Plato's Academy and other... minor sights (Colonus hill)

Last Sunday afternoon, while it was still hot and sunny, we decided it was about time to go see the ...famous Akadimia Platonos park. This is an urban park, in the fringes of Athens, which was created fairly recently, about 10 years ago give or take. It is located in a poor neighborhood, 1-2 miles NW of the city center, very close to the Kifissos inter-city bus station and full of old, small industries that were abundant in neighborhoods like this till 1985, when a planning decree of the time forbid the expansion or extension of existing industries and gave motives for their relocation to areas away from Athens and / or Attica (Attica is the wider region of Metro Athens and the rural area around it).

What was left since then are the smallest of the small; family-size businesses that probably never had the aspiration or the possibility to grow and move far away from their owner's home. As urban renewal, in its modern-Greek form has touched other areas of the city, this one has been mostly left to ...evolve naturally, if at all. With industries gradually becoming smaller, older and rarer this is starting to have less of an industrial character and looks mostly like a lower working-class, mixed-use neighborhood.

The area and the park derives its name from ancient ruins that were discovered here, in a 1957-63 excavation, believed to belong to Akademos, one of the first settlers of ancient Athens. Ancient philosopher Plato used this area as grounds for his philosophical school, which he established in about 387 BC and taught there for about 40 years. This is how the word "Academy" was first coined and where the term academic comes from. Plato's Academy (i.e. philosophical school) remained in operation, in different forms and phases till AD 529 when it was shut down. Its last teachers found refuge in the Persian empire but were later permitted to return to Athens.

The modern day park, bearing the name Akadimia Platonos, just like a square in the same neighborhood, is quasi-urban, quasi-archaeological and is expected by some to be a catalyst for the rejuvenation and turnaround of this neighborhood, although things seem to have stagnated and the lack of funds will probably not help. The excavations had been there since the 1960's but the park has taken its current form in the past 10-20 years. The final borders and landscaping of the park are still a matter of debate and works were under way at some of the edges when we walked here. It is currently sliced by two roads (Kratylou and Monastiriou Streets) and it could have been better kept.
It's not an impressive sight for its natural beauty or landscaping (rather the opposite, with the help of Greek local authorities "branding" efforts - see picture below)

Greek branding at its best. Proper welcoming, at the Akadimia Platonos main entrance...

...but the mere historical significance of the place outweighs any management shortcomings. You will have bragging rights that you walked where Plato used to walk and teach his students!

People sitting at the grass. Ancient ruins scattered on the lawn.


We saw a few people jogging or, mostly, laying on the grass this hot Sunday afternoon. We saw signs of nightly drug use (syringes) in some lower-level, shady, bushy parts...

Some parts of the park are more shady (in every sense of the  word...). 

...but we didn't notice any alarming activity at this time of the day. Entrance is free and there are many entrances from surrounding streets.

The most important archeological ruins are in the northern, smaller, wedge-shaped lot, formed by Monastiriou and Kratylou/Drakontos streets. There, you'll see the ruins of Akademos' house and a "sacred house", under a large, metal roofing.

There are no explanatory signs in the grounds whatsoever, except for a small, almost hidden, metallic sign under the metal roofing covering Akademos' house. I've managed to stitch together a picture of this sign (see below).

The park is mostly flat but you have to walk or "run down" a rather steep plane at several points, if you want to take a better look at the ancient ruins, since most of them used to be buried underground and thus lay at a lower level than the current plane (about 3 meters - 10 feet, see picture above).

If you are interested in reading further about Plato and his Academy you can click the Amazon link here (we get a commission for any sale made through Amazon to help with the maintenance of this site).

Another interesting sight, since you'll be in the area, is the church of Aghios Tryfonas at the corner of Alexandreias and Marathonomachon Streets (southernmost section of the park). I don't have a story about it. It was just freshly painted, well-preserved and interesting looking architecturally (and totally kitschy at the same time!), with some modern... extensions creeping out of its windows.

St. Tryfon Church. These columns on the side entrance are really something! I wonder what material they were made of!

Right next to the urban bus stop (Bus 051) cutting through the park we saw a fenced lot, occupied by archaeologists, and full of archaeological ruins from the sight. These looked at least just as interesting as the ones in the grounds.

