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The sights are amazing, the Agora is cool, and once you get away from the immediate core around the Parthenon, it sucks.
It's a typical big city that expanded too fast, and was all built around the 70's where the architecture was boring and just meh.
People are great, and you'll have a good time, but Athens =/= Rome or Istanbul which are living museums.
I agree with mikeyyc, although I would like to explore more of Athens than the area around the Accropolis. One thing that was great was the lunch I had. Several veterans of Greek travel had strongly suggested trying a gyro in Athens. I am not a big gyro fan normally, but thought I would try it. We found a small sidewalk cafe on the back side of the Agora and sat down to an oustanding meal.
If you are interested, 2 gyros, one beer, one wine, a bottle of water and a diet coke to go was about 11$.
The sights are amazing, the Agora is cool, and once you get away from the immediate core around the Parthenon, it sucks.
It's a typical big city that expanded too fast, and was all built around the 70's where the architecture was boring and just meh.
People are great, and you'll have a good time, but Athens =/= Rome or Istanbul which are living museums.
I am glad to hear you say this. I was very underwhelmed with Athens. Saw Rome in the same trip and there is no comparison. I like the description of a living museum.
Visited in 2010 and except for Parthenon it was slightly boring. There were strikes and protests going on which shut sown trains for one day. Saw log of IV drug users injecting drugs on the sidewalks on that day when we had to walk to catch a bus. The people were glum.
Went to Turkey and saw Izmir, Ephesus and Istanbul on the same trip and found that Istanbul to be vibrant with great food and music. I am sure that Istanbul might not be a city to visit now due to the bombings and attempted coups, but in 2010 it was a great place to travel to.
Athens is crowded, dumpy, and poor. But when you get out of the city there are some charming small towns. Poverty and crumbling buildings are common though. Some people were friendly, but many were glum or even rude.
I've only been to Athens once but I had a very good time. I was lucky to be traveling with people who had been there several times in the past and knew their way around. We were in a hotel that had a roof deck where you could see the Arcropolis lit up at night. A stunning thing to see.
Of course you'll go to see the Parthenon so you should tour the Acropolis Museum. The National Archeological Museum, the Benaki Museum, and the Museum of Cycladic Art are all must-sees. You can ride the funicular tramway to the top of Mount Lycabettus for the best view of the entire city. Go to Syntagma Square to watch the military guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
I liked going to the Plaka at night because there are so many reasonably priced restaurants for dinner and the shops of still open so you can pick up some souvenirs. Do be aware of your safety however. Everyone knows the place is jammed with tourists so there are lots of pickpockets who are skilled at working in the dark. If you must carry a purse make it a cross-body bag. Don't set down valuables or flash cash. That's good advice anywhere, but especially in crowds at night.
When I travel, I'm partial to taking guided walking tours. Trip Advisor is a good site to use for booking them.
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