Athens (
Athina) is named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom, who, according to legend, won the city after defeating Poseidon in a duel. The goddess’ victory was celebrated by the construction of a temple on the
Acropolis, the site of the city’s earliest settlement in Attica.
As a city state, the coastal capital of Athens reached its
heyday in the
fifth century BC. The office of the statesman,
Pericles, between 461BC and his death in 429BC, saw an unprecedented spate of construction resulting in many of the great
classical buildings (the
Parthenon,
Erechtheion,
Hephaisteion and the
temple at Sounion) now regarded as
icons of Ancient Greece.
Physical evidence of the city’s success was matched by achievements in the
intellectual arts.
Democracy was born,
drama flourished and
Socrates conceived the foundations of
Western philosophy.
Remarkably, although the
cultural legacy of this period has influenced Western civilization ever since, the classical age in Athens only lasted for five decades. Under the
Macedonians and
Romans, the city retained a privileged cultural and political position but became a
prestigious backwater of the Empire rather than a major player.
The
birth of Christianity heralded a long period of occupation and
decline, culminating in 1456 and four centuries of
Turkish domination, which has left an indelible cultural mark on the city. By the end of the 18th century, Athens was also suffering the indignity of having the artistic achievements of its classical past removed by
looting collectors.
Modern Athens was born in 1834, when the city was restored as the
capital of a newly
independent Greece. Greek
refugees flooded the city at the end of the Greek-Turkish war, swelling the population.
After WWII, American money funded a massive expansion and
industrialization program. The
rapid growth of the post-war years and the high temperatures of its Mediterranean climate have created a city that can often be
polluted and could be described as an
urban sprawl. Excessive traffic creates
gridlock on the streets and noxious fumes (
néfos) in the air, although great efforts are being made to reduce this.
Visitors with visions of gleaming marble and philosophers in white robes are understandably perturbed that the architectural achievements of Athens’ classical past are surrounded by the unforgiving concrete of indiscriminate 20th-century urbanization. Over
3 million visitors come to the city each year but the majority see the sights as quickly as possible (as if fulfilling some cultural duty) before heading off for the easy hedonism of the Greek islands.
However, Athens repays a closer acquaintance. In addition to the celebrated classical sites, the city boasts
Byzantine,
medieval and
19th-century monuments, as well as one of the best museums in the world and areas of surprising
natural beauty. Despite the traffic, an appealing
village-like quality becomes evident in the cafes, tavernas, markets and the maze of streets around the Pláka.
Moreover, Athens has the
finest restaurants and the most
varied nightlife in the country and remains a major European
center of culture, celebrated each year at the
Athens Festival.
The metropolitan area, including the port at Piraeus, is the indisputable
industrial and
economic powerhouse of the country, while the return of the
Olympic Games in 2004 prompted a flurry of new development, including a new airport, the extension of the metro system, the building of new sports venues, the upgrading of hotels, the renovation of several top museums, and the formation of a traffic-free ‘archaeological promenade’.
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
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The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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