Athens Round-up

A random round up of Athens things and places:

Do not underestimate the temperatures. Super obvious but I chose to travel mid May hoping that the weather would be a little cooler than the height of summer, which of course it was, but only because summer in Athens that year hit record breaking highs and many of the outdoor sites including the Acropolis shut down to visitors. This was perhaps unusual, though with climate change it’s probably the new normal. The temperature while I was there was in the 28-29C range the whole time and didn’t really let up even in the afternoon/late evenings. I had the idea that I’d do outdoor sites early in the morning and then in the afternoon when it was cooler but soon gave up on that idea and was just careful about keeping to the shade where possible.

I walked pretty much everywhere from my centrally located hotel except when going to and from the airport. Usually I navigate around on public transport but decided to treat myself to taxis just for the ease of it. It was very efficient and I had a nice chat about the history of the city with my first driver; it takes roughly 40 minutes to 1 hour to get from the airport to central Athens. While I did learn a few basics of Greek before my trip English is widely spoken and many menus and signs have English translations so its very easy to communicate and get around.

I stayed at the Marblous which was great, very centrally located with friendly staff. I ended up being upgraded to a room with a balcony which was very handy in the late evenings, especially as a building across the way was projecting Charlie Chaplin films on to its walls. I’m still not sure if the building was a private residence or some sort of hotel.

One highlight of the stay was the breakfasts which were delicious and full of variety. You could choose from quite a lot of options every day and have it delivered to your room, which is what I chose to do, or eat in the seating area on the ground floor which from what I saw could get quite busy. I don’t usually take photos of the food I eat when I’m travelling but I did take some to share in the family Whatsapp.

Greeks eat late, so I did as Greeks do and didn’t head out until the evening until around 8.30/9pm. I had no set idea about where to eat so I just walked along main roads and then turned down side streets to see what looked interesting. I have no idea if what I ate was “authentic” but I can say that I never had a bad meal anywhere. I’m also terrible at taking pictures of the places I’m eating so i can’t tell you the names of most of these restaurants. I did want to try all the Greek food I could though and at various places tried gyros, plaka and souvlakis among other things.

A note about dining out – card payments are ubiquitous and generally preferred. I did however tip in cash which was much appreciated.

Safety: As a woman who largely travels alone this is always a concern and Athens has a bit of a reputation, like many European cities for pickpockets. I personally didn’t have any problems in this regard and never felt unsafe even walking around late at night, so just take the usual precautions you would in any large city and always know how to get back to where you’re staying.

And so ends my posts about Athens! Up next, Arundel in West Sussex.