Depending on your level of interest (or ease of boredom...) you shouldn't need more than 1 hour to walk around the park and take a look at the area. Here's a suggestion for the hasty visitor (or young, power visitor) carrying only 1 back-pack (or for a group of visitors who can leave someone standing and look after the others' luggage):

If you are leaving Athens and are on your way to the Kifissos (inter-city) Bus Station you can take urban Bus 051 from 24 Zenonos St. (city center-seedy area) and get off at the Kratylou bus stop (3 stops before the end) at Akadimia Platonos.

Staying on your right hand side (in the bus's direction) you walk 50 meters on Kratylou St. and get into the park through the entrance on your right-hand side. The metal roofing with Akademos' house is hidden behind the trees on your right. You take a look at it and at some other scatterd ruins laying around for 10 minutes and then you go back to the bus-stop and take the next bus (with the same ticket) for the Kifissos Bus Station. Urban buses (051) run about every 10 minutes so you shouldn't have a problem. Allow some time though, in case one of the buses is full and cannot carry everyone and their luggage... In the extreme case, you may have to walk along Kratylou / Drakontos St. and reach the Kifissos Bus Station on foot (1200 meters, 3/4 of a mile).

If you have time (and are not carrying luggage) you can also visit another sight which is fairly nearby just like we did. You walk along Tripoleos Street to the north, through a typically dense, urban neighborhood, heading to the nearby Hill of Ippeion Colonou or Hippeios Colonus or simply Kolonos Hill (Lofos Kolonou).  According to ancient writings, Plato was buried somewhere between the Academy and Kolonos Hill.

The hill is most famous for ancient playwright Sophocles' play "Oedipus at Colonus", the middle play in a famous trilogy. Nowadays, there is an open-air, stone-made, modern amphitheatre which is mostly used for amateur, neighborhood-type productions (concerts or plays) or some... similar level professional ones (that's nasty! I should rather say... low-key, non-glam productions...). The space beneath the theater seemed to house a local scouting club. There is lush vegetation (pine trees, etc.) but as you walk up the top of the hill, which is flat, stone-paved and open, you get some very interesting views towards the hills of Lykavittos and Tourkovounia.

Entrance to Kolonos Hill

Amphiteatre, with view towards the Tourkovounia hills

Playground, at the top of Kolonos hill

There is a playground for younger children and what mostly stands out are the two fenced sculptures in honor of French archeologist Charles Lenormant and German scholar Karl Otfried Müller. Lenormant died during a visit to Athens in 1859, while accompanied by his son François who was also an archeologist, and his heart was buried here at the request of the Athens City Council. I've read that it was placed inside the marble, hydria (water jug)-shaped sculpture. Since 19th and 20th century Athenians showed so much respect to the sculpture that they used it as shooting target, thus destroying it, I don't know what happened to Lenormant's heart... The sculpture itself was replaced with a copy of the original in 1936 but there is still an iron fence around it for protection. Sad to see that some traditions are still kept is this country...

Sculptures on top of Kolonos Hill, in honor of Lenormant and Müller

As for the other of the two deceased, Müller, I find it quite ironic that he was buried here, since he became most famous for his love for Sparta... At least, he got to visit Sparta and other places in Peloponissos before his death. It might be comforting to him that, at least, ancient Colonus was not inside the borders of the ancient city of Athens! Lenormant has given his name to a main thoroughfare, connecting this neighborhood with the town center, near Karaiskaki Square and the Metaxourgeio Metro Station. The closest Metro Station to get back to is the one at Stathmos Larissis / Larissa Station (Red Line 2).

View OMIG-Akadimia Platonos in a larger map


Update: 2013-02-10: I recently went back to Plato's Academy: Click to read about an art exhibit that took place there and see some dusk photos.


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Walking along Patission Street (part 2)

Continuing from my previous post, here are some pictures from the buildings one sees along Patission St. (and most of Athens for that matter). Many people who come here for the first time, having some vague, preconceived notion about "Athens" and "Greece" (notice the quotation marks?) are in for a big shock when they see these images.

