Athens, the home of modern civilisation, the place where modern thought started, an outrageously fast-paced mix of modern and ancient, traditional and contemporary, quaint and cultured. Athens is an amazing city to visit, and for most people travelling to Greece, it is that starting point, and end of most Greek journeys. Travellers wanting to arrive at their island paradise often overlook Athens, or it visited as a stopover, but it should not be missed as destination, no matter what its critics say.
There has been a settlement on Athens for over three thousand years. From the start, it was a city-state to be reckoned with, surviving invasions and wars.
The Golden Age came about in 477BC, when Athens truly established itself. Under the ruling of Pericles, the Parthenon was built, and the famous and infamous lived, philosophers, writers and artists who's names are still known today. Sophocles, Euripides, Thucydides, Herodotus, Aristophanes all lived in this time. It was during this time that the Olympic Games began, and modern democratic thought became prevalent.