The island offers several very nice and atmospheric cafés. They are the traditional meeting places for many of the locals which use them as their base for doing ‘people watching’.
Café Aenaos
Aenaos is located right under the Defterdar Mosque and is a great place to enjoy a cup of fresh brewed coffee. This superb location makes it a great place for people watching.
Rendez Vous Coffee Bar
Delicious coffee, sporting events on TV and computers with internet access are all to be found in this coffee house which has been around since 1990.
Address: Tigaki
Internet: www.rendezvouskos.com
The Marina Café
Nice and relaxing café at the harbour which gives you the chance to watch the boats as you enjoy your drink or coffee.
Address: The marina, Kos
Strand Café
The Strand café is located on the busiest beach in Kos Town and is a great place to meet up during the day or before a night out. The Strand Café is especially popular amongst Scandinavian people.
Address: Tingaki beach
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Kos Do and See
The Ancient Agora
The ruins of the Shrine of Aphrodite and Temple of Hercules are to be found on this 3rd century BC site near the Castle in Kos.
The Castle Of Knights
The 14th century castle withstood the Ottomans’ attack for a very long time and it was only destroyed by an earthquake in 1495. It was later restored by the Grand Masters d’Aubuisson and d’Amboise. Address: Leof Finikon
The Western Excavation Site
Two wooden shelters standing at the west end of Kos town protect the 3rd century mosaics of the ‘House of Europa’. The best preserved mosaic depicts Europa’s abduction by the Greek god of Zeus in the guise of a bull.
Asklipieion
The most important ancient site on the island is built on a hill-top from where you can enjoy the view of Kos town and Turkey. It consisted of a religious sanctuary to Asclepius, a healing centre and a school of medicine where students were lectured by Hippocrates himself.
Address: Platini
KOS
This Kos travel guide includes all you need to know. Restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels, events, and much more. Read the guide below or download and print to take on your journey.
Kos is one of the most popular islands in the Dodecanese. The island has a well-establish tourist industry which benefits the visitors to the island as it is very organized. The locals are generally friendly people and they have realized just how important tourism is for the island. Kos offers plenty of action in the summer, but goes rather quite in the wintertime.
The City
Kos has a large selection of wonderful beaches which are mainly to be found on the south coast. The swimming possibilities are many and it is a great place for snorkelling or diving as the possibilities are endless. The island has some stunningly beautiful mountain villages which can easily be visited either by car, bus or bicycle. It is also home for some of the world’s most interesting ancient sites and they are worth a visit as many of the structures still standing were built somewhere between 3rd – 4th century BC. It is an absolutely amazing experience. Naturally, most of the activities on the island are based around the water, and Kos is a great place for windsurfing, jet-skiing or even sailing in your own yacht. There are several day tripper boats which can take you to other nearby islands as well as to Turkey if you so wish.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Athens Essential Information
Airport
Eleftherios Venizelos is at Spata, 33 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of Athens. A taxi in to the city costs €20-30 depending on arrival time and the number of suitcases. The airport bus to Syntagma takes just under an hour and costs €3.20. The Metro goes to the centre and costs €8. The Metro journey to Syntagma takes 27 minutes, and the journey to Piraeus takes 60 minutes.
Phone: +30 210 353 00 00
Internet: http://www.aia.gr/
Public Transport
The new Metro stations are well worth seeing, and are kept spotlessly clean. There is a tram from the centre to Glyfada. Buses and trolley buses run until midnight. The airport bus ticket is valid on other public transport services for 24 hours. There are various travel cards on sale at ticket offices. Ferries out to the islands leave from the harbour in Pireus or from Rafina. Boat timetables at
The new Metro stations are well worth seeing, and are kept spotlessly clean. There is a tram from the centre to Glyfada. Buses and trolley buses run until midnight. The airport bus ticket is valid on other public transport services for 24 hours. There are various travel cards on sale at ticket offices. Ferries out to the islands leave from the harbour in Pireus or from Rafina. Boat timetables at
Taxi
There are lots of taxis, but here it is normal to share a taxi, so don’t be surprised if the driver picks up additional passengers along the road who are going in the same direction. The drivers have taximeters and fixed prices.
