Travelled down to Athens today by train, very smooth and scenic journey. We booked first class tickets so had a very comfortable cabin arrangement, would definitely recommend this way of travelling. The cost was £110 for both of us, an equivalent first class train journey in the UK would cost nearly £400 !! – Outrageous.
We found our apartment in Athens easily, which is another well appointed, comfortable accommodation. We’ll be happy here for the next 4 days.
Day 1 in Athens we went on a guided walking tour of the Acropolis, which is amazing. The ancient atheneans were remarkable, and it is a true wonder of the world, a must see in my opinion. It is very busy of course, but well worth it. After that the tour continued around the old quarter of Athens which is named Plaka, also a very pretty and historic part of the city. Our guide Michael was superb, and a man of many talents. He sung us a ballad in the streets of Plaka as well as some religious chants inside a famous old greek temple, which were both very nice alongside his very good story telling and humour.
Day 2 in Athens we took ourselves on a self guided tour of the city we didn’t see yesterday. Started in the National gardens which are a beautiful series of footpaths, water features and an abundance of varieties of trees. At the bottom there are some famous Roman architecture and archeological sites. Walked back up to the famous olympic stadium that hosted the first modern olympic games back in 1896.
After a well deserved pit stop we then climbed Lycabettus hill with the help of a vanicular railway halfway up. There is a beautiful little greek church at the top, but the real attraction is the famous sunset you get up there and the view across to the acropolis. It was stunning, but as expected incredibly busy, so if you’re looking for a perfect spot go early.
On day 3 we decided a day at the beach was in order, so we took the metro and the tram down to Edem beach. The public transport is excellent in Athens and cheap, an all day ticket is £3.50 and you can hop on and off as much as you like. The beach was also very good, so a nice last day in Athens.
