Athens embodies the spirit of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and of the Olympics - past and present. Sasha Wadhwani takes a classical tour of the city and gets acquainted with ancient temples, tombs, feta cheese and moussaka, as well as the average Greek who exudes warmth, hospitality and an obsession with mobile phones

[Classical Greece]

The 'Classical Tour of Greece' proved to be a four-day adventure back in time. And then she boarded the bus, fortyish, tanned and strong shouldered…a big, bright silver medallion dangling between her cleavage and a slim cigarette hanging between her lips. "Kalimera!" she rasped. "That's good morning in Greek and I am Anastasia, your tour guide. Is that un-der-stood?" For the next four days, she had us enthralled with her knowledge, awed us with her anecdotes but scared the panteloni off us with her manner!

What's in a stone?

A lot apparently. For instance the Epidauran Theatre, one of the best-kept, open-air theatres excavated by archaeologists, highlights an era where entertainment spoke volumes. Maria Callas - prima donna to the world of opera and a favourite of the original Greek tycoon, Aristotle Onassis - revived its lost glory by giving an outstanding performance in the 1950s. Standing at the base of the theatre and staring at the upwardly cascading stone steps inspired the star in some of us tourists present and I was privy to some not-so-great renditions of football anthems from the top of the stadium!

"Whaaat!" whined my brother, "another pile of stones?" as we climbed up to the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. According to tradition, Delphi was 'the omphalos (navel) of the world'…an honour now shared by supermodel, Heidi Klum.

The Olympic spirit

The original Olympic Games, dated 776 B.C. are a testament to the universal quest for peace, brotherhood and raw masculine sportsmanship. As we looked around the actual Stadium that once held the event, we noticed that there were no seats, just grassy patches for viewers to stand and cheer. An overbearing sun sent me rushing to the shade of an olive tree where I was a mere spectator to a bunch of school kids running the length of the original field. And I did hold out a branch for them.

[The much visited Parthenon]	[The Temple of Apollo at Delphi]

Far and Away

Local shopping - exotic urns, olive oil products, preserved feta cheese. Cheapest in Athens.
Long tours - always carry bottles of mineral water along with you, especially during the summer months, as dehydration is very common.
Peak season - July and August when the fares are usually double. For a quiet holiday with brilliant weather, May is quite suitable.