Monastiraki Square and the Little Hook - My Favourite Places to Visit When Surviving on 40 Euros for 4 Days in Athens

Having lost all our valuables and with another four days to go before we could receive our replacement passports, we were careful how we spent our 40 Euros. We spent 10 Euros on the first day after the theft on Metro fares and a roasted chicken and potato dinner. It was delicious and there was even enough leftover for lunch the next day.

For the next couple of days, we explored Athens on foot and looking for things to see that were free. Lucky for us, there were lots to see! Though the greater area of Athens has almost 3.2 millions inhabitants, we were able to find a quiet spot in the busy tourist area and had our lunch under a tree after we had our walk about in the charming winding streets of the Plaka district.

We saw many beautiful churches, shops and trendy restaurants. However, trying to conserve our cash, we were unable to enjoy a meal at one of these nice places.

But we still had lots of fun visiting many unique places. A few places stood out for me:

1. Monastiraki Square - a vibrant, bustling plaza located in the heart of Athens, in one of the oldest neighbourhoods. We walked past this square a few times and each time, we saw lively market with many interesteing stalls. The square seemed to be busy all the time with many people taking rest or sitting on the beaches, chatting and hanging out with friends.

We enjoyed looking at the blend of historical architecture and landmarks such as the Church of the Pantanassa, the 18th century Tzistarakis Mosque ( now houses a ceramics museum and the ancient ruins of Hadrian's Library only steps away.

2. Little Hook - Located in the Psiri neighborhood, this whimsical cafe capatured my attention during our stroll around the tourist area. It was enchanting with its colourful and themed decorations. I felt we had walked into a fairly tale wonderland! This unconventional cafe offered sweet and savory crepes and other treats. I liked this cafe a lot and lingered there for a long time taking many pictures of their many fairytale style decorations.

3. Walking up to the Acropolis - There were a lot to see walking up to the Acropolis! Though the first time we did it, we had our wallet containing our valuables stolen from my backpack, therefore, we didn't complete the walk. Re walking up towards the hill, we totally enjoyed our walk up there! However, we didn't have enough cash nor a credit card to pay for our admission to see the ruins and would have to wait until we got the replacements of our stolen doucments.

  We had another great day without spending too mnuch money in Athens!

  RT, Athens, 042026 PS At the Little Hook, I discovered that I am still a littel kid at heart!