Athens probably has the most long-standing and impressive cultural heritage of any city in Europe. This pedigree is not confined to past greatness - the city has a number of international performance groups and a continued enthusiasm for the arts is expressed annually at the Athens Festival. In 1985, Athens became the first European city of culture. The idea to showcase the cultural achievements of cities around the continent was conceived by Melina Mercouri, a Greek actress turned politician.
In addition to the venues detailed below, a variety of English-language cultural events are also on offer at the British Council, Plateia Kolonaki 17 (Phone: (010) 369 2333; fax: (01) 363 4769; website: www.britishcoucil.gr), or at the Hellenic American Union, Massalias 22 (Phone: (010) 368 0000; website: www.hau.gr).
During the summer, tickets for all performances included within the Athens Festival and the Athens International Jazz and Blues Festival are sold at the Athens Festival Box Office, Stadiou 4 (Phone: (010) 322 1459; website: www.greekfestival.gr). Tickets to other cultural events are available for purchase direct from the venue box offices.
Metropolitan Radio Athens (98.4FM) broadcasts a listing of cultural events in English daily at 0730 and 2030.
Music
Many tavernas, particularly in the Plaka, put on music and dance shows at night. Most shows are designed for tourists but are lively and entertaining nonetheless. The more authentic Greek music in Athens consists of dhimotika - folk songs accompanied by guitar, clarinet and violin - and rembetika. The latter is a kind of Greek blues, developed by refugees from Asia Minor in the 1920s. The music combines Middle Eastern and Greek influences and the lyrics deal with the lives of the city's poor and outcast.
The city's major classical music groups are the Athens State Orchestra and the Greek National Opera (website: www.nationalopera.gr). The orchestra holds many of its performances at the Megaron Mousikis Athenon (Athens Concert Hall), Leoforos Vassilissis Sofias (Phone: (010) 728 2333). This modern venue hosts ballet, opera and classical music events as well as conferences and exhibitions. The main auditorium seats 2000 and there is also a 500-seat recital hall named after the Greek conductor and composer Dimitri Mitropoulos. The Greek National Opera is based at the Olympia Theatre, Akadimias 59-61 (Phone: (010) 361 2461), which also hosts operas and musical events performed by touring companies and musicians.
Theatre
The tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripedes, and the comedies of Aristophanes represent the highpoints of ancient Greek theatre and heralded the birth of Western drama. The original performances were held in the Theatro Dionysou (Theatre of Dionysos), on the southern slopes of the Acropolis. This stone auditorium, from the fourth century BC, held 17,000 spectators and remains one of the most atmospheric of Athens' ancient sites. The ruins are open daily 0830-1430. Nearby, the Odion Iródou Attikou (Odeon of Herod Atticus) is a Roman theatre from the second century AD, also known as the Herodeion (Phone: (010) 722 7209). The auditorium is usually only open on summer evenings, for the Athens Festival, when it provides an impressive setting for performances of music and classical drama. The outdoor Lykavittós theatre, on Lykavittós Hill (Phone: (010) 722 7209), hosts a range of plays and concerts throughout the summer. Altogether, there are around 50 theatres in Athens performing between October and May. However, visitors without fluent Greek may be restricted to the English-language performances of touring companies.
Dance
The Dora Stratou Dance Theatre (Phone: (010) 324 4395) was founded 35 years ago, by a dancer and devotee of Greek folk culture. In summer, the troupe - dressed in traditional costume - puts on a show of exuberant Greek song and dance at an open-air theatre on Filopappou (Philopapps Hill). The National Ballet Company performs in the Olympia Theatre, Akadimias 59-61 (Phone: (010) 361 2461).
