Tag: Athens

There’s a small museum at the stadium, which is reached by this rather impressive tunnel where the athletes would have once run out from to face their moment of truth.

As the stadium once looked.

Marble cutters merrily cutting blocks, which must have been something of a civil engineering project to put together.

The interior of the museum.

Every Olympic Games now has a torch which all have a unique design which reflects the characteristics and culture of the host nation. Above are torches from the Winter Olympics, which used to be held in the same year as the main Olympics but they are now held two years after them. These torches are from Innsbruck (1976 – Austria), Lake Placid (1980 – United States) and Calgary (1988 – Canada).

A poster from the first Olympic Games that was partly held at this stadium in 1896.

A poster from the 1908 London Games.

I hadn’t much thought about it, but I don’t think that I realised that the Olympic Games were held in Belgium in 1920 although Richard thinks he might remember it. Here are posters from Paris 2024, Belgium 1920 and Paris 1924, as well as the Paris torch from 2024.

Posters from the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam and the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

A poster from the notorious 1936 Olympic Games which were held in Berlin.

The poster from the 1948 London Olympics.

And the torch from 1948.

The torch and poster from the 2012 London Olympics, which feels quite a long time ago now.

This is one of the 204 petals, representing the competing nations who took part, from the single unified cauldron where the Olympic Flame burnt during the 2012 Olympics in London. I did get to see the opening of the Paralympic Games in 2012, so I would have seen this. Well, probably not seen it very clearly, but it was there at the same time as me so that’ll have to do.

This is exciting, the altar from where the High Priestess lights the Olympic Flame for its journey to the city that organises the Olympic Games.

This is a replica of the concave mirror which is used to catch the rays of the sun which start the Olympic flame.

It was an interesting museum and the walk to it added to the excitement of the whole arrangement. There was some information and exhibit from every Olympic Games that have yet been held, with the posters from each of the events being interesting to show how design had changed over the decades. Maybe I’ll come back in a few years and see what they have from the 2028 Olympics which are being held in Los Angeles and the 2032 Olympics which are being held in Brisbane, not to mention the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, the 2030 Winter Olympics in France and the 2034 Winter Olympics in the United States.

This is the impressive current stadium, built on the same site as the original Panathenaic Stadium.

The stadium’s reconstruction was a significant undertaking, spearheaded by the Greek government and funded by the rather generous donation of Georgios Averoff, a wealthy Greek businessman who was based in Egypt. Times have changed somewhat from this era when men such as Averoff and the great Andrew Carnegie generously gave money to improve culture, literature and education. Today, we have Elon Musk, although I mustn’t drift too far into politics. The architect Anastasios Metaxas meticulously planned the reconstruction, drawing inspiration from the stadium’s ancient design. The stadium was rebuilt entirely with white marble from Mount Penteli, the same material used to construct the Acropolis. Having now experienced the stadium myself, this marble might not be the softest thing to sit on, but at least it stayed cool in what is often a hot general environment. This ambitious project was nearly completed in time for the 1896 Games, making the Panathenaic Stadium the only major stadium in the world built entirely of marble, with the unfinished bits sorted out not much later.

Despite being very brave, I do have a fear of heights and I wondered for a while if I would make it up to the top. However, after watching Richard positively sprinting up, I knew that I’d be able to manage it one way or another.

On 6 April 1896, the Panathenaic Stadium witnessed a historic moment as it hosted the opening ceremony of the first modern Olympic Games. The stadium was adorned with Greek and Olympic flags, creating a rather vibrant and festive atmosphere. King George I of Greece and his family were among the estimated 60,000 spectators, along with athletes from 14 nations, a sizeable arrangement for the time. The Games were officially opened by Crown Prince Constantine, marking the revival of this ancient tradition although I can’t imagine that they could have foreseen how big the games would become. The Panathenaic Stadium served as the venue for four of the nine sports that were contested at the 1896 Olympics, namely athletics, gymnastics, weightlifting and wrestling.

Perhaps the most memorable event was the marathon, won by Spyridon Louis, a Greek water carrier and his victory was a source of immense national pride and cemented the stadium’s place in Olympic history.

The first lap of honour by members of the various nations.

In the mid to late 1960s, the Panathenaic Stadium served as the home ground for AEK Basketball Club and this period marked a departure from the stadium’s traditional use as a venue for athletics and Olympic events.

