Travel to Athens, Greece – Episode 832

Hear about travel to Athens, Greece as the Amateur Traveler talks to travel writer Sally Jane Smith about Athens as a stop on the way to the Peloponnese Peninsula. 

Sally Jane says, “Athens isn’t the focus of the itinerary, but it would be a terrible pity if you went to Greece and didn’t see Athens, especially if it was your own visit, your first visit. ”

How many days should you spend in Athens? Sally says:

You could happily spend a week there without running out of things to do. But I’ve given us two days in Athens, and I’m not going to detail blow by blow everything that you would see there because you already have two episodes that talk about Athens in some depth.”

We talk about some of the obvious places like the Parthenon and the Parthenon Museum but focus more on the Roman Agora and the Ancient Agora and out-of-the-way places like the Pnyx which was the heart of the Athenian Republic. A visit to the small Agios Demetrios Loumbardiaris church begs the question “did God save this church from a Turkish canon”? 

Everyone loves the Tower of the Winds at the Roman Agora… but did you notice the very public restrooms? When you are at the Ancient Agora, don’t overlook the Church of the Holy Apostles which dates back to the late 10th century. The Bath House of the winds is a public bathhouse from the Turkish period that is now a museum.

Sally Jane doesn’t normally recommend a hop-on hop-off tour but finds it a good way to get around in Athens. Also, the one she recommends from City Sightseeing Athens comes with free walking tours.

We end this trip to Athens with a trip to the beach and to Lake Vouliagmeni where little tiny fish can give you a pedicure by eating the dead skin on your feet. On the way back to town Sally Jane recommends a stop at the Church of Agios Sostis which was moved to Athens from Paris after a World’s Fair and commemorates an unsuccessful attempt on the life of King George I  the first king of modern Greece.

Many people leave Athens for the islands through the port of Piraeus. While you are near the port stop for a seafood meal at Mikrolimano Harbor.

Athens is an amazing city that is worth visiting on its own or as the start of a larger itinerary in Greece.

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Show Notes

Sally Jane Smith
Travel to Greece – Episode 96
Travel to England and Greece Revisited – Episode 138
Travel to the Mainland of Greece – Episode 449
Peloponnese
Athens
City Sightseeing Athens (hop on hop off)
Panathenaic Stadium
Areopagus (Mars Hill)
Agios Demetrios Loumbardiaris
Pnyx
Acropolis Museum
Roman Agora
The Bathhouse of the Winds
Athens Guide: Monastiraki
Monastiraki Square
Ancient Agora of Athens
Church of the Holy Apostles, Athens
Kalamaki Bar
Paradox Project – Escape Room
Arch of Hadrian
Temple of Olympian Zeus, Athens
Lake Vouliagmeni
Church of Agios Sostis
Port of Piraeus
Mikrolimano Harbor
Unpacking for Greece: Travel in a Land of Fortresses, Fables, Ferries and Feta

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