Ancient History in Athens

Our Week Exploring the Historic Greek Capital

What pops in your mind when you hear “Athens”?

For me, it immediately transports me back to world history class in middle school.

I was always so fascinated by the Ancient Greeks, and the impact that their discoveries and societal experiments still have on the world today!

I think it is safe to say that a giant percentage of the features of modern society derived from the Greeks and the Romans.

And quite frankly, the Romans took a lot from the Greeks!

While “Ancient Greece” wasn’t a monolithic empire like Ancient Rome, it was a concentrated collection of advanced societies in the Mediterranean region such as Troy, Corinth, Sparta, and of course, Athens!

Athens is actually referred to as Αθήνα (pronounced Athena) in Greek, which is a tribute to the Greek Goddess of War.

This city-state was an absolute powerhouse, both societally and militarily, going back over 3,400 years!

It is still widely considered “the birthplace of democracy” by many historians.

After enjoying the natural beauty of Naxos, we took a 4 hour ferry ride to the Greek capital. This was the final stop for Sidney’s family, and we made sure to pack in as much as we could since they only had one full day.

Athens is basically a European metropolis and an open-air museum all wrapped into one. Some of the preserved ruins are as old as any in the continent! However, it is also a massive city with a lot of modern aspects.

After enjoying a hearty brunch the first morning, we set off for our full day of exploration!

One of our first glimpses of the bustling pace of life in Athens was walking through Monasiraki Square and the Pandrossou Street Market.

It was an overload of sensory input. Shops, souvenir stands, restaurants, cafes, and SO many people! I could tell right away that Athens has an energy to it that is almost indescribable.

I LOVE fast-paced cities!

In the midst of all of this beautiful chaos, the feature of Athens that attracts most tourists is the incredible collection of ancient artifacts and ruins scattered all around the city center.

While there are far too many landmarks to list off in this newsletter, I am sure you are all familiar with the crowning jewel of the Athens collection of historical sites.

The Acropolis!

This massive hilltop is the centerpiece of the city, and can be seen from all over.

Sitting on top of this majestic stage is the Parthenon, a temple originally built as a celebration of victory in the Greco-Persian Wars.

Construction originally started 2,469 years ago in the year 447 BC 😱

The fact that it is still standing and is visited by millions of tourists from all over the world is truly hard to even comprehend!

It is one of the oldest and most significant connections we have to the ancient world, and it was an absolute privilege to be able to see it in person!

It is undergoing some restoration at the moment, but the fact that it is still standing in relatively sound condition is bewildering.

I feel like buildings are torn down all the time in this day and age that might not even hit the half-century mark! Try 2,500 years 😳

We spent the rest of the day searching for all of the other significant landmarks and archaeological sites around the city.

We purchased a pass in the morning that gained us entry to the seven most significant sites (The Ancient Agora, Hadreon’s Library, the Roman Forum, The Temple of Zeus, the Lyceum of Aristotle, Kerameikos, and of course, the Acropolis).

I would highly recommend this to anyone planning on visiting Athens!

Even if you don’t get to all 7, it saves you a decent chunk of change. And honestly, the best part is that you don’t have to wait in the ticket line at the Acropolis.

It is also a good idea to buy the pass at one of the other sites to avoid the Acropolis line at all costs. They can be purchased at any of the 7 sites.

We heard absolute horror stories about the line at the Acropolis lasting over 2 hours with limited shade from the sun! The pass is absolutely the way to go 👍

After a full day of marveling at the city’s incredible history, we decided to have a proper send-off by enjoying cocktails at a rooftop bar with a view of the Acropolis in all its glory.

When they light it up at night, it looks absolutely majestic!

It was a truly incredible day, and it was the perfect finale to our time with Frank, Julie, and Samantha!

After we parted ways, Sidney and I actually decided to stay in Athens for a week to catch up on work! September was by far our busiest month, and we are still trying to catch up from it to this day 😂

The AirBnB prices in Athens were actually very cheap, especially out of the city center! We were also looking forward to getting a taste of life in Athens as locals rather than tourists.

We stayed in a neighborhood called Kallithea, and we absolutely loved it! It was definitely a completely different vibe than the city center. We were able to walk and get delicious coffee every morning, and there were a handful of neighborhood restaurants within a few blocks that were absolutely fantastic! And somehow also very cheap!

If you are in Athens and looking to avoid the tourist prices at restaurants and cafes, just take the metro 3 stops to Kallithea!

We took the metro all the time. It was so easy to get back to the city center. We went back to the Acropolis a few nights to catch one of the best sunset views in the city!

We got so much done that week, which was an absolute relief. We decided to treat ourselves on our last full day with a sailboat cruise around the Athens Riviera.

It was our last chance of the year to enjoy the clear waters and sunshine.

It was a perfect sendoff. We went swimming in one of the most exclusive coves along the coastline with an amazing view of a brand-new hotel that we could never afford.

We ate grilled calamari while marveling at all of the giant yachts surrounding us.

Greece was the experience of a lifetime, and we were so grateful for the opportunity to visit this beautiful place. We made sure to savor every second of it!

Next up, we went a little out of our comfort zone to a country just north of Greece. We are the only people we know that have ever visited this place! I’ll tell you more at the end of the week 😊