Athen zu Fuss

Trabble.app

Finde diese Tour auf Trabble, indem du oben auf den Link klickst.

For more than three weeks our Loki is now at the mechanic in Varkiza, 20 km outside of Athens. We still don't know when and how things will continue for us. Meanwhile, we make the best of the situation and explore Athens on foot.

The metro and bus network is very good and not complicated, but we still prefer to be on foot to catch all the small and big details between A and B.

As a small example, instead of taking the metro from our accommodation to the Monastiraki district, we decided to walk the 3 kilometers a few days ago, even though we already knew the route. It was already dark. After the National Gardens, we walked towards Syntagma Square. We saw from a distance that something was going on there. The police had closed the road leading to the Greek Parliament. Next to it moved a long procession of people who wanted to express their solidarity towards Ukraine.

This moment made us realize how real Putin's war is after we only knew pictures and stories from the Internet. And that it is not at all taken for granted to be able to live in peace, as we are used to.

By exploring Athens on foot, we already know the city and its tangled streets very well after one week. Also because of some valuable tips from our local friends.

We have all heard of the Acropolis and indeed any trip to Athens is incomplete without visiting this imposing monument. Then there are many other ancient sights, such as the Agora in Athens, the Roman Agora, the Olympieion (Temple of Zeus), Hadrian's Library, and the Olympic Stadium. They are all relatively close to each other, so you can easily explore ancient Athens on foot.

But there is much more to see in Athens. Each neighborhood has its peculiarities. Sometimes it is enough to turn a corner from a street full of bars and cafes to stand in an empty alley and immediately forget the hustle and bustle.

To get a picture of these different parts of the city and sights, let's take a walk through Athens together now. Just as a note: What we describe here as a long walk, we have divided into many small sections within our 10-day stay in Athens.

Let's start with the already mentioned Syntagma Square. It is centrally located and easy to reach, whether on foot or by public transport. For political rallies and demonstrations, it is the hub of activity. But with its park benches and shady spots, it also invites you to linger and people-watch. From here we take the car-free Ermou St to the west, which reminds me of Zurich's Bahnhofstrasse, one like it exists in cities all over the world.

It is lined with countless fashion stores with rank and name. For us most interesting to observe the many people who stroll through it. What you don't find in every Bahnhofstrasse is the Byzantine Kapnikarea Church, whose typical features are the round vaulted roof and the arched windows. It stands right in the middle, among the modern stores, so you certainly won't miss it. Exact duplicates can be found all over the city and other parts of the former Byzantium.

We arrive at Monastiraki Square, which is surrounded by countless restaurants. We are, after all, at the foot of the Acropolis, the tourist center of Athens. Here are also most of the other ancient temples and buildings, often consisting only of some columns, but sometimes amazingly well preserved (e.g. the temple of Hephaistos). We were lucky enough to witness the Sunday market last Monday, March 7.

Sunday market on Monday?

Click here to learn more

Lent in Athens

End of February/beginning of March is the beginning of Lent, which is celebrated extensively in Athens. First with Tsinopempti (the "Smoky or "Aromatic Thursday"), on which they devour all the meat they can. Indoors and outdoors on the street, you can see barbecues everywhere from which delicious smells rise. Traditionally, the Greeks ate their meat supply this Thursday, because afterward body and mind are cleansed with 40 days of meatless fasting. Like Carnival (Latin: carne levare), the Greek festival of Apokreas can be translated as "away from meat" (apo: away from, kreas: meat).

Eleven days later, they celebrate Kathara Deftara ("Clean Monday"); another holiday on which feasting takes place. This time, however, meatless, meaning no creatures with blood are touched, nor eggs, milk, or fish. Still, there is a suspicious smell of seafood. Shrimp, calamari, and mussels seem to be sufficiently bloodless. Well, they live here in the Mediterranean.

A great spectacle on this clean Monday is the kite flying event on Philopappou Hill. Here young and old gather in the park across from the Acropolis and fly kites of all colors. We see families picnicking and children and adults alike enthusiastically cheering on their kites. Kali Sarakosti! Happy Lent!

And I assume due to the extended weekend, the Sunday market is held on Monday.

We feel transported back in time. Amazed, we make our way through the masses. Handicrafts in all shapes and colors. Handmade T-shirts, an old woman spinning her wool by hand before turning it into socks, old wind-up tin toys, leather, and wooden goods, an artist with a cigarette in his mouth drawing people in like a trickster, a puppeteer conjuring music from his figures, a mime lifting the world... And so many people in one place, like we haven't seen in a long time!

