Thissio is a small area in downtown Athens, next to the Acropolis and is filled with cool little bars and restaurants. From our very own food critic, George highly recommends you to get lost in the neighborhood and try to discover its secrets, just as he did and precisely how he stumbled upon Gevomai kai Magevomai or the Savor Charms Taverna.

"During one of my rounds, I found myself pretty hungry and in need of a traditional and delicious Greek cuisine. So I thought, what better place to fulfill my desires than in a taverna? For some of you, this will not be a surprise, but to those of you who have never been to a Greek taverna, they are fairly cheap and incredibly good. You can usually order from a few daily prepared wonders, as well as from a traditional pre-arranged menu."

"This little taverna was no exception. What Savor Charms lacks in ambiance, it exceeds in food quality. I was offered a fairly full menu, both in English and Greek (for people like me who like to practice their Greek vocabulary and reading). After a few minutes, I was handed a hand-written note that showed the specials of the day, of which required some explanation from the waiter. Let me assure, though, they were the best choice!"

"I was with a small group of friends so ordered a few dishes to share among ourselves, as I think this works well with groups of friends. We ordered three daily specials, a mushroom souffle, fried sardines, and eggplant with tomato sauce and feta cheese on top. From the menu we had saganaki (fried cheese), potatoes, grilled octopus and zucchini croquettes. To ease the soul, we asked for two carafes of white wine from the house. Savor Charm's Greek wine is some of the best I have had so far! It was heavenly!"

"Needless to say the food was incredible. The souffle had a nice creamy texture to it and was cooked beautifully, the croquettes were a Greek delicacy and don´t even get me started on the eggplant with cheese! As is customary in Greece when the check comes, we were also offered a complimentary dish. This little gift from the taverna is usually an assortment of desserts, ouzo, coffee or in this particular case, a cold Mastixa. If you have never tried it, you are missing a big Greek secret. All in all, Savor Charms was a delicious and small Greek Taverna, perfect after a long day of museums and old stones sightings."

George is XpatAthens' Argentinian visiting food critic. All opinions are his own. Keep checking back in Restaurants for more of George's reviews!

Savor Charms
Address: Nileos 11, Thissio
Telephone: 210 345 2802
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Photo Source: Tripadvisor

Much of Greece has been hit by a heatwave and as temperatures are expected to reach over 40 degrees on Monday July 23, the Acropolis will close early again.

The Acropolis and Dionyssos Theater closed early on Sunday, July 22 and will close on Monday July 23 at 14:00 in order to protect staff and visitors from the dangers on heatstroke.

Visitors who have already purchased tickets online can visit any of the ticket issuing posts and exchange for a different date.

Source: Greek City Times

Ithaca is a non-profit organisation founded in July 2015 with the view to diminishing social exclusion of homeless people and raising awareness for the plight of the homeless. Ithaca operates the first mobile laundry unit for homeless people in Europe.

Ithaca's goal is twofold: to raise homeless’ people hygiene standards and restore their dignity, as well as to create opportunities for them. Ithaca manages to accomplish the latter by employing people from social vulnerable groups on a part-time basis for up to 12 months, contributing in this way to their social integration.

The culture ministry recently announced that a new e-ticketing and access control system has been installed at a few selected archaeological sites and museums in Greece.

The museums selected were part of a pilot program, and include the Acropolis, the archaeological sites of Athens' historic center, Knossos archaeoglical site, the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, and the archaeological area and museum of Ancient Messini.

As part of the new e-ticketing system, which helps handle traffic at peak times, an online service will be available to purchase e-tickets.

Source: Greek Travel Pages

Whether a local or visitor, there are a few places in Athens not to be missed. For instance, the gardens of the Concert Hall offer a beautiful and relaxing experience and a delicious pie shop downtown will top your experience. Learn all about them in our newsletter!

Athens is a city known all over the world for its rich history and culture. So, with millions of visitors every year, it's no wonder why the Acropolis won a major tourism award and how many ancient artifacts are yet to be found, such as a sculpture of a hunting dog dating back to 520 BC. It's a city full of surprises and beauty!

Registrations are now open!

Global sports figure Mike Tindall joins this year’s event!

Costa Navarino presents the 3rd edition of Messinia Pro-Am , 20-23 February 2019. The international golf tournament will welcome a total of 30 teams, while professionals will be competing for a total prize fund of 30,000 euros.

Among this year’s participants, a global sports figure will be joining Messinia Pro-Am: Former international rugby player Mike Tindall that represented England 75 times and 5 times as captain over a 17 year career.

Registrations for the 3rd Messinia Pro-Am are now open at the official tournament website, HERE  and will close on January 18 th 2019.

Those who register until October 20 th 2018 will benefit from an “early bird” discount on their participation packages.

The tournament will take place at the award-winning golf courses of Costa Navarino , which has been selected by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) as the “European Golf Resort of the Year 2017”. The two signature 18-hole golf courses, The Dunes Course and The Bay Course will once again host professional and amateur golfers, for a four-day event filled with unique experiences both on and off the course.

