Balkan Experience - Greece & Albania - Athens - 30 Aug 2026

I had booked a guided tour of the Acropolis, Parthenon and the Acropolis Museum from India through GetYourGuide. I had used the platform a few times in the past for day trips and walking tours and had found them quite organised. The experience they describe on the portal is what you get. No last-minute surprises and value for money. It was the same this day too.

I reported to the location mentioned in their welcome letter at 8 am and registered with the 'Athens Walking Tour' group. I was given a device with an earphone set. The device was to ensure that customers hear what the guide has to say, even though we may not be in close proximity to her. Besides, this also helps the guide to ensure that the 'flock' is not lost in the crowds. Another thing the device does is to reduce noise pollution as the guide does not have to shout over the rest to make herself heard or understood.

Ilectra, a beautiful young girl, who had majored in history and archaeology and completed a three-month seminar on guide duties was the guide of the eager group of 19, drawn from countries as diverse as US, India, Slovenia, Serbia and UK. A couple had even come with their two small kids, who weren't carried around all the time. A couple had joined the group from a cruise ship and had to truncate their trip before the Acropolis guided tour ended.

The tour began at 8.30 am and within a short while we reached the slopes of the Acropolis. The word "acropolis" comes from the Greek words akron (highest point) and polis (city). While many ancient Greek cities had high-citadel fortifications, the Acropolis of Athens is the most famous. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.

Steep and inaccessible from every side except the west, the hill had been inhabited since the 3rd millennium BC, not only because of its natural fortification but also due to the spring water flowing from its slopes. During the Mycenaean period, the settlement grew, and the Acropolis became a centre of power. By the 8th century BC, it had taken on an exclusively sacred character, with the establishment of the cult of Athena Polias.

Built on a rocky hill, 156 meters above sea level, the Parthenon was the focal point of religious life on the Acropolis. We were cautioned to be careful while walking up the slope or the stairs as some places were quite slippery. During the tour we came across a couple of elderly tourists who were being attended to for injuries sustained on the slippery slopes.

Not far from the entrance turnstiles, on the slopes of the Acropolis, is the open-air theatre dedicated to Dionysus, the Greek God who represented wine, ecstasy, and emotional release. Theatre mirrors these intense passions by delving deep into human feelings, transformation, and tragedy.

Ancient Greek drama grew out of religious festivals and ritual songs dedicated to him. Ancient Greeks held a major annual event in Athens called the City Dionysia. This multi-day festival honoured Dionysus with massive competitions for tragic and comedic plays. The open-air theatre could accommodate 19,000 spectators, who came from far and wide. Above the theatre is an altar dedicated to Dionysus.

Another legendary site that sits beneath the slopes of the Acropolis is the stunning open-air theatre, Odeon of Herodes Atticus. Widely known by locals as simply “Herodeon”, it was built between 160AD – 174AD by the wealthy benefactor of Athens, Herodes Atticus as an ode to his late wife Rigilla. It is distinctively Roman in contrast to the nearby Theatre of Dionysos. With its Roman arches and three-story stage building, it was originally partly covered with a wood and tiled roof.

The circular orchestra has now become a semi-circle, paved with black and white marble. With 35 rows, the marble auditorium extends slightly beyond a semi-circle with a diameter of 80 metres and has the capacity to seat 5000 people. This ancient stone theatre has gone on to host some of the world’s best musical performances during the last 60 years since its modern-day re-opening, including Nana Mouskouri, Luciano Pavarotti and Frank Sinatra, to name a few.

There are two entrances to the Acropolis of Athens. We used the side entrance near the Theatre of Dionysus, which is the primary gate used by most visitors and large tour groups. Therefore, it is typically more crowded. The advantage of this entrance is that it features the monumental gateway known as the Propylaea.

The Propylaea had multiple functions. It acted as the physical and symbolic transition point between the secular lower city of Athens and the sacred spiritual world of the citadel above. Next, the structure functioned as a security gateway and checkpoint. Thirdly, it housed what is considered the world's first recorded public art gallery, displaying valued paintings.

The Parthenon was a temple dedicated to Athena, the ancient Greek goddess of wisdom, strategic warfare, and handicrafts. Athena Parthenos was a massive gold and ivory statue of the Greek goddess, created by in the fifth century BCE. Wood was the inner core of the 40 feet tall statue.

Athena wore a detailed helmet and a long tunic. She held a four-foot-tall statue of Nike (victory) in her right hand. Her left hand rested on a large shield showing battles with Amazons and giants. The original statue was lost sometime in the late Roman era, likely destroyed or melted down for its gold. A famous modern full-scale replica stands inside the Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee, said Ilectra.

Ilectra told us that the group is indeed very lucky because the scaffolding that had remained for 25 years during restoration of the Parthenon had only been recently removed. She told us how the giant columns that had been reinforced with steel in the past had to be replaced with titanium. Over 16,500 fragments of the original structure have been catalogued. The marble for the construction was brought from the Lycabettus mountain by horse carts.

