INSIDE INFORMATION

CREATIVE ATHENIANS OFFER THEIR OWN TIPS

TEXT: VLASSIS KOSTOUROS

EFTIHIA STEFANIDI Photographer, Creative Director, Co-Creator @mona_athens @shila_athens @eftihia

1. The Odeon of Herodes Atticus (Dionysiou Areopagitou) is a must-see, even in winter when its glorious stage remains silent, as is the Temple of Poseidon on Cape Sounion – a marvelous ancient monument. 2. Diporto (9 Sokratous & Theatrou) is an underground taverna with a brusque owner and no menu, just dishes of the day. If you’re lucky, you may witness an impromptu live set of rebetika songs channeling that mixed bittersweet feeling that Greeks call “harmolypi.” 3. Galaxy (10 Stadiou) is an Athenian institution. I love the dapper style of the owner, the toasted bread with cheese and mustard served with the drinks, and their decision to keep the place authentically old-school. 4. Pistachio and dark chocolate chili sorbet at Django Gelato Athens in Koukaki (15 Veikou). This spot has changed my perception of what good ice cream tastes like. 5. I have a soft spot for neighborhood bookstores. Lexikopoleio in Pangrati (13 Stasinou) has a great selection of fiction and non-fiction titles in many languages. Adad Books in Petralona (1 Anteou) is a charming new cafébookstore focusing on art books.

1. Culture Destination 2. Only in Athens 3. Night out 4. Guilty edible pleasure 5. Shopping tips MARINA VRANOPOULOU Owner & Director, Dio Horia Gallery @vranopoulaki @diohoria

1. I love the Museum of Cycladic Art (4 Neofytou Douka); its collection is the largest of its kind in the world and features objects from all phases of the Cycladic civilization, from figurines to vases, tools, weapons and pottery. 2. One of the best things to do in Athens is to go swimming, even in winter, as the sea never gets too cold. My favorite spots are Okeanida Beach in Vouliagmeni, where the slightly worn out facilities engender a tender feeling of nostalgia, and the small beach below the Temple of Poseidon on Sounion. 3. Baba au Rum (6 Klitiou) for its extensive rum collection and rum-based cocktails, and Birdman (35 Voulis) for the neighborhood izakaya atmosphere and the avant-garde menu. 4. Kafteros (5 Agriniou) is a no-frills neighborhood grill house in Halandri, about a 30-minute drive from the city center, famous for its super-hot souvlaki sauce. I’ve brought many artists for dinner there. They’ve all loved it! 5. Intellectual Leisure is a clothing brand that conceives its ideas, sources its materials, and manufactures its products all within the Mediterranean basin and all with its surroundings and a respect for nature in mind.

ARTS & RECREATION

Music, fine dining and family fun at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

SINCE OPENING IN 2016, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) has successfully fulfilled its aim of becoming a groundbreaking hub of culture and sustainability, a venue for events of international caliber, and a tourist destination on the Athenian Riviera. Designed by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, it houses the National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera. To date, it has received more than 21million visits, attracting individuals from all over Greece and the world, and has hosted over 5,200 cultural and educational events and 13,000 sports activities, most of which, true to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation’s vision of creating a public space that's accessible to all, have been free of charge.

5 HIGHLIGHTS FOR FIRST-TIME VISITORS

BY ELLY ANDRIOPOULOU, SNFCC MANAGING DIRECTOR: ● Watch the spectacular Dancing Fountains water show in the Canal. ● Walk around the park, which, during the holidays, becomes an after-dark seasonal wonderland with stunning large-scale light installations. ● Dine at the Delta Restaurant – recently awarded two MICHELIN stars and one MICHELIN Green Star for Sustainable Gastronomy. ● Visit the Lighthouse for a panoramic view of Piraeus, the Saronic Gulf and Athens. During the Christmas season, enjoy a cocktail or two at the holiday pop-up bar. ● Stand in the Agora, the heart of the SNFCC, for a great view of the glass façades of the National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera.

STAVROS NIARCHOS FOUNDATION CULTURAL CENTER: 364 Syngrou, 17674 Kallithea, Tel. (+30) 216.809.1000, snfcc.org

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AKIS KOKKINOS DEO Projects Founder and Curator @akis.kokkinos @deoprojects

1. The Athenian art scene is flourishing and well worth exploring. I’d start with the brand-new National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST) (Kallirrois Avenue & Amvrosiou Frantzi), before heading to smaller independent spaces such as Tavros (33 Anaxagora) and State of Concept (19 Tousa Botsari) and conclude my art tour at established galleries such as The Breeder (45 Iasonos) and Rodeo (41 Polidefkous, Piraeus). 2. The summit of Filopappos Hill offers fantastic views of the Acropolis and the city of Athens; on clear days, you can even see the sea. It’s the perfect spot to visit on a first date or by yourself. 3. Hollywood (8 Navarchou Nikodimou), Aperitif (57A Dikearchou), and Bequeer (10 Keleou) for later in the night all boast great drinks, a cool young crowd and uplifting music selections. 4. Where to start, really? Off the top of my head, I’d pick Grasshoppers (6 Evridamantos), Fita (1 Dourm), and Linou Soumpasis Kai Sia (2 Melanthiou) for delicious, top-quality dishes that you’ll remember for a long time. 5. When I shop, I look for Wdesigners who combine spirituality and originality to achieve an uplifting effect. This describes Lito Fine Jewelry (25 Irodotou), the fashion brand Serapis Maritime (Serapis.cc) and Sanktoleono (sanktoleono. com), a new brand/designer I recently discovered.

