This is Athens Greece, one of the world's oldest
cities, the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy. Athens is world famous
for its amazing Ancient Greek monuments as well as heritage from Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman
times. No wonder then that Athens is among the world's top tourist destinations. Hi guys, my name
is Rok and I’ve spent the last 9 years traveling around Europe as a tour guide and I can’t wait
to show you Things To Do In Athens, Greece. This is the highest point of Athens with a popular
viewing platform offering the best view of the city. Thanks to a wonderful view of world famous
Acropolis and an upscale restaurant this is also one of the most romantic places in Athens. Here
is also a small 19 century Greek Orthodox church and a coffee bar. If you take a stroll around
the peak of the hill you will also see an Open Air Theater used for summer concerts. As Athens is
full of myths and legends this hill also has one. The legend has it that the Greek goddess of wisdom
and patron of the city Athena was carrying a huge piece of limestone to be used for the construction
of the Acropolis. When a Raven flew to her and told her bad news Athena was startled and she
dropped the limestone from which this hill was created. To get up here you can walk up the path
with stairs, but on hot and sweaty summer days funicular railway might be a better choice.Athens
is not just about ancient monuments as it also has landmarks from the 1800s when Athens became
the capital of the independent Greek state. Three buildings of Academy, University and
National Library are known as the Athenian Trilogy and are considered to be among the most
beautiful neoclassical examples in the world. It may come as a surprise, but the modern Greek
state is actually quite young. You see in 1204 Athens was occupied by the Fourth Crusader Army
and that was the beginning of more than 600 years of occupation of Greece. In the 1400s Ottomans
took over the city and they ruled Athens for 400 years. The Greek war of independence against
the Ottomans ended in 1834 with the birth of the modern Greek state. Greece's biggest
city at the time, Thessaloniki, was still part of the Ottoman Empire and also due to historical
reasons Athens was declared a capital city. But at the time Athens was a small city. So a modern
city plan was laid out and public buildings, including the Athenian Trilogy, were erected.
The Academy is not open to the public, while you can take a quick peek inside the National
library and The University is open to the public. On the outskirts of Athens on the ancient Sacred
Way stands this beautiful Byzantine monastery from the 11th century protected by fortified
enclosure. It was founded on the site of the ancient Greek Sanctuary of Apollo which had been
destroyed in the 400s and its ancient columns were re-used for the monastery. This is one of
the finest examples of Byzantine art in Athens and a Unesco World Heritage Site thanks to its
partially preserved interior with golden mosaics. Its main feature is the large dome resting on
eight pillars decorated with an imposing figure of Christ Almighty flanked by prophets. Mosaics
are from the end of the 11th century and they represent the universe, with the dome as heaven,
and the floor as earth while mosaics around the dome depict the life of Christ. The Monastery
is open from Wednesday to Sunday from 8am to 3:30pm and can be reached by various bus lines.
This was the greatest and the biggest ancient Greek temple in the world but only a fraction of
the temple has survived. There isn't much left but this mega temple with 104 massive columns was home
of Zeus, head of the Olympian gods. Construction began in 515 BC but because of its enormous scale
the temple was left unfinished for more than 600 years when it was finally completed by the
Romans. Inside was a statue of Zeus made from ivory and gold, that was the largest statue of the
ancient world. Unfortunately only 100 years after its completion this temple was pillaged during
barbarian invasion. In centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire, the temple was taken apart piece
by piece for building materials around the city. This sixteen gigantic columns is all that is left
and most of them are currently under restoration. Fifteen of them are standing while one is on
the ground where it fell during a storm in 1852. This is a very important square in modern
Athens as its name translates to the square of Constitution. Here is a Parliament Building
and below it is a monument of the Unknown Soldier representing all soldiers who gave lives in the
long Greek fight for independence. The monument is guarded by the highly respected Presidential
guard, an elite unit of the Greek Army famous for its uniforms with skirts. These soldiers hold
a huge symbolic meaning to Greek people and they are performing one of the most impressive
changing guards ceremonies in the world. Every day and every hour since 1868 chaining of
the guard is done in a highly coordinated and very slow manner, apparently to protect soldiers
blood circulation after 60 minutes of immobility. Uniforms also hold a special meaning and on
Sundays Guard is wearing their special uniforms in honor of the Greek War of Independence.