We skipped various ruins for which you pay admission, including:

The Roman Agora and the Tower of the Winds
the Hadrian's Library
the Ancient Agora of Athens and the Temple of Hephaestus
Kerameikos

(The links refer to Wikipedia if you are interested in details of the sights)

Tip: On etickets.tap.gr you can easily buy your entrance ticket online, either for single entries or as a combo ticket for all sites.

Entrance fee: 20 Euros (only 10 Euros between 1.10. and 31.3.), 30 Euros for the combo ticket.

Before we get to the Acropolis, we take a look at Philopappou Hill. From here we catch a nice view of the south side of the Acropolis (which is currently scaffolded and under renovation). We look at the barred caves, auspiciously called "Socrates' prison".

Then we finally walk over, up to the "upper city" of Athens. Even now in the off-season, we are by no means the only ones to be seen in the 2500-year-old area. Athena is said to have planted the first olive tree here. The cradle of democracy. Center of the ancient world.

In the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a wonderfully preserved open-air theater, cultural performances are held in the summer. It seems sublime even without an audience, especially with the piano music playing in the background.

Much more than the ancient columns, however, I am fascinated by the fabulous view over Athens. It is a giant, this city. Full of white buildings as far as the eye can see. From the mountains in the north to the port of Piraeus at the sea in the south. Simply marvelous!

People from all over the world walk through the temple complex. A gibberish of languages reaches our ears. The overseers oversee us.

"Please don't eat fruit here."

"Don't lie down."

"Hey, get down!"

"Keep moving, there's nothing to see." No, I added that.

Passing the Dionysus Theater, we come to the rear exit of the site. Just in time, because they close punctually at 5 pm in the winter months. Through the old quarter of Plaka, overflowing with bars, restaurants, and souvenir stores, we can either return to Monastiraki or Syntagma Square or continue through Hadrian's Arch to the Temple of Zeus (also under restoration).

Byzantinische Kirchen — Byzantine churches

Vor dem Panathinaiko Stadium — In front of Panathenaic Stadium

Just a little further stands the Panathenaic Stadium, site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Today you can visit it with an audio guide or, like us, look at it from above through the back entrance. A monumental structure that is part of the Athens cityscape.

To make you aware of the distances: In the distance we see the Acropolis towering on the rock, it is about 2 km west of the stadium. To the north, we see Lycabettus Hill with the Chapel of St. George on top, a little more than 2 km away. We'll come to that shortly.

But first, we take a leisurely walk through the jungle-like National Gardens, past the Zappeion Congress Center, into the green labyrinth. The green lung of the city attracts not only us magically. Especially on Sunday, it is full of walkers, joggers, and people looking for relaxation from the big city.

We want to get another bird's eye view of Athens. To do this, we first stroll through the chic neighborhood of Kolonaki, elegant restaurants and jewelry boutiques line up here, and then climb the many stairs to the top of Lycabettus hill. If you don't like to walk the steep path, you can take the rack railroad.

At the top, you again realize the immense size of Athens. It is simply a juggernaut, bursting at the seams, but is by no means ugly. Where Bogotá in Colombia is made of orange bricks, Athens shines in white. 360°.

Especially at sunset, people crowd here. Understandable, considering the insane view.

We are not finished yet. Steeply it goes down again on the other side. We cross many narrow streets in the northwestern direction and notice that more and more house walls are colorfully sprayed. We pass record stores, look at the windows of antique-looking bookstores, pass iconic bars, alternative restaurants, bookbinderies, print stores....

We read slogans on house walls like "No pasaran" and "Capitalism must fall" or "Antifa Bullys," and we know we've arrived in the anarchist neighborhood of Exarchia. Here we get to see the somewhat different Athens.

We like it here. We would love to visit them all, the exciting bookstores that sell everything but the mainstream (unfortunately most of it in Greek), the many interesting restaurants and bars, the autonomous cinema.

We continue north through a large one of the many parks in Athens and arrive in the Kypseli neighborhood. This is where Aggelos' wife Nicole lives, who recommended that we visit her neighborhood. It is less frequented by foreign tourists but is home to many immigrants from African and Arab countries. In addition to typical Greek cafes, we also see African restaurants and shisha bars along a lengthy pedestrian street.

Here we let our exploration tour "Athens on foot" come to an end; if we want, with a table full of delicious meze delicacies (Greek "tapas") and a Raki or Rakomelo (warm Raki with honey).

We still have by far not seen everything the city has to offer. Still, we feel almost at home every time we leave our cozy Airbnb and step onto the streets of Athens.