Panathinaikos Gate 13

Interesting comments from the Athens experience. I found some to be a bit harsh however, especially the junkie ridden remarks. Most Athens citizens do not frequent the downtown areas in the wee morning hours, so I have not witnessed any of what is described. While I will not argue their existence, and do understand it has recently become a social issue, due to the proximity to Turkey and the heroin trade from Afghanistan, I have personally never seen a junkie in Athens. I have however seen many in London, Glasgow, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, Stockholm etc. In New York City in the nineties, Times square was full of crack pipes and prosties at midday. I would not call NYC a crack whore shit-hole Judging a city you visited the worst areas for three days, as a junkie ridden shit-hole? Did anyone visit the Archaeological Museum, The beaches of Glyfada, Vouliagmeni, Sounio, the list is long. How about the neighborhoods I suggested , Kifissia, Exarhia etc ? August is the hottest month of the year and the vacation month for most Athenians. Do not take the police treatment at heart, why do you think there are so many riots? Most young people are not cop lovers... I appreciate the positive comments and hope you all left with a desire to return. Next time hit the islands! Best of luck vs Levante Panathinaikos is playing vs a Spanish side as well, we drew Malaga. Tough match. Since you seem like you would know your beer... Which Scottish beers would you recommend? I prefer ales, bitters and stouts. PEACE

Good evening to all Well fans in Scotland. As a fan of the beautiful sport, football, I enjoyed your team and my time in this forum. Thank you for your hospitality and replies. I am certain that Motherwell has many more fans in Greece, and will be known as a fighting team with respect for the game, their fans, and the opponent. Like most of you hardcore, to the bone, Well fans, I would be quite proud of your team. They played to the best of their ability without ever giving up. Our team management and coaching staff had positive remarks about their encounter with Motherwell. McCall during his interview on OTE TV, spoke about the number 10 Panathinaikos player. Did he mean Karagounis? He was not in the game. He did not resign and will not be with the team. Christodoulopoulos was no 20. I am sure the Well fans enjoyed their trip and Athens experience, which showed during the broadcast. Best of luck in the EL and SPL. I will be keeping an eye on your progress in the SPL Mon the Well! PEACE

Hello to all Well fans traveling to Athens Like I said in my previous posts I would like to help with questions. May I suggest a quick itinerary: Upon arriving to ATH airport, take the METRO (or bus) to Syntagma square. There are express buses that run 24 hrs, the Metro runs 6am to 12pm I believe. Find out from the website. Take any street (Ermou/ Mitropoleos) toward Plaka or Monastiraki. Walk around the oldest Athenian neighborhoods underneath the Acropolis and get something to eat or souvenirs. If you want to get to the match directly, look for Irini station on the line that goes to Kifissia. That is the OAKA stop. Or you may go to the pub by Panormou station then take the bus to OAKA as I mentioned before. A great place to eat before or after the match is Platia Halandriou. (Halandri Square) It is a half hr walk from the stadium or around 7 euro by taxi There are many good eateries. Greek tavernas, cafes, ice cream parlors and the original Craft beer bar. For God's sake do not go to Omonia, there is nothing there. It is a ghetto for African, Asian, Eastern European illegal immigrants. There are many "gentlemen's" clubs on Syngrou Ave and all over Athens, if you care for that. Google search... Glyfada, by the beach. (south), Kifissia (north), are good places to walk around at night. If you feel like seeing the anti establishment side of Athens, while listening to Rock music. Exarheia square is the place as mentioned in my previous post. Try Greek wine, or rakomelo (Cretan Rake with honey) Good point. Feel free to ask me and enjoy your stay PEACE

It is getting close. possible PAO line up: -------------------karnezis-------------------- vyntra---boumsong--velazquez---spyropoulos -------------vitolo------marinos-------------- ---zeca--------sissoko------christodoulopoulos -------------------toche--------------------- Not impressive... Missing : Kara, Katsou, Leto, Ninis, Quincy... Our best players last season. Is the game sold out? How many fans do you expect? PEACE

Hello ALL Well fans. Posted on the Athens and game threads as well. Tickets are actually very inexpensive. Must be because it is not a CL game and early in the season. Most Athenians are on vacation in August...this year however who knows. CL games in the past cost 30 euro min to well over 120 euro for the CL games vs Barca. I would spend the extra 20 euro to get better seats. The stadium will be half empty at best. Finding tickets will not be an issue. It is hard to say if you will be able to get to the better seats due to security. Usually the fans are separated If demand is high form the Motherwell end, a request may be made by the team, to purchase a large number of good seats and block that stand from PAO fans. Sections 24-30 would be ideal for that I am attaching a photo below of the OAKA stadium taken by me recently. In the middle top, to the right of the scoreboard matrix, is the visitors section 20 Look to the right of that section over the blue area in the center line, that is section 26 seating plan and view click to see the view OAKA at pao.gr/en various angles of the stadium Good luck. PEACE