There are lots of taxis, but here it is normal to share a taxi, so don’t be surprised if the driver picks up additional passengers along the road who are going in the same direction. The drivers have taximeters and fixed prices.
Post
Stamps can be bought in most tobacconists and kiosks selling postcards.
Stamps can be bought in most tobacconists and kiosks selling postcards.
Pharmacy
Doctor on duty, pharmacy 1434
Doctor on duty, pharmacy 1434
Dentist
Doctor on duty, pharmacy 1434
Doctor on duty, pharmacy 1434
Telephone
Country code: +30 for Greece, Area code: 210 for Athens
Country code: +30 for Greece, Area code: 210 for Athens
Electricity
230 volts
230 volts
Athens Hotels
The standard of hotels has markedly improved thanks to the Olympics – and was certainly needed. The prices shown are for the high season; prices are lower in the low and intermediate seasons.
Grand Bretagne
This famous old classic has been fully renovated and restored to its former glory. This is where people on State visits and other celebrities stay when they are in town. Even so, you can visit the bar and restaurant GB Corner without burning a hole in your wallet.
Address: Constitution Square
Phone: +30 210 333 00 00
Internet: http://www.grandebretagne.gr/
Hotel Achilleas
Great location near Kolokotroni and the Ermou shopping street for this little hotel with a striking entrance and designer lobby. The rooms don’t all live up to the standard of the entrance, but are definitely okay.
Address: Lekka 21, Syntagma
Great location near Kolokotroni and the Ermou shopping street for this little hotel with a striking entrance and designer lobby. The rooms don’t all live up to the standard of the entrance, but are definitely okay.
Address: Lekka 21, Syntagma
Phone: +30 210 323 31 97
Internet: http://www.achilleashotel.gr/
Cecil
Newly renovated, but has retained its pre-war charm with high ceilings and period furnishings. Near the market hall, and within walking distance of the restaurant scene in Psyrri. A value for money alternative.
Address: Athinas 39, Psyrri
Newly renovated, but has retained its pre-war charm with high ceilings and period furnishings. Near the market hall, and within walking distance of the restaurant scene in Psyrri. A value for money alternative.
Address: Athinas 39, Psyrri
Phone: +30 210 321 70 79
Internet: http://www.cecil.gr/
Adonis
Central quiet location, surrounded by pedestrian precincts, and near Syntagma. From the terrace on the roof, a view of the Acropolis and the rest of the city. Simple and functional with shower, central heating and TV. AC costs extra.
Address: 3 Kodroy & Voulis St
Central quiet location, surrounded by pedestrian precincts, and near Syntagma. From the terrace on the roof, a view of the Acropolis and the rest of the city. Simple and functional with shower, central heating and TV. AC costs extra.
Address: 3 Kodroy & Voulis St
Phone: +30 210 324 97 37
Internet: http://www.hotel-adonis.gr/
Phaedra
Small simple medium class hotel near the Lysicrates monument, with everything that Plaka has to offer.
Address: Lisicratous/Cherefontos 16, Plaka
Small simple medium class hotel near the Lysicrates monument, with everything that Plaka has to offer.
Address: Lisicratous/Cherefontos 16, Plaka
Phone: +30 210 323 84 61
Athens Shopping
The best shopping streets are Voukourestiou, Patriarhou Ioakim, Skoufa, Tsakalof, Kanari and the side streets around Kolonaki. There are many designer clothes, expensive boutiques and jewellers. Try for example Emporiko Centro, an exclusive galleria of several floors with gold, ties, clocks and watches, glasses and a Gucci boutique. In this area is also Old Athens, a shoe and handbag shop with a 1960s flavour, when ladies wore gloves and pearl necklaces à la Jackie O and Maria Callas. The shop owner was a fashion editor before setting up on his own, putting Greek handmade accessories on the map. Ermou has become the main street for shoes, and on Mitropoleos, from Syntagma down to Monastiraki, you can also buy handbags and shoes. Here too is the covered market hall which occupies a whole block, with the fish market in the middle. All around are butchers and spice shops, and around the market are several simple but good places to eat. Like onion soup in the Paris markets, here you eat patsa or tripe soup to ease the effects of ouzo.
