The Nike Athena Temple at the Acropolis. Photo by Audrey Sykes.

By Audrey Sykes—

The new Acropolis Museum is 2009’s addition to Athens’ already impressive archeological area of the Acropolis. The new, sleek, and grandiose building holds over 4,000 artifacts from surrounding excavations. The museum is not only impressive to the eye, but its one-euro entrance fee is also impressive to the wallet.

Here’s a run down of what the upgrade brings:

New and improved

A mere 400-meter shift from its previous spot at the top of Acropolis, the new museum sits at the start of the hill’s slope atop ancient ruins of the Byzantines. To compensate for sitting directly on artifacts, the entrance’s glass floors allow visitors to view excavations directly under their feet.

The museum itself is dazzlingly modern and almost 14 times larger than the old museum (closed in 2007). A budget of about €130 million was invested in the four-level structure, providing chic displays, light-senitive glass walls, and illuminated open floors. The café level on the third floor provides a gorgeous view of Athens, and the terrace is an ideal escape from the bustle and hustle of the touristy Plaka district.

What to see

The layout of new Acropolis Museum follow’s a timeline that’s captivating and easy to follow. Small placards in English run throughout the levels, offering short and simple explanations for displays, time periods, and cultural formations.

The ground floor slopes upwards as vases, tools, toys and jewelry from the Neolithic period (around 3000B.C.) line the walls. Dozens of sculptures (from 600B.C. to 79B.C.) that were once votives to the Greek gods make up the second floor display. The layout lets visitors inspect pieces from all sides, from the stunning four Caryatids to other impressive models of Greek gods and heroes.

Photo courtesy of http://www.newacropolismuseum.gr.

Perhaps the museum’s most magnificent display is the Parthenon exhibit on the top floor. A short informative video explains the Parthenon’s exhibit, history, and architecture in a simple and captivating way.

Both first timers and history buffs will ooh and ahh at the former Parthenon adornments of the metopes, frieze, and giant pediments. It’s a refreshing overview that’s fun and engaging for all visitors.

The best way to tackle the Acropolis

The Acropolis is as magnificent in size as it is in historical depth, and most of what is left in good condition remains indoors for protection. A good tip is to visit the new Acropolis Museum before trekking towards the Parthenon, ancient theaters and agoras; it does wonders to help visualize the past.

As a bonus the archeologists responsible for digging up the thousands of artifacts actually hang around inside the museum, waiting to give visitors a brief lesson about any questions that might arise.

The new Acropolis Museum is an excellent opportunity for visitors to wrap their heads around Greek history in a beautiful setting. It’s quite possibly the best bang for your euro on a Greek vacation.

Hours: Tuesday – Sunday: 8 AM to 8 PM. Closed Mondays.
Admission: €1
See www.theacropolismuseum.gr for more details.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Above photo of Hadrian's Library courtesy of agelakis

Athens, city of architectural splendor and ancient history, proves to be a great subject for a variety of free podcasts. Covering everything from basic Greek to Athens-based rock bands, these five free treats can be easily added to your iPod or mp3 player in preparation for a trip to the birthplace of democracy!

Athens in a flash

Tourcaster, a group whose ‘casts we can’t get enough of, offers a free 25-minute overview of the Greek capital. The audio tour covers the city’s history, some main attractions, and top nightlife spots.

Indie Athens

Sure, this podcast is still Greek to us, but it’s less talk and more music—stuff from local bands, to be precise. Aneksartho Mhlo’s rock dispatch provides a perfect playlist to get you in an Athens frame of mind.

Learn Greek

The Hellenic American Union, based in Athens, offers a series of short podcasts that incorporate basic vocabulary and easy exercises so you’ll remember your plate from your please. Consider the series a perfect tool for those of you who like to ask for help, fight about grades, or talk about superstitions in Greek!

Hidden Athens

This podcast from amatuertraveler.com features author and travel guru Alf Meier as he discusses both Athens’ standard tourist sites and the city’s lesser-known gems, including those breathtaking beaches.

Greek Gourmet

Chef Sam Sotiropoulos focuses his delectable podcast on cheese—a mainstay of the Greek cuisine, but touches on other Greek dishes as well.  Yum!

Do you have suggestions for any other cool Athens-related podcasts? Leave a comment below!

Popularity: 9% [?]

Fired up! Ready to go! Photo courtesy of an agent

Yes, we did!

On Tuesday, January 20th, 2009, Barack Obama will be sworn is as the 44th U.S. President and the world will be watching!

We’ve put together a list of places hosting inaugural day events in Europe.

As we said on Friday, the inauguration should be available in high-def at many locations, so if a bar or cafe has a television and gets satellite cable, you should be able to check in on the Washington, D.C. action.

As usual, let us know if you still need to find a place to watch the event.

