Writer Sofka Zinovieff unpacks Athens
Sofka Zinovieff busts a few Athenian myths© Thomas Gravanis
Acclaimed author and Athens-based anthropologist Sofka Zinovieff explores her relationship with the city for an 8-episode podcast series Athens Unpacked. In an exclusive interview with Athens Insider, she takes us through cemeteries and bustling farmer’s markets as she delves deep into the city’s psyche.
Your new podcast series Athens Unpacked launched in May as Greece reopened its doors to tourists. Did you feel like a firsttime tourist at times while making the series? Most of the work for Athens Unpacked was done before May. It was sometimes strange to move around a city that was much quieter than usual and which I saw with fresh eyes after months of lockdown. As Madonna said, ‘Like a virgin’, or even a first-time tourist, though my interest in Athens and my love for the place is longstanding and deep. I hope to bridge the gap between interested new-arrival and loyal old-timer. I’d like to think that I would listen to these podcasts if I hadn’t made them.
If you were to suggest three experiences every tourist should have, what would they be? Athens is not always an ‘easy’ city and it’s particularly hard in midsummer heat, or if you’re in a rush and don’t know the place. If you can, choose the time of year (first choices: spring and autumn), don’t try to see ‘everything’ and follow the habits of the locals. First, stroll through Athens’ neighbourhoods, stopping for coffee, drinks and meals. Second, if it’s summertime, go to an open-air cinema or concert in the evening. Third, go up a hill: try something other than the Acropolis, like Ly-
athens insider | 36 |