Athens Bar and Nightlife
Athens is not really a city of fine bars – for that you should visit some of the international hotels. On the other hand, there are lots of combined bars/cafés that serve both. Often combined with some food, as it is the Greek custom to eat a little snack to go with drinks. In the summer, much of the night life moves out to Glyfada and Vouliagmenis along the coast.
Grand Bretagne
This bar in the classic old hotel has a genuine turn-of-the-century, well-to-do feel, and has had a facelift, making it one of the top meeting places in Athens.
Address: Constitution Square
De Lux
Lies just below the new Acropolis Museum, and is popular with the media crowd. Also serves food.
Address: Falirou 15, Makroyanni
Lies just below the new Acropolis Museum, and is popular with the media crowd. Also serves food.
Address: Falirou 15, Makroyanni
City
The place to mingle under the trees in this pleasantly shady little side street, where one bar merges into the next. Bar Mousa and the fine Azul restaurant are wall to wall.
Address: 220 College Street
The place to mingle under the trees in this pleasantly shady little side street, where one bar merges into the next. Bar Mousa and the fine Azul restaurant are wall to wall.
Address: 220 College Street
Psyrri, Gazi, Rouf
The area beyond Monastiraki has livened up with many restaurants, bars and clubs going on well into the night. Look out for Astron, Taki 3 or Bee,
Address: Miaouli & Themidos
The area beyond Monastiraki has livened up with many restaurants, bars and clubs going on well into the night. Look out for Astron, Taki 3 or Bee,
Address: Miaouli & Themidos
Exarchia
The area around the Technical University has got rock clubs such as An, Solomon 13 and Rodon, Marni 24.
The area around the Technical University has got rock clubs such as An, Solomon 13 and Rodon, Marni 24.
Athens Eating
In the Psyrri district, the former handicraft workshops have been converted to trendy restaurants and cafés, and this has continued out to Gazi and Rouf. Many chefs came ‘home’ from Australia or America, carrying granny’s recipes in their luggage, and were appalled at the Turkish menus. You can still find simple taverns serving good home fare, but it is the ”new” Greek cuisine that has been winning all the laurels.
To Kioupi
Traditional taverna, sandwiched between all the trendy cafés, down some steps, and you point to the food you want on the counter. Reasonable prices, and a complete contrast to life in the Kolonaki Square above.
Address: Plateia Kolonakiou 4, Kolonaki
Phone: +30 210 361 40 33
Internet: http://www.tokioupi.gr/
Psaras
Centrally located seafood taverna, dating from 1898. Paintings by the painter Savakis can be seen on the bare stone walls. The open-air restaurant winds its way up and down the narrow alleyway.
Address: 16 Erechtheos, Plaka
Centrally located seafood taverna, dating from 1898. Paintings by the painter Savakis can be seen on the bare stone walls. The open-air restaurant winds its way up and down the narrow alleyway.
Address: 16 Erechtheos, Plaka
Phone: +30 210 321 87 33
Internet: www.psaras-taverna.gr/en/
Spondi
The best restaurant in Athens – and in Greece, according to many visitors. A French chef has put together the menu, and created a renowned wine cellar. Simplicity is the motto at this restaurant, which for years has been winning all the prizes there are to be won.
Address: Pyrronos 5, Pangrati
The best restaurant in Athens – and in Greece, according to many visitors. A French chef has put together the menu, and created a renowned wine cellar. Simplicity is the motto at this restaurant, which for years has been winning all the prizes there are to be won.
Address: Pyrronos 5, Pangrati
Phone: +30 210 756 40 21
Internet: http://www.spondi.gr/
Taverna Tou Psyrri
A typical local, with old photographs on the walls. The place is usually full to the brim with people munching their way through hearty portions of traditional Greek food, or tasty little dishes of meze, washed down with wine from the barrel.
Address: 12 Eschylou, Psyrri
A typical local, with old photographs on the walls. The place is usually full to the brim with people munching their way through hearty portions of traditional Greek food, or tasty little dishes of meze, washed down with wine from the barrel.
Address: 12 Eschylou, Psyrri
Phone: +30 210 321 49 23
To Zeidoron
A mezedopoleio, serving delicious food on one of the most popular street corners in Psyrri. The restaurant is also very popular because of its nice atmosphere.