Signed, sealed, delivered - again!

In Paris: The American Church in Paris hosts a prayer service at 7:30 PM followed by a viewing of the inauguration (one hour behind the live events) and a wine and cheese reception. Stop by and you might just see our Ed-in-Chief Tom Meyers! More info is here. You can also email Arlene Gross, the coordinator of the event, at arlbru2004@yahoo.com

For more ideas on where to hang your hat on inauguration day, check out this great forum on the Fodor’s Paris site. Other ideas include the Havane Cafe, at 70 Bis, Boulevard Auguste Blanqui (near Place d’Italie).

UPDATED: There’s an event at Carr’s Irish Restaurant and Bar (1 Rue du Mont Thabor). It begins at 4:30. The venue promises live coverage from CNN, via two large screen television sets. For further information, visit their web site.

In addition, a group of Democrats Abroad folks will gather to watch the inauguration at The Highlander pub (8 rue Nevers, across from the Pont Neuf).

Finally, if you really want to get your Obama-yes-we-can-can groove on, start out with the group of revelers organizing an event at Le Queenie (5, rue de Berri) for drinks, conversation, and to watch the inauguration. Then, head over to Queen nightclub (102, Avenue Champs Elysees). For info and to RSVP, email obama.obamaparisinauguration.p@gmail.com  

Note: According to the Paris Expat Meetup group, the American Library also has inauguration events planned. More info here.

In Berlin: Our friends over at BootsnAll first broke the news that Berlin would be partying down on inauguration eve. As they so aptly reminded us, it was Mr. Obama himself who said, “People of Berlin, people of the world, this is our moment. This is our time.” Rock on! Head to Goya Nightclub for an evening of celebration or head to the Amerika Haus, where they’ve been celebrating Black History month for weeks already. Check out what they have planned here.

In Salzburg: An event is planned at the Hotel Stein (Giselakai 3-5). All are welcome, including children, but RSVPs are a must. Go here for more info. You can also contact Contact Mary Ann Balko-Koch at 0664 59 23 408.

In Vienna: There’s a big event planned at the Badeschiff (Donau canal between Schwedenplatz and the Urania in Vienna’s first district). The official invite can be downloaded here.  Live jazz music wil be provided. There’s a €5 optional donation. The reservation process officially closed on January 16th, but we recommend still trying to get in. Email: events@democratsabroad.at for more info.

In Brussels: There’s an event at the Hilton Brussels (38, Boulevard De Waterloo). Reservations are required. Email chair-be@democratsabroad.orgby today for info and to reserve your spot.

In London: A host of events are planned in Her Majesty’s great city. For a list of a bunch of them, visit Time Out London’s web site. Might we recommend the “Bye George” comedy celebration at the Southbank Centre on the evening before Obama takes office? By George, now that’s a pleasant thought!

For a real down-home feel, check out what the Chicago Rib Shack has planned. Just for the record, this is exactly where the other resident Cheapos would be if on the other side of the pond next week! They’re in Knightsbridge, near Harrods. For more info, email info@thechicagoribshack.co.uk

In Amsterdam: One of our favorite places to catch great entertainment and share laughs, Boom Chicago, has lots of fun stuff on the docket Tuesday night. Get in the mood earlier with a comedy show called, “Bye Bye Bush!”. For more information on the inaugural fest, go here.

UPDATED: If you’re in the Groningen area, head over to Wijkcentrum Het Floreshuis for pizza and revelry. Events start at 5 p.m. and the food and drinks are cheaply priced. More info: demsfungroningen@gmail.com

Also, check out the Democrats Abroad Netherlands site for up-to-date celebration info.

In St. Petersburg: Fellow Cheapo “Liz” suggests trying the folks at the Grand Hotel Europe, where events are planned. Contact: desk.concierge@grandhoteleurope.com

In Barcelona: This comes courtesy of ‘toshmon’ who commented via our earlier inauguration blog post.

“For Barcelona, information from http://www.amersoc.com/

“When: January 20th from 5 pm to 11 pm (entry at 4:30 pm)
Where: Le Meridien Hotel, C/ La Rambla, 111
Price: 15 euros
What’s included: Live coverage of the swearing-in ceremony on a big screen tv, live music, tapas, beer, wine, soft drinks.

“Make sure to RSVP to admin@amersoc.com and stop by Hotel Le Meridien to pick up your tickets in advance to avoid standing in line at the registration desk on day of the event.”

Thanks for posting ‘toshmon’!

In Granada: Democrats Abroad group will be convening at Paddy’s Irish Pub (on calle Santa Escolastica). Further directions to the venue, info, and more are available here.   The event begins at 4 p.m. and doors open at 3 p.m.