The stadium witnessed a historic moment in basketball history when it hosted the 1967–68 FIBA European Cup Winners’ Cup final on 4 April 1968 when AEK Athens emerged victorious against Slavia VŠ Praha in front of a record crowd of approximately 80,000 spectators which seems an insanely large number to me. It was also used at the 2004 Olympics held in Athens when the archery events were held here and it was the end of the marathon event.

And an athlete from today.

Last time I was in Athens I visited most of the main historic attractions, but I didn’t get a chance to come here, which is the Panathenaic Stadium. Also known as the Kallimarmaro, meaning ‘beautiful marble’, it’s the only stadium in the world which is made entirely out of marble and it’s also the home of the 1896 Olympic Games.

The story of the Panathenaic Stadium begins in the sixth century BC with a simple racecourse nestled in a natural ravine between the hills of Agra and Ardettos, south of the Ilissos River. Spectators would merrily gather on the natural slopes to witness athletic contests and shows of bravery. To be honest, doing anything athletic in the heat of Athens is brave in my eyes, but I digress. Around 400 BC, the Athenian statesman Lykourgos commissioned the construction of a proper stadium on this site, primarily to host the Panathenaic Games. These games, held every four years in honour of the goddess Athena, were a major religious and athletic festival in ancient Athens. Lykourgos’s stadium was not entirely decadent as it was built from poros stone, a type of limestone, and featured tiers of stone benches for seating. At this time, the track itself measured 669 feet long and 110 feet wide.

The Panathenaic Games were more than just athletic competitions; they were a celebration of Athenian identity and a showcase of the city’s religious and cultural life. The games included a variety of events, some of which have parallels in the modern Olympics. Footraces were a central part of the Games, with variations including the stade (a single-length sprint), the diaulos (a two-length race), and the dolichos (a long-distance race) . The pentathlon, a combination of five events (discus throw, javelin throw, long jump, running, and wrestling) merrily tested the athletes’ all-around skills.  In addition to these core athletic events, the Panathenaic Games also featured competitions for boys, as well as contests for heralds and trumpeters . Chariot racing and horse racing were held in the hippodrome, a separate venue located south of the stadium. The games were a major spectacle, attracting participants and spectators from all over Athens and beyond. I accept that it was rather larger than a village fete, but this is really the backdrop to what was going on, it was a celebration and the organisers wanted lots of things to excite and delight the attendees.

In the 2nd century AD, during the Roman era, Athens experienced a period of renewed prosperity and building activity. It was during this time that Herodes Atticus, a wealthy Athenian Roman senator, undertook a significant and expensive renovation of the Panathenaic Stadium. Between 140 and 143 AD, he transformed the stadium and rebuilt it entirely in marble from Mount Pentelicus, giving it the name Kallimarmaro. He also changed the stadium’s shape from a rectangle to the distinctive horseshoe shape that remains today, a typical design for Roman stadiums, and the seating capacity was expanded to accommodate an estimated 50,000 spectators. This renovation was more than just a simple upgrade as it reflected a complex interplay between Greek and Roman architectural styles. Herodes Atticus, himself a product of both cultures, sought to create a stadium that honoured the Classical Greek past while embracing the grandeur and scale of Roman architecture, something of a European Union of sorts.

With the rise of Christianity in the fourth century AD, the Panathenaic Games and other pagan festivals were banned by Emperor Theodosius I and he frankly sounds just a little grumpy. The Panathenaic Stadium, once a vibrant centre of athletic and cultural life, fell into disuse and was gradually abandoned. Over time, the marble was plundered for building materials, and the stadium became “indistinguishable, covered with earthen mounds, scattered buildings and cultivated fields”.

Before I visited, I had expected more of the original stadium to have survived, but it had pretty much all gone. This is from the late 1860s and the only real survivor from ancient times was the earthworks.

