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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.

Last summer when I was visiting Greece, a friend invited me to go on a bus 'exploration' trip with a group of Greek seniors from Athens. The trip would take us across to Evvia (by the bridge to Halkida) and up over the mountains to the eastern side of the island.  Evvia is the big island that is very near the west coast of Attika.  I used to live part time in a tiny shepherd's village up in the mountain near Karystos in the south, but other than one long-ago visit to Halkida  on my very first New Years in Greece, I'd never explored the rest of the island.
It's a pleasant bus ride from Athens and over the new bridge to Halkida, Our first stop was Nea Artaki, a pleasant sea-side town where we stopped for refreshments.  Then we traveled north-east through various small towns and remote villages. 





We ventured farther north and eastward through dramatic mountain scenery, through the towns of Psaxna and Kontodespoti where we stopped to visit an interesting folk museum and a beautiful old Byzantine church.








From there the bus climbed higher into the mountains and the scenery became more dramatic. The narrow road twisted up steep mountainsides with deep gorges where you got amazing vistas of the valleys below. There were lots of scary twists and turns and heart-stopping moments. In one word, "Breathtaking!"





"The reason they call these trips explorations", my friend told me, "is because they go to places most tourists don't go."  Sometimes these are to remote places that are like safaris into the unknown parts of the country." 

We intended to stop at a monastery high up in the hills but it was closed.  So we continued on and wound our way down the serpentine narrow highway to a small beach resort called Limonomos where we had a four hour break to rest.  The beach was sandy and the water warm so we had a refreshing swim and a huge tasty lunch at the taverna.





On the return trip, we stopped at Halkidi to look at the swirling current of the Euripos Channel, a tidal bore where the philosopher/scientist Aristotle once threw himself in to see if he could figure out what caused it.  Since then lots of other scientists have tried to explain this phenomena.





It really was an exciting day 'exploring' Evvia and a chance to see some of the beautiful island countryside. We were the only English speaking guests on the tour other than the tour guide but we enjoyed every minute of it.  All for 25 Euro.  A pretty good deal for a day tour! 

This summer when I spent a few days on my favorite island, Naxos, my BC friends Glenys and Marnie and I went exploring around Naxos old town, the Venetian quarter. This is where, in Venetian times, the wealthy lived within or surrounding the walls of the fortress, called the "Kastro".  From 1294 ti 1537 this was the stronghold of the Venetian Duchy of the Aegean.
Within the Kastro there are still remains of some original buildings including the Catholic cathedral. Right behind it is the French School of Commerce opened by the Jesuits in 1627. The renown Cretan writer, Nikos Kazantzakis, once attended here. Now it houses the Archaeological Museum. There is also the Ursuline Convent and School where the young ladies of Venetian aristocracy were educated.
Surrounding the Kastro there are still several of the tower homes once occupied by Venetian gentry. One of these is the Della Rocca Barozzi home, which the owners still occupy some of the year.  But during tourist season, this is the Venetian Folklore Museum. http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/naxos/naxos-museums/naxos-venetian-museum.htm

I've always wanted to visit the museum and somehow, despite my many trips to Naxos, this was the first time I made a point of going in. Only two of the Kastros original seven towers remain. A few of the Venetian Catholic's descendants still live in the old mansions encircling the site. Their family coats of arms decorate the doorways. It's fortunate that the Della Rocca family decided to turn their home into a museum, giving people an opportunity to view what life was like in the days of the Venetian Duchy.





The museum is located near the entrance of the castle, called Trani Porta. Here you have a chance to see objects and furnishing of an old household that tells some of the history and tradition of Naxos. You step inside and feel as if you've gone back in time to the 13th century. Rooms are filled with ornate furniture, elaborate rugs, household items, clothing, tables set as if dinner guests will arrive at any minute, comfortable bedrooms including a nursery, all decked out with the filmy trappings and objects of a lady's boudoir. In the living room area, there's an old piano once played by Leonard Bernstein. Marnie got a chance to sit down and tinkle out a few tunes.



If you're lucky, perhaps the owner will be there to guide you through. Otherwise there are tours in English by docents.  The tour ends up in the wine cellar which has even more objects dating back well into ancient times including a stone engraved with a message to Ptolemy of Egypt.


The museum is open daily from April to October (10 am - 3 pm and 7 pm to 10 pm) with an entrance fee of 5 euro (3 euro for students). During the summer season, the museum holds cultural activities such as music concerts (classical and jazz, local and traditional music) art exhibitions and folkloric events. http://www.naxosfestival.com These are held in the tower garden with spectacular views overlooking the harbour and the famous "portals" at the entrance to the harbour, the unfinished portal of a temple of Apollo built around 530 BC.



We had a wonderful morning touring the museum, and browsing the shops along the narrow vaulted streets nearby, ending up with a delicious lunch at a hillside taverna overlooking the port.