The Erechtheion is another important relic in the Acropolis. The ancient Greek temple, built between 421 and 406 BC, is dedicated to Athena and Poseidon. It is made from fine Pentelic marble. Its famous feature is the Porch of the Maidens, a balcony supported by six draped female statues called caryatids. What is seen today at site are replicas; five originals are in the Acropolis Museum, and one is in the British Museum, spirited away by Lord Elgin.

Located next to the temple is an olive tree at the same site where it is believed that the original olive tree given by Athena to the city stood. The olive tree decided the contest between Athena and Poseidon to become the patron saint of Athens. Poseidon, being the God of the Sea, could only offer salt water to the citizens, which was rejected as useless.

The Temple of Athena Nike is a small, elegant ancient Greek temple on the Acropolis of Athens, built to honour the goddess Athena as the bringer of victory (Nike). However, there is no access to the temple currently.

The Greek flag on the Acropolis is intrinsically linked to the occupation of Athens by Nazi forces during WWII. On 27 April 1941 German forces entered Athens and forced a Greek guard to haul down the national flag and raise the Nazi swastika. On 30 May 1941, two young Greek resisters climbed the Acropolis under the cover of night and tore down the Nazi flag. This daring act became one of the earliest and most powerful symbols of resistance against the Nazi occupation in occupied Europe. A small bronze plaque near the site now commemorates their bravery.

Over centuries, the structures in the Acropolis transformed into a Christian church during the Crusades, an Islamic Mosque during the Ottoman rule, and eventually became a celebrated archaeological and national landmark. From the Acropolis we exited via the Main entrance, which is near the Acropolis Museum.

The ultra-modern building that houses the Acropolis museum, opened to public in 2009, is home to every artifact found on the rock and on the surrounding slopes, from the Greek Bronze Age to Roman and Byzantine Greece. More than 4,250 objects are exhibited over an area of 14,000 square metres.

The basement of the Acropolis Museum is an excavation museum that showcases the digs which revealed the ruins of part of Roman and early Byzantine Athens. The site and process are visible through the ground level glass flooring of the Acropolis Museum.

The most significant displays in the museum include five of the six original female statues that served as columns on the porch of the Erechtheion temple called the Caryatides. They feature unique braided hairstyles and flowing robes. Housed on the top floor in the Parthenon Gallery, a full-scale layout of the Parthenon frieze reconstructs the ancient temple's decorative reliefs. It tracks a grand procession of gods, humans, and horses in carved Pentelic marble.

An important archaic statue from around 570 BCE depicts a bearded man carrying a young calf across his shoulders as a sacrifice to the goddess Athena. A delicate relief from the Temple of Athena Nike shows Athena adjusting her sandals. It showcases the masterly "wet drapery" style of ancient Greek sculpture.

The Acropolis Museum, in itself, requires a full day to do it any justice. Having combined the visits to Acropolis and Museum, I was dragging my feet around in the Museum. I wished I had more energy to spend more time exploring the museum.

I was hungry and drained. I dropped into a shop to try out the Greek delicacy of Loukoumades (honey donuts). They are made of small, deep-fried balls of yeasted dough that are soaked in honey syrup and topped with cinnamon and crushed walnuts. It was awesome. I had the Loukoumades with a huge ball of vanilla ice-cream.

Having rested a while during the feast of Greek donuts, I headed to the Syntagma square to have a look at the changing of the guard, which happens every hour in the hour, 24 hours a day. The venue is the Monument to the Unknown Soldier, fronting the Greek Parliament building.

Two members of the elite Presidential Guard, known as Evzones, switch places in a slow, precise, and choreographed routine. The Sunday routine at 11:00 AM is when a major ceremonial parade takes place. Hundreds of guardsmen march with a military band down the Avenue to the monument.

Next to the Syntagma square is the National Garden, a peaceful 15.5-hectare public park. It was commissioned in 1838 by Queen Amalia and finished in 1840, originally serving as the private Royal Garden. The park features shaded walking paths, small duck ponds, ancient ruins and mosaics, a small zoo, and over 500 plant species.

A short walk through the National Garden and I came to the Panathenaic Stadium, the historic white-marble stadium where the first modern Olympic Games took place in 1896. As a senior citizen I was given a 50 percent discount in the entrance fee of 12€.

The marble stadium is at the site of an ancient Greek stadium from the 4th century BC. The stadium has the capacity to seat 50,000 spectators. It is also the final venue for the classic Athens Marathon and the finish line for the Olympic torch relay.

The Stadium houses a small permanent exhibition titled "Memories from Olympic Games: Posters and Torches from 1896 till today" inside its vaulted passage.

It has a collection of official torches and colourful posters from past summer and winter modern Olympic Games starting from 1896. The display cases feature rare artifacts, historical documents, and the altar used to light the Olympic flame.

It had been a taxing day, and I assure you that I was happy to be back in the room early to rest and recover for the activities scheduled for the next day.