Omonia metro station

Athens ( ATH-enz; Greek: Αθήνα, romanized: Athína [aˈθina] (listen); Ancient Greek: Ἀθῆναι, romanized: Athênai (pl.) [atʰɛ̂ːnai̯]) is the capital city of Greece. With a population close to 4 million it is the largest city in Greece, and the 7th largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates and is the capital of the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, with its recorded history spanning over 3,400 years and its earliest human presence beginning somewhere between the 11th and 7th millennia BC.Classical Athens was a powerful city-state. It was a centre for the arts, learning and philosophy, and the home of Plato's Academy and Aristotle's Lyceum. It is widely referred to as the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy, largely because of its cultural and political impact on the European continent—particularly Ancient Rome. In modern times, Athens is a large cosmopolitan metropolis and central to economic, financial, industrial, maritime, political and cultural life in Greece. In 2021, Athens' urban area hosted more than three and a half million people, which is around 35% of the entire population of Greece. It is also a tourist spot, with many people coming every year. Athens is a Beta-status global city according to the Globalization and World Cities Research Network, and is one of the biggest economic centers in Southeastern Europe. It also has a large financial sector, and its port Piraeus is both the largest passenger port in Europe, and the third largest in the world.The Municipality of Athens (also City of Athens), which actually constitutes a small administrative unit of the entire city, had a population of 664,046 (in 2011) within its official limits, and a land area of 38.96 km2 (15.04 sq mi). The Athens Urban Area or Greater Athens extends beyond its administrative municipal city limits, with a population of 3,090,508 (in 2011) over an area of 412 km2 (159 sq mi). Athens is also the southernmost capital on the European mainland and the warmest major city in Europe. The heritage of the Classical Era is still evident in the city, represented by ancient monuments, and works of art, the most famous of all being the Parthenon, considered a key landmark of early Western civilization. The city also retains Roman and Byzantine monuments, as well as a smaller number of Ottoman monuments, while its historical urban core features elements of continuity through its millennia of history. Athens is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Acropolis of Athens and the medieval Daphni Monastery. Landmarks of the modern era, dating back to the establishment of Athens as the capital of the independent Greek state in 1834, include the Hellenic Parliament and the so-called "Architectural Trilogy of Athens", consisting of the National Library of Greece, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and the Academy of Athens. Athens is also home to several museums and cultural institutions, such as the National Archeological Museum, featuring the world's largest collection of ancient Greek antiquities, the Acropolis Museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Benaki Museum, and the Byzantine and Christian Museum. Athens was the host city of the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896, and 108 years later it hosted the 2004 Summer Olympics, making it one of the few cities to have hosted the Olympics more than once.

The Athens metropolitan area (Greek: Μητροπολιτική Περιοχή της Αθήνας) spans 2,928.717 km2 (1,131 sq mi) within the Attica region and consists of 58 municipalities plus areas of East Attica and West Attica, having reached a population of 3,638,281 according to the 2021 census. Cities of Athens and Piraeus both serve as the two metropolitan centres of the Athens metropolitan area.According to the Hellenic Telecommunications and Post Commission, the Athens metropolitan area consists of all areas with a dialing code of 21 and includes areas such as Salamina, Elefsina, Mandra, Aspropyrgos, Acharnes, Pallini, Agios Stefanos, Dionysos, Koropi, Vari, Kavouri and the Athens International Airport.

Omonoia Square (Greek: Πλατεία Ομονοίας, Plateía Omonoías, pronounced [plaˈtia omoˈnias], "Concord Square", often simply referred to as Omónia [oˈmonia]) is a central square in Athens. Forming the centre of Omonoia. It marks the northern corner of the downtown area defined by the city plans of the 19th century, and is one of the city's principal traffic hubs. It is served by Omonoia metro station. Omonoia Square is one of the oldest squares in the city of Athens and an important shopping centre. It is located at the center of the city at the intersection of six main streets: Panepistimiou, Stadiou, Athinas, Peiraios, Agiou Konstantinou Street and 3rd Septemvriou Street.

The Achaemenid destruction of Athens was accomplished by the Achaemenid Army of Xerxes I during the Second Persian invasion of Greece, and occurred in two phases over a period of two years, in 480–479 BCE.

Omonoia (Greek: Ομόνοια pronounced [oˈmo.ni.a]) is a neighborhood in downtown Athens, Greece, centered on the square of the same name and served by the Omonoia station of the Athens Metro. Historically the heart of the city, it has experienced serious urban decay in recent years, becoming plagued by drug dealing, prostitution and theft, especially in its western part. Despite that, it is still a focal point for commercial and social life in Athens, especially for the various immigrant communities.

