sea, beach and white houses
Greece

Weekend in Sifnos

I always jump at any opportunity to visit the Cyclades. Especially during summertime. Last year I went to Syros for work. This year I spent a weekend in Sifnos for a christening. Between seeing old friends and having a good time I managed to visit the island’s most cute villages. What to see in Sifnos Platys Gialos is my favorite beach in Sifnos. It literally translates to the wide beach and this is exactly what you get. The beach is sandy, and you’ll come across a few beach cafes and restaurants where you can relax, have a drink or eat….

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Greece

Exploring Athens Trigono

Last month I took part in yet another Open Walk by Atenistas. This time we explored the city’s commercial area called Athens Trigono (meaning Triangle). The borders of this area are Athinas, Evripidou, Praxitelous and Athinaidos streets. This area was Athens’ original commercial center.  It is full of old buildings and crafter workshops. In Athens Trigono you will fabric stores, hardware stores, hobby stores, food stores and it goes on. A lot of new cafes and restaurants have also popped up in the area. During the walk, we discovered new places and got in buildings that we wouldn’t otherwise. Oh…

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two tables with chairs and portraits on the wall
Food & Drink

Spitjack Rotisserie, Athens

A few years ago, I didn’t even know where Skoufou street is. But new restaurants (small but trendy) started popping up there. The latest addition (and current favorite) is Spitjack. As with most of my discoveries, I found about Spitjack through social media and quickly added it on my “to visit” list. The food Spitjack is a rotisserie restaurant. It offers juicy meats roasted on the spit. One of the things I love in this restaurant is its minimal menu: 4 types of meat (duck, chicken, pork, beef), 4 sauces, 4 sides, 4 salads. On the photo above you can see…

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Ergon House restaurant menu, plate, glass and cutlery
Food & Drink

Ergon House: exploring Athens’ first foodie hotel

Many times, I’m called to recommend a good Greek cuisine restaurant in Athens. But there’s a problem. I don’t frequent many Greek cuisine restaurants and taverns in Athens. I haven’t dined in a tavern in Plaka (Athens’ most touristy area) for more than 15 years! For the last 3+ years, I finally have a place to recommend with I love a lot. And it recently got bigger and better. I present you, Ergon House Athens. Ergon Foods History Ergon Foods started off as a deli. They collect products from Greek artisans and sell them in their stores in Greece and…

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dessert with raspberry sauce, chocolate parfait and hazelnut cake
Food & Drink

48 Urban Garden

There hasn’t been a restaurant that I wanted to visit that much as 48 Urban Garden. You see for almost 8 years I worked around the corner from the restaurant. Back then it had a different concept. It was an haute cuisine restaurant like the ones on Chef’s Table. LOVE the series by the way! It was out of my budget and I couldn’t find any “volunteers” to visit with me. So, I gave up. The interiors In 2014, the restaurant reopened under different management. And a different concept. It opened to the garden (especially in summertime) and got an…

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blue above the door metal detail in Patras
Greece

24hrs in Patras

Patras is Greece’s third largest city and a commercial hub. The city’s port is Greece’s gateway to Italy and Western Europe. Patra is also well known for its carnival parade that takes place every February. I visited Patras last year for work. It had been almost 10 years since my last visit when I took part in the said carnival. This time I had time and weather on my side to explore the city and visit the new archaeological museum. Saint Andrew church I will start off with this one since it’s the city’s landmark. The church was inaugurated in…

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Lake Pamvotida, Ioannina
Greece

24hrs in Ioannina

Last week I popped to Ioannina for work. It was for 24 hours, but as always with my work trips I managed to sneak in some hours to explore the city. Ioannina is located in North Western Greece in the region of Epirus. The city’s history is traced to antiquity but came to a more prominent status during the Middle Ages. After the 4th Crusade in 1204 it became the center of Despotate of Epirus. Ioannina surrendered to the Ottomans in 1430 and until 1868 was the base of the Pashalik of Yanina. Ioannina became a part of the Greek…

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