Appreciate the responses to my post. "Ya ssou", is two words, Ygia and sou, health and to you It means to your health and is used as a greeting or cheers. Not unlike Aloha. "Hello" has many variations depending on the social situation etc No one said Greek is easy... Good bye informally could be: "Yia hara"- Health and joy The visitors are separated in the upper stands, in the south section, next to the scoreboard. The whole adjacent section will be EMPTY for security. There will be police escort in and out of the stadium. I do not anticipate any problems, unless you commit the ultimate sin of sporting any Olympiakos products... BAD, very, very BAD!!! Rangers vs Celtics kind of BAD Celtics' Samaras, advised PAO to be very careful of Motherwell. No one is taking this lightly. Most Greeks, including myself, have a greater affinity for Scots (Albannaich) and Irish, than for the English. Not that we dislike the English, just feel more compatible with the warm blooded types. PAO has a good following in Ireland actually, for obvious reasons... Stay away from the areas south of Omonia square. It is not dangerous, just unpleasant. Unless you enjoy hard drugs and nasty looking Eastern European prostitutes. Just posted on the Athens thread. Give me shout for any additional info. PEACE

Hello, to all Motherwell fans visiting Athens. I recently posted in the main game thread, inviting you all to Athens. I wish I could be there. There are many British style pubs and bars in Athens. Breweries and great food as well. I have not been to the wee dram. The neighborhood is convenient, since it lies between the old 1920's Panathinaikos field and the OAKA stadium. On your way to the OAKA you may stop at the Panormou metro station and have a couple. From the Greek brews I recommend Craft and Mythos Red. Craft started as a microbrewery. The original bar is at Halandri square about 1 Km from OAKA. Then walk over a few blocks to Kifissias Ave, to take any north bound buses that pass by OAKA. OAKA will be seen on your left driving nothbound, about a half hour at max. If in doubt ASK, most Athenians under the age of 40 are well versed in English. Yee may have to tone down the Scottish accent... Personally I would rather take the bus than the metro, although depending on where you stay, the metro may be more convenient. Plateia Exarhion or Exarhia is a small square with several bars. It is an interesting spot, politically charged with all kinds of ideologies. Although believed to be dangerous at times, I would only caution you from going there, if the are demonstrations, or if you are a policeman... I love to walk in Athens, it is hot in August until 6pm, pleasant in the evening. low humidity, no rain. OAKA is in the suburb of Maroussi, a good stretch from the Athens center. Enjoy your visit PEACE

Cheers! Thanks for the invite. I signed up at this forum last week, but was unable to post until today. This seems to be a "family friendly" place to post. There are several Greek soccer forums and team specific forums. Some can be intense and extreme, those are mostly in Greek. I want no part of that action... The English forums are more suitable for international visitors, and Greeks from all around the globe. Not immune to extremists, however. As far as the game tomorrow. Panathinaikos, or PAO for short, (Panathinaikos Athleticos Omilos: Panathenian Athletic Club) is going through a transition period. The club ownership, since 1980, resigned and a new cooperative is trying to save the club. They are selling shares and hope for a strong fan based ownership. The days of fat multi million euro contracts for players like French international Gibril Cisse and Brazil's captain Gilberto Silva are over. Leto has been in and out of surgery all of 2012. He was our scorer and best player for half of 2011, after Cisse went to QPR. Ninis is gone to Parma. Karagounis has not signed yet. Katsouranis just joined the team after his Euro rest. It is hard to predict who is going to lead this new mixture. Panathinaikos academy youngsters, four of which played in the U19 Euro championship final vs Spain a few weeks ago, no name international signings and veterans, make up for the 2012-13 squad. Honestly, I do not know who is going to show up ready for tomorrow's first official game. This game is important to PAO financially, to save the club Be assured that PAO is not dismissing Motherwell FC. Your team is going to be ready and willing to make the most of this opportunity. I do believe PAO will be defensive in Scotland. I welcome you all to Athens, I am reading that many of you will make the trip. Please let me know if there is any info I can help you with. As a long time peaceful PAO fanatic, I have welcomed visitors to our city and stadium I thought of starting a new thread to offer insight. This is my first post here, depending on the interest and response, I may do that. Your thoughts? PEACE