Address: Agion Anagyron 17/Taki 10, Psyrri
A mezedopoleio, serving delicious food on one of the most popular street corners in Psyrri. The restaurant is also very popular because of its nice atmosphere.
Address: Agion Anagyron 17/Taki 10, Psyrri
Phone: +30 210 321 53 68
Aristera-dexia
Going like a steam train, and has won several prizes for its creative Greek cuisine and excellent wine cellar. Regarded as one of the best restaurants in Athens.
Address: Andronikou 3, Gazi/Rouf
Going like a steam train, and has won several prizes for its creative Greek cuisine and excellent wine cellar. Regarded as one of the best restaurants in Athens.
Address: Andronikou 3, Gazi/Rouf
Phone: +30 210 342 23 80
Taverna Xinos
A musical taverna that ought to have a preservation order on it! A rickety shed in a back yard, with fantastic wall paintings. It is as crazy as the musicians who perform there, but utterly genuine, just like the home cooking they serve.
Address: Geronda 4, Plaka
A musical taverna that ought to have a preservation order on it! A rickety shed in a back yard, with fantastic wall paintings. It is as crazy as the musicians who perform there, but utterly genuine, just like the home cooking they serve.
Address: Geronda 4, Plaka
Phone: +30 210 322 10 65
Athens's Cafes
Athenians love to sit in a kafeneion, sipping Greek coffee or frappé, iced coffee. But these days the new fashion for caffe latte and cappuccino is gaining ground.
Plaka
Around the central square in Plaka there are lots of similar cafes where you can have a frappé, read a newspaper and watch the world go by.
Address: Kydathineon
Caffé Peros
Kolonaki Square’s central point, where sooner or later everyone you know will pass by. A place for ladies and gentlemen partaking of coffee under a canopy. Open all year round.
Address: Plateia Kolonakiou, Kolonaki
Kolonaki Square’s central point, where sooner or later everyone you know will pass by. A place for ladies and gentlemen partaking of coffee under a canopy. Open all year round.
Address: Plateia Kolonakiou, Kolonaki
Da Capo
If Peros is posh, Da Capo is trendy. Here the younger smart set gather after shopping, or before going on somewhere else in the evening.
Address: Plateia Kolonakiou, Kolonaki
If Peros is posh, Da Capo is trendy. Here the younger smart set gather after shopping, or before going on somewhere else in the evening.
Address: Plateia Kolonakiou, Kolonaki
Athens Do and See
National Archaeological Museum
Here you will find Ancient Greece’s most spectacular pieces. One room contains Schliemann’s finds from Mycenae. The famous frescoes from Santorini are on display. There is also a fine collection of idols from the Cyclades, and ceramics.
Address: Patission 44, Museio
Address: Patission 44, Museio
Phone: +30 210 821 77 24
The Acropolis and its surroundings
The Parthenon, the temple of Athena, is the major attraction. There is also the Erechteion, whose columns are statues of the female Caryatids, though the original statues have been replaced by copies because of air pollution. On the southern slopes of the Acropolis lies the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a Roman theatre with room for as many as 5,000 spectators. It is used during the annual Athens Festival for world-class ballet and music performances. The Dionysus Theatre lies beside Herodes Atticus, and almost all the tragedies and comedies of Ancient Greece were written for this theatre.
The Parthenon, the temple of Athena, is the major attraction. There is also the Erechteion, whose columns are statues of the female Caryatids, though the original statues have been replaced by copies because of air pollution. On the southern slopes of the Acropolis lies the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a Roman theatre with room for as many as 5,000 spectators. It is used during the annual Athens Festival for world-class ballet and music performances. The Dionysus Theatre lies beside Herodes Atticus, and almost all the tragedies and comedies of Ancient Greece were written for this theatre.
Agora
This was both a marketplace and a political centre. The Agora is dominated by the Stoa of Attalus and the Theseion, or Hephaisteion, dedicated to the god of metalworking and also to Theseus, one of the heroes of Greek mythology.
Address: Monastiraki
This was both a marketplace and a political centre. The Agora is dominated by the Stoa of Attalus and the Theseion, or Hephaisteion, dedicated to the god of metalworking and also to Theseus, one of the heroes of Greek mythology.
