A CITY WITH MANY ASSETS
Students will have the chance to explore the myriad delights of Greece’s Capital city, Athens. A place that is rich with history, a metropolis with unique charm, vibrancy and flair.
Athens is a dream city for anyone with a romantic streak or an interest in history. Sightseeing opportunities are to be found in abundance.
Athens is the historical capital of Europe, with a long history, dating from the first settlement in the Neolithic age. Over the years, a multitude of conquerors occupied Athens, and erected unique, splendid monuments – a rare historical palimpsest. In 1834, it became the capital of the modern Greek state and in two centuries since it has become an attractive modern metropolis with unrivalled charm.
A warm city
Greece is in fact a blessed country for the weather that it has. Athens enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate, with the greatest amounts of precipitation mainly occurring from mid-October to mid-April; any precipitation is sparse during summer and falls generally in the form of showers and/or thunderstorms. Due to its location in a strong rain shadow because of Mount Parnitha, however, the Athenian climate is much drier compared to most of the rest of Mediterranean Europe. The mountainous northern suburbs, for their part, experience a somewhat differentiated climatic pattern, with generally lower temperatures and more substantial snowfalls during winter. Fog is highly unusual in the city centre but it is more frequent to the east, behind the Hymettus mountain range.
A cultural and coastal city
A large part of the town’s historic centre has been converted into a 3-kilometre pedestrian zone (the largest in Europe), leading to the major archaeological sites. Athens is a heady mix of history and edginess. Cultural and social life plays out amid, around and in ancient landmarks.
Who has never dreamed of visiting the famous Greek islands? As a matter of fact, the islands are one of the most incredible reasons to live in this country. And Athens is in advantage because it has the biggest ports and it is quite close from some of these paradises.
The south part of Athens is built right next to the sea, and there are also beaches in the east side of Attica, just outside of the city. Nevertheless, you can always ride a bus and enjoy the seaside.
A city for students
Greece is not a cheap country, but comparing to others in Europe the cost of life is interesting. You can buy a bottle of water with less than 50 cents of Euro. And to have a nice meal here can cost between 5 and 10 euros. Besides, it is very common at restaurants to offer free water and sometimes free dessert. Apartment rentals are also cheap comparing to capitals like Paris, and even cities in Brazil, like São Paulo and Rio, and, in general, there are not big social differences.
Athens has a good public transport network, consisting of buses, trams and the Athens metro. Public transport is inexpensive, clean and generally punctual, but as in other major cities it gets crowded at peak times.