One of my favourite walks in Athens

One of my favourite walks in Athens is from Makrygianni to Thisio. We take the bus, get off  just before Syntagma and start walking. We did so last week, for the first time this summer.

I like this little side street because it always looks so cool and shady under all those Seville orange trees.

We very soon reached the side of the Museum of Acropolis, just by the Metro station.

Lots of cafeterias around here

We turned left at Dionysou Aeropagitou. The queue for the Acropolis was long

snaking around to the entrance

Lots of sellers of souvenirs on this stretch - this one is selling gold laurel wreaths, the kind that Olympic winners wore on their heads in Antiquity. We saw loads of those during our walk - I can't imagine people wanting to wear them, it's so corny, I guess it's the kind of tourist tat that one buys and then forgets about once back home.

A xylophone player

The Acropolis on our right

not sure what this guy was selling

We reached the main entrance of the Acropolis Museum

a better view of the Acropolis from here

One of the few Art Nouveau buildings that are left in Athens

detail

the entrance

This is such a relaxed walk

some beautiful buildings around here

I like this entrance, and its steps

no crowds anymore, which makes the walk so much more pleasant

another gorgeous building

and another

A reference to Documenta 14

an unusual little church

A good view from here of Mouseion Hill and the monument at its peak

The Philopappou Monument is an ancient Greek mausoleum dedicated to Taius Julius Antiochus Epiphanes Philopappos, a prince of the Kingdom of Commagene.

We have reached the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a stone theatre that was completed in 161 AD and then renovated in 1950. We have been to many performances here, the most memorable being a Mikis Theodorakis concert

This path leads to the second entrance to the Acropolis and I presume this is where all these people are going

We have now reached Apostolou Paulou Avenue

which will take us to Thisio.

The sanctuary of Pan. Excavations inside the underground chamber behind this entrance uncovered a relief chiselled directly on the bedrock depicting Pan, a naked Nymph and a dog. The cult of Pan in caves is well documented in the countryside of Attica during the 5th century BC.

Nice view of Lycabettus Hill from here

The church of St Marina and the Athens Observatory.

At this juncture we left the main road and turned into this side street

as we wanted to visit the Observatory where Adrian Villar Rojas' The Theatre of Disappearance exhibition is staged.

An hour and half later we retraced our steps back to Apostolou Paulou Avenue

turned right at the end of Avenue into Adrianou Street

and went to Kuzina for a delicious lunch.

A trip to Athens

We like walking through the National Garden in Athens whenever possible.

We were in the middle of a heatwave last week, so walking in the shade was extremely welcome.

The dappled light was a blessing after the relentless beating of the sun

this old tree sits between the toilets

absolutely enormous trunk and roots

We passed the garden's botanical museum

past the café.

I have never sat here, but it always looks so cool and inviting

one more photograph of this cool and relaxing space.

Just outside the gates stood this euzonas. Historically they were light infantry and mountain units of the Greek army. Today they are members of the Presidential Guard, a ceremonial unit that guards the Greek Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the presidential mansion. The unit is known for its uniform which has evolved from the clothes worn by the klephtes who fought the Ottoman occupation of Greece.

He did not even blink as I took this photograph.

A few metres up the road we came upon this klouva, (translated as cage), a police van used for arresting dissidents. There's been one parked here ever since I can remember. The so-called left-wing Syriza government had these removed when they first came to power, but now, unfortunately, everything is back to normal.

There was absolutely no need for this on the day we were in Athens as there were no demonstrations, but it's always parked here, as a reminder and a warning ...

We walked past the Cycladic Museum

across the road another klouva,

and arrived at the Byzantine Museum which was our destination.

After the exhibition we were ready for some lunch and chose Philippou as its cool interior was a welcome break from the heat.

The heat and the fact that a lot of people are away, meant that it was very quiet

like a lot of traditional tavernas you can see the kitchen and all of the 'magirevta' translated as cooked dishes (as opposed to grilled meats and fish) are on display which makes choosing easy

It's one of our favourite places, good food and good atmosphere.