10 TIPS ON HOW TO SURVIVE ATHENS

by Kathryn Koromilas

Chaos has ruled Athens since ancient times and with a record number of visitors set to arrive this August the god of disorder will be hovering in the wings. Want to survive your visit like an authentic Athenian? Stick to these insider basics:

1. Decoding chaos

With a map in hand, Athens is easy to navigate. There’s method to this city’s madness: All roads start from Syntagma Square.

From the airport take the E95 bus downtown for only €2.90 (US$3.50). At Syntagma note the familiar M of the McDonald’s: Athenians use this as meeting point. You should too. From here, the Acropolis and the old town is straight ahead and a little to the left. Mt Lycabettus (Lykavittos) is the highest peak behind you to the right. The Panathinako Stadium (home to the first modern Games in 1896) is behind you to your left. To your right the city is organized along three parallel roads, Stadiou, Eleftherios Venizelou (Panepistimiou) and Akadimias.

Found a room somewhere central and reasonably economical? If you’re lucky, the sleek Hotel Plaka or the bohemian Acropolis House (6 Kodrou St) in the old town might have vacancies. Also, try the Cecil Hotel on bustling Athinas Street or even the Acropolis Select close to the Sacred Rock. Is money no object? Well, the historic Grande Bretagne is right on the square! 

2. Stocking essentials

Buy your water, bus tickets (isitiria), phone cards (tilekarta for card phones, hronokarta for all phones), snacks and local English-language papers, Athens News and the Kathimerini (in the International Herald Tribune), at one of the hundreds of kiosks. 

3. Getting around

Walk! The area around the Acropolis is now a tranquil pedestrian zone. The official Olympics website lists five archaeological walks.

The Metro (subway system) will get you to places like the Byzantine Museum and the National Gallery of Art.

If you must hail a taxi: Take a deep breath and step OFF the pavement ONTO the road. When a yellow taxi slows up to you, holler your destination through the window. If it stops, GET IN!

4. Ordering coffee

Get it icy cold, in two varieties: frappe (instant) and freddo (espresso). The latter is more chic. Ask for it sketo, if you don’t want sugar, or gliko, if you do. For milk, me gala. Ward off any unwelcomed advance while sipping your coffee as Athenians do: avoid eye contact and raise your eyebrows.

 

5. Finding souvlaki

You’ll find the best at Thanassis or Savvas on Mitropoleos Street in Monastiraki. Specify pita for the rolled sandwich, xylaki for souvlaki on stick, or merida geeros for a plate. Save money by eating only one sit-down meal a day. The Everest at Omonia Square has a healthy selection of sandwiches.

6. Going shopping

Saturday morning: stylish Ermou opposite Syntagma. Sunday morning: colorful Flea Markets in Monastiraki’s Abyssinia Square. Kolonaki, for the hottest club attire and designer jewelry and Kiffissia for the aristocratic taste. For tourist fare: Adrianou Street in Plaka. Certified copies of ancient jewelry designs can be found at Vyzantio and the well-regarded Korres beauty products (Nicole Kidman uses them) at pharmacies. Find a bead shop and make your own amulets to keep away the evil eye! 

7. Studying culture

It’s the best time to be visiting museums since they’ve undergone major renovations. There’s even a new Acropolis Museum and an Islamic Art Museum. Consult the Culture Guide. Ancient artifacts are on exhibit everywhere you look: at the Metro stations and at the Airport.

A concert under the stars is a must: See the Hellenic Festival programme or for events at the Herod Atticus Theater (Irodion), Theater atop Lykavittos Hill or the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus (outside Athens). 

8. Dining a la Greek.

Order the house wine (hima) and try Diporto in the Varvakios Agora (Central Market) on Athinas Street: cheap and scrumptious. The ouzeries around Heroes Square (Platia Iroon) in Psyrri, once the roughest of neighborhoods, offer traditional mezedes. Be sure to add plenty of ice to your ouzo. For traditional Greek fare try Plaka’s Kidathineon Square, or the century-old Taverna Tou Psarra on Erechtheous. Something less carnivorous? Athens’s very first vegetarian restaurant, Eden, is on Lyssiou.

 

9. Breaking party records

All you need is a copy of Athinorama and a Greek who’ll help you find where these clubs migrate during the summer months: Plus Soda, Privilege, Bo, Akrotiri.

Along Thisseion’s Iraklidon Street daytime cafes transform into pumping bar-restaurants by night. Stavlos is a favorite. In Psyrri, music and crowds spill out from tiny bars (Bee and Astron are the coolest) onto the street. And for something totally over the top, try the live shows at the bouzoukia at Apollon on Syngrou or Rex on Panepistimiou. You’ll pay over €100 or US$120 a table and a bottle of whisky.

10. Surviving Athenian hangovers.

Done partying? Haul yourself into a taxi and say, Varvakios Agora, parakalo. Take a seat at one of the six patsathika and order…patsa. Tripe soup, of course! That’ll get your stomach back in order! Greeks honor!

Wait. The rest of Greece? The islands are a boat ride away, the birthplace of the ancient Games, Olympia, is only an interstate bus ride away, as are the other four Olympic cities (Thessaloniki, Patras, Volos and Iraklion). Then there’s the western coast with its lure of endless beaches and the mystical River Styx, the Gates of Hades, the victory city of Nikopolis and Dodoni, the navel of the world.

[Published in FIT.STYLE, 2004]