Athens, GreeceAthens' most vibrant historic neighborhood — a maze of Byzantine churches, Ottoman mosque, Roman Agora ruins, and narrow streets full of street food vendors, vinyl shops, and rooftop bars. The view of the Acropolis from Monastiraki Square is the most reproduced image of modern Athens.
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The most important ancient monument in the Western world — a rocky plateau 156 meters above Athens bearing the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, and the Temple of Athena Nike. The view from the top over modern Athens is extraordinary. Buy tickets online; visit at opening time (8am) to beat the crowds.
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One of the world's great modern museums — a glass-and-concrete Acropolis-aligned building housing the finest sculpture from the ancient monument, with the Parthenon Gallery on the top floor aligned exactly with the temple visible through the glass above. The Caryatid hall is one of the most moving rooms in European museum architecture.
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The civic heart of ancient Athens — the marketplace, meeting place, and democratic assembly ground where Socrates, Plato, and St. Paul all walked. The remarkably well-preserved Stoa of Attalos houses the Agora museum. Far less crowded than the Acropolis; often more evocative.