Despite its decline, the Panathenaic Stadium was not entirely forgotten. Reports, descriptions and plans of the stadium remained from the 17th to the 19th centuries, indicating a continued awareness of this ancient site even if not much had been done about it. This awareness, coupled with a growing interest in classical antiquity during the 18th and 19th centuries, set the stage for the stadium’s rediscovery and eventual revival. In the 1830s, with Greece newly independent from the Ottoman Empire, archaeological evidence of the stadium was uncovered. In 1869, German architect Ernst Ziller conducted systematic excavations at the site, revealing the extent of the ancient structure and his work was instrumental in the eventual reconstruction of the stadium.  In the 1870s, the Panathenaic Stadium hosted the Zappas Olympics, an early attempt to revive the Olympic Games were organised by Greek businessman Evangelis Zappas, but his plans to reconstruct the stadium were above his financial means but his work was crucial to bringing life back to the idea of a modern games.

Discovered in the 1860s during the Ziller excavations, these two original pieces of marble from the previous stadium have survived, somehow they must have become buried and they weren’t taken away.

It feels sub-optimal to me that they’ve hammered in these holes into the back of their two old bits of marble, it wasn’t as if there wasn’t enough other bits to hammer about with.

The back of their ancient stone….

This beer shop and bar was something of an accidental find, but I’m very pleased that we did discover it during our perambulations. I didn’t take a photo of the exterior, other than this one when sitting outside, but it looked enticing from the exterior. Richard doesn’t like high chairs at his age, so we had to sit at the lower down tables but I didn’t of course make any complaint or comment. The graffiti is a little sub-optimal, but such is Athens life unfortunately.

There was a circular staircase inside that led to this rather charming little upstairs seating area. When we entered the venue, the staff member was engaging and enthusiastic about the beers and was very keen to offer recommendations. I was busy faffing about with Untappd to find a beer that I hadn’t had before, something which did slow matters down somewhat. It’s quite hard for me to type some Greek beers into Untappd to see if I’ve had them as their alphabet doesn’t coincide with the alphabet on my phone. But, we got there in the end.

I started proceedings with the Play Punk! from Midnight Circus Gypsy Brewing which was rich with a taste of coffee, with some cherry added to the mix as well. Nice free snacks as well.

The Smoky Stout from Alea Brewing Co, which had plenty of dark chocolate going on. There was a bit of smokiness, a bit of collapsed cliff, a bit of burnt pebble and all that.

This was Richard’s beer that I tried some of, although I’d already had some a few days before, but I liked the Twix flavour that was going on, along with some flavours of coffee and vanilla.

The beer selection in the fridges was quite broad with most styles represented, although the staff member mentioned that there weren’t many sours as this wasn’t such a popular drink in Greece. The selection was mostly Greek beers and the choice seemed well curated to me. The surroundings were cosy and warm, although it wasn’t particularly busy when we were there. The venue has only recently opened and so I imagine it’ll get busy as it becomes less of a hidden secret, but I liked the ambience, reasonable pricing and the friendliness of the service. The aim of the bar is to be a small slice of Barcelona in the centre of Athens, which is an aim that I think they’ve delivered although the food selection is rather limited.

This isn’t a post about the demonstrations that were taking place in Athens, instead next on the list of bars to visit was Demo, a rather on-trend little arrangement which had something of a positive and vibrant feel to it. This is quite a lively area of the city, but it’s hard to keep Richard away from these hubs of nightlife.

I went for the Grimbergen Blanche which was light, sweet and smooth. Richard discovered rakomelo which is served hot, often during the colder months of the year, containing raki, cinnamon and cloves. Sweet and warming, it’s a traditional Greek drink and I think Richard was so surprised and delighted by it that he’ll be making it at home. Also praise for the rather delicious crisps which were provided free of charge, we definitely need that concept extending into the UK.

The back bar which all felt modern, with the service being timely, friendly and engaging. I’m not really one for music, but they had a pleasant and upbeat arrangement being played which added to the atmosphere rather than annoying me. Everything felt clean and organised as well, with surfaces being dry and not sticky. The customers seemed to be generally younger, other than Richard, with the drinks served quickly even though the preparation of the rakomelo looked like a right faff to me.

The Double Ambree from Grimbergen, which was dark and deep with a taste of caramel and some fruit that has fallen off a tree.

This was a rather lovely bar with a reasonable amount of space internally and externally. Richard was delighted with his new drink and I got t0 try a Grimbergen beer that I haven’t had before. The prices were reasonable and it felt warm and cosy. It’s also open for long hours, from 11.00 until 02.00 every day of the week.

