Saturday, June 8, 2013

An Athens Layover

We had quite the journey traveling from the Dominican Republic to Santorini nearly 2 weeks ago!  Our route was Santo Domingo - Newark (NJ) - Geneva, Switzerland - Athens - Santorini and spanned 40 hours.  On day 2 we arrived in Athens, Greece around 3:30 PM and stayed until 5:30 the next morning.  

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We slept in the airport hotel which was a luxurious Sofitel hotel; I actually wish I had at least one more night there because it was so fabulous.  The bed felt like clouds, the shower had its own room (enormous for European standards) and the bathroom was stocked with Philosophy toiletries..  Bliss.  But anyway, moving on... 

It costs 14 euros for a round trip ticket to the city (sheesh!) and takes about 45 minutes.  We walked for 5 hours in Athens and nearly saw half the city.  

What We Did in Athens: 

*Syntagma Square - this is the center of Athens and where you should go for more high end shopping.  This is also where the nicer architecture of the city is (other areas are packed with decrepit buildings and lots of graffiti).


*Plaka - this is the picturesque neighborhood that leads up to the Acropolis and where you'll find Greek taverns and lots of small shops.  Great photo ops here. 

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*Acropolis {and Parthenon} - it is perched up on a high hill, you will definitely work up a sweat when hiking up to its entrance!  Since we didn't have much time we decided to not pay the 12 euro entrance fee (and quite frankly we found it a bit expensive), so we just took pictures from afar.

*Monastiraki - the "flea market" with library ruins right in the middle of it all.  Here you can find all sorts of shops and some produce stands - we took a short break and munched on a kilo of fresh cherries for 2 euros!  Don't forget to haggle.


*National Gardens - right smack in the center of Athens, these gardens are such an escape from the traffic, honking horns, and smog.  I loved walking around the quiet, maze like trails and admiring all the greenery.  It would be the perfect place for a picnic or an evening jog. 


*Panathaneic Stadium - the home of the olympics!  You can enter, walk (or run) on the track and hike the stadium seating.


With no sleep on our transatlantic flight, we were pretty dead at this point, so we had a quick souvlaki (the traditional Greek gyro), witnessed a protest (sadly they are too frequent in Athens), and headed back to our hotel.


Athens is a hard city to rate.  I wouldn't use the words beautiful nor cosmopolitan to describe it; maybe its simply the history that gives it its charm.  Nonetheless, its worth a quick visit  - on a layover, perhaps. 

9 comments:

  1. Greece in general has always been a dream of mine. I love history so just seeing the Parthenon would be enough for me! Athens looks like a nice city to visit :)

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  2. can't wait to see pictures of your new home!

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  3. I'd love to see Athens, but like you said, and I hear this from other people too, Athens is sort of a see it and then you're done sort of place.

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  4. I've never been, but maybe I'll get to visit for a quick weekend one day. You've sold it well :)

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  5. We went to Athens last summer. While we enjoyed our time there, we probably wouldn't go back. I would LOVE to see Santorini! Hope you're enjoying Greece. :)

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  6. Loved Greece and Athens. Plaka is so cute don't you think?

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  7. Love this post! You just made me want to go to Athens!!!

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