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The largest medieval church in Athens, it was built in 1031 and is now Athens’ Russian Orthodox church.

This great outdoor cinema frequently shows black-and-white classics and foreign films (in the original and subtitled in Greek); the Athens News has listings.

This was the first house built in Athens after it was declared capital of the new kingdom of Greece in 1834. Otto, Greece’s first king, had it joined with next door, and lived here while he waited for the first Royal Palace (now Parliament) to be built. Today the old residence houses a collection of paintings and furnishings telling the modern city’s history, with a focus on the War of Independence (see War of Independence) and the first years of the monarchy.

The Classical movement saw lifelike, naturalistic sculptures, balancing vibrancy and idealism. Temples built according to brilliant mathematical proportions rose, adorned with tradition-shattering sculptural reliefs that seemed to break out from the marble, many created by the sculptor Pheidias, a central figure of Athens’ Golden Age.

Greeks celebrate the first day of Lent by going to the country and flying kites; in Athens, the sky above Filopappos Hill is usually filled with them.

Statesman of around 570– 507 BC, who abolished the rule of the aristocracy, replacing it with a democratic Assembly.

Located on a bay near the site of Vavrona, this new Club Med offers the all-inclusive package of activities and fun for which the chain is known. Its standout feature is an indoor marble pool and spa with a starry-night ceiling.

A work that marries the democratic political structure of Athens with the architectural structure of the Agora.

Taverna dishes with a twist and a pinch of spice are served in this funky, gay-friendly eatery.

The isthmus connecting mainland Greece to the Peloponnese frustrated sailors for thousands of years, forcing them to make long, dangerous journeys around the peninsula. Everyone from Alexander the Great to Roman emperors Nero and Caligula tried digging a canal, but success came only in 1893, when French engineers dynamited their way through the rock. Boats take about an hour to make the 6-km (4-mile) journey.