Planning- and architecture-wise, things can be summarized as follows: Most buildings are about 6-storeys high, due to the zoning / planning regulations and are blocks of flats. This type of multi-storey residence, which to many US visitors may bring back memories of the "projects", is called "polykatiki'a" (meaning 'multi-residence') and has prevailed since after WWII. In central avenues, main streets, etc., like Patission, the ground floor is usually occupied by retail shops or other similar services (accounting offices, banks, gyms, betting shops, dry-cleaners, bakeries, pharmacies, etc.). This pattern of mixed-uses makes Athens and most other Greek cities, built along the same general criteria and perceptions, very lively! I still remember the sound of kids voices, merchant yells and all kinds of conversations when I came back from the States a few years ago. Even though I had only been away for 2 years this whole soundscape was totally fascinating to me! I think it's even more pronounced in (central) Athens than in other towns.

Unfortunately, here's where the good news stop. From your hotel room, mixed with the traffic noise, this can easily be perceived as noise even though outside things can be very interesting. However, there is no one prevalent architectural style, since this whole building frenzy and growth of Athens has taken place only recently, after 1950. Planning regulations have changed a few times (although not dramatically differing from one another), remnants of the old one- or two-storey houses can still be found here and there (some of them as 'preserved', historical buildings) and design guidelines practically don't exist. So, you get a mishmash of images and styles, usually not blending nicely with each other (see below...). On-street parking is free, and therefore a huge problem, as some populist politicians repealed the requirement for parking spots in each building years ago, and when they changed their minds it was too little, too late. Even today, parking spot requirements for buildings are occasionally violated and the current government just recently passed a law that will allow these violations to be settled with a small fine!

An attempt for a modernist office building at Odos Patission, with polykatikies right next to it.

Plateia Amerikis (Amerikis Square) at around Patission 170. A small urban square, recently renovated and fairly good looking, always busy with people, mainly African immigrants who inhabit this area in large numbers.


One of the streets crossing Patission, heading up towards the Ano Kypseli neighborhood and the Tourkovounia hills.

Shops and familiar logos. In some parts of Patission, the polykatikies form an "arcade" above the pavement, which is very welcome when it's raining.

A typical bus stop near Plateia Koliatsou (Koliatsou Square), another small urban square at Patission 241. The yellow sign mentions which trolley-bus lines make a stop here while the blue sign is for the "regular" buses. You have to signal the bus to stop, extending (or half-extending) your hand out, otherwise the driver may just move along. You can see the signs of urban decay throughout Athens these days, exemplified by the graffitti and the ever-present stickers, advertising or otherwise, stuck on every structure imaginable...

An abandoned(?) neoclassical building at a corner, a shack-like furniture shop and a 1980's(?) glass-covered monstrosity of an office-building, with a polykatikia at the edge of the picture.

The University of Athens student dorm, recently re-painted it seems, at Patission 277.

The entrance of an open-air, summer cinema which has closed and is now being offered for rent. The sandwich shop next door may have to change it name!... Oh, and the poster is from the 1953 film "Roman Holiday" with Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn.

A pharmacy at the corner of Patission 300 & Grigoroviou.

More polykatikies at the corner of Patission and Galatsiou. Another Starbucks lies on the opposite corner (not pictured).

The "Fix Park", at the same intersection as above. Its name derives from an old factory that used to stand here.

Chess players. I seemed to have caught a... decisive moment!

An old, worn down but surprisingly still occupied 2-storey, neoclassical residence at the corner of Patission and Laskaratou.

The last part of Odos Patission with the Ano Patissia Metro Station (Metro Line 1) seen far in the background.

A small park / yard of an old mansion called Villa Drakopoulou at Patission 358, currently under renovation.

End of journey. The Aghia Varvara (St. Barbara) church at the end of Patission St., right next to the Ano Patissia Metro Station (Metro Line 1).



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Walking along Patission Street (part 1)

Odos Patission (Patission St.) is one of the main streets of Athens, reaching from the town center to the northern edge of the city, at the neighborhood of Patissia, hence its name. It is actually the continuation of Odos Aiolou (now partly pedestrianized) which starts from the foothills of the Acropolis, in the Plaka neighborhood, and progresses outwards.

Police towing off illegaly parked motorbikes at the pedestrian part of Odos Aiolou.

Greek local authorities have had a bad habit of renaming streets, purportedly “to honor” someone or something but most of the time for self-serving political reasons. Sometimes the “new”, official names stick, while in other cases the people continue to refer to the old, traditional names that everybody is used to. Patission St. is one such case. In the 1980s, the Athens city council took a decision to rename the first part of “Patission” (from Omonia Square and outwards, up to no. 200) to “Eikostis Ogdois Oktovriou” (“28th October”, the day Greece entered WWII, resisting an Italian invasion, which is a national holiday). However, nobody uses this name except for maps and hapless tourists :) If you ask an Athenian for directions to “28th October” Street you will probably get a blank stare!

