Attractions

Acropolis

There are very few visitors who are not already familiar with the image of this distinctive citadel of ancient Athens, perched on its steep flat-topped rock above the sprawling city. It is the spot where Athens, and classical Greek civilization, began, and the site of a collection of beautiful temples, most dedicated to the goddess of wisdom, Athena. The ruins that remain visible today date from the 4th century BC, most of them erected by Pericles after the Persians destroyed many of the original Acropolis buildings. Visitors toil up the slopes past the souvenir stands and enter the site through the monumental entrance way, the Propylaia, which in ancient times contained an art gallery. To the right of the entrance is the tiny temple of Athena Nike, reconstructed and restored. The Parthenon, the greatest surviving monument of Doric architecture, is the biggest draw card on the Acropolis, built of Pentelic marble quarried from the distant mountains, which form the backdrop to the magnificent view of Athens from the Acropolis. Alongside the Parthenon is another temple, the Erechtheion, which bears holes on its northern porch where Poseidon’s trident struck it during his contest with Athena to have the city named after him. There is a museum on the Acropolis, too, where some of the carving and friezes recovered from the temples are on show, although many of the archaeological finds from the Acropolis are now housed in the British Museum in London.

Ancient Agora

Clustered below the Acropolis (enter from Odos Adrianou, east of Monastiraki Square) is the remains of the Agora, ancient Athens’ commercial and civic centre, where once walked and talked the great philosophers Socrates and Plato. In fact the disgraced and despairing Socrates committed suicide in a prison in the southwest corner of the Agora, by drinking poison. The area is littered with the ruins of numerous ancient buildings, including the Dionysos Theatre (the world’s oldest theatre where great plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides were first performed). One building that has been restored is the 200 BC Stoa of Attalos (a stoa is a long, low roofed promenade which served as a combination law court, municipal office and shopping arcade in classical Greece). The reconstructed building now has a museum on its ground floor containing artifacts covering 5,000 years of Athenian history.

National Archaeological Museum

This is the largest and most popular of Athens’ many museums, and is usually very crowded. Its vast collection includes treasures unearthed from Mycenae by Heinrich Schliemann; a staggering array of sculpture including the earliest known Greek figurines dating from around 2,000 BC; frescoes from the volcanic island of Santorini; and so much more that it is recommended visitors make several visits to absorb it all.

Piraeus

Although not really attractive to tourists, the confusing, bustling port of Athens is the departure point for hundreds of island ferries and cruise ships, so most tourists pass through it while visiting Greece. Piraeus has been Athens’ port since ancient times. It actually consists of three harbors, with most of the tourist boats using the Zea Limani section. There are several fish restaurants in the harbor precincts, and a sprawling street market. Visitors with time on their hands while waiting for ferries can also explore the Maritime Museum at Akti Themistokleous, alongside the pier used by the island hydrofoils, which features models of ancient and modern ships.

Plaka

The old town section of Athens below the Acropolis has become the gathering place for travelers and tourists, particularly in the warm Athens evenings. Strolling the narrow streets of the Plaka flanked by ancient monuments, Byzantine churches and mosques, stately mansions, and inviting tavernas with vine-covered courtyards, makes a pleasant diversion.

Kolonaki

For a magnificent view of the Acropolis, particularly at sunset, it is possible to ride a funicular up the slopes of the Lykavittos hill from Kolonaki Square (in Athens’ smart shopping district). The railway rises steeply to the summit 912ft (278m) above the city. There is a café at the top, as well as the chapel of Agios Giorgios (St George) to go with the spectacular view.

Syntagma Square

The square that forms the heart of modern Athens is home to the Parliament building, built in 1840 as a Royal Palace. Tourists flock to photograph the unusually clad guards at the palace; the skirted and pom-pommed guard is changed ceremonially every hour. The square is a central point to access all the major attractions of Athens, particularly ‘museum mile’ along Vassilissis Sophias Avenue which runs from Syntagma Square. Here most of Athens’ museums are clustered, including the Benaki Museum, Museum of Cycladic Art and the Byzantine Museum. 

Compulsory Education

There are private international schools in Athens for all age groups offering English-language curriculum:

International School of Athens

www.isa.edu.gr

ISA offers the Primary Years Program (PYP), Middle Years Program (MYP) and Diploma Programs. It also offers a college preparatory program, enhanced by Advanced Placement courses, for students in grades 11 and 12. Working together in an English-speaking, international environment, students are able to develop the academic skills they need to prepare for higher education later on. They proceed from the child-oriented, multicultural and inter-related PYP to the academic challenge and life skills appropriate to the young adolescent in the MYP and finally to a rigorous course of study leading to the IB Diploma or AP examinations. Characterized by academic rigor, broad-based curricula, emphasis on internationalism, and attention to the needs of the individual student, ISA offers a unique educational experience to a diverse student body.

American Community Schools of Athens

www.acs.gr

The American Community Schools are a system of private schools in Athens established in 1945 as the British Army School. They are located on one campus in the municipality of Halandri, at 129 Aghias Paraskevis Avenue. The student body is made up of over 600 students hailing from over 50 countries, and the school offers the International Baccalaureate PYP (Primary Years Program), MYP (Middle Years Program) and IB Diploma, as well as a non-IB track. There are 63 full-time and 19 part-time faculty, with the vast majority holding at least a Master’s Degree and a number with PhDs.

Campion School

www.campion.edu.gr

Campion provides instruction in English to a student body of about five hundred consisting mainly of children of foreign residents, from kindergarten to the thirteenth grade (ages three to eighteen).

Costeas-Geitonas School

www.cgs.gr

Costeas-Geitonas school is located in Pallini, in the province of Attica. The school includes a kindergarten, elementary school, middle school and high-school (including International Baccalaureate).

St Lawrence College

www.st-lawrence.gr

St Lawrence College is a privately owned school in southern Athens. It was founded in 1980 to cater the educational needs of British expatriates and any family which desired a British education for its children. It started with 60 children, and rapidly expanded with a present student body of over 800 at preschool, junior school and high school level. The school has an excellent record of sending pupils to the best universities in the United Kingdom and around the world.

The Moraitis School

www.moraitis.edu.gr

The Moraitis School is a coeducational independent school located in Psychico, a suburb of Athens.

Byron College

www.byroncollege.gr

Students at Byron College are prepared for UK public examinations from within a curriculum that is essentially based on the UK National Curriculum. The school, although operating on one site with the same school-day and holidays, is divided into Junior and Senior Schools. The Junior School ranges from Kindergarten to Year 6 before pupils continue into the Senior School. Years 7-9 follow a broad-based program of studies based on the UK’s KS3 curriculum. Years 10-11 are those years where pupils are prepared for, and take, IGCSE examinations. Years 12-13 are dedicated to the teaching and preparation of pupils for University and College education by the teaching of AS and A-level GCE subjects.

Higher Education