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There's a lot more than ancient Greek ruins around Athens.  In the Plaka you'll find remains of the Romans and Ottoman Turks as well as the Classical.  The Romans took control of the city in the second century BC and added some of their own architectural splendor, though it could never match the Greek's.  During his reign from 117 - 138 AD the Emperor Hadrian left his mark in many areas. www.europeupclose.com/article/greece-hadrians-athens/  Beyond Hadrian's Arch which marked the border of Classical Athens, was the Roman city, including the Roman baths. Although it had been begun centuries earlier, he also put the finishing touches on the Temple of Olympian Zeus. Hadrian built a library in the Plaka area and nearby is the Roman Forum with it's notable Tower of the Winds. Years later, a wealthy Roman senator built the Herodes Atticus theatre in honour of his wife. Today the "Herodian" is a popular theatre for nusic concerts and staging ancient dramas.
Not just Roman ruins can be found in the Plaka.  There are reminders of the Ottoman occupation of the city from 1456 to 1821. Most of these have been left in ruin or turned into museums to house Greek artifacts.

The Tzistarakis mosque, built in 1759, dominates Monastiraki Square. It is now the Museum of Greek Folk Art: Ceramics Collection. Take time to go inside and see the collection of pottery and other artifacts


The oldest mosque in Athens,  the Fethiye Tzami built in 1458 occupies a corner of the Roman Forum. It is now used to store artifacts found around the site.

Across from the Forum entrance are the remains of the medresse, an Islamic  school. During the Ottoman rule and Greek independence it was used as a prison and notorious for it's harsh conditions. A tree inside the courtyard was used for hangings. The prison was closed in the early 1900's and most of it was torn down.

A place that has always intrigued me, is the Turkish bath house. Finally this time in Athens I was lured inside and spent a pleasant hour wandering the halls and rooms.  It was originally built in the 1450's and has been carefully restored. Roman and Byzantine bath-houses served as models for the Turkish hammams though there were some differences to meet the prescription of the Koran. The baths were used in shifts by men and women until an expansion in the 19th century provided more space for what you see today. Restoration work was completed in 1998. It's called "The Bath-house of the Winds" and is located at Kyrrestou 8, a street that leads to the back of the Roman Forum near the Tower of the Winds. It's open Mon & Wed- Sun 9 am- 2.30 pm. Free.









Also nearby, around the corner from the Roman Forum at Dhioyenous 1 - 3 is the Museum of Greek Folk Instruments. It displays every type of instrument played in Greek history all attractively displayed in this old mansion. Open Tues & Thursday-Sun 10 am - 2 pm; Wed. noon - 6 pm. Free. There's also a museum shop where you can buy CDs of traditional Greek music.

I have visited Thessaloniki (in Greek Macedonia) several times beginning with 1979, my very first trip to Greece. I stopped there first specifically so I could go to the Archaeological Museum and see the amazing finds that were on display from the tombs at Vergina. I've visited there a few times since then, usually when I was on research trips for SHADOW OF THE LION.  My stops were brief and each time I'd try to take in a bit of the city.



The Ottoman Turks invaded Greece in 1430. They called the city "Selanik".  Thessalonki became one of their major cities. , The population of the city was composed of  Slavs, Albanians, Armenians and the largest Jewish community in Europe. Greek Orthodox Christians were a minority.

In 1917 a fire leveled most of the city destroying the old buildings including the entire Jewish quarter. Later the city was rebuilt in an Art Deco style under the supervision of French architect and archaeologist Ernst Hebrard.



When I  visit Thessaloniki I usually stay at a hotel on the main street, Egnatia, making it an easy walk to see all the sights. Just a few blocks from my hotel is the pleasant plateia of Aristoteles with it's palms and gardens and a statue of the famous philosopher a focal point. There are tavernas and shops on each side of the plateia. As I stopped at one for a refreshing drink, I saw a group of men at a table nearby who looked surprisingly just like I imaged the generals in SHADOW must have looked!



The plateia opens to the sea walk with it's beautiful neo-classical buildings and many restaurants and tavernas populated by groups of young people. Thessalonki is a university city and there seems to be a large portion of the population are young folk, likely students. As a result Thessalonki has a lively music and theatre scene.



The old and new sections of the the city are marked by the Exhibition grounds and the seaside walk dominated by the famous White Tower (Lefkos Pyrgos), part of the Fortress of Kalamaria that once formed the corner of the city's Byzantine and Ottoman defences. The walls were demolished in the late 19th century. Before that it was known as the Bloody Tower, an infamous place of imprisonment and execution. It is said that a Jewish prisoner was offered his freedom if he painted the tower white. Hence the name "White Tower".

The sea walk is one of my favorite parts of Thessaloniki. I love the long stroll and after stopping for a delicious lunch of calamaria in pesto sauce, among the company of a bevy of handsome young folk, I set off for a walk, heading toward the White Tower and another of my favorite sites in the city:  the statue of Alexander the Great astride his famous horse Bucephalus.  The statue faces East, toward his conquests. It is surrounded by a wall with a frieze depicting his battle with the Persians, a row of tall sarissas, the spears used by the phalanx troops, and a stand of shields each with the inscription of the tribe or batallion of the soldiers.  Near the statue is theVassilika Theatre where I noticed a large bill-board advertising a production of "Alexander: the Musical". 

Just around the corner is the Archaeological Museum and although the treasures from the tombs have been removed to their original site at Vergina, there are still many fascinating artifacts on display. At the museum cafe while I was enjoying a frappe, I spotted a young man who looked exactly like I imagine Alexander had looked. I tried to take a photo of him as he passed by but didn't get a good shots. That's only the third time in all my travels in Greece I have seen someone who resembled my historical hero.

I had intended to take a side trip to Pella, the Royal City where Alexander was born. However my time was limited so I decided instead to spend the next day exploring the parts of Thessaloniki that I had not seen before. Fortunately my hotel was not far from many of these historical buildings.
Just around the corner I found an Ottoman bazaar.
 Near the water front is an early 20th century house that once belonged to a Jewish family now a Jewish museum. During WW II all the Jews in Thessaloniki were rounded up and taken to internment camps. About 90,000 of them were killed. There was once a Jewish cemetary in Thessalonki but it was destroyed by the Nazis.


I wandered down Egnatia Street, past the Bey Hamam, Turkish Baths, and up through the park area of the Plateia Dieikastrion to the site of the old Roman Form.




Now I was in Thessalonki's Upper Town, the old Turkish area.  I passed through the gardens that surround a 15th century mosque.


This area is where the  Turkish consulate is located. Right behind the consulate is the home of Kamal Ataturk, the first president of the modern secular state of Turkey, born in 1881.