Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Athens

  • 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.

  • Athens – Kerameikos – Fierce Lion Grave Marker

    It’s not a sheep, this is a marble grave marker of a brave and fierce lion. It was found to the south of the Street of Tombs at Kerameikos cemetery and it dates back to the fourth century BC.

  • Athens – Kerameikos – General Photos

    Kerameikos was a district of Athens which took its name from the pottery makers who lived there. The Latin name for the district was Ceramicus, which is where the English word for ceramics comes from. The site is now all part of a museum complex and is part of the museum ticket which I purchased a few days ago.

    There’s a lot at this site, so that’ll be several ‘fascinating’ posts from me about it. It includes an internationally important cemetery, former roads, walls, gatehouses and many buildings.

    To start with, here are some photos across the general site.

  • Athens – Trip to Pireas

    Since my ticket allows, I got the train down to the southern end of the green metro line and the port of Pireas. It was the port city of Athens all the way back in the fifth century BC, so it has a long history. I didn’t realise at the time, but it is apparently the largest passenger port in Europe and the second largest in the world (although I got that from Wikipedia, it might not be true).

    I wasn’t in the city for long, so here are just a few photos…..

  • Athens – Political Demonstration

    I like a good political demonstration, although having said that, I will soon move away from anything that might involve violence or angry police. There’s a limit to my bravery….

    I’m also not sure that I’d have made a very good photographer of important political events, since by the time I heard this one they’d marched on and I just got the photo of their backs.

    I didn’t have a clue what they were protesting about, but some investigating (which involved trying to translate the banners by reading them in reverse) has led me to discover that they are protesting against fascism. There’s a news story about a similar demonstration that took place a few weeks ago.