Athens: Changing of the Guard

Every hour at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Athens, the guard changes. While most of the time this is a straightforward affair, every Sunday at 11am they put on a more official/ tourist-y spectacle. I just got there in time to see the guards and marching band coming down the Main Street in front …

Temple of Zeus

Having spent several hours exploring the nearby National Garden and Panathenaic Stadium, we headed towards the final major sight in this area, the Temple of Zeus. We had seen a spectacular areal view of the site from the Acropolis yesterday, and we're really looking forward to exploring it from the ground. I was absolutely blown …

Panathenaic Stadium

This incredible stadium stands at the birthplace of the (ancient and modern) Olympic Games and has been in use for hundreds of years, for standard athletics events and historically for Roman style gladiator tournaments. It's impressive structure is built entirely from Pentelic marble. We started by walking around the outside of the track, admiring the …

Athens National Garden

We started out day with a quiet stroll through the National Garden.  Just outside the entrance to the park, we took a moment to appreciate the impressive Parliament building and a nearby square containing a pretty fountain. The garden itself contains not only the usual flower arrangements and beauty spots, but also a mini zoo …

Ancient Agora

We finished our first day in Athens by visiting the Ancient Agora, just North of the Acropolis.  Getting here involved a lovely walk through some cafes and past a few pretty sights - including the ruins of the Library of Paintainos and some interesting street art. Once we reached the entrance we spent around an …