The Athens Authentic Marathon is an annual marathon road race held in Athens normally during the second week of November. Each year, it attracts an increasing number of professional athletes, as well as amateur competitors from all over the world. A month and a half before the race, the event organizers announced a record breaking amount of 18,5000 participants for the original 42.195 km course, while thousands more will compete in the concurrent smaller road races, reaching an estimated total of 55.000 participants! This is a symbolic record for the organizational committee and The Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics.
The Athens Marathon Supports The Attica Wildfire Victims
In support of those affected by the devastating Eastern Attica wildfires, The Hellenic Athletics Federation announced that part of the revenue from the Athens Marathon will be deposited to the victim relief bank account created by the Greek State. Other initiatives in the support of the affected areas and their communities will be announced ahead of this year’s marathon event. Well-known athletes from the local and international sport community will kick off this year’s Athens Authentic Marathon race at 9 ΑΜ sharp on November 11th from the Marathon Start Venue. If you are not among the runners or volunteers, you are invited to watch and applaud the effort of participants from the side lines - it is a truly remarkable experience!
This October, Zappeion in Athens will be the center of gastronomy and wine of Europe as it hosts the 16th Annual Congress of the European Council of Gastronomy & Oenology. The event, titled “Europe of Taste - Greece: Tourism - Wine - Gastronomy”, will be an excellent exhibition for the presentation of the important connection between agricultural production and consumption, while highlighting traditional products and local gastronomic cultures from various regions in Greece.
This event is in essence the annual congress organized by the CEUCO (European Council of Enogastronomic Brotherhoods - Conseil Européen des Confréries Enogastronomiques), who is represented in Greece by the Chef’s Club of Attica – Acropolis. The congress will be host to a geographically diverse presentation of certified local products – including food and drink – that combine key components of Mediterranean cuisine and diet.
In 2017, during the 15th annual congress in Spain, whose primary focus was on wine and food pairing, the exhibition hosted 500 delegates and more than 100 associations and organizations from across 10 European countries. The Athens congress will be visited by gastronomic experts from numerous European countries who will have the opportunity to taste and learn about authentic Greek food and a wide range of Greek wines.
The region of Attica is home to approximately 60 caves! This is a surprise to many of the region’s residents who for the most part are unaware that these caves exist, let alone have actually visited them. These caves are a portal to a fascinating, dark and humid world, whose formation and development occurred over the course of thousands of years and are the result of various combined factors including temperature, microclimates, tectonic forces, and rocks, etc. Only three of these caves are accessible for exploration, while a fourth one – the Afaia Cave on Mount Aigaleo – is accessible yet dangerous for visitors due to its great incline.
Koutouki Cave In Paiania
Located on the outskirts of the Municipality of Paiania, just 35km from Athens, Koutouki Cave is situated on the eastern slope of Mount Hymettus at 510 meters above sea level. Discovered in 1926, and mapped out in 1954, during the 1960s there were efforts made to make this site accessible to visitors, which as a result has created some infrastructure and tourist development; since 2000, its preservation has been entrusted to the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. The cave consists of a single compartment which is divided into smaller parts by astonishing stalagmitic curtains. Koutouki Cave is accessed by a 17-meter-long tunnel, as its natural entrance is located at the roof of the cave.
The Cave Of Pan
This cave is located at the foothills of Mount Parnitha close to the Municipality of Fili, and sits at an altitude of 620 meters above sea level. It consists of two chambers that connect with each other by a very narrow and low passage; passing through from one chamber to the other requires crawling. The second chamber is richly decorated with stalactite material and has been nicknamed ‘Lychnospilia’ (meaning ‘lamp cave’ in Greek) on account of 2000 oil lamps that were found here by archaeologists.
Cave Of Pendeli
Better known as Davelis Cave, a name given after a nineteenth-century Greek brigand who is said to have used this cave as is hideout, this cave was once also called the “Cave of the Amomon” on account of evidence of religious use by ascetic Christians during the Middle Ages.
Located on the southwest side of Mount Penteli, at an altitude of 700 meters above sea level, this cave was first discovered by the Ancient Greeks in the 5th century BC; it was the place of marble excavation used for legendary structures of Ancient Athens, including the Acropolis that we still see today. During antiquity, this cave was also a place of worship for the followers of Pan, and it is known that it has been systematically explored by speleologists Ioannis and Anna Petrocheilos. The 112-meter entrance is an impressive downward chamber with a 15-meter pit. The cave branches off into an impressive network of tunnels that snake deep underground; while, one of the tunnels leads to a small body of water known as “The Lake of the Nymphs”. At the entrance of the cave are two small yet impressive Byzantine churches built directly into the rock, the one is dedicated to St. Spyridon and the other to St. Nicolas – these are the only areas of the cave that are open to the public.
The world’s leading food festival – Taste of Athens – comes to Athens from September 27 to September 30 at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center. Taste of Athens brings together all of the best restaurants in Athens, among them Athenaeum InterContinental's famous Première Restaurant!
International Gastronomy Festival
The world’s stellar gastronomic festival, that has taken place in more than 20 renowned gastronomical hotspots including London, New York, Paris, Milan, and Hong Kong, is now in Athens! This is the result of a combined effort between the Taste Festivals platform and Toposophy – a leading company for the organization of high quality gastronomy events in Greece. The festival’s main goal is to celebrate the city’s unique and diverse food scene and establish it as a significant culinary destination.
Tastings & Mingling
Visitors who confirm their attendance can choose from among four flavor packed days to attend the event and will have the privilege of enjoying an immersive gastronomical experience, including cooking, learning and indulging in delicious food.
