Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
Western Athens
Some of the most interesting up-and-coming areas of Athens -
Thissío
,
Gázi
,
Keramikós
and
Roúf
- lie to the west of the centre, where the recent extension of Metro line 3 has
acted as a further spur to the pace of change. Nightlife and restaurants are the chief
attractions here, but there's also a cluster of new museums and galleries. Here too is
Kerameikos
, site of a substantial section of the walls of ancient Athens and an
important burial ground. South of Thissío, things are rather more traditional. The
hills
of the Pnyx and Filopáppou
offer a pleasant, green escape from the city as well as fine
views down over the Acropolis and Agora. On the west side of the hills, the residential
zone of
Áno Petrálona
is a real delight, entirely untouristy, with some excellent tavernas
and a great open-air cinema, though absolutely nothing in the way of sights.
Thissío
The cafés of
Thissío
, with tables set out on huge terraces above the Agora site, offer
some of the finest views of the Acropolis, especially at night. Head south from Metro
Thissío and you can follow pedestrianized Apóstolou Pávlou past these terraces and
right around the edge of the Ancient Agora and Acropolis sites. It's an especially
rewarding walk in the early evening, when the setting sun illuminates this side of the
rock and the cafés start to fill with an anticipatory buzz. As you follow the street round
there are a number of small excavations at the base of the hills on your right. First,
immediately below the church of Ayía Marína, is a rocky area identified as the earliest
known
sanctuary of Zeus
in Attica; there's not a great deal to see through the fence, but
it's clear that the rocks have been cut into terraces.
Sanctuary of Pan
Of Apóstolou Pávlou, on the lower slopes of the Pnyx just beyond the Thission open-air cinema • View through the fence
The cult of Pan was associated with caves, and at the
Sanctuary of Pan
you can see the
opening to an underground chamber cut into the rock. Inside were found reliefs of
Pan, a naked nymph and a dog. There's also a mosaic floor and, nearby, remains of an
ancient road and two rock-cut, Classical-era houses.
Fountain of Pnyx
Of Apóstolou Pávlou, on the lower slopes of the Pnyx just beyond the Sanctuary of Pan • View through the fence
Under Peisistratos (see p.62) a water system was engineered, with subterranean pipes
bringing water from springs to rock-cut cisterns that supplied the city. The so-called
Fountain of Pnyx
is believed to be one of those; behind a locked entrance is a chamber
with a Roman mosaic floor where the water was collected. You can also see traces of the
concrete used to seal the chamber during World War II, when valuable antiquities were
stored inside.
Filopáppou Hill
From around the junction of Apóstolou Pávlou and Dhionysíou Areopayítou, a network
of paths leads up
Filopáppou Hill
, known in antiquity as the “Hill of the Muses”. Its
pine- and cypress-clad slopes provide fabulous views of the Acropolis and the city beyond,
especially at sunset (although night-time muggings have occurred here, so take care). This
strategic height has played an important, if generally sorry, role in the city's history: in
1687 it was from here that the shell that destroyed the roof of the Parthenon was lobbed;
more recently, the colonels placed tanks on the slopes during their coup of 1967. The
hill's summit is capped by a grandiose monument to a Roman senator and consul,
Filopappus. To the west, paths lead across to Áno Petrálona and the Dora Stratou Theatre
(see p.110) through the ancient district of
Koile
. You can clearly see remnants of rock-cut