The 3 rd Messinia Pro-Am is organized in collaboration with the PGAs of Europe and is held under the auspices of PGA of Greece and the Hellenic Golf Federation .

AEGEAN, a member of Star Alliance, is the official airline partner of the event. The
company was awarded for the seventh consecutive year and for the eighth time in nine
years, as "Best Regional Airline in Europe" at the Skytrax World Airline Awards.

Erasmus is the official travel partner coordinating and ensuring the smooth registration
& accommodation process.

For those wishing to stay at The Westin Resort Costa Navarino and enjoy the full
programme of Messinia Pro-Am, special accommodation packages are available HERE!

Watch the Messinia Pro-Am Video HERE!

Hashtag: #messiniaproam

( Photo credit: Vassilis Sfakianopoulos )

It's everywhere, the evil eye. Today, we find it on jewelry, house decor, souvenirs, etc., but what is the history of this iconic cultural symbol? BBC explains...

"In essence, the curse of the evil eye is not a complicated concept; it stems from the belief that someone who achieves great success or recognition also attracts the envy of those around them. That envy in turn manifests itself as a curse that will undo their good fortune. The concept is well captured by Heliodorus of Emesa in the ancient Greek romance Aethiopica, in which he writes, 'When any one looks at what is excellent with an envious eye he fills the surrounding atmosphere with a pernicious quality, and transmits his own envenomed exhalations into whatever is nearest to him.'"

"The belief in this curse spans cultures as well as generations; to date one of the most exhaustive compilations of legends regarding the evil eye is Frederick Thomas Elworthy’s The Evil Eye: The Classic Account of an Ancient Superstition. Elworthy explores instances of the symbol in a number of cultures; from the petrifying gaze of Greek gorgons to Irish folktales of men able to bewitch horses with a single stare, virtually every culture has a legend related to the evil eye."

"Belief in the evil eye has transcended mere superstition, with a number of celebrated thinkers attesting to its veracity. One of the most notable examples was the Greek philosopher Plutarch, who in his Symposiacs suggested a scientific explanation: that the human eye had the power of releasing invisible rays of energy that were in some cases potent enough to kill children or small animals. What’s more, Plutarch claims that certain people possessed an even stronger ability to fascinate, citing groups of people to the south of the Black Sea as being uncannily proficient at bestowing the curse. More often than not, those said to be most adept at delivering the curse are blue-eyed, likely due to the fact that this is a genetic rarity in the Mediterranean area."

To read this article in full, please visit: BBC

Symbolizing love and liberty, the most popular opera in the French repertoire is being brought back to the Odeon of Herodes Atticus Theater by the GNO, directed by the famous British director, Steven Langridge, currently Artistic Director of the Gothenburg Opera.

Langridge’s Carmen was first staged at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus Theater in 2016 and is a contemporary, pointed, timely version set in a Europe of closed borders and poverty. Working with Giorgos Souglidis who designed the impressive sets and costumes, Giuseppe di Iorio who created the otherworldly lighting and Thomas Bergman who devised the ethereal video projections, Langridge has created a modern but also timeless setting for Carmen’s tale; “a tale about borders and poverty, freedom and slavery. A tale about today,” as the director himself put it.

One of the most iconic operas around, Carmen continues to provoke even today, just like when it first saw the light of day 142 years ago. An unconventional storyline, expressed through the then equally unconventional, but now extremely popular, music of Georges Bizet. The heroine of the piece defends her freedom and right to choose her lovers, not for them to choose her. She is a threat to male-dominated, patrrchal societies. Her choices threaten their very foundations. The only solution: get rid of her. The love-struck, ‘betrayed’ Don José takes on the task.

In French with English and Greek surtitles.

Within the framework of the Athens Festival!

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens opens its "home" to the general public and invites you to get to know the Propylaea, one of the most iconic places of remembrance of the Greek capital. Part of Athenian Trilogy, the most well-known and important Neoclassical buildings’ cluster in the city centre,the building of Propylaea founded in 1839, in drawings of the Danish architect Hans Christian Hansen.

Its halls constituted spaces for education, association, and protest. In its premises you can find the Greek Parliament, the National Library, numerous museums and workshops. In the interior and its precinct you can visit a series of ceremonial events (statues and column erections, anniversaries celebrations, etc.), while in the city geography, it constituted the eminent place of action, demonstrations and mergers.

The building decoration, with more characteristic mural in the interior façade of Propylaea, is one of the most important iconographic programs of the Greek 19th century. The architecture and painting served a narrative framework that closely connected the historical periods of Greek national history, while the sculpture program focused on recent history: Statues of important persons of Modern Greek history and columns of fallen in wars, works of Greek sculptures.

The tours include acquaintance with the Athenian trilogy and the visit to the Propylaea building. The tour duration is about 60' and will be made by Art historians of the Department of History and Archaeology , Michalis Giochalas and Pavlos Gkoygiannos, under the scientific supervision of the Associate professor of history of art in the Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Athens Dimitris Pavlopoulos.

For the tours there is a symbolic price of €2 for adults and €1 for minors and special categories (includes special information brochure).

For reservations visit the Guided Tour Calender HERE!