Monastiraki

According to the website Monastiraki is the place that most of all represents tradition and tourist sightseeing in Athens at the same time. It's next door to ancient agora, so it was serendipitous that the three places we wanted to see were next to each other. Who knew right? And there's flea market too.
My husband and I and the couple with us all agreed to spend time here, to do some souvenir shopping or even just browsing. We were there on a weekday and it wasn't crowded. Correct that, there wasn't anyone there.
I spotted many of these "dolls". Are they dolls? Help here if you know what these are. But at these prices, 50 euros for a doll? I'm not spending more time on them.
So we just decided to go in and get the typical must-buy souvenirs - postcards [I collect them], tee-shirts and little stuff for give aways.

We passed by a food stall and this friendly proprietor who spoke very little English insisted we try his food. It's good he said. And he smiled a lot and smiled some more while he pushed the menu in our hands while we were still deciding whether to eat or not.
We were hungry so we sat. He was after all pretty convincing. However, when the food came, we ate right away. Too late when I realized that I again forgot to snap food photos. I never learn. That's why I will never be any good at being a food blogger.
We walked some more and found the train station, that's the building here. This is the square where people congregate, ambulant vendors wheel their produce, and tourists like me stop and snap photos.
And after getting our train tickets from the automated machine [we eventually figured out how to get one], we saw the sign that would take us back to the port of Piraeus.

For the very limited time that I had in Athens I was able to check off the three major items on my list: Acropolis, Agora, Monastiraki. I was happy that I wasn't rushed at all.

While researching for the trip, all the travel sites have warned tourists to mind their belongings when taking train in Athens. The trains are notorious for pickpocketers. I have seen why. They are crowded, very crowded. But again it is just common sense. Where ever you are, you must know where you put your cash. And you know to put cash in different pockets or location. You all know that. If you are mindful of your surroundings, I think you have nothing to worry about.

However, we heard from the ship's front desk guy that many from our cruise had been victimized. A guy lost a thousand dollars on the train - a victim of pickpocket. No man in his right mind would carry a thousand dollars exploring a foreign city.

I hoped you enjoyed my Athens leg of the tour. Dennis of Nomadic Pinoy asked if I had overload from all the ancient antiquities and ruins. My answer is not yet. This turned out to be like an archeological tour. You'll see if you tune in for the next series.

Comments

  1. amazing that it could be the dirtiest place there yet it's so clean.

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  2. A nice place to travel...as long as you don't travel with 1000 dollars cash!

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  3. I would have been right with you all along the way, Maria. This has been a wonderful tour, seeing things I've never seen before. Thank you!

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  4. i think i saw this place from a movie i saw last year. the title escapes me though.

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  5. 1000 bucks is a lot. glad to see more photos. keep 'em coming.

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  6. You certainly looked like you were having fun! That place must be crowded during weekends.

    Thanks for visiting Norwich Daily Photo and leaving your comment. See you again tomorrow!

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  7. Such a nice documentary of your time there, looks like a good place to visit, a bit strange or perhaps it could be lack of travel experience for someone to be traveling with $1k

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  8. Splendid, I nearly forgot about the flea market. So you would like to make food pictures. To remember to shoot the plate of food will be like a good discount. Maybe now you will remember :-)

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  9. Oh, my! I would absolutely LOVE shopping in that market place.

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  10. I love your blog, Maria. Captions and pictures are all so wonderful. Greece looks like a lovely place to visit - esp. Athens!

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  11. I initially thought they were colorful handkerchiefs on display. Those dolls are quite pricey.

    I feel sorry for the man who lost that large amount of money.

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  12. Me too I always forget to take photos of the food and tend to gobble them right away hehehe Takaw ko ;)

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  13. Very beautiful sequence of the market, Maria.
    Thanks for sharing with us this amazing trip!

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  14. i wonder where we are heading to next? i am excited!

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  15. finally a glimpse of you! ^0^ and hubby and travel friends...^-^
    i think this is my fave series so far... shopping! ^0^
    at first, i thought they are scarfs, hehe, i'm wrong again and for that price, yikes! ^0^
    but it's always interesting to buy something for remembrance.
    and again, very informative travel tips, the do's and don'ts...
    i'm curious to see what the train station looks like, i hope you can share it with us next time.

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  16. Maria, thanks for answering my question in your post above. Glad to see you trying out local food - most people I know who went on a cruise always eat their free meals aboard the ship.

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  17. Greetings from Juneau, Alaska!
    Dirt, tears, blood, it still looks like an incredible place to visit. You did a wonderful job of sharing your adventure. Have a great day!

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  18. wow i love all your pix here..wish to visit this place one day! thanks for sharing!

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  19. I like the effect on the first photo, it seems vintage. The "dolls" are expensive! I won't buy one even if they're cheap, looks eerie to me. Or maybe my imagination is just kicking in. =)

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  20. the flea market looks awesome. I'm sure there were great bargains, souvenirs to be found. I love flea markets :)

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