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Miracles are associated with this beautiful Byzantine church, and many flock here at Easter to light candles from the holy flame.

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

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 lovely monastery here is one of the greatest treasures of the Byzantine Empire. Inside, the brilliant mosaics are among the most perfectly executed examples of the genre. It is currently closed for restoration work and is scheduled to reopen in 2006.

The centre of the world, as Zeus divined by releasing two eagles from opposite ends of the universe and seeing where they crossed. Great mystic powers are associated with this site, whose jutting mountain, gaping chasms and rushing springs indicate a place of dramatic geological upheaval. In ancient times, priestesses communed with the Oracle of Delphi, which gave famously abstruse prophecies. Apollo won dominion over the Oracle, and the site is full of temples to the god and prophets. (see Sights in Delphi)

For 1,400 years, this was one of Greece’s most sacred places. Thousands of pilgrims took part in the Eleusian Mysteries, rites that celebrated Demeter, goddess of nature, and her daughter Persephone. Today Eleusis has become one of Greece’s ugliest places – a polluted industrial town. There are still some scattered ruins, though, and a museum to help make sense of them.

Housed here is one of the world’s most precious collections of ancient inscriptions, including the official records of early Athens, carved on stone and marble slabs. It’s a fascinating trove of Athenean lore, and the most important exhibits include: a decree by the assembly of Athens ordering the evacuation of the city before the Persian invasion in 480 BC; a sacred law concerning temple-worship on the Acropolis; and a stele carved with accounts of the construction of the Erechtheion at the Acropolis some 2,400 years ago.

Greece’s second-largest island is so close to the mainland you can reach it by bridge. There are several trains a day from Larissa station in Athens to Chalkida, Evia’s central city. The spine of mountains running north to south and dotted with villages offers great weekend trekking, and if you go by car midweek you’ll likely have its beaches and the thermal spas at the northern tip to yourself.

Huge Evia is the perfect island for hikers, with green mountains and long trails winding through inland villages. At the northern tip, posh resorts cluster around restorative thermal springs. (see Evia)