Hugs

A stroll around the flea market in Monastiraki

And then lunch in Thision. The food here is awful, but they don't seem to care... it is so beautiful here that people will come and sit regardless, which is what we did, even though we knew we would not enjoy what was on offer. There are so many cafes and eateries here, and on Saturdays and Sundays it feels as if the whole of Athens descends here to enjoy the views of the Acropolis and to people watch...

We then walked up Ermou Street and then Syntagma Square which were  incredibly busy as it was Saturday. All along we saw loads of young people holding placards which said 'Free hugs' and who would walk up to passers by and offer a hug. Tatiana told us that this is becoming quite common and is almost turning into a movement.

The hug givers were mainly young women, but there were a few men as well...



 

And here is the hug giving in action... quite intense, I would say...

We could also hear music and then we saw this sign which read ' The tango is another form of hugging'

And sure enough, there were quite a few people dancing the tango. Alas, both of my companions were too shy to join me in a dance....



A walk around Plaka

Yesterday was another gorgeous day so we thought we would go for a walk around Plaka.



First stop, the new Acropolis Museum



 

A sunny day so the reflections on the glass are very clear and strong



A row of olive trees in the garden on the side of the Museum

The excavations are continuing, including  at the entrance



The floor by the entrance is made of glass - very disconcerting to walk on, particularly as you can see the archaelogists working below: this lot were examining some finds that they had on their table

this guy on the other hand  is restoring a piece of mosaic



Moving on to one of the few remaining art nouveau houses in Athens. The government wanted to pull it down so that there would be a straight view from the Museum to the Acropolis but public outcry made them abandon this plan.

Detail: as you can see it is Art Nouveau but Athenian style

More detail



Next,  'Diogenes' lamp'



Time for lunch in the sunshine at Dioskouri which must be one of the best places in Athens, not just for the view as you can see the Observatory and Thision in the distance, but also because it has the best meze for ouzo.

A partial view of the Acropolis

The 'four winds' with the Acropolis in the background.

And then a taxi to take us home, as there is yet another public transport strike.

Vasso Katraki

The main square in Glyfada is called Vasso Katraki. I have always wondered who Vasso Katraki was particularly since naming streets or indeed squares after women is pretty rare. Now I know. The Museum of Cycladic Art have staged an exhibition of Katraki's work and what a delight it is!

This is to be found in the permanent collection of the Museum. Cycladic art flourished four to five thousand years ago.

Katraki has been heavily influenced by Cycladic art.

Most of her work is carvings on stone - she quite often used those carvings to make prints.

This is one of my favourites - it is called 'loneliness'. So simple yet so powerful.

and this is the print of the stone carving

This is a drawing on rough wrapping paper which is heavily creased. She made this in Yaros where she was exiled during the dark years of the junta. Yaros is a rocky island where the Colonels set up camps where they imprisoned, beat and tortured anyone they saw as a threat. It was a very difficult time in her life so this drawing is particularly poignant.

A group of figures.

Flowers

Whenever I go to Kolonaki I always go past Antonello as their window is a work of art. It changes every week and it is always so inspired, colourful and vibrant. The only other place I have seen such beautiful flower design is in Holland.

This was their window last week.

This week's window is an early celebration of Valentine's Day. What about these heart shaped trees made  of red butterflies.

A closer look reveals the red birds, almost the same shade of red as the roses.



A look through the door into the shop itself...

Muted colours here, but oh so stylish!

A perfect day

We went to the Benaki Museum on Vasilissis Sofias yesterday to look at the 'Time, people and their stories' exhibition. What made this exhibition interesting, besides the exhibits, was the fact that the sculptures, installations, paintings and projections were scattered amongst the permanent exhibits of ancient Greek sculptures, 18th + 19th century jewellery, costumes, etc. There was no map, so it was a magical mystery tour of all three floors, trying to find all the modern exhibits.

This gave me a shock, as at first I did not realise that this was not a 'live' person and furthermore, one without a head!

We then went on to this, a sculpture made of strip lights, some wearing clothes.

Ken had to have a sit down here.

This is called 'subversion'. It reminded us of recent events in Athens and the May '68 slogan of  'sous les paves, la plage'.

A 'bling' skeleton (Damian Hirst, eat your heart out) set in the middle of a rood screen.



Another rood screen, this time with Mickey Mouse holding an electric candle. Quite iconoclastic, particularly in a theocracy like Greece.

We loved this one. This was in a small room representing a 19th century home. These men wearing underpants were projected onto the panelling. You could hear water dripping and occasionally a voice murmuring 'underpants'.

A big installation in the middle of the floor, fluorescent lights again and men wearing pyjamas, or is it convicts' clothes or those of concentration camp victims?



This was on the edge of the atrium. The figure is holding a hurriane lamp on a long wire which is suspended over the atrium, dangling just above the head of an ancient greek statue.

Difficult to see at this angle, but this figure has three legs. Ken couldn't get a word out of him.

We then went up to the second floor terrace to look at Stratos Kavalieratos' windpowered sculptures: they are studded with small lightbulbs which are switched on by the movement of the propellers - must be quite a sight at night.

The terrace with its flowers and lemon trees in pots looked so gorgeous, so we had to stay there and have lunch. It was a glorious, warm, sunny day and the lunch was delicious.

A perfect day!

A stroll by the sea

When it is warm and sunny there is nothing better than going for a walk by the sea. So, we leave the house, walk down our street, cross the busy and hazardous for pedestrians main road, and there we are...



overlooking the beach where we go swimming in the summer. The sand sculpture is there most days in winter, re-drawn every morning, the same shape more or less...

We then walk down the road to the next beach, a beautiful rounded bay which is extremely busy with swimmers in the summer, but quiet in winter except for the occasional winter swimmer, some joggers and loads of seagulls.

We then get to my favourite bit where you get a view of the wide expanse of sea, the most vivid blue on a sunny day.

There are always boats to be seen

the rewards are great if you look closely.

We then walk on to the end of the quay where we can see Piraeus in the distance.

We saw a fisherwoman there the other day and she had caught this fish - she was beating it ferociously and stamping on it with her feet. We asked her why she was doing this and she said that this was a scorpion fish whose sting is extremely painful so she had to kill it before putting it gingerly in a plastic bag, ready for making delicious soup.

 We then retrace our steps and go into the marina where we look at the larger boats. There are always loads of people about working on their boats or just sitting on deck enjoying the sunshine.

On the way back we always have another close look at the sea and the way the sun reflects on its surface.
Divine!