Athens - A city in the rough

Acropolis looking down
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Hello -

So Athens was the next stop.  Most people who have been told me that they wouldn't spend more than 1 day there, but due to when I had to leave London (post wedding) and wait for the other travel mates to meet up with before hitting the Islands, I had 3 days there.  Athens had a reputation for one of the first forms of governance and sports, so it seemed to  have alot to offer.

My only cultural exposure to Greece was the 2 Gyro joints on State Street (where I went to way too many times after a good night out in Madison).  Those places had greasy slabs of Lamb slowling spinning around and played very cheesy Greek music.  Obviously this was not representative........I got in late that night to the hotel in downtown (Plaka) and roamed around, only to find racks of Lamb slowling spinning around and played very cheesy Greek music.  Also there were a fair amount of stray dogs roaming around.  Then I thought that maybe I was in a bad part of town, but when I looked up I could see the Acropolis (the main attraction in Athens) nearby peering down over the city.  What I later realized is that I stayed in the biggest tourist part of town, Plaka, where most of the Greek ruins are.  If the the government there could clean up the place it would be so much better (I heard it was even a little dirtier before the Olympics came in 2004).

Cafe in Kolonaki
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The "roughness" of the city also comes out through the people.  I would randomly see a police officer walking through town with a huge gun/oozy.  One local told me that it was a rough place to live, and when I asked her what she meant and she pointed at one of the random policemen.  The other thing about the peope in Greece is that they don't make eye contact with anyone.  But if you strike up a conversation formally they open up and tell you their life story.

In terms of the Greek ruins there OK.  Unlike the Sistine Chapel, where it gets hyped up and when you actually visit it blows you away, the Greek ruins are "just there".  The Parthenon, the main attraction there, is undergoing some contruction, which took away from it's attractiveness; but its on the top of a hill and offers some good views.  There are a host of other ruins and sites to hit up (Ancient Agora, Roman Forum, Olympic Stadium, The Museums etc).  If I had done some more research I probably would've appreciated it more (it was all Greek to me).  Also, one that no one talks about is the Athens Polytechnic.  In 1973 there was a student uprising against the then military government and 20 students were killed (the goverment was overthrown the following year) and is something to check out.

Site of 1973 student uprising
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Through this trip I am trying out different guide books, for Athens I had a "Time Out" guide which is written by locals and is supposed to be a little hip.  It suggested that one neighborhood to check out was a trendy area called Kolonaki, which is up on a hill.  In terms of people, it was one of the highest concentration of good looking people I have ever seen.  Big sunglasses, snazzy clothes, high end clothing stores, cafe's, restaurants etc. Very European and very Greek, as the local celebs, diplomats etc. hang out there.

Most of the tourists there were from Europe of Australia, not alot from Asia and the US.  I got the sense most were only there for a stop until they hit up the Greek Islands.

Nightlife, the big summer clubs are 15 minutes outside the city.  They are on the beach and are incredibly large and over the top.  The one we went to had a large pool (which made no sense as it was on the beach) and started up around midnight, and this was on a Wednesday.

All in all, Athens was a decent city with alot to offer, but you have to work for it.

Next up are the Greek isles