Walking. Gossip. Travel.

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  • Athens – Another Day, Another Demonstration

    Every day I’ve been here there has been a demonstration about something taking place. Mostly about the environment and against fascism, but this was a larger and well attended event which winded its way through the centre of Athens.

    I translated one of the leaflets and the protest is related to the closing of schools, but I couldn’t find any media reports on the march to find out more.

    There were plenty of police around, who mostly looked bored, and some irritated looking locals not impressed by the smoke. And an awful lot of flyers were thrown on the floor, although the city seems to employ an army of street cleaners.

    It got the attention of locals and visitors to the city though, which I’m guessing is the entire point that it was held. So job done in that regard….

  • Athens – Coffee Cat

    He seemed quite high up, but also entirely content.

  • Athens – Panathenaic Stadium

    The current stadium is the only one in the world which is built entirely out of marble and it was reconstructed in 1896 to hold the first modern Olympics. It was built on the site of the stadium built in 144AD in marble, but there was also a previous limestone stadium constructed in 330BC and before then the site was a racecourse. So, it has a strong sporting history to say the least.

    Somehow they managed to get 80,000 people in this stadium in 1968 to watch a basketball match. There are photos of this event easily findable on Google and it looks like a somewhat cramped affair. It was also where the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1896 Olympics took place, something which must have been quite an event. The current capacity is 45,000 people, which goes to show just how packed the stadium clearly was.

    The 1896 refurbishment wasn’t the first in the nineteenth century, there had also been some modernisation in preparation for what were known as the Zappas Olympics. These were the forerunner to the Olympics that we know now, and they were held in 1859, 1870 and 1875. The first of these wasn’t held at this stadium as reconstruction wasn’t finished, but the later second events were.

    I didn’t think when visiting that it was possible to get inside the stadium as a visitor, unless there was some sporting or musical event on, but it has transpired that visitors can get in for €5 per person. However, since there’s a big gap where seating would usually be in a stadium, it’s obviously easy enough to look in. The marble still glistens in the sun, so it’s visually quite a statement for a stadium.

  • Athens – Parthenon

    They doesn’t seem much point writing a lot about the Parthenon, since it’s one of the most important historic sites in Europe and there’s no shortage of information readily available.

    But, in short, the Parthenon was built as a temple between 447BC and 432BC and it was later used as a Christian church and then as a mosque. Unfortunately the building was partly blown up in September 1687 when gunpowder in storage caught fire. Today the building is iconic and is one of the enduring symbols of Athens, primarily due to its prominent location.

    I had a pass to visit a number of historic sites and I left this to the last day possible deliberately as I thought that a Monday morning might be a little quicker. I also got to the site at around 08.15 (and discovered there’s no rush hour on the metro) before it got too busy. And before it got too hot….

    The pass meant that I didn’t have to queue up for a ticket and I was able to walk straight through to the Acropolis (the hill that the Parthenon is on). There were a few tour groups and a few visitors, but it was generally quiet when I was there. It did though get much busier as I worked my way back down to the Southern Slope of the Acropolis.

    Signage is reasonably good at the site, although I’d still rather that the museum just gave out a small map of the site to visitors who wanted one, to help put everything in context. But, it was clean and organised, and I was pleased that I didn’t have to queue.

    What it’s like in summer I can’t quite imagine, it must be quite challenging waiting in queues, being hustled along and then standing in the Greek summer heat. So visiting early on a Monday morning in March seems like a good idea.

    Anyway, that’s enough text. Here are my photos from earlier today.

  • Athens – Styl & Cafe

    This coffee shop is in a central location in Athens and on a hot Sunday afternoon (although I think most Sunday afternoons are hot in Athens) it seemed particularly busy.

    Some people like to sit outside and enjoy the excitement of that, but I’m quite happy to sit inside and not be attacked by insects or have to dodge people selling bloody lottery tickets. And even more challenging are the people who come and perform some form of music near the table and I’m not sure whether they’re wanting money as a reward for their efforts or as blackmail for them to stop making noise.

    Quirky interior, although this now seems to be almost expected for cafes. I thought I had misunderstood the ordering process as I wasn’t approached at the table for a while, but it was just because the staff member was busy which was a relief (I mean it was a relief that I understood the service style, not a relief that the staff member was busy). The service remained friendly and warm throughout whilst not being unnecessarily effusive.

    Another latte, at the appropriate temperature and with the depth of taste that I demand. Well, I don’t demand at all, just hope for.