In Athens: The Democrats Abroad hosts an event at the Hardrock Cafe (18, Filellinon). Contact is Alexis Vasilakopoulou (ph: 210 325 2758). For more information, visit the event’s site.

In Madrid: The Hotel Intercontinental offers an event hosted by Democrats Abroad Madrid. The event is private, meaning you must RSVP, but all are welcome and entrance is free of charge. The hotel is at Paseo de la Castellana 49. More details here.

If you’re interested in a more fancy affair, check out this gala event that’s planned in Madrid.

In Rome: We were only able to track down information for the Democrats Abroad event at the Radisson SAS hotel. As of press time on Friday, the event was full. Please comment here if you’re in Rome and know of other events. Thanks!

In Milan: There’s an event at the Fiori Oscuri Bistrot (Via Fiori Oscuri 3, in Brera). All are welcome and there’s no entrance fee. Free copies of the International Herald Tribune will be distributed. For more information, contact Maria Lassila (maria.lassila@gmail.com).

Other suggestions: Check out sites like Democratic Underground, your city’s local Expat Meetup site, or Democrats Abroad for ideas.

Where will you be?

Tell us where you plan to watch the inauguration. Please include city, venue, and relevant contact info. Thanks!

And, go Obama!

Popularity: 25% [?]

Tourists visiting the ruins of ancient Athens will probably already be armed with a cheapo souvenir. Your archeological map (available for free or cheap) serves as both a necessary guide to the past and a fun souvenir for the future.

Build your map collection in Athens

Face it, if you’re planning to spend any time exploring Athens’ ancient past (and who isn’t?) you’re going to need a map. Confusion within the ancient city’s winding streets is normal, and most of the city’s ancient glories have been reduced to rubble. Even standing structures, such as the Acropolis, are surrounded by sites that could use a little explanation.

Here at EuroCheapo, we always recommend picking up free or cheap city maps whenever possible. In the case of Athens, we’re writing this advice in stone. For a cheapo souvenir, bring those maps home. Just imagine how great they’ll look framed and hanging in your rec room!

Digging for maps in Athens

Pick up free (or nearly free) city maps at one the city’s three tourism offices (also called GNTO or EOT):

The city’s main tourism office is located at 7 Tsoha (open 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. on weekdays).

If you’re flying into Athens, you could swing by the office in the Arrivals Terminal of Eleftherios Venizelos Airport (open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays). 

A super-central tourism “information desk” is also located at 26 Amalias, near Syndagma Square. (Open 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.)

For more information, visit the Greece Tourism Office website.

Also, be aware that many archeological passes, necessary to visit the sites, include detailed maps. Don’t toss these out after your visit! For more information about the archeological sites, including days that they’re free to visit, check out our “budget tips to Athens” article.

While you’re at it…

As long as you’re hitting the town, why not pick up anything that’s written in Greek? A menu or a brochure, which might appear totally unintelligible and even frustrating while in Athens, will become cherished reminders of your time in Attica.

Also see: Our list of recommended budget hotels in Athens.

Editor’s Note: This is our second post in our “Cheapo Souvenirs” blog series. Join us over the next four weeks as we suggest one cheap or free souvenir to bring home from each city we cover on EuroCheapo. Do you have a suggestion for another cheap souvenir in Athens? Leave a comment below! 

Popularity: 13% [?]

It’s been many years since Athens and greater Greece experienced the Hellenic Dynasty, but today the city celebrates its ancient history with the annual Hellenic Festival.

The festival, now in its 51st year, offers four months of events, from May through September. The line-up of this year’s Epidaurus Festival runs the gamut from professional stagings of plays like Oedipus and Euripides to performances by renowned artists like ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov. Many events do require tickets, which range in price from €2-40. But, installations, exhibits, and some theater workshops are free and open to the public. A few, like the theater workshop on Greek tragedies, require reservations in advance.

For more information, visit the Hellenic Festival’s web site.

Popularity: 11% [?]

We like fancy costumes. Bonus if that costume has pompoms and tassels. Major bonus points if said costume requires a snazzy red hat.

So, it’s no secret then that we love to watch the changing of the Evzone Guard in Athens’ Syntagma Square. The elite Evzones make up an infantry unit stationed in Athens and meant to guard the presidential mansion and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Some people refer to them simply as the “Presidential Guard“.

Every Sunday at 11 a.m., the changing of the guard, considered by tourists and locals alike to be the best free show in Athens, kicks off (literally; check out those pompom’d feet!) at the camp of the Evzones behind Parliament and travels down Vasilissis Sofias Avenue before reaching the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. For a brief period, traffic is even blocked on Vasilissis Sofias Avenue so the Evzone guards can strut their stuff in safety.

