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Eric's
in Athens
A First-Person Diary from the 2004 Summer Olympic Games
PubClub's Olympics
Correspondent has splashed down in Athens.
By Eric Velazquez Pub Club, Athens Correspondent
Column 3, Week 1: "The Power of the Euro"
Greece is a beautiful country full of
beautiful people. It's rich in culture and history and the islands are
famed for being among the world's best for travelers. It's a tourist's
paradise and the Greeks know it. Which is probably why they think it's
okay to charge 10 euro for a drink at some places. Either that, or molasses
and barley are just in short supply on the Greek peninsula.
Whatever the case, you need make sure you pack up plenty of coin for
a night out on the town in Athens. Remember my last column about all
those free drinks you get? Forget about all that. Such generosity is
reserved for the quainter, quieter ma- and pa-type places around town.
At all the places where you really cut loose and shake what your mama
gave you, you're going to need to bring the noise...financially speaking
that is.
Sometimes, you'll find it's quite worth it. A few nights back, we piled
into a couple of cabs (which range from Yugos to Mercedes here) and
headed for the Athenian waterfront. The destination: An outdoor "bar"
at the Yacht Club of Greece. I was, like I'm sure you are right
now, skeptical that this would be the kind of kickback, pub-type atmosphere
that us Americans know and love. But when in Greece...
We arrived and paid a 10 euro cover, which didn't make me too happy,
considering that that amounts to about $13 at home and I have long since
given up paying money to spend money. My frugality was given a black
eye when I realized something...I have per diem cash to spend. I dished
my 10 euro to the girl at the front and followed my troupe up a set
of stairs to the bar.
When I got to the top, I was blown away. Three long bars bounded out
past the limit of what I could see with the crowd and were flanked by
hundreds of Greek twenty-somethings, all enjoying their fave libation
and undulating to the tunes of some European house mixes. Those mixes
later faded into a set of American cover songs, including a more "techno"
version of Michael Jackson's Thriller, if you can imagine. Leather couches
lined one side of the bar but no one really seemed to be using them,
except to take a cig break with a friend now and then.
The bar was constructed more like an upscale pier. From front to back,
the entire place probably measured 200 feet, with the extreme end extending
into the shallow waters of the Aegean Sea. Waves crashed against the
side of the bar on one side with the late evening diners of the Yacht
Club safe and sound, and three sheets to the wind on the other.
Wandering away from this spot turned out to be a mistake, as most of
the nightlife in this area was situated at the Yacht Club. Our group
ended up on the third floor of a bar overlooking the ocean, but were
the only ones there. Soon, we called it a night. The time was 4::37
a.m.
For USA Water Polo
PR pro Darcy, size matters at Mike's Irish Pub.
Strangely, some of the most fun we've had here in Athens was at an
irish pub where the bartender is from San Diego. Near the U.S. embassy,
nestled in a corner away from the busy Athens streets is a place called
Mike's Irish Pub. Take a narrow, steep, green-lit stairway to
a door at the bottom and you're in. Oak barrels are lined up in front
of a small stage littered with some modest and assorted band equipment
– a set of drums and a few mike stands – and the bar is stocked
with some Greek uniques and a few American commons. But the thing that
really sells this place is the atmosphere.
Much to my delight, they started up with karaoke just after midnight.
It was like most karaoke nights with one rare exception – some
of these people were damn good! Simon Cowell would have been proud.
Of course, there were a few crooners who could have used a tomato in
the face, but for the most part it was a talented crew.
Drinks here ran a bit pricey, too, but the bargain of the night was
the Craft Beer, which ran 7 euro for a 3-ounce mug. Darcy, my water
polo media life partner, enjoyed this brew down to its last, tasty,
carb-filled drop...and she loved it. I, of course, went to the well
and stayed with my Havana Club Rum and Coke. Why? Because Iım boring.
Deal with it.
Mike's, like most places in Europe, was still going long after we left
at a quarter to five in the morning. Darcy and I flagged down a cab
on the street with the pain of knowing that we had USA vs. Hungary in
less than five hours, but alas, this is the Olympics. So just like the
athletes, we need to Go Gig or Go Home. Citius, altius, fortius!
