Athens Goes Festive this Christmas Season with Events for All

The city of Athens will be celebrating Christmas and ushering in the New Year with hundreds of community activities around town offering both holiday cheer as well as charity for the needy.

The lighting of the Greek capital’s own Christmas tree standing at central Syntagma Square last week marks the beginning of holiday activities which run through to January 8.

More than 270 theater performances, concerts, choral and carol-singing shows, children’s workshops and interactive games, art festivals, handicraft sessions for young and old are taking place in neighborhoods across Athens, at local galleries and art spaces, at museums and parks, at cultural centers and at the Nationals Gardens.

Dionysis Savvopoulos

The new happening arts spot – the Kypseli Public Market has plenty in store with photography shows, workshops and community get-togethers. Meanwhile, traveling theater troupes will visit Athens primary schools to share the tale of Christmas while kiddies’ museums are offering everything from ornament-making lessons to Santa Claus letter-writing events. The National Theater will be “acting” out of a makeshift stage with actors reciting extracts from Christmas works and poems by famous Greek authors. Popular songsmith Dionysis Savvopoulos will be singing carols accompanied by the City of Athens Philharmonic Orchestra on Christmas Eve in front of the Attikon Cinema on Stadiou St (3pm). Radio presenters from 95.2 Athens Deejay will be playing out of a massive double-decker bus going around town with plenty of surprises.

And of course, the holiday season wouldn’t be complete without food. For two weeks starting on Thursday at central Kotzia Square opposite City Hall, the 1st Athens Food Market features fully-equipped food trucks offering the best street edibles available.

As tradition calls, the Mayor of Athens Giorgos Kaminis will be ushering the New Year on the Apostolos Pavlos pedestrian walkway at Thisseion. Stay tuned for details.

For more info on what’s on where visit the Athens Municipality site (in Greek).