The changing involves high kicks, military stunts, and stoic faces. Seriously. Evzones are trained to tune out the paparazzi-like tourists who beg to take their photo alongside them. If you really want your photo taken with one of them, stand in an orderly line just below the steps in Syntagma Square. Onlookers are allowed up one-at-a-time for photos opps.

And, here’s a fun fact: The Evzones wear shoes that are carefully hand-made from hard red leather. Each sole has up to 60 nails in it!

For more fun facts, check out this great post by a “bootsnall” user.

Join us again tomorrow, Cheapos, for another free tip. Next stop on our Grand Tour? Barcelona!

Popularity: 11% [?]

Some items of note that flashed across our screen this week…

Cheap eats in Roma

It turns out we’re not the only ones blogging this week about cheap eats in Rome (read our post). Budget Travel’s blog is talking up cheap lunches in the Eternal City. Erica Firpo writes from Rome that we should say “Basta! to pasta” and reach for something a little less filling for lunch. She recommends picking up some triangular tramezzino. We’ll take two.

From Stansted for £4?

Checking in with “Less Than a Shoestring,” poetloverrebelspy has landed in London and is full of Cheapo-advice. First off, book that coach trip from Stansted into the city early, and use either easyBus or Terravision. On easyBus it’s possible to snag a seat (booked in advance) for as low as £4.25 each way!

Furthermore, we’re reminded that the Tate Modern and Tate Britain are not only free, but they offer free guided tours. Join in!

Dinner in London for £5

Meanwhile, Olivia from “High Culture on a Low Budget” is thinking London budgets, too. In this week’s installment of “Ask a Local“, she asks Mike from London where he would find dinner for £5 and £10. (Hint: The Best Turkish Kebab or an Amy Winehouse haunt.) Nice job with this series, Olivia!

Athens in 36 hours

Sunday preview: The New York Times takes us along for “36 hours in Athens.” We’re impressed by how much Joanna Kakissis can fit into a day and a half, including museum hopping, brunch taking, ruin walking, sunset strolling, restaurant sampling, bar hopping… But we have some better ideas for affordable hotels in Athens.

And, regarding our “Name that celebrity” quiz on Wednesday: We still can’t figure out who she is. Stay tuned for the answer and our winner.

Happy Friday, Cheapos! Should we all just head to Athens for the weekend?

Popularity: 13% [?]

Photo by Kaymaria Daskarolis

When you have decided to leave the clubs in Psirri in the wee hours of the morning and are hungry—but not so hungry that you feel able to consume one of Kosta’s delicious crepes from Picasso di Crepa—consider going by the bakery at 23 Karaiskaki Street and picking up a freshly-baked, warm, scrumptious koulouri. The koulouria made by the bakery at 23 Karaiskaki are distributed to koulouri stands throughout Athens.

A koulouri is a wreath-shaped piece of slightly-sweet bread with sesame seeds all over it. (We suggested them long ago as Syntagma Square pigeon feed.) People in Greece love koulouri so much that the snack is sold on corners throughout the city every morning, typically disappearing by mid-day.

If a mid-morning koulouri from a kiosk is tasty, a post-clubbing koulouri straight out of the oven is a little slice of heaven.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Photo courtesy of Kaymaria Daskarolis

Now, when most Greeks and tourists alike are beginning to flock to the clubs and bars dotting the Athenian coastline, is the perfect time to explore many of the bars and clubs packing Athens’s city center. You will find outdoor tables and chairs at many of them, more room to move about, and lower prices on drinks and cover charges than can be found in most beach-side spots.

One spot we particularly enjoy due to its funky East Asian décor, friendly service, and reasonable drink prices is Kasbah, located in the northern Athenian neighborhood of Ambelokipi (Alexi Pavli 35B across from the Panormou metro station, +30-210-692-7447). We especially like going to the Kasbah on Sunday nights, when we get to watch and listen to playful and jovial DJ E-Mill (a.k.a. Emilio).

Popularity: 8% [?]

Photo courtesy of Kaymaria Daskarolis

After a night of dancing in Psiri, leaving the clubs at 4.30 a.m. or later, most folks are hun-gry. Fortunately for all Kostas, a friendly, hard-working man with exquisite crepe-making skills, keeps his shop Picasso di Crepa (Taki Street 19 in Psiri, +30-210-324-7686) open until around 7 a.m. on Sundays through Thursdays and until about 11 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

Oh the crepes, the crepes. They are the perfect post-club delight. Our current favorite is a savory crepe stuffed with cheese, tomatoes, and olives. Savory crepes cost between €4 and €6.50 depending on the filling, and judging by the ones we’ve tried so far they are worth every cent. Sweet crepes can be yours for between €3 and €5.50. Expect company at Picasso di Crepa no matter what time you find yourself there—Kosta’s divine crepes are no secret to locals.

Popularity: 8% [?]