Film
Athens may not be Hollywood but, with hundreds of traditional and modern cinemas throughout the city, the Greek capital is an excellent place to see a film. Many are closed in summer when dozens of open-air screens take over to create impromptu cinemas, such as Cine Pallini, Venizelou 3 and Marathonos Aveneu, Pallini (Phone: (010) 666 6815/284), which provides chairs and tables in a garden setting, and Thission, Paylou 7, Thissio (Phone: (010) 347 0980 or 342 0864) with a view of the Acropolis. Asty, Korai 4, off Panepistimou, shows arthouse movies. About 90% of films are shown in the original language. The local press provides listings of English-language films.
One of the most respected Greek film directors is Theo Angelopoulos whose credits include the 1995 film, To Vlemma tou Odyssea (Ulysses' Gaze), starring Harvey Keitel. His 1998 film, Mia Aioniotita ke Mia Mera (Eternity and a Day), won the Palme D'Or at the 51st Cannes Film Festival. Other directors to watch out for are Michael Cacoyannis - director of Zorba the Greek (1962) - Alexis Damianos, Kostas Ferris, Pandelis Voulgaris, Tonia Marketaki and Nikos Panayotopoulos.
Cultural events
The Athens Festival (website: www.greekfestival.gr) takes place every summer (June to September). This major international festival was inaugurated in 1955 and combines music, modern and classical theatre, and contemporary and traditional dance. Venues for the festival are the Herod Atticus Theatre, the open-air theatre on Lykavittós Hill, the Veákio amphitheatre in Piraeus and the amphitheatre at Epidaurus. The Athens Festival box office, Stadiou 4 (Phone: (010) 322 1459), is open Monday to Saturday 0830-1400 and 1700-1900 and Sunday 1030-1300. Unsold tickets are available from 1800 at the Herod Atticus Theatre box office on the evening of the performance. The Athens International Jazz and Blues Festival takes place in June - tickets are available from the Athens Festival box office.
Literary Notes
This classical city is most closely revisited through the classical authors. Of particular interest are The Histories (fifth century BC) by Herodotus, The Rise and Fall of Athens (first century) by Plutarch, and History of the Peloponnesian War (fifth century BC) by Thucydides. More recent accounts of the city include The Longest Night - Chronicles of a Dead City (1985), a collection of stories by Petros Haris evoking the atmosphere in Athens during World War II. The Greek myths provide an essential background to the achievements of Classical Athens - the most celebrated sources being the Iliad and the Odyssey (ninth century BC) by Homer, as well as works by Hesiod. Classical drama is at its best on stage but is also available to read in translation. Some of the most important works include Prometheus Bound and the Oresteia (fifth century BC) trilogy by Aeschylus, Antigone, Oedipus Rex and Electra (fifth century BC) by Sophocles, Trojan Women and Iphigeneia in Taurus (fifth century BC) by Euripedes and The Frogs and The Birds (fifth century BC) by Aristophanes. The Noble Prize winner, Odysseus Elytis, died in Athens in 1996. His poems can be read in English in The Collected Poems of Odysseus Elytis
Enjoy yourself in the open-air – swim, sunbathe, stroll in the park or devote some time to sports!
Athens area beaches
All beaches are run by the Greek National Tourist Organization and are open April-October 8 am-7 pm.
The beaches at Palio Faliro and Piraeus have signs warning you of the high levels of pollution. Believe them. The Greek National Tourist Organization (Phone: 01/331-0561 or 01/331-0562)can give you a list of their beaches, which have snack bars, beach umbrellas, dressing rooms, and sports equipment for rent. Most are open from 8 AM to 7 PM in summer; tickets range from EUR1.46-EUR2.34. The main beaches close to Athens are found at the shoreline in the regions by the same name: Alimos (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237); Porto Rafti (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237); Voula (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237); Vouliagmeni (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237); and Varkiza (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237). Vouliagmeni Lake (Phone: 01/982-7064; 0299/72-572; 01/895-3296 1st beach; 01/895-9587 2nd beach; 01/896-0906; 01/897-2402; 01/896-2237), whose spring-fed waters are reputed to have curative powers, is popular with older Greeks. The lake opens at 6:30 AM; tickets are EUR3.22. A number of pleasant tavernas line the sandy shoreline.