Address: Monastiraki
Benaki
A history museum with many objects from the Stone Age up to the War of Independence against the Turks. In the annexe there are often very interesting separate exhibitions.
Address: 1 Koumbari St. & Vas. Sofias Ave.
A history museum with many objects from the Stone Age up to the War of Independence against the Turks. In the annexe there are often very interesting separate exhibitions.
Address: 1 Koumbari St. & Vas. Sofias Ave.
Phone: +30 210 367 10 00
Internet: www.benaki.gr
Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST)
Until the middle of 2009, when the Museum building will have been completed and will open its doors to the audience, the under construction permanent collections are presented in periodical exhibitions. Plenty of video art and experimental installations.
Address: Vassileos Georgiou Β 17 -19 & Rigillis Street
Until the middle of 2009, when the Museum building will have been completed and will open its doors to the audience, the under construction permanent collections are presented in periodical exhibitions. Plenty of video art and experimental installations.
Address: Vassileos Georgiou Β 17 -19 & Rigillis Street
Phone: + 30 210 924 21 11-3
Internet: www.emst.gr
Athens City
Of all Europe’s capitals, Athens is probably the one that has changed the most in recent years. But even though Athens has become a modern metropolis, it still retains a good deal of its old small town feel. Here antiquity meets the future, and the ancient monuments form a classical backdrop to a new and trendier Athens – and it is precisely these great contrasts that make the city such a fascinating place to explore.
Athens’ heyday was around 400 years before Christ – that’s when most of the classical monuments were built. During the Byzantine and Turkish eras, the city decayed into just an insignificant little village, only to become the capital of newly-liberated Greece in 1833. Ahead of the 2004 Olympics, almost the entire infrastructure was transformed, and the Metro, trams, new ring roads and viaducts have eased the pressure of the heavy traffic. Athens is still a rather messy and chaotic place – it wouldn’t be Athens otherwise – and despite all the improvements, still retains a great deal of its oriental charm. The whole coastal stretch from Piraeus to the old Hellenikon airport has been improved with new plantings, viaducts and paths for walking. The Plaka quarter is becoming more popular, and is on the way to catching up with Psyrri, Gazi and Rouf as regards restaurants. Discover the right places in the Anafiotika district, at the feet of the Acropolis, and you will find it still has a village feel in the midst of the city. In Exarchia, there is still a somewhat in-your-face anarchic atmosphere around the Technical University. Meanwhile, Kolonaki is becoming more and more chic.
Greece
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Greece , also known as Hellas and officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία, Ellīnikī́ Dīmokratía, IPA: [Elinici Dimokratia]), is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula. The country has land borders with Albania, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the east. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of mainland Greece, the Ionian Sea to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the tenth longest coastline in the world at 14,880 km (9,246 mi) in length, featuring a vast number of islands (approximately 1400, 227 of which are inhabited), including Crete, the Dodecanese, the Cyclades, and the Ionian Islands among others. Eighty percent of Greece consists of mountains, of which Mount Olympus is the highest at 2,917 m (9,570 ft).
Modern Greece traces its roots to the civilization of ancient Greece, generally considered to be the cradle of Western civilization. As such, it is the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, the Olympic Games, Western literature and historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western drama, including both tragedy and comedy. This legacy is partly reflected in the 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites that are located in Greece.
A developed country with a very high Human Development Index, Greece has been a member of what is now the European Union since 1981 and its Economic and Monetary Union since 2001, NATO since 1952, and the European Space Agency since 2005. It is also a founding member of the United Nations, the OECD, and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization. Athens is the capital; other major cities include Thessaloniki, Piraeus, Patras, Heraklion and Larissa.
Modern Greece traces its roots to the civilization of ancient Greece, generally considered to be the cradle of Western civilization. As such, it is the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, the Olympic Games, Western literature and historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western drama, including both tragedy and comedy. This legacy is partly reflected in the 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites that are located in Greece.
A developed country with a very high Human Development Index, Greece has been a member of what is now the European Union since 1981 and its Economic and Monetary Union since 2001, NATO since 1952, and the European Space Agency since 2005. It is also a founding member of the United Nations, the OECD, and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization. Athens is the capital; other major cities include Thessaloniki, Piraeus, Patras, Heraklion and Larissa.
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