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Greek Islands
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Athens
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Athens
in Greece
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Athens related
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 Within the sprawling city of Athens it is easy
to imagine the golden age of Greece when Pericles had the
Parthenon built. When the tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles
and Euripides were performed in the Theater of Dionysus. And
when democracy brought all citizens together to decide their
common fate on the Pynx Hill.
Athens is built around the Acropolis and the pinnacled crag
of Mt. Lycabettus, which the goddess Athena was said to have
dropped from the heavens as a bulwark to defend the city.
(Athens currently has over four million inhabitants). The
suburbs have covered the barren plain in all directions and
the city is packed with lively taverns and bustling shops. |
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Athens related sites
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Athens's history |
To appreciate Athens, it's important to be aware of the
city's traumatic history. Unlike most capital cities, Athens' history is
not one of continuous expansion; it is one characterised by glory,
followed by decline and near annihilation, and then resurgence in the 19th
century, when it became capital of independent Greece.
Accounts of Athens' early days are inextricably woven with mythology,
making it difficult to be sure what really happened. We do know, though,
that the hilltop site of the Acropolis, endowed with two copious springs,
drew some of Greece's early Neolithic settlers. Later, with the rise of
city-states, the Acropolis provided an ideal defensive position, and by
1400 BC, it had become a powerful Mycenaean city.
Around 1200 BC Greece fell into a long dark age, of which very little
is known, but in the 8th-century BC a peaceful Athens became the artistic
centre of Greece. Next came a period of social reform, followed by unrest
and subsequent tyranny. Athens didn't shake off oppression until 510 BC,
when Sparta stepped in to help. Following the defeat of the Persian
Empire, Athens' power grew enormously. It established a confederacy on the
island of Delos, demanding tributes from islands for protection against
the Persians. The money was used to transform the city. This was Athens'
golden age: monuments were built on the Acropolis, and drama and
literature flourished. Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides; sculptors
Pheidias and Myron; and historians Herodotus, Thucydides and Xenophon all
lived at this time.
Sparta, however, wasn't prepared to play second fiddle, and increasing
hostilities triggered the Peloponnesian Wars in 431BC. After 27 years of
fighting, Sparta gained the upper hand, and Athens slid from its former
glory. The century wasn't a total loss, as it did produce three of the
west's greatest orators and philosophers: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.
Under Roman rule, Athens continued to be a major seat of learning, and
Roman emperors graced the city with many grand buildings. After the
subdivision of the Roman Empire into east and west, the city remained a
cultural and intellectual centre, until its schools of philosophy closed
in 529 AD. Between 1200 and 1450, Athens was overrun by a motley crew of
opportunists, including Franks, Catalans, Florentines and Venetians. The
Turks invaded in 1456 and settled in for 400 years.
In the early stages of the War of Independence (1821-27), fierce street
fighting saw the city change hands several times between Greek liberators
and Turks. In 1834, Athens replaced Nafplio as the capital of independent
Greece, and King Othon set about repairing the war-torn city. Bavarian
architects created a city of imposing neoclassical buildings (most of
which have since been demolished) and tree-lined boulevards.
The historical event which, more than any other, shaped the Athens of
today was the compulsory population exchange between Greece and Turkey
that followed the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923. The
population of Athens virtually doubled overnight, necessitating the hasty
erection of concrete apartment blocks to house the newcomers.
Along with the rest of Greece, Athens suffered appallingly during the
German occupation of WWII and in the civil war that followed. The
expansion of Athens accelerated during the 1950s and 60s, when the country
began the transition from an agricultural to an industrial nation. The
colonels' junta (1967-74) tore down many crumbling old Turkish houses and
the neoclassical buildings, all the while failing to tackle the
infrastructure problems resulting from the rapid, chaotic growth of the
city. By the end of the '80s the city had developed a sorry reputation as
one of the most traffic-clogged and polluted in Europe.
Since the 1980s, fundamental changes have
taken place, the most dramatic in the '90s. The city's failed bid to stage the
1996 Olympics served as a wake-up call to authorities, who launched an ambitious
program to prepare the city for the 21st century. In 1997, the city's bid to
stage the 2004 games was successful. Although the Olympics created a momentum of
its own, with confidence riding high as billions were poured into development,
infighting and bureaucratic red-tape caused delays so great that in 2000 IOC
chairman Juan Antonio Samaranch warned that the games were in danger. By the end
of 2002, the IOC was more confident about the progress Athens had made, but
still concerned about whether everything would be finished on time.
Finally, Athens succeded to organise the best Olympic Games ever. |
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Athens today |
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It is difficult to include in half a page all the interesting parts and
sightseeing of a modern city of 5 millions population and history that
goes 3.000 years back , like Athens. Therefore we will try to present you
the most important to our opinion and through the local directory, which you can
find at the end of this page, you can explore Athens and Attica in general for
more details.
- Acropolis: Visiting Acropolis is a must for any Athens' visitor. The "rock" is a
monument for all humanity and the temples you can see there -like Parthenon- are
unique by all means. Next to Acropolis there is a museum, where are
concentrated all the ancient relics which where found at the area.
- Odeon of Herodes Atticus: The
theater was built next to Acropolis for the ancient writers (like Sophocles or
Euripides) to present their dramas or comedies. Today the theater is still in use!!! allowing
artists from all over the world (mostly classic music but also all kind of
performances, like a Russian classic ballet or an ethnic theater group from Bali )
to perform their act.
- Agora: Was the place where the Athenians
where gathered for voting, chatting and in general presenting their opinion
for the public issues. Orators and philosophers like Plato and Aristotelis
spent most of their time here.
- Plaka: Is the oldest
section of Athens. Most of the streets have been closed to
automobile traffic, though you should still keep a watchful eye for a
speeding motorcycle or delivery truck. At one time it was the
nightclub district, but most of these closed down when government outlawed
amplified music in the area in the late 70s, in an effort to get rid of
undesirables. The strategy was very successful and Plaka in now an
area of restaurants, cafes and tourist shops. Though it is quit commercialized
it is still a neighborhood and arguably the nicest in central Athens.
- Poseidon Temple: The
Temple of Poseidon, at the very end of Cape Sounio, was dedicated to the
god of the Sea, Poseidon. A yachtsman can visit the temple by anchoring in
the small sheltered bay next to the temple's cliffs and then walk to the
monument.
Entertainment
In Athens you
will find more than 200 movie houses, 80 theaters and an endless number of
bars, restaurants and night clubs. The vehicle traffic at 04:00 am
at Poseidonos Av., which is one of the night life centers during the
summer, is more than what it is at any time during the day. Alimos
and Flisvos marinas are located next to Poseidonos Av., when Zea marina is
an entertainment center by itself close to the center of Piraeus.
Lack of trees -and green
in general- is one of Athens' weakest points, as well as the atmosphere
pollution which though has been relatively reduced the last decade.
Also the sea pollution has been reduced, especially after the biological
waste cleaning factory started operating in the late 80's.
Today, fish
returned to the Athenian coasts and one can swim at the beach next to
Alimos marina. Fifteen years ago swimming there was out of any
question. |
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Athens hotels
Visit this page to find more about
Athens
hotels
or, if you like me to assist you with
your choice, please
send me an e-mail with your questions and enquiries. I will be glad to reply and
assist you, wherever I possibly can. |
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