Business tends to be slow midweek and the number of stands is far fewer than on the weekends. As Athens welcomes the first big wave of tourists for the season, the street peddlers on Apostolou Pavlou are feeling far from optimistic.
“I’ve made just two euros today and it’s already noon,” grumbles Triantafyllos, who sells jewelry he makes by hand from naturally sourced materials on the popular downtown Athens promenade running along the foot of the Acropolis. The buskers who have to jostle for a good spot at an even better location on the adjacent promenade of Dionysiou Areopagitou appear more stoic. These two “tribes” of alternative artists and artisans have been eking out a living from the tourist trade in one of its busiest locations in the Greek capital for years, even though their presence – and especially that of craftspeople, whose number soared during the economic crisis – has occasionally stirred reactions from the Archaeological Service, the municipal authorities and successive governments.
Architect George Georgiadis (left) moved to Greece from New York and plays the handpan on Dionysiou Areopagitou. Here he is seen with his friend Ioannis – on a didgeridoo – whom he met on the promenade. [Pavlos Fysakis]