    For someone who didn’t drink coffees a few years ago, I’m doing well on this now. I also liked the biscuit that came with it, but I’m easily pleased with free snacks that come with coffee. And there were also a handful of Jelly Candy sweets made by Oscar (it’s a company, not a individual) and these have appeared several times over the last few days. I’m going to investigate buying a big bag of them, they are the most delightful of sweets….

  • Athens – L’ Arrêt Du Temps

    Lunch today in Athens was at this little French restaurant which looked quite charming from the outside.

    The interior of the restaurant which remained busy during my visit. I was welcomed promptly and the environment was clean and comfortable. The service was always friendly and the waitress was conversational and engaging, it was all rather relaxing.

    A little glass of white wine. I’m no wine expert, but it tasted entirely passable.

    Brunch, which as I’ve said elsewhere, is very middle class of me. The meal was well presented and the green leaves were lifted by the sauce, and the egg was perfectly cooked. There was also sausage, tomato and feta cheese which all went beautifully together. The sausage tasted fine, although it didn’t have the depth of flavour that it perhaps could have done. But as a lunch-time meal, this was all very lovely and the dish was well seasoned.

    I noticed that there are some negative reviews of this restaurant because they don’t let dogs in. It seems staggering to me that someone would seek to damage someone’s business on-line solely because they are politely told that they couldn’t bring their dog in, which is inevitably not to everyone’s liking. On this, given the location and atmosphere, I agree with the restaurant, this doesn’t feel like a setting suitable for dogs.

    The meal and wine came to around £10, which given the location and the environment seemed fair to me. All very lovely.

  • Athens – Half Marathon

    This was a big event today in Athens and I know this because it was difficult to cross the roads as it was such a well attended run. It all looked well organised and there were free bananas available for everyone, both runners and watchers alike. But unfortunately not free crisps, which would have helped me get really engaged with the event.

    So, some photos….

  • Athens – Kerameikos – Bull

    This subtle little bull is from a grave enclosure of Dionysios of Kollytos which was situated along the Way of the Tombs. It was placed on a high pedestal within the grave enclosure, and I can imagine it had a quite formidable look.

    Made of marble, the bull dates to around 345BC and 340BC. Dionysios died unmarried and lived nearby to Kerameikos, at Kollytos. He served as a treasurer in Heraion in the years 346 and 345BC.

  • Athens – Kerameikos – Museum Artefacts

    There was a larger museum at Kerameikos than I had anticipated and it was well laid out, with plenty of descriptions clearly available. Below are some of the items that I thought were interesting.

    Dating to between 430BC and 200BC, this is a naiskos, which is a mini temple and inside is a statuette of Cybele seated on a throne.

    This small cart with a white horse dates to 675BC to 650BC, and the archaeologists can be that precise as the items were all found within an offering pit which had dating evidence.

    These are small lead sheets which are from the Athenian cavalry and they have the name of the horse owners engraved into them. Number 15 is Aristokrates, 16 is Laches, 17 is Kleomedon, 18 is Python and 19 and 20, which are rolled up, are Kydios and Menon.

    I’m not sure that I would want to be called python, it’s a Greek word for the huge serpent which was killed by Apollo, and later of course used as a word for a snake.

    Small dishes dating from between 325BC and 500BC.

    A marble ossuary, or container for human bones.

    This is a Pyxis, or effectively a box, which has horse figurines on the lid. This was found as part of a female burial which took place in the eighth century BC.

    Another Pyxis with animal figurines, dating to around 775BC to 750BC.

    A Roman multi-nozzle lamp in the form of a boat, dating to around the fourth century AD.

    Dating to around 380BC to 370BC, this is a silver pendant amulet with a depiction of Aphrodite.

    A pyxis from between 430BC and 200BC.

    A jug dating from between 450BC and 400BC.

  • Athens – Kerameikos – Vase Grave Markers

    I found all of these grave markers fascinating, not because of their design, but because of their great age. The families of the dead would have spent some money on these grave markers and it’s wonderful that they’ve survived for so long. They’ve been moved for their protection (from the elements, not angry locals) from the main grave site just a few metres away.

    A funerary vase showing Aristomache, who is seated, saying goodbye to her husband. Impressively the date is known, it’s from 338BC.

    A funerary vase, apparently the image is of the deceased woman, Kleonike, saying farewell to Demostrate. It dates to the middle of the fourth century BC.

    A depiction of a funerary vase.