Let me pause for a moment and give kudos to the fabulous Hotel Grande Bretagne, easily the best-smelling hotel in which I’ve ever stayed. Athens is a relatively modest and easygoing capital city, so it’s been quite wonderful to lay down at an old-school hotel that’s both meticulously appointed and attentive – without being solicitous – while lacking the pretentiousness that too often comes in such majestic surroundings. I’ve quickly grown accustomed to feeling not so much like an anonymous hotel guest, but a pampered resident. Yet beyond the beautifully intricate floor mosaics in the lobby, or the marvelous marble staircase which traverses eight floors in one unbroken sweep, it’s the GB’s rooftop bar and restaurant which has me seduced: I couldn’t imagine a better spot to sip masticha and ponder the apotheosis of Western civilization.
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