Athens info

When you first arrive in Athens the city can seem huge and foreboding and with a recorded history of over 3,400 years one can feel pretty lost. Have no fear! With these basics facts coupled with our free walking tour you will soon feel right at home in this city of legend and myth. Its true that Athens has many layers upon layers of history, but a guest who's only visiting for a short time really only needs to focus on the great achievements of the Athenians during the peak of Greek civilisation; this period of time took place roughly in the 5th century B.C.E. (Before the Common Error). The elected “leader” of this period was a great statesman called Pericles. Pericles contributions to Athenian society were indeed so great that often this Golden Age of Greece is referred to as simply,“The Age of Pericles”. Pericles was an important voice in ancient Athens because he kept the democratic system intact and encouraged other Athenian males to vote and for their voices to be heard. He is also responsible for encouraging the Athenians to rebuild the Acropolis after the Persians had laid waste to it so many years ago. Pericles vision for the Acropolis site never quite reached his eyes, but he was alive and well when its center piece, the Parthenon, was completed in 438 B.C.E.