The skirt of the Sunday white uniform has exactly 400 folds to represent 400 years
of Ottoman occupation over the Greeks. The grand changing of guard ceremony with
the military band is every Sunday at 11 am. This stadium hosted opening and closing ceremonies
of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Since then this stadium hosts the Olympic flame handover
ceremony when Olympic flame sets up its journey to the cities of Winter and Summer Olympic Games.
Originally this stadium was built in 6 century BC for religious and athletic festivals that took
place every 4 years to honor the goddess Athena. It was rebuilt in marble by Romans in the
year 144 with a capacity of 50,000 seats. After the rise of Christianity in the
4th century it was largely abandoned and forgotten until in the 19th century it
was excavated and rebuilt. Since this is the only stadium in the world built entirely of
marble its rebuild was excessively expensive. The refurbishment was mainly taken over
by a great national benefactor of Greece, George Averoff and his marble statue can be
found next to the Stadium’s main entrance. It is almost impossible not to visit a museum
in Athens and this is one of the world's top archeological museums. This modern building
located right beneath the Acropolis immediately became a new landmark of Athens. It is supported
by more than 100 pillars as the building hovers over Roman and Byzantine ruins. This museum houses
every artifact found on the site of Acropolis and its slopes and its interior is split into three
floors. Most impressive artifacts on the first floor are five maidens that once held up the roof
of one of the most sacred parts of the Acropolis. The top floor of the museum is designed on the
same axis as the Parthenon and has the same dimensions. There is a display of the entire
high-relief marble sculpture that used to run around the exterior wall of the temple. The glass
paneling and elevation of the third floor offers amazing views of the ancient Acropolis,
with the Parthenon always in plain sight. This is one of the most popular neighborhoods in
Athens known for its flea market, small tourist shops, ancient monuments and streets full of
traditional tavernas with Acropolis views. If you are hungry head to Adrianou Street famous for its
inviting taverns serving traditional Greek food with a view over the Ancient Agora. But the heart
of this neighborhood is its Monastiraki square, one of the most popular meeting points thanks
to its interchange Metro station between Lines 1 and 3. On the square stands an 18 century mosque
from the Ottoman period that now hosts a Museum of Greek Folk Art. Right next to it is the much older
Hadrian’s Library built by the Romans in the 1st century. But the neighborhood and square are
named after a small orthodox monastery that used to stand here. What is left of the monastery is
one of the oldest Byzantine churches, dating to the 10th century. As the square was rising over
the centuries about 1/3 of the church is now below ground. This is also a starting point of the
biggest Flea Market in Athens that happens every weekend and during the week there are numerous
small shops perfect for souvenir shopping. Part of the Monastiraki neighborhood is also
Ancient Agora that used to be the heart of Ancient Athens. Ancient Agora served as a central
square right under the slopes of Acropolis. This was the most important meeting place in
Ancient Athens where among other social events, most important political functions were exercised. No wonder then that this is considered
to be the birthplace of democracy. Today this is an archeological park with shady
trees, winding paths and historical ruins. Here is also the Agora museum, housed in the
reconstructed covered walkway that served as a marketplace. Original building dates to
150 B.C. but the current building was fully reconstructed in the 1950s. Agora also served
as a marketplace and among its many temples, altars and shrines is also the best preserved
temple in Greece. It was dedicated to the Greek god of craftsmen and metalworking. This temple
was also used as a Greek Orthodox church for more than one thousand years, until 1834
and that is why it is so well preserved. East of Ancient Greek Agora is also Roman
Agora. Here you can find Tower of Winds that functioned as a timepiece and is considered to
be the world's first meteorological station. Later this tower served as a bell-tower
of the Greek Orthodox church. Under Ottoman rule it was buried to
half and used by whirling dervishes. This is one of the most picturesque, interesting
and the oldest neighborhoods in Athens. Plaka is among the most visited areas
of Athens and it is easy to see why. This neighborhood under the slopes of Acropolis
feels like an old village and its pedestrian streets are one of the best places to wander
around. Plaka is full of narrow cobblestone pedestrian streets, archeological treasures,
ancient monuments, beautiful neoclassical buildings, and small churches. It is
lined with cafes, restaurants and shops. The lower part of the neighborhood is a souvenir
paradise with all kinds of souvenir shops, Greek local products and jewelry stores,
while the upper part towards the slopes of Acropolis is full of charming taverns.
