broken columns arenow strewn among crumbling foun-dations interspersed with olive, pinkoleander, cypress, and palm trees.
19
Start your day at Athens’s main farmers’ market, on bustlingAthinas Street, which used to be known for its bordellos and
confidence men (who still play the occasional game of three-cardMonte on the sidewalk), and pick up some dried fruit or nuts to carryyou over till mealtime. Then detour to the ancient cemetery of Kera-meikos, wander around the picturesque Ancient Agora, and makeyour way to a museum, walking back through the National Gardensto the all-marble stadium where the first Olympics were held andZeus’s temple. In the evening, hit the spots you missed on the otherevenings. START: Metro to Omonia.
The Best in
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A stand at the Central Market on Athinas Street, home to 108 butchers,150 seafood stands, and 80 fruit and vegetable stalls.
A kylix (drinking cup) in Attic red-figurestyle, on display at the Ancient Agoramuseum.
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20Th
e B
est
Full-
Day
To
urs
Hephaisteion
HellenisticBuilding Stoa of
Zeus Eleutherios
Temple ofAres
Odeion ofAgrippa
MetroonBouleuterion
TholosSouthwest
Temple
Altar ofZeus Agoraios
Heliaia
Middle Stoa
Library ofPantainos
Stoa ofAttalos
Agii ApostoliSolaki
Hephaisteion
HellenisticBuilding Stoa of
Zeus Eleutherios
Temple ofAres
Odeion ofAgrippa
MetroonBouleuterion
TholosSouthwest
Temple
Altar ofZeus Agoraios
Heliaia
Middle Stoa
Library ofPantainos
Stoa ofAttalos
Agii ApostoliSolaki
Adrianou
3A
3B
3C
The Ancient Agora
Communal life in early Athensrevolved around the Ancient Agora,although you’d be hard-pressed toreconstruct the layout of this marketfrom the mind’s eye. The sHeph-aisteion, better known as the This-seion (which dates to 449–447 B.C.),is one of the world’s best-preservedGreek temples due to protectionfrom the Greek Orthodox Church,which used it from the 7th century to 1834 as its own house of worship.The circa-1950s t Stoa of Attalos is a reconstruction of the2nd-century-B.C. version, where busi-nesses set up shop, philosophersdebated, and people just hung out.The Stoa museum contains fascinat-ing artifacts that show how theancients carried out early democraticprocesses. Jurors voted by ballot:They cast a bronze disc with a solidaxle if they believed that the defen-dant was innocent, and they cast ahollow one if they believed he wasguilty. A marble kleroterion, an early
version of the lotto machine, wasused to select citizens for jury duty.The uAgii Apostoli Solaki isthe only other structure intact, andjustifiably so, as this church wasn’tbuilt until the 11th century. Every-thing else was demolished by eitherthe invading Herulians in A.D. 267 orthe subsequent private housing putup during the Roman and Byzantineeras. The area was still residentialthrough the 1950s, when it wasrazed again—to dig for archaeologi-cal remnants of the original Agora.
@ 1 hr. Entrance/exit on Adrianou St.& Agiou Filippou, Monastiraki; westend of Polygnotou St., Plaka; &Thissio Sq., Thissio. y 210/321-0185.www.culture.gr. May–Oct Tues–Sun8am–7pm, Mon 11am–7pm; reducedwinter hours (3pm closing). ClosedJan 1, Mar 25, Easter Sunday, AyiouPnevmatos (Whit Monday), May 1 &Dec 25–26. Site & museum 4� adults.Metro: Monastiraki or Thissio.
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5 ★★ BenakiMuseum. Housed inthe mansion of one ofAthens’s most prominentfamilies, this excellent pri-vate museum contains arti-facts from the Neolithicera to the 20th century.The folk-art collection(including costumesand icons) is superb, asare two rooms decoratedin the style of 18th-centurynorthern Greek mansions,with ancient bronzes, goldcups, Fayum portraits, andrare, early Christian tex-tiles. A new wing hasdoubled the exhibitionspace of the early-20th-century neoclassicalhouse, but the Benakis’smassive collection of Islamic art muststill be housed in a museum near theThissio Metro station, and large exhi-bitions are held at its annex at 138Piraeos St. (Bus: 049), which also has a gift shop/bookshop and cafe.
