PicsFromTrips

Ending our trip with a few days in the city Athens is such a great city. So many of the descriptions of the city start with excuses that Athens is not some historic village with toga-wearing locals. Does anyone really expect this? Yes, it's a big city. Yes, there's traffic. Yes, I imagine it's pretty damn hot and dirty in August. But in late October/Late November? The weather was perfect: Cool enough to enjoy walking around without sweating and downing water at every chance but warm enough for eating outside (perhaps with a sweater).. The other things the books will tell you is that "it's a lot better since the Olympics" and yeah, that could have provided more pedestrian-friendly streets and more subway lines, but that can't explain the strong cafe-culture or friendly people. These things don't pop up overnight. We enjoyed the food and the cafes and walking around some of the neighborhoods but of course what most people are in Athens for are the sites and they don't disappoint. The Acropolis and surrounding areas really are impressive. We especially liked walking around the parks in this area of town. In our book Athens definitely gets the thumbs up!