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Best caught and served on the same day, having been grilled over hot coals, topped with a squeeze of lemon and drizzled with oil and vinegar. The texture should be tender and the taste salty-sweet.

Hadrian built this luxurious Corinthian-columned building in AD 132. Most of the space was actually a showy marble courtyard, with gardens and a pool. There were also lecture rooms, music rooms and a theatre. The library itself was on the east side, where you can see marble slots for manuscript scrolls. (see Hadrian’s Library)

Roman Emperor Hadrian built this sumptuous “library” (really more of a luxurious forum) in AD 131. It had a courtyard, mosaic floors, concert areas, and a small area for storing library scrolls, all surrounded by extra-fancy Corinthian columns. Following extensive excavation and restoration, part of the site is now open to the public. (see Hadrian’s Library)

Every top jazz musician passing through Athens has played here.

This lofty, wooden-beamed space with leather armchairs and great rock music pulls student backpackers and Greeks who wish they lived elsewhere.

Ancient Greeks performed their timeless tragedies in the spectacular theatres of Herodes Atticus and Epidauros. Now, every summer, the world’s greatest singers, dancers and actors perform under moonlight in these world-renowned venues. Recent singers include Luciano Pavarotti and the Harlem Gospel Choir, while Gerard Depardieu and Isabella Rossellini have acted in performances of classical works at Epidauros.

Housed in a 1960s building by the harbour, this exhibition opens with a map of Odysseus’s voyage across the Mediterranean. It then traces the history of Greek naval trading, with models of ships ranging from the 5th-century BC trireme to modern tankers (Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world). Naval warfare is covered by massive oil paintings of historic sea battles against the Turks, plus red flags bearing the star and crescent captured from them.

This massive complex is on the site of Athens’ former airport, converted for 2004 into major sports facilities. It hosted basketball, baseball, softball, fencing, handball, hockey and canoe slalom. There are plans to convert the complex into a giant park which could be the largest in Europe. Though some land will be sold to developers to fund the project.

Classical sculpture grew ripe and decadent, in part influenced by the new Hellenistic cities in the Orient, part of Alexander the Great’s empire. The sculptor Lysippos defined the new phase with sensuous subjects such as Aphrodite, Pan and Dionysus in exaggerated, twisting movement.

Athens’ premiere showcase for performing arts for nearly 2,000 years (see Herodes Atticus Theatre).