So, for Athenians, Patission is considered to start near Omonia Square (officially as "28th October" St.), at the intersection with Odos Panepistimiou (aka "Odos Eleftheriou Venizelou" – another case of unfortunate renaming!).

Harley-Davidson bike riders, at the intersection of Panepistimiou St. and Patission St. – The “Harley-Davidson Super Rally (not sure exactly what that is) took place in Patra, Greece from 20-24 May 2010 and 2500 Harleys gathered there. These bikers probably had something to do with it.

Odos Patission is not in anyway an attraction in itself but it has a few things going for it: 1) Fairly large pavements, of variable width but still better than in most of Athens, which make it easily walkable and wheel-chair accessible, 2) The National Archeological Museum with its garden and 3) the chance to see a cultural cross-section of modern Athens, with its multitude of ethnicities, various architectural styles (or lack thereof…), and varied urban neighborhoods. Most of all, it is a live street, with mixed-uses that always has people walking along it, day or night.

The pictures in this post were shot on Monday, 2010-05-24, which, except for retail stores, was an official holiday (called Whit Monday or 'Monday of the Holy Spirit'), thus the low traffic.

National Bank of Greece building, at the intersection of Panepistimiou St. and 1 Patission St.

City-tour bus, in front of the historic “Mignon” ('MINION') department store at the corner with Satovriandou St. – “Mignon” was being renovated and was scheduled to re-open in spring 2011, after many years of abandonment... (Update 2012-11: Nothing so far... An idea was recently floated to relocate the offices of a Governmnent Ministry in this building... some time soon)

Hotel Melia – Residence Georgio, one of the hotels that opened during the pre-Olympic bustle

Much wider than the typical Athens pavement

A private school entrance, at Patission 29

 

The old, historic building of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA). This was the site of a historic episode in modern Greek history, when, in 17 November 1973, armored tanks of the military junta that was then in control tore down the gate and crushed a student uprising. Most NTUA classrooms and offices have now been relocated to the Athens suburb of Zografou and the building is only sparsely used (by the School of Architecture), terminally covered with nonsensical graffiti and posters by so-called “leftists” and self-styled “anarchists”. Drug addicts occasionally hangout outside the building at Stournara St., only to be sent off, and then come back, and then...

A look back and you will see the Acropolis with the Parthenon on top

The National Archeological Museum, right after the NTUA building. The pedestrian street between them (Tositsa St.) has been a long-standing spot of illegal drug trade and use, due to the awkward legal status of the NTUA building.  Update: In the past year (2011-2012) Tositsa St. seems to be safe for ordinary citizens

At the corner of Ipeirou & Patission you will notice the recently renovated Livieratos Mansion, a 1909 building which was one of the first to break from the neoclassic architectural trend of modern Athens. More pics here. 

Almost across the National Archeological Museum, at Patission 61, lies an almost derelict apartment building -supposedly under renovation but probably currently occupied by squatters- constructed in 1925. The young Maria Callas lived in this apartment building with her mother and sister, from 1940 till 1945, when she left for the United States. This was the time when she got her first formal music education.

The pedestrian odos Ainianos, at the corner with Patission. The neoclassical corner building houses the offices of the “Greek Workers Union” (a.k.a. Greek Union bosses...)

Up to this point Patission looks a bit shady. It has all the signs of an once great avenue that has gone downhill, even though it is bustling with people, esp. when shops are open. After the corner with Alexandras Ave. things get a little better and it's a long strip of retail stores - clothes and shoes mostly - with the recent addition of illegal, street-vendors. Police and local authorities turn a blind eye to their presence and local shopkeepers complain.

Corner of Odos Patission & Odos Heyden. Street vendors and people who have just come out of the Victoria Metro Station

One of the many kiosks found in the sidewalks of Greek towns, with a bus load of newspapers and magazines laid out in the steps of the adjacent building.

Illegal street vendors

Buses and trolley buses going back and forth till late in the evening

Starbucks fans will recognize a familiar sign, at the neoclassical building, at Patission 123, which also has a backyard with a nice shade. Starbucks coffee shops are among the few smoke-free places in Greece. Highly appreciated for that!

(...continue here for part 2)


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