Beach volleyball games open to the public begin in July at Palio Faliro, Skinies, and Palaia Fokaia beaches.
Parks
National Garden and Zappeio Park. The National Garden is a sprawling, peaceful stretch of green amidst the noise and traffic of central Athens. You'll find peacocks, a playground and a small zoo. If you bear to the right on entering the garden, you'll come to Zappeio Park, the centerpiece of which is Zappeion Hall. This building was originally constructed to hold the first modern Olympic Games. Now it's an exhibition hall. The National Garden is open sunrise to dusk. Main entrance on Amalias Avenue, next to theParliament.
Pedion tou Areos. This large park offers a playground and the occasional peacock. Open sunrise to dusk. On the corner of Patission and Alexandras Avenue.
Lykavittos Hill. An absolute must for any visitor to Athens, but especially for those on a rush visit. In one hour, you can "see" the whole of Athens because you can spot the central landmarks of the city (including the Acropolis and the Olympic Stadium) as well as the farthest coast and surrounding mountains.
Kifissias Park. By Athenian standards (though not European or North American), this is a large park with water fountains and lush greenery. An impressive flower show takes place in the park every May.
Spectator and Recreation Sports
Aegean Dive Shop
31 Pandoras
Phone: +30 01-894-5409
The Aegean is a lovely place to dive, but the wealth of sunken antiquities makes it illegal in most places. However, the Aegean Dive Shop arranges day
trips to the nearest diveable spot near Athens - a reef off Vouliagmeni.
Athens Tennis Club
2 Vasilissis Olgas Ave.
Phone: +30 01-923-2872
Courts are open to non-members for EUR8.8 per hour; be sure to phone ahead.
Glyfada Golf Course
Phone: +30 01-894-6820
Golf isn't very big in Greece, where grass is a rare commodity, and this is the only course in greater Athens. Fortunately, this one-of-a-kind 18-hole course
is open to the public. Green fees are approximately EUR35.2 on weekdays, EUR47 on weekends. Glyfada is open from sunrise until sunset.
Hellenic Federation of Submarine Activities
Aghios Kosmas
Phone: +30 01-981-9961
Learn to swim or dive at this highly-recognized training center with a fine name.
Hilton Pool
46 Vassilis Sofias
Phone: +30 01-725-0201
If you're dying for a dip in central Athens, the Hilton Hotel has a large outdoor pool open daily to non-guests. Admission (about EUR22) includes showers,
towel, and a chair to be lazy in.
Olympic (or Athens) Stadium
In the fourth century B.C., this was the site of the Panathenaic athletic games, part of the great festival in honor of the goddess Athena. Under the
Romans it found a new role - for blood sports - and was restored in the second century A.D. by Herodes Atticus. The original white marble, all quarried
away, was replaced in 1896 when the stadium was used to host the first modern Olympics. Athletic events are held here, and it will be an important venue
for the 2004 Olympics.
Olympic Stadium
Panathinaikos and Olympiakos share the brand new 68,000-seater Olympic Stadium in the northern suburb of Maroussi.
Peace and Friendship Stadium
The home of Olymiakos is the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus. Panathinaikos and AEK share the basketball stadium next to the new Olympic stadium in Maroussi.
The A. Karagiorga Waterskiing School
Vouliagmeni Beach
Phone: +30 01-896-0939
School can be fun - especially with speedboats, qualified staff, and a special space for children. The waterskiing school operates from March 1 through to
June 15 and October 1 through to November 30.
The G. Kassidokosta School
Astir Vouliagmeni Beach
Phone: +30 01-896-0820
The G. Kssidokost School, which operates year-round, has windsurfing lessons with qualified instructors, speedboats, and Laser craft.
The Vitoratos School
Varkiza Beach
Phone: +30 01-897-2412
Open from April 1 through to October 31, the Vitoratos School has speedboats, Lasers, windsurfers, expert staff, and dressing rooms.
