GREEK REVIVAL 22290

Athens is enjoying its very own metamorphosis with a plethora of recently restored buildings, large-scale projects and fresh new openings

- ELLIE STATHAKI

 

When Greece first flourished as a popular tourist destination, somewhere in the mid-20th century, it was largely for its well-established charms - warm sun, good food, crystal-clear beaches and treasures of an antiquity that helped define today's Western civilisation. Fast forward almost a century and all this remains true - if a little clichéd by now. Yet contemporary Greece is far richer than its well-explored tropes. Athens, in particular, currently packs quite a punch, embodying various phases in the country's history while providing a melting pot where fresh trends, global influences and timehoned local traditions meet. 'Athens is breaking away from an over-edited, idealised, antiquity-driven image,' says Nicholas Yatromanolakis, the country's Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports. 'Everything coexists here - different styles and periods and we need to embrace it. We also have a strong outdoors culture and you are always exposed to a very layered urban space. It is its blend that makes Athens unique.'

Fresh takes on classic Athenian moments, mixed with entirely new offerings, represent an ever-evolving Greek identity that is much less about looking back, and more about a positive future for the Mediterranean country. There is a reimagining of some of the city's finest modernist architecture; a boom in the hospitality industry; a move towards sustainability; and a wave of new cultural destinations. Creativity is running high, and Athens is on an upward trajectory, following a ten-year period of economic woes, political changes and, of course, the troubles brought by the worldwide pandemic, all of which hit the city hard. Yet here we are, and the Greek capital seems to be heading towards sunnier times.