The evening meal choice was Mangal, which I think it’s fair to say I enjoyed a little more than Richard. We chose it as it was relatively near to the hotel, it was well reviewed and seemed to serve some traditional and authentic food. There is an outside dining area but it was a little heavy on smokers, so we went inside and went towards the back to avoid that.

I went for the Fischer Blonde beer which is a French brewer Pilsner and it’s light, smooth and quite nondescript.

My starter of the Greek salad and bread. It was another generous portion of Greek salad and they didn’t hold back with the onion. At this point, the server came over to Richard to tell him that they couldn’t serve his main course although they offered an appropriate alternative.

The Bodrum Meatballs, cooked in a red sauce with butter and herbs, served with French fries and garlic yoghurt. The meatballs had a depth of flavour, the chips were fluffy internally and the coleslaw was creamy. This was the main course that Richard and I got to share. The food is all served from an open kitchen and it remained relatively busy throughout the evening.

This is the Yaglama, which is five layers of handmade flatbread with mixed mince meat and onion on every later, topped with yoghurt, walnuts and parsley. The flatbread soaked up the flavours of the mince and the yoghurt gave it a piquancy. Richard was slightly annoyed, and I’m sure that he won’t mind me mentioning this, that by this point his starter still hadn’t arrived. Fortunately, his angry look soon caught the attention of the staff member and I think it’s fair to say that they won’t be inviting each other to their mutual Christmas parties. I’m not sure that I need to add much more.

I rather enjoyed all the food, although mine seemed to be given a priority on being served, which all had a depth of taste and flavour. The service was polite until Richard upset them and the ambience was warm and comfortable. There were some delays getting the bill, perhaps unnecessary delays to be honest, although it was accurate and the food and drink was reasonably priced. The on-line reviews are very positive and the food was from numerous Mediterranean countries although primarily Turkey, making it quite an interesting menu. I’ve never heard of the Yaglama, which was not dissimilar to lasagne in concept, but this was my favourite dish of the evening. Richard won’t be going back though and there were certainly some service elements that might be described as sub-optimal. However, as it was Richard that received poor service and not me, I will forgive them.

Located at 17 Stournari Street in Athens, this Untappd verified craft beer bar is cosy inside, although there’s extra seating outside. There was a friendly welcome from the barman (who I assume is the owner) who explained what beers were available, although the list is also available on Untappd. There’s a bicycle used as decoration, something that my friend older Julian is always nervous about as he doesn’t like them being removed from the road, but I’m less concerned personally.

I made a mistake here and ordered the Coconut Sky CocoStout, forgetting that I’d already had it at Tapfield a couple of days before. However, it’s a rather lovely beer, slightly thin but rich in Bounty chocolate coconut flavour.

Richard went for the Voreia Wit from Siris Microbrewery and it was certainly lively. I tried some and it was a solid wheat beer, the flavour of banana lingers and it was quite sweet and agreeable.

It’s a welcoming little venue and it’s evident how much the barman is passionate about what he is selling (I mean he’s knowledgeable about craft beer, not that he’s some form of alcoholic) and willing to engage about it. There was some music playing that Richard was singing along to, so it’s reasonable to say that it was very old school. The surroundings were clean and comfortable, with plenty of additional bottles and cans to investigate in the fridges. There’s a very strong focus on stocking Greek beers, which is a handy way of being able to try new beers. Well, new beers if you don’t forget that you had them two days before anyway. The whole arrangement feels like one for beer enthusiasts rather than just another bar, so I was of course surprised and delighted with that.

And the second in the series of driving about in Athens. Here’s part one.

This is the cat on a car that I was excited about. Don’t forget, I don’t get out much….

We returned to Athens, after puncturegate, and it was still slightly simmering (the city, not the tyre) after the protests that had taken place during the day. There had been a little rioting and a lot of restaurants had closed, with parts of the city having something of an edgy feel to them so it wasn’t the usual pleasant evening atmosphere in Athens.

Fortunately, the Golden Indian Haveli was open and it is impeccably well reviewed on-line, so they’re evidently doing a lot right. It looked closed at first from one side, but there was signage indicating where to go. We were welcomed promptly and they checked if we had a reservation, but they had plenty of space available to accommodate us. The restaurant is on the left in the above photo, but the staff were standing outside and I didn’t want it to look like I was taking photos of them.

