Greece What You Have To Know Before Visit Athens Greece
There are one-day cruises that visit the islands of Aegina, Poros and Hydra plus longer cruises to various islands, with stops in Turkey, Cyprus, Israel and Italy available. Details of these cruises are available from most travel agents.
Phoning Home:
The official telephone exchange with metered booths is called OTE and can be found in most areas of Athens. The largest OTE is at 15 Stadiou Street right next door to a large statue of Kolokotronis, a hero of the Greek revolution against the Turks. This office has international telephone codes, directo¬ries and all phone information you might require. If you wished to make a reverse charge call they will organize it for you, and the office is open day and night.
Payphone cards on sale:
A number of shops and cigarette kiosks also have telephones that operate on a meter system. The price is calculated when you finish the call bas€1d on the units you used. These units are charged at a fixed rate.
Telephone kiosks using phone cards are to be found on just about every street corner. The cards are avail¬able from the cigarette kiosks and shops displaying a PHONE CARD sign.
The international access code is 00, followed by the code of your country. Then follows your area code MINUS the zero, followed by the actual number. For example, a typical London number would be 0044171789 7204 and a typical New York number would be 001718636 9204.
If you want someone to call you from abroad they would dial the international code of that country, 30 for Greece and then the area code minus the zero. The code for Athens is 210.
Post Office:
Post offices are open from 7 am to 2 pm and have stamps, padded envelopes and boxes. The staff are generally helpful even if the language does present certain challenges. There is one standard postal rate for postcards and letters in Europe and another for outside Europe.
You can also buy stamps from most shops that sell post¬cards and from the cigarette kiosks (periptera). These outlets charge a small premium over and above the price of stamps.
Post boxes are found dotted about allover Athens and always outside the Post Office. Not to be confused with dust¬bins, they are yellow with bugles on them. There are usually machines outside the post offices which dispense adhesive stamps.
There are two special post offices, one in Syntagma Square on the corner of Mitropoleos Street, and one down at 100 Eolou Street near Omonia Square which stay open on Monday to Friday from 7.30 am to 8 pm, Saturdays 7.30 am to 2 pm and Sundays from 9 am to 1.30 pm.
Water:
Plain bottled water is available in shops and kiosks. Supermarkets are generally the cheapest place to buy bottled water and if you prefer carbonated, Korpi and Ksino Nero are two local brands. Tavernas are likely to serve either plain bottled water or soda.
Greece is a hot country with limited rainfall and water is very expensive. Any small saving you can make does really help, especially with showers. Do remember that most rooms here have solar water heating, so you’re more likely to catch a hot shower during the day than first thing in the morning.
WC or the Loo:
Let’s face it, problems with finding a 100 can make or break a day’s sightseeing, so here are a few useful suggestions.
It’s always a good idea to have some paper or a few tissues with you when you head out for the day. Public loos in Athens are not recom¬mended, although there’s a cleanest one on the platform of the Omonia metro station. Most museums have a rest room and every cafe or restaurant must have a 100 by law so you can always stop for a drink and avail yourself of these.
Another idea is to pop into the big hotels and either have a drink or simply head purposefully for the rest rooms and who’s to know you’re not a guest.
You may occasionally encounter what are known as Turkish Lavatories, just two foot rests and a hole in the ground. Don’t worry – these are supposed to be very healthy and it’s always some¬thing to tell the folks back home.