Part of the neighborhood stretches all the way to the slopes of Acropolis where you can find
the most picturesque cluster of small whitewashed houses in Athens. This scenic tiny quarter is
named after its founders, stone masons from the island Anafi. They were drawn to Athens by big
construction projects in the mid 19th century when Athens experienced huge expansion after
becoming the capital of the newly founded modern Greek state. Stone masons settled here and
built their homes in Greek Island style.Slopes of the Acropolis were the second most important
religious center of ancient Athens. Here are also an ancient Greek theater and a Roman theater that
are a perfect place for a story about the creation of Athens. Legend has it that Athens was built
by a legendary half-man, half-snake king Sikrops. Beautiful city ignited competition among
Greek Gods that wanted to become its patrons. After much debate, two Gods stood out as the main
contenders: Poseidon, god of the seas, and Athena, goddess of wisdom. Contest between the two gods
was held to determine who would win the honor. First Poseidon stepped forward, and standing
on a rock, he stuck it with his trident, causing a spring of water to gush out of
the ground. His gift, the gift of water, meant that citizens were never to face drought.
Thrilled by the idea, citizens ran to the water only to discover that it was salty like the
water of the seas. Next came Athena with her hand stretched out. When she opened it, it
revealed a seed, which she planted in the ground. At once, the seed took root and grew into a
beautiful and tall olive tree. The citizens were happy, as an olive tree would mean food, oil
and firewood. They proclaimed Athena the winner and the city was named after her and to this
day there was always an olive tree on Acropolis. This rocky hill is the most impressive landmark
and the very symbol of Ancient Greece. World famous Acropolis was the most important religious
center of ancient Athens. It is a complex of marble temples commanded by its biggest temple,
Parthenon. Parthenon was dedicated to Athena and was the most sacred place on Acropolis and also
the most secure place in the city as it also served as a treasury. The decorative stonework
was originally highly coloured and inside the temple was a huge statue of Athena. Parthenon
and other important buildings of the Acropolis were built during the Golden Age of Athens in 5th
century B.C. Unfortunately Acropolis is undergoing a long lasting renovation, and since 1975
scaffolding and cranes are part of its landscape. Over the centuries natural disasters, wars and
reconstructions damaged only ornamentation and art, but the temple structures remained intact
all the way until the 17th century. At that time Athens was part of the Ottoman Empire. Ottomans
used Parthenon as a warehouse for gunpowder when facing attack from Venetians. One of the
cannonballs hit the Parthenon and after 2.200 years the Acropolis with Parthenon was destroyed.
When an independent modern Greek state was born in 1834, Athens became its capital city and
Parthenon with Acropolis became the symbol Greece, a symbol of democracy, Western civilisation and
one of the world's greatest cultural monuments. Athens has one of the richest heritage sites
on the planet and a huge variety of experiences that makes it one of the most popular tourist
destinations in the world. In summer you should also visit the beautiful and long Athenian
Riviera famous for its beautiful coves and beaches. As Athens offers so many choices,
I’ve made a list of my favorite Athens tours, day trips and experiences that can be found in the
description below this video. But Athens is also famous for its delicious Greek cuisine. That is
why I’ve prepared a special video dedicated only to Delicious Food In Athens. That upcoming video
will show you the best street food and the best restaurant dishes you have to try in Athens and
will be available in the top right corner. If you like this video please give it a thumbs up.
You can share your questions or suggestions about Athens in the comments below. And don’t forget
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Thanks for watching, and see you next time.
