Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
95
Olgianna Melissinos
A2
96
Public
G2
Zappeio Gardens
GARDENS
(entrances on Leoforos Vasilissis Amalias & Leoforos Vasilissis Olgas, Syntagma; Syntagma)
These gardens sit between the National Gardens and the Panathenaic Stadium and are
laid out in a network of wide walkways around the grand
Zappeio Palace
. The palace
was built in the 1870s and hosts conferences and exhibitions. A pleasant cafe, restaurant
and the open-air Aigli cinema (
Click here
) are alongside the palace.
Plateia Syntagmatos
SQUARE
(Syntagma Sq; Syntagma)
Athens' central square (Syntagma, or Constitution Sq) is
named for the constitution granted, after uprisings, by King Otto on 3 September 1843.
Today, the square serves as a major transport hub, the location of parliament (on the east-
ern, uphill side) and also, therefore, the epicentre of demonstrations and strikes.
Surrounded by high-end hotels and businesses, the square istelf has a marble fountain,
a metro entrance and two cafes, which are prime spots for people watching. The western
side of the square marks the beginning of one of Athens' main commercial districts,
along pedestrianised Ermou.
ยป
Paliament & Changing of the Guard
In front of the parliament building, the traditionally costumed
evzones
(guards) of the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
change every hour on the hour. On Sunday at 11am, a
whole platoon marches down Vasilissis Sofias to the tomb, accompanied by a band.
The presidential guards' uniform of short kilts and pom-pom shoes is based on the at-
tire worn by the
klephts
(the mountain fighters of the War of Independence).
Kanellopoulos Museum
MUSEUM
( 210 321 2313;
http://odysseus.culture.gr
;
Theorias 12, cnr Panos, Plaka; 9am-4pm Tue-Sun,
reduced hr low season; Monastiraki)
This excellent museum, in a 19th-century
mansion on the northern slope of the Acropolis, houses the Kanellopoulos family's ex-
tensive collection, donated to the state in 1976. The collection includes jewellery, clay
and stone vases and figurines, weapons, Byzantine icons, bronzes and objets d'art.
