Athens is, without a doubt, one of the cities with the greatest historical, political and cultural content in the world. Its origin dates back approximately 3,000 years BC, and it is also the city with the greatest amount of cultural heritage of humanity in the world, according to UNESCO. The history of this city has a mythological origin, because it was founded to honor the different gods that were venerated, in this case, the goddess of wisdom, Athena.
According to the legend, the city was initially disputed between Goddess Athena and God Poseidon, who struck a rock on the Acropolis with his trident creating a salt sea. Athena planted an olive tree as a symbol of wisdom, which was later adopted as a symbol by the sages and philosophers of Greece.
Today, many of those monuments created to honor the gods continue to stand and have become part of the main tourist attractions of the city. Among the main monuments are the Acropolis, the Dionysus Temple, the Parthenon, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. These make up the list of must see attractions in Athens to learn about its history and culture.
If there is an event for which Athens is famous in today’s world, it is the fact that it was the city that created the Olympic Games in 1896, an event that continues to take place today and that is of global importance.
Among its typical dishes is the “Suvlaki”, which consists of a kind of bread stuffed with pork, very similar to “kebaps”, however the second is an Arabic dish and is prepared only with lamb or veal. The seasoning and way of preparation of the meat are very similar.
Currently, a very particular feature in Athens is that when sitting in a terrace, cafeteria and even in most restaurants, if you order something to drink, the first thing the waiter will do is bring you a glass and a bottle full of water from the tap, and you can have as much as you want from that water for free. This detail has become customary and is very appreciated by those who visit the city.
When touring the non-tourist streets of the city, the residential ones, it is very common to find the locals sitting and distracting themselves with board games, among the most common are: chess, cards and table, better known as “backgammon”.
Another attraction in Athens nowadays is the one that happens every odd hour at the foot of the Parliament, in the Syntagma Square, where a ceremony is held involving the evzones or former infantry soldiers of the national army in their traditional Greek dress. Today, they make up the Greek Presidential Guard, this event is worth watching for each of the details you will see. The same ceremony is performed on Sundays as well, but is is a much bigger ceremony, so we recommend seeing it on this day.
Athens is a city rich in customs, history, culture and places to visit, without a doubt it is worth going into this adventure, which will not only leave the best memories but will bring much knowledge to our lives.
ALFA