Athens "Liosion" Bus Station also known as KTEL Liosion Bus Station is the second busiest bus station in Athens. It is located in Patisia in Athens Municipality. There are routes to Central Greece, Thessaly, Pieria. There are a lot of passengers that use the Bus Station and it is the second largest bus station in Athens after Athens Kifissos Bus Station. 5 million passengers travel to Central Greece and Thessaly via this bus station. The busiest route is to Chalkida. There are routes per 30 minutes. There are new plans to build a bus station in Elaionas, Athens that will serve all routes of the entire nation. The new Bus Station will open in 2025.

The Athens–Piraeus Electric Railways (Greek: Ηλεκτρικοί Σιδηρόδρομοι Αθηνών Πειραιώς, romanized: Ilektrikoi Sidirodromoi Athinon Peiraios, ΗΣΑΠ), commonly abbreviated as ISAP, was a company which operated the Piraeus - Kifissia line from 1 January 1976 to 17 June 2011. Piraeus - Kifissia line was the oldest urban rapid transit system of Athens metropolitan area. The line opened in 1869 as a suburban railway line connecting Athens with its port of Piraeus and it was gradually converted to full rapid transit operations, making it one of the oldest metro lines in the world. The line which Isap S.A. operated evolved from the older Athens & Piraeus Railway and Lavrion Square-Strofyli railway. In June 2011 ISAP S.A. was absorbed by a new transport company, STASY.

Urban Rail Transport S.A. (Greek: Σταθερές Συγκοινωνίες, romanized: Statheres Synkoinonies, ΣΤΑΣΥ), commonly abbreviated as STASY, is a Greek public transport operator of the Athens Metro and the Athens Tram. It is the metro and tram subsidiary of Transport for Athens (OASA S.A.), and is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the metro and tram network, including rolling stock, 59 tram stops, and 62 of the 66 metro stations. STASY was created in 2011, as a merger of the Athens–Piraeus Electric Railways (ISAP), the Attiko Metro Operation Company (AMEL), and Tram S.A., and its logo is an amalgamation of the oval-shaped format of ISAP's logo, and the blue and green colours from AMEL's logo.

Kotzia Square (Greek: Πλατεία Κοτζιά) is a square in central Athens, Greece. The square retains several characteristics of 19th-century local neoclassical architecture, such as the City Hall of the Municipality of Athens and the National Bank of Greece Cultural Center. It is named after Konstantinos Kotzias, former Mayor of Athens.

The National Theatre of Greece is based in Athens, Greece.

The National Bank of Greece (NBG; Greek: Εθνική Τράπεζα της Ελλάδος) is a global banking and financial services company with its headquarters in Athens, Greece. 85% of the company's pretax preprovision profits are derived from its operations in Greece, complemented by 15% from Southeastern Europe. The group offers financial products and services for corporate and institutional clients along with private and business customers. Services include banking services, brokerage, insurance, asset management, shipping finance, leasing and factoring markets. The group is the largest Greek bank by total assets and the third largest by market capitalisation of €1.06 billion as at 4 December 2018. It is the second largest by deposits in Greece after Piraeus Bank. It is fourth largest by Greek loan assets trailing Piraeus Bank, Alpha Bank and Eurobank Ergasias. The bankers Jean-Gabriel Eynard and Georgios Stavros founded NBG in 1841 as a commercial bank. Stavros was also elected as the first director of the Bank until his death in 1869. From NBG's inception until the establishment of the Bank of Greece in 1928, NBG enjoyed the right to issue banknotes. When the Athens Stock Exchange was founded in 1880, NBG immediately listed on the exchange, a listing it has retained to the present. The bank is currently listed on the Athens Exchange (Athex: ETE, ISIN GRS003003019); it is a constituent of the FTSE/Athex Large Cap index. From 1999 to 2015 it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:NBG, ADR, ISIN US6336437057).

Sofokleous Street (Greek: Οδός Σοφοκλέους, Odos Sofokleous) is a street in the downtown part of Athens, the Greek capital. It is named after the ancient Greek tragedian Sophocles. The street runs from Pireos Street and ends short from Stadiou Street at Pesmazoglou Street and Aristeidou Street. Until 2007 the Athens Stock Exchange was located in this street, near Aiolou Street on the north side. Further north lies Kotzia Square. The street is approximately 600 m long. The nearest metro stations are Panepistimio and Omonia.