My Adventures 3: Athens

On Monday the 9^th February 2026 after breakfast at the Ibis Styles Hotel we catch the Metro to Panepistimio Staion on the M2 red line and alight there.

We cross the road and head up a road called Sina to walk up to Lycabettus Hill that we have seen in the distance all holiday.

It is steep walking from the start, at the end of the road we turn right and up steps climbing up Panagiotou Anagnostopoulou.

At the top we have a rest of a bench, its been hard work getting this far!

We walk on into the Park of the Torn Stone.

The "Torn Stone" Park, designed by Alexander Hoevel, is a conceptual landscape project intended as a tranquil green refuge for Athens citizens, situated at the foothills of Lycabettus. It is distinct from major public parks like Pedion tou Areos, which is a historically significant, large urban green space dedicated to the heroes of the 1821 Greek Revolution, featuring busts, monuments, and a statue of King Constantine I.

The slopes of the hill were exploited by stone quarries, as everyone wanted to mine the precious stone.

That is why it is called not only “Little Lycabettus” but also “Schisti Petra” (Torn Stone), because it shows exactly this situation. Due to its extensive carving, it seems as if the huge volume of stone had been “torn”, creating the main rock with the high top and a much smaller one next to it. The extraction of stone from the hill finally stopped in 1960. After a brief pause, the law of 1861 allowed the possibility of quarrying, as did a new law in 1900. At the same time, a tree-planting

campaign was launched under the leadership of Princess Sophia in 1912.

In those years, “Schisti Petra” formed an unbroken unit with Lycabettus Hill until the 19th century. However, after various geological phenomena, extensive quarrying and the new urban planning of the area with new residences, the two hills were finally enclosed. Today, the ancient “Little Lycabettus” (Schisti Petra) extends over an area the size of a building block and has been transformed into a park surrounded by houses. The relief of the hill has also changed. The hill of “Schisti Petra” is defined by the streets of Lycabettus, Dimaki, Chersonos and Anagnostopoulou.

Another important issue was the planting of trees. It started in 1880, but the goats that grazed on the slopes in the area of “Katsikadika” (near Dexameni) ate all the young trees. In 1912 a new reforestation attempt was made and in 1915 another one was initiated by the Philodassiki Enosi Athinon Foundation, which was endangered by the arbitrary construction, since more and more buildings appeared, among them the so-called “metapraktika”, i.e. two-storey and semi-three-storey houses, built for exploitation (cheap housing for students, writers, artists).

We reach the pass between the two huge stones, I consult the map, we need to head back down as we can’t reach Lycabettus Hill this way.

We walk up Dimaki and then turn right onto Oitis and up more steps. At the top we have to pass some Greek riot police, no idea why they were standing there cross the road to climb up Lycabettus Hill.

We start the winding path up, but first another break on a bench by a road, watching cabs wind there way up. Damn we could of got a cab quite a way up, but hey where’s the achievement in that!

Lycabettus Hill is the highest point in central Athens, standing 277 metres (908 feet) above sea level, providing panoramic 360-degree views of the city, the Acropolis, and the Aegean Sea. Located in the Kolonaki district, it is a popular, scenic spot for sunset, featuring the 19th-century Chapel of St. George, a restaurant, and an open-air theatre.

Lycabettus appears in various legends. Popular stories suggest it was once the refuge of wolves (lycos in Greek), which is possibly the origin of its name (means "the one [the hill] that is walked by wolves"). Another etymology suggests a Pelasgian, pre-Mycenean, origin (Lucabetu=mastoid hill).

Mythologically, Lycabettus is credited to Athena, who created it when she dropped a limestone mountain she had been carrying from the Pallene peninsula for the construction of the Acropolis after the box holding Erichthonius was opened.

The hill is a tourist destination and can be ascended by the Lycabettus Funicular, a funicular railway which climbs the hill from a lower terminus at Kolonaki (The railway station is at Aristippou street). At its two peaks are the 19th century Chapel of St. George, a theatre, and a restaurant.

A brief rest up the way up!

The hill has a large open-air amphitheatre near the top, which has housed many Greek and international concerts. In 2008 it closed due to safety concerns. By 2022 the city of Athens suggested renovating and reopening the theatre. After being closed for 15 years, the theatre was reopened in September of 2023. [2] Among the artists who have performed at the Lycabettus theatre are Arca, Ray Charles, Joan Baez, B.B. King, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Leonard Cohen, James Brown, Bob Dylan, Paco De Lucia, Evanescence, Al Di Meola, John Mc Laughlin, Gary Moore, Peter Gabriel, Black Sabbath, Nick Cave, Bjork, Dead Can Dance, Pet Shop Boys, Deep Purple, UB40, Placebo, Morrissey, Radiohead, Moby, Massive Attack, Faith No More, Faithless, Whitesnake, Tracy Chapman, Nightwish, Slipknot, Patti Smith, Vanessa Mae, Bryan Ferry, Tito Puente, Buena Vista Social Club, Orishas, The Prodigy, Iron Maiden, Nazareth, Blackmore's Night, Scorpions, Mathame, Adriatique Human Rias, Rotting Christ and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.

We reach the top and take in the amazing views across Athens and as far as the Agean Sea and the islands beyond.

We visit the Chapel of St George.

The Chapel of St. George (Agios Georgios) is a prominent 19th-century, white-washed church located at the summit of Mount Lycabettus in Athens, Greece. Built around 1870, it sits on the site of a former temple to Zeus and is a landmark accessible by foot or the Lycabettus Funicular railway.

We take in the view some more before we walk down a few steps to have a beer at the café there.

We walk back up to the summit to walk down the hill via the other side and stop at a café lower down to use their toilet.

As we walk down we see the signs for the funicular that takes you up the hill, wasn’t aware of this either ha ha!

Great view down to the Acropolis.

We walk down the hill on Ploutarchou and then back to the Syntagma area.

We catch the metro back to the hotel and as we exit the Metro at Agios Ioannis and we have a look around the church of Agios Ioannis we have seen all week.

The church of Agios Ioannis Kynegos is situated on Vouliagmenis Avenue, a major road in the southern part of Athens.

We walk back to the hotel for a nap before going back out to have dinner.

We catch the Metro back to the Acropolis station on the red M2 line and have dinner here, I have the Mousakka and Mel has a Chicken Souvlaki. Very nice too!