@ 1–2 hr. Koumbari & Vas. Sofias Ave.
y 210/367-1000. www.benaki.gr.Admission 6� adults, 3� seniors, freeon Thurs & for children 17 & under;see website for other discounts. Mon,Wed & Fri–Sat 9am–5pm; Thurs9am–midnight; Sun 9am–3pm; closedTues, holidays. Metro: Syntagma.
6 ★= Syntagma Station.There are archaeological finds fromMetro excavations inside this sta-tion, but also stop at one of theopen-air “museums” uncoveredfrom the works. This one containswell-preserved Roman baths, withsections dating from the 5th and3rd centuries A.D. @ 10 min. Vas.Georgiou, Othonos & Filellinon sts. &Amalias Ave.
7= National Gardens. The16 hectares (40 acres) of crisscross-ing paths, quiet little dead ends, and
ponds among gianttrees in the former
Royal Gardensbehind Parliament(once the palace)
in the city center is a great place toescape the concretejungle that surroundsit. Some 7,000 trees
and 40,000 plants fromGreece and abroad have
taken root here since themid-1800s, when QueenAmalia brought over a
Bavarian gardener toredesign her back-yard. It was national-ized in 1923. Stop atthe cafe, 4 IrodouAttikou St. (y 210/723-2820), for
refreshment. @ 20 min. SyntagmaSq.; entrances from Zappeion Gar-dens, Amalias Ave. & Vas. Sofias &Irodou Attikou sts. Daily 8:30am–sunset.
8 Zappeion Gardens. Adjacentto the National Gardens is the 14-hectare (35-acre) Zappeion,bequeathed in the 1880s by philan-thropist Evangelias Zappas to kick-start the Olympic movement. Stillresembling Henry Miller’s “quintes-sence of park,” it contains a smallbut important exhibition hall, a
21The B
est in Th
ree Days
4 Dioskouri. Go to the prome-nade behind (south of) Monastirakistation across from the Metro linethat runs to Thissio, and yourreward will be a view of the Acropo-lis above the Ancient Agora—andthe low prices at this meze-restau-rant and cafe that is always full.Look for the ancient-ship logo onthe awnings (the sign’s only inGreek). 37 & 39 Adrianou St.
y 210/325-3323 or 325-3333. $$.
A ceramic pitcher fromthe Benaki Museum, oneof about 40,000 items ondisplay there.
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cafe-restaurant, and Aigli, Athens’soldest open-air cinema. You can stillpicture impressionistic, parasol-twirling women and children insailor suits on the broad, tree-linedpromenade, whose shade coolsstrolling Athenians on hot summerevenings, and the usual contingentof pensioners debating politics andplaying tavli (backgammon). @ 20min. Entrances from the NationalGardens, Amalias Ave. & Vas. Olgas& Vas. Konstantinou sts.
9 Panathenian Stadium. Alsocalled the Kalimarmaro (“beautifulmarble”) and Panathinaiko Stadium, it was reconstructed in marble byHerodes Atticus in A.D. 143–144, afterthe circa-330-B.C. original that hostedPanathenian games every 4 years. Itwas again rebuilt, for the first modernOlympics, in 1896 by benefactorGeorge Averof and today is the venuefor major events, including the finishline for the (original) Marathon run. Itmeasures 1 stade (600 Greek ft.),hence the word stadium, and origi-nally held 50,000 people—the sameas the Roman Coliseum. Unfortu-nately, you can no longer go in, butyou can observe it from the facingsquare. For the 2004 Olympic Stadium, 37 Kifissias Ave. (y 210/683-4060; www.oaka.com.gr), withthe beautiful roof by Spaniard Santi-ago Calatrava, head to Irini Metro
station. @ 10 min. Vas. Konstantinou& Irodou Atikou sts.
0 Temple of Olympian Zeus.Finish with a stop at Greece’s largesttemple, which took some 650 yearsto build between 515 B.C. and A.D.132. It measures 96 by 40m (315 by131 ft.) but only 15 of the original 104columns are still standing, each 17m(56 ft.) high. @ 45 min. Vas. Olgas St.& Amalias Ave. y 210/922-6330.www.culture.gr. Admission 2� or partof Acropolis ticket. Daily 8am–5pm;Apr–Oct 8am–7:30pm. Metro: Syn-tagma or Acropoli.
22
The
Bes
t Fu
ll-D
ay T
ou
rs
The Zappeion exhibition hall in the Zappeion Gardens is symmetrically arrangedaround a circular interior atrium.
A detail of a Corinthian capital from theTemple of Olympian Zeus.
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