Return to the Village in the City: Anafiotika (Pláka), Athens (Greece 2019-02)

Dear Readers, this is Part 2 of my summer series. Even if you are surrounded by snowdrifts, you can take a mental journey to the sun and the Mediterranean.

Every time I visit Athens, I like to check out the Anafiotika district, the cluster of tiny village-like houses percheded below the east slope of the Acropolis. It can be considered part of the Pláka (Πλάκα), but the Pláka is larger, encompassing more commercial and archaeological parts of the city. Anafiotika retains its 1800s Cycladic architecture in the form of little whitewashed houses in a tumble of narrow lanes and alleys. It is an oasis of peace in the bustling and noisy urban mess that comprises modern Athens.

This is a telephoto picture taken from Lykavittos Hill (also known as Mount Lycabettus) showing the Acropolis and Faleron Bay in the distance. The Anafiotika is the cluster of small houses just under the Parthenon.

In the Anafiotica (Moto G5 digital file)

The narrow alleys are fun to negotiate. They are popular with tourists working their way from the new Acropolis Museum towards the Pláka, often on their way to find a good lunch.

Doors are a popular but now a cliche photographic topic. Somewhere in the house, we have a book titled Greek Doors.

Graffiti and old windows are also pretty interesting.

The next time you visit Athens, make time to visit Anafiotika and the Pláka in general. In my opinion, Athens in August of 2019 looked cleaner and more cheerful than in 2016 and 2018. After ten years of economic austerity, political turmoil, and inundation by refugees from Middle East war zones, Greece may have turned a corner and be on the path to recovery. Tourism has increased, the locals are welcoming, and prices are low compared to northern European countries. The police seem to have controlled the refugees in the Monasteraki area, but I can't comment on crime.

I photographed the Pláka area in 2012 and 2013, and my dad photographed Athens and the Pláka in 1953 (click the links).

The 2019 photographs are from Kodak Ektar 100 film taken with a Yashica Electro 35CC camera with a fixed 35mm ƒ/1.8 Color-Yashinon lens. I scanned the negatives on a Plustek 7600i film scanner. This roll was disappointing, and some frames displayed odd colors. Low-contrast settings looked best.