The poppadoms were crunchy and rich in flavour, although the two sauces with them weren’t of any great note. The beer was the Kingfisher lager and it is what it is, it went well with the food so that was handy. As an irrelevant aside, I’m the only person ever to have checked a beer into this venue on Untappd, there’s always usually someone before me, but not here.

The main event was though much better. I went for a chicken madras, lemon rice and a Peshwari naan. I have a common issue in finding that curries are lacking in more spice in some European countries, especially northern European countries. However, this arrangement was much better with the sauce having some spice and heat to it, which is what I would expect from a madras. The chicken was tender, the sauce was rice and the coconut cooled matters down a little. The ginger added taste, the onion added texture and the flavours worked well together. The lemon rice had a full flavour of lemon, which is something not always delivered, with pieces of lemon visible throughout. The naan was crispy and had the expected almond taste to it, with everything at the appropriate hot temperature. I did finish everything, but it was only at a push and the portions sizes were generous.

The prices here were reasonable, the service was attentive and the surroundings were clean and comfortable. There was a bottle of water placed on the table that we hadn’t asked for, but they checked at the end of the meal if we’d had any of it and they pro-actively removed it from the bill. I’d merrily come back here, it’s centrally located, there’s a friendly welcome and the food is above average.

One handy thing about travelling with Richard anywhere is that there’s always drama. And I was delivered drama once again on this trip, which was all rather exciting. As we were driving along the motorway, or more specifically as Richard was driving, there was a little bangy noise which I correctly identified as something was broken. We were just before a toll booth and so we stopped off to investigate the matter, with the timing being quite fortunate.

The rather helpful guy at the reception desk at the toll station, which I don’t think is a generally onerous role and so needs extra excitement, came over to help. He we are with two experts looking at the tyre, which I had already identified as broken so I didn’t see what more work needed doing on the investigation.

Richard remembered that there was a spare tyre in the boot. It seemed that we might be able to put this on and manage the situation ourselves. Richard is a man of action and his engineering background, specialising in keyboards, would inevitably come in handy.

And here he is athletically putting the tyre into the right place, rolling it like a professional. This plan didn’t work as we couldn’t get the existing tyre off (I say we, but I was basically just the photographer) and so Richard phoned the car hire company. The lady spoke English, but the toll guy (as I’m now calling him) dealt with the entire conversation in rapid-fire Greek and we had no clue what was going on. Richard had been hoping to speak to the lady at the end of the call to gain a better understanding of the situation, but I imagine that the toll guy was trying to make life easier. I wanted to sit in the car, but Richard reminded me it was jacked up and he hadn’t remembered to bring any chairs to sit on which I thought was poor planning on his part. If he is to be a true traveller, he needs to bring a mobile lounge with him.

I think this next photo tells something of a story, as it’s now dark. The toll gates looked rather lovely as the sun set over the broken car. The toll guy, who really was doing a marvellous job at helping us, came over to say that the repair man was around fifteen minutes away. At least we had a solution coming now.

There was some thinking about the situation whilst we waited. The toll guy spoke sufficient English to let us know what was going on and helpfully queried if I was cold as I didn’t have a coat on. He also asked Richard why we’d come to Greece when it was cold, although I think the toll guy and I have a different understanding of what the word hot means.

Then the repair man turned up with a proper jack. No selection of canapes or anything though for us to nibble on. I had expected Richard to have some sort of lounge option for car hire so that we received some treats, but it transpired that he hadn’t. But, here is the car all successfully repaired and we were ready to roll with the temporary tyre in place, with the whole arrangement taking 90 minutes to have got sorted out.

Thanks mostly to me for recording the incident for posterity, the toll man for being so helpful, the repair guy for fixing it and to Richard for the excitement. After investigating the broken tyre, it seems that there had been a nail in it which must have fallen out, hence the quick deflation. Richard noted, after the event, that he did think there was the sound of something as we had been driving around all day, but as it was a hire car a random noise would have been hard to investigate. And with Richard at the helm, what could possibly go wrong? He remains very fortunate that I’m often around to take photos and be the voice of calm reason. As for the good news, Richard had taken out insurance to cover this sort of incident, so the €400 he would have been charged was reduced to €0.