1. Culture Destination 2. Only in Athens 3. Night out 4. Guilty edible pleasure 5. Shopping tips

ANTONAKIS CHRISTODOULOU Artist

@antonakisc

1. The National Archaeological Museum of Athens (44 Patission) is one of the most important museums in the world. No visit to Athens is complete without it. 2. Grab a sandwich from Guarantee in Koukaki (41 Veikou) and walk towards Thiseio; take Dionysiou Aeropagitou, pass by the Odeon of Herodes Atticus and the Acropolis, and end up at the Hill of Nymphs – the National Observatory of Athens, dating from 1842, is here. 3. At Au Revoir Bar (136 Patission), the first drink was poured 65 years ago, making it the oldest bar in Athens still in business; the decor has been left untouched; CV Distiller (7 Hatzigianni Mexi) is the go-to place for whiskey; if you feel like dancing to music ranging from new wave to rockabilly, try Teddy Boy (18 Taki). 4. I recently discovered Bocas Meze (13 Prousis), a modern-style GreekSpanish eatery in the off-the-beatenpath Nea Filadelfia district; definitely try the tuna soutzouk. 5. I love shopping for books and plants. For the former, I go to Meteoritis (68 Fokionos Negri); for the latter, to Papigion Project (13 Agias Zonis) where they sell second-hand plants salvaged from the streets.

AN ACADEMY FOR THE SENSES

INSPIRED BY THE REVERENCE SHOWN to wisdom and intellect in ancient Athens, Academias Hotel is a luxurious city hotel that offers a contemporary interpretation of Plato’s Academy, blending the old and the new, awakening all the senses and combining bespoke facilities with impeccable services and unique experiences. Echoing the spirit of that exalted seat of education, the hotel honors the three principles of the historic Academy – Science, Art and Philosophy – and brings them to life across a number of spaces within the hotel, albeit in a postmodern way. With a total of 60 rooms and suites, and surrounded by all of Athens’ ancient landmarks, Academias Hotel provides the ideal setting for the harmonious interplay of intellectual creativity and plenty of leisure and business activities. n

Info: 38 Akadimias & Omirou, Athens Tel. (+30) 210.367.0000 E: info@academiashotel.com, academiashotel.com IG @academiashotel - @nyxathens ADVERTORIAL

KRISTOF Singer, Songwriter

@kristoflamp 1. Communitism (28 Kerameikou) is a self-funded community that revives abandoned or under-utilized cultural heritage buildings to host creative people, art projects and events ranging from concerts and exhibitions to parties. 2. Not only do the Athenian stoas(i.e., arcades) serve as passageways between central parallel streets, they also house small shops of all kinds and link the city’s past to the present. I recommend exploring as many as you can. 3. Santarosa (69 Asklipiou) is a late-night bar that has a great atmosphere and drinks and music to match. On the other end of the bar spectrum is Odeon (19 Markou Mousourou), a more relaxed, allday neighborhood hangout with a piano you can play on if you feel like it! 4. Amigos (70 Megalou Alexandrou) is a welcoming Mexican-style restaurant and bar in Nea Smyrni – one of my alltime favorites. 5. Parallilo is a beautiful little stationery store in Nea Smyrni (1 Konstantinou Paleologou), with the most exceptional art and handicrafts materials. That’s where I find the widest variety of markers for my illustrations.

1. Culture Destination 2. Only in Athens 3. Night out 4. Guilty edible pleasure 5. Shopping tips VERONIKI HARITATOU GONZALEZ Founder of the creative fashion consultancy agency @thisisplay.gr

@veronikiharitatou 1. The ceramics seminars at Sealed Earth in Koukaki (22 Erechthiou) are the newest Athenian form of meditation. 2. A walk in the Ancient Agora of Athens (24 Adrianou) and then a stop at the legendary Souvlaki O Kostas (5 Pentelis) for the most delicious souvlaki in the city. 3. At Eprepe Bar (1 Agias Zonis) you can find exceptional wines, such as Typaldo by Haritatos Vineyard. Don’t forget to try the chips made from butter beans. 4. A bun with anko paste from Sweet Nolan (6B Apollonos) pastry shop. In the big six-pack, naturally. 5. Old issues of fashion magazines and rare editions from the bookstore Hyper Hypo (10 Voreou).

OTE Group Telecommunications Museum, a Must-Visit Place in Athens

FOR FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS in Athens, the less-touristic and beautiful suburb of Nea Kifissia presents the perfect option for a day trip. From October through May, the OTE Group Telecommunications Museum boasts an abundance of free educational programs and activities designed for school groups, individual visitors and kids aged from four years old.

Living up to its credo that the Telecommunications Museum is “more than just a museum,” this year the venue will, in addition to hosting guided tours of the permanent exhibit, be transformed into a puppet theatre, an art academy, a STEM engineering workshop, a music academy a fire department; a post office, a clay workshop, a gallery, a storytelling workshop and a guided tours space for everyone in the Museum's Permanent exhibition. For a second year in a row, it will provide art workshops for remote primary schools in Greece, taking them on a journey through the world of communications, from antiquity up to the modern digital era.

Some of the activities taking place this season include an educational workshop on bird migration using robotics; an interactive mythology lesson; a ceramics workshop; a “re-use lab,” where children upcycle old t-shirts using ribbons, buttons, markers and decorative stickers; and a unique experience inspired from the museum archives, where they draw stencils to create their own telephone-operator puppet in a Christmas atmosphere and learn from real stories about OTE telephone operators from earlier times. n

Info: 25 Proteos St., 145 64, Nea Kifissia 210-6110299 Participation in all of the Museum's activities is free. For reservations, www.otegroupmuseum.gr otegroup-museum@ote.gr / INSTAGRAM @otegroupmuseum