Things to do in Greece
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Tamam
Housed in an old hammam, Tamam presents a superb selection of vegetarian specialities - try the spicy avocado dip on potato - and inspired dishes such as the Tas kebab veal with spices and yoghurt or the Beyendi chicken with creamy aubergine purée.
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Stoa Athanaton
Located in the middle of Athens Central Market, this classic rembetika (Greek blues) club has been around since 1930. It is open day and night and is always lively, with veteran rembetes (exponents of rembetika ) and loyal patrons.
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Sodade
Two clubs in one, with mainstream dance music in the front bar and more progressive rhythms out the back. Sodade gets very busy come evening and attracts a stylish, young, gay-friendly crowd.
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Ocean 11
This breezy patio café offers sweet frozen coffees by day, and becomes a slick and shiny bar by night.
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Mani Mani
In a welcoming setting on the 1st floor of this charming neoclassical building, you’ll enjoy excellent contemporary Greek cuisine. The menu includes dishes inspired by regional specialities from Mani, in the southern Peloponnese, such as the loukaniko (sausage) with orange, siglino (cured pork) or stewed pork with celery.
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Limni Vouliagmenis
You can swim year-round at Limni Vouliagmenis, a part-saltwater/part-springwater lake whose temperature never falls below 21°C and is known for its therapeutic mineral qualities. It is set dramatically against a huge jutting cliff, just off the coast, and has a quaint old-world atmosphere thanks to the regular clientele of elderly citizens dressed in bathing caps and towelling gowns.
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Dioskouri
A landmark café in Plaka sitting virtually over the railway line, the tables under a huge plane tree give it a traditional village feel. It’s popular with students for mezedhes and ouzo.
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Café Alavastron
It can feel like there’s a band in your lounge room in this intimate, casual world-music bar, which hosts regular appearances by eclectic musicians.
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Athinais
This early 20th-century silk factory, converted into a modern arts and cultural complex, hosts temporary art and historical exhibitions and has a cinema, music venue, theatre, café and restaurant.
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Aigli
One of Athens’ oldest and most delightful outdoor cinemas is in the middle of the gardens, ideal for a balmy night enjoying a flick with a glass of wine.
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Farangi Restaurant & Rooms
On the beach road, Farangi has a range of Cretan specials and taverna standards as well as friendly service and beer on tap. There are some tidy well-equipped rooms above the restaurant with a fridge, kettle and TV, some with sea views.
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Castle of the Knights
From Plateia Platanou a bridge leads across Finikon (called the Ave of Palms) to the Castle of the Knights. Along with the castles of Rhodes Town and Bodrum, this impregnable fortress was the knights' most stalwart defence against the encroaching Ottomans. The castle, which had massive outer walls and an inner keep, was built in the 14th century. Damaged by an earthquake in 1495, it was restored by the Grand Masters d'Aubuisson and d'Amboise in the 16th century. The keep was originally separated from the town by a moat (now Finikon).
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archaeological museum
There's a fine 3rd-century-AD mosaic in the vestibule of the archaeological museum. The most renowned statue is that of Hippocrates.
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ancient agora
The ancient agora is an open site south of the Castle of the Knights. A massive 3rd-century-BC stoa, with some reconstructed columns, stands on its western side.
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Pierro's
Long-standing last stop for the nightwatch, where things round off with a backdrop of heavy-beat house and superbly over-the-top drag action. Takes over the outdoors, also.
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Panagia Ekatondapyliani
The Panagia Ekatondapyliani , which dates from AD 326, is one of the most splendid churches in the Cyclades. The building is three distinct churches: Agios Nikolaos, the largest, with superb columns of Parian marble and a carved iconostasis, is in the east of the compound; the others are the Church of Our Lady and the Baptistery. The name translates as Our Lady of the Hundred Gates, but this is a wishful rounding-up of a still-impressive number of doorways.
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Museum of Prehistoric Thera
Near the bus station, the Museum of Prehistoric Thera houses extraordinary finds that were excavated from Akrotiri (where, to date, only 5% of the area has been excavated). Most impressive is the glowing gold ibex figurine, measuring around 10cm in length and dating from the 17th century BC. Many of Akrotiri's fascinating wall paintings are on display.
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Megaron Gyzi Museum
Behind the Catholic cathedral, Megaron Gyzi Museum has local memorabilia, including fascinating photographs of Fira before and immediately after the 1956 earthquake.
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Kastro
Hora has many gay-centric clubs and hang-outs from where the late night crowds spill out onto the streets. With a leaning towards stylish classical sounds, this is a good place to start the night on cocktails, as the sun sets on Little Venice.
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Byzantine Museum
The Byzantine Museum, within the Panagia Ekatondapyliani compound, has a collection of icons and other artefacts.
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Archaeological Museum
The Archaeological Museum is in Kastro, housed in the former Jesuit school where novelist Nikos Kazantzakis was briefly a pupil. The contents include Hellenistic and Roman terracotta figurines and some early Cycladic figurines.
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Draft
Near to Krikelas, this three-level brick-and-wood restaurant and pub has a classic feel, with its vintage jukebox, well-shone rails and long bar with many draught beers. It serves designer pub fare like you'd expect in some big-city financial district lunch spot. Upstairs, however, cultivates a more after-hours lounge-bar effect, with dimmed lights and ambient Latin and jazz.
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Lava Bore
The central Lava Bore is by no means one of the city's in clubs, but it stays open all year, and caters largely to tourists. The formula remains much the same: a mixture of mainstream rock and dance music and (relatively) cheap drinks. It's far more casual that most Athenian clubs.
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Taverna Itanos
This friendly taverna with beamed ceilings and stucco walls is popular with locals wanting traditional home-style Cretan cooking. You can pick from the trays of excellent mayirefta (casseroles and oven-baked dishes) out the back, such as goat with artichokes or lamb fricassee.
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Lord Byron
Near the main square, this long-standing favourite is relaxing and intimate and the food is a great fusion of Greek and Italian. Dishes range from shrimp cooked in a tomato sauce with feta and ouzo to penne with a wild mushroom and cream sauce - and it all comes in generous helpings.
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