Archive:

It’s Summer in Athens! And Summer in Athens, and indeed all over Greece, means lots of cultural events. (I’m likely to switch back to coming here in winter in future, as less disruptive for work. And there is a lot less of this in winter.) And there’s lots of music concerts, like in the Anglosphere. […]

Oh. New Kazantzakis novel out, “The Ascent”; he chose not to publish it while alive. I noticed it in bookshops while in Sitia. Just from the blurb, I recognised its heroes as minor characters retreaded in Captain Michalis: the author stand-in, Kosmas, and his Jewish wife, Naomi. What he was trying to do in this […]

I found I’ve already written a more extensive version of “Athens, 2023” on Facebook. So: I did my walking tour of Central Athens on June 17 (and at the end of it, left my Lonely Planet in the last venue I visited). Before I go on: Things I like about Central Athens: The surviving book […]

A recent social media storm has taken place in this little church on the edge of Anafiotika, the Greek islander settlement on the foot of the Acropolis, St Nicholas Rangavas. When I realised it was right next to me as I was touring Plaka, I thought it fitting to make a detour. As detailed in […]

Had dinner in Exarchia tonight, at Lacantina. … what, take photos at Exarchia?! OF COURSE NOT! THEY MIGHT HAVE KILLED ME!!!! Ok, not really, but yes, those of our party that had not been to Exarchia before entered it with some trepidation. The place has quite the reputation. Exarchia is Athens’ long-standing haunt of people’s […]

The new digs of the National Opera and the National Library: the completely awesome Niarchos Cultural Centre, complete with musical fountain, which has only been in place for the past decade. I am told that if you are trying to study inside the national library, you will grow to hate the musical fountain and its […]

The navel of Athens is not the Parthenon. OK, strike that. The navel of ancient Athens is the Parthenon, but not for me. The navel of Athens is not Parliament. OK, strike that. The navel of contemporary Athens is Parliament, but not for me. The navel of Athens is not the Orthodox Cathedral, nor is […]

Remember how I pointed out in Salonica the National Bank Educational Institute bookshop, and how it is kryptonite for my wallet? Remember too, how I said that I wasn’t familiar with the Athens bookshop, because it was in a side street. It was indeed in a sidestreet. Two blocks away from the Dialect Research Centre. […]

Athens CBD involves two hills (pictured: zoom in and you might see a bit of the Parthenon). One is the Acropolis. My accommodation is near the other one, Lycabettus. (Specifically, I am next to the original Roman water tank that fed the city. The water company still uses it as backup. It’s a couple of […]