Things to do in Athens
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Aigaion
Since 1826, this no-frills basement haunt has served up an endless supply of loukoumadhes (ball-shaped doughnuts) served with honey and walnuts. There are also cheese pies and other sweets, such as rice pudding.
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Piraeus Flea Market
This busy Sunday market around the streets along the railway line has everything from cheap clothing to tools. For antiques and collectables, you’re better off scouring the area’s excellent antique shops during the week.
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Pil Poul
For fine dining and romance under the Acropolis, Pil Poul’s rooftop terrace is hard to beat. This classy 1920s neoclassical mansion has a modern Mediterranean menu with strong French influences. Dress up and book ahead.
reviewed
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Balux House Project
This cast glass–fronted beach house is an all-day hangout set up as a series of living rooms. The youthful crowd lounges around playing cards, board games or pool, surfing the net, or curled up in a beanbag with a book.
reviewed
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E
Hill of the Pnyx
The meeting place of the Democratic Assembly in the 5th century BC. Among the great orators who addressed assemblies here were Aristides, Demosthenes, Pericles and Themistocles. The site offers great views over Athens.
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Theatre Museum
Aspiring thespians can visit the Theatre Museum to see memorabilia from the 19th and 20th centuries, including costumes, props and reconstructions of the dressing rooms of Greece's most celebrated 20th-century actors.
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Hell’s Kitchen
Behind the town hall, this newcomer is a great place to lunch on wholesome burgers and western-style cuisine. In the evenings it livens up with drinkers sipping mojitos, watching the area’s seedier elements parade by.
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Kuzina
Kuzina serves creative modern-Greek cuisine in an ambient setting on the pavement next to the Temple of Hephaestus, with the Acropolis looming above. The interior design is superb, as is the view from the rooftop bar.
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Flying Pig Pub
Run by friendly Greek Australians, the Pig is a popular bar with the shipping crowd in central Piraeus. There’s a large range of beers on tap and it also serves decent pub food, including a generous English breakfast.
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Museum of the History of Greek Costume
Run by the Lyceum of Greek Women, this museum has changing exhibitions from its comprehensive collection of regional costumes, jewellery and accessories. The gift shop sells books on folk culture and handmade crafts.
reviewed
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Scoutway
Scoutway runs a range of innovative interactive tours and day trips, from Athens nightlife, an ancient Greece theme walk, hikes, mountain biking to the ancient mines at Lavrio and bungee jumping on the Corinth Canal.
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Tiki Athens
Funky ‘50s décor, an Asian-inspired menu, and an alternative hip, young crowd make this a fun place for a drink. Sample the impressive cocktail list to eclectic sounds ranging from jazz and rockabilly to Tom Waits.
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Mousikes Skies
An intimate venue run by a charming singer and bouzouki-player couple with a program of laïka (urban pop music), entekna (‘artistic’ music) and rembetika (Greek blues), and an arty crowd.
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Kalogirou
Shoe fetishists will love the offerings in colours and styles to blow the imagination and budget, with top international designers and Kologirou’s own creations. Avoid the Saturday morning rush by the boutique set.
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Magaze
With tables on the pedestrian strip near Plateia Agias Irinis looking up to the Acropolis, this gay-friendly place is popular day and night. If you’re lost you can check out the large-scale Athens map on the wall.
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Vardis
Greece’s Michelin-star French restaurant, Vardis is one of the big players in Athens’ gastronomic scene. Located in the elegant Pentelikon hotel, it has contemporary French cuisine with exquisite service and wine.
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O
Kriti
Down an innocuous old arcade, this tiny place is popular with nostalgic Cretans, students and those wanting some good-value traditional Cretan food, old-world ambience and fiery raki (Cretan fire water).
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Mandragoras
In the heart of the central food market, this superb delicatessen has one of the finest selections of gourmet delights, from cheeses and ready-made mezedhes to spices, olive oils and preserved foods to take home.
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Milos
After making its name in Montreal and New York, Milos set up home in the Hilton and established itself as one of the finer fish and seafood restaurants downtown. The quality is superb and the wine list excellent.
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Elena Votsi
Votsi is renowned for her original, big and bold designs using exquisite semiprecious stones, which sell in New York and London. Her profile was boosted when she was chosen to design the new Olympic Games medal.
reviewed
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Greece is for Lovers
This is a tiny showroom where young designers play on the kitsch, from Corinthian column dumb-bells, crocheted iPod covers and Aphrodite bust candles. Look for the giant Grecian sandal skateboard in the window.
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Ivis
This cosy corner eatery, with a few small tables outside, retains a traditional character. It’s a good place to enjoy a quiet drink washed down with mezedhes, including excellent prawns and other tasty morsels.
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Mofu
Retro fans will adore the eclectic range of largely ‘50s, ’60s and ‘70s furniture, lamps and odd designer collectables in this friendly store. It’s happy to arrange shipping if you just have to have that piece.
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Fasoli
A cheery and great-value new arrival, with quirky platform chairs on the sloping pavement. Its menu of salads, pastas and Greek dishes follows the successful formula of its popular sister restaurant in Exarhia.
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Lamda Club
Despite the gay scene drifting to Gazi, this three-level gay club is still one of the busiest in Athens, attracting a diverse late-night crowd. Pop, house and Greek music dominate, with two basement-dark rooms.
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