Anafiotika, Athens

Anafiotika is a tiny historic neighborhood within Plaka, set on the northeast side of the Acropolis hill. Its compact houses and narrow lanes create a Cycladic atmosphere, with white walls, bougainvillea, ladders, and terraces appearing among the passages. The settlement began during the reign of Otto of Greece, when workers from Anafi came to Athens for the rebuilding of his palace.

Craftsmen from other Cycladic islands followed, including carpenters and workers in stone and marble. In 1922, refugees from Asia Minor also made their homes here. Archaeological research destroyed part of the neighborhood in 1950, and the state began purchasing its houses in 1970.

Today, only 45 houses remain, giving this hillside quarter an unusually intimate scale. The lanes are still unnamed, and the homes are identified as Anafiotika 1, Anafiotika 2, and so on.