Column 2, Arrival Week: "Greek Hospitality"
FRIDAY, BEFORE OPENING CEREMONIES – Nothing is better than
sitting around with a friend at the end of a long day and unwinding
over a cocktal...unless they bring you every other one for free, that
is. One of the most wonderful things about the host Greeks has been
how warm and hospitable they are as hosts. Everyone we've met –
from the assault-rifle toting security guards to the people working
concession stands – has been incredibly welcoming.
Last night, that hospitality came in liquid formt.
Us press officers here at the Games endure long hours. There's a lot
of walking to venues, deciphering bus schedules, handling unruly media
and working on your computer. This being the case, one of the most important
things to do at these long events is to immediately find a good watering
hole to wet our whistle and unwind at after a long day. Last night,
that's exactly what I did.
Following the trusty navigation of my good friend Brian Eaton, the
press officer for USA Gymnastics, I ambled a few blocks from the Main
Press Center to a place called Alfa. It's a quaint but stylish establishment
with about 10 outdoor tables with wooden armchairs under a large canopy
and two full bars inside, complete with blue neon ambiance lighting.
Two large, flatscreen televisions straddle opposite walls inside. Of
course, they're tuned to Eurosport.
Taking our seat, we're greeted almost immediately by our server, Mantos,
with two glasses of ice water. We immediately put in our orders for
drinks, Brian opting for the Vodka tonic with Stolichnaya and me going
for my fave cocktail, a Havana Club Rum and Coke.
This is where I realized that the Greek generosity also extends to
their quality of pour. A pair of stiff drinks into it, Brian and I were
about ready to go. Then up walks Mantos with a pair of shots.
"Kamikazes," he tells us, through a thick Greek accent. So
down the hatch they went. He then tells us that our next drinks are
on the owner, so of course, we relent and choke down a third. This turned
out to be a good marketing ploy because after your third, regardless
of who you are, you want a fourth. So we gave in and took down another
amid conversation over motorcycle helmet laws in Greece – there
are none – and why it is that Greek graffiti just strikes us as
funny.
Mantos, that crazy Greek waiter of ours, then brought out a fifth drink,
again telling us that it was on the owners. He brings these out with
a pair of Greek sambrucos that he set aflame and dashed with pepper
before putting them out and commanding us to drink up.
So in case you were keeping count: Five drinks and two shots each,
with only three of them on our bill.
Mantos, apparently deducing that Brian and I were in need of some female
companionship, told us to come back on Saturday night when the establishment's
club – The Alfa Club – picks up because there were
"many beautiful Greek women." No, it's not a brothel. Just
another example of that enduring Greek home cookin'.
Tonight's opening ceremonies will bring tens of thousands of people
flooding into the Olympic Park where we work. And the countless beer
gardens, restaurants and pubs had better be ready.
"An Ode to a Grecian Ouzo"
The Olympic Games are the pinnacle of
sport for thriving amateurs all over the world. They are the culmination
of years of sweat, blood and sacrifice, all for the sake of athletic
competition, goodwill and world harmony.
Itıs also one hell of a party.
In 2000, I worked my first Olympic Games as the media director for
the U.S. water polo teams. It was amazing. It was a lot of 14- to 16-hour
days, a lot of needy reporters and a ton of exciting games. While the
Olympic athletes had a supply of 10,000 gold, silver and bronze condoms
to keep them busy in the Village every night, press-types like me and
my colleagues had to head out on the town for amusement. And let me
tell you...a cocktail tastes much sweeter after spending 10 hours in
front of a laptop, even when you are taking your first sip at 2 a.m.
Australia was a great place for those post-midnight first sips, too.
Like the rest of the world, the Aussie nightlife really gets going around
12 or 1 a.m. People from all over the world flooded into Sydneyıs port-front
pubs for their drinks of choice and often stayed until 4 a.m. or later
mingling with the other night owls. Maybe alcoholics feel more comfortable
mingling with their own.
The partygoer contingent in Sydney was made up of a motley mix of
locals and foreigners. So while the masses may speak to the unity promoted
by the athletes on the field of competition, I think the truest of friendships
at the Olympics are those forged over a Victoria Bitter's at Bondai
Beach.
Athens should be no different. With tons of fans pouring into the city
each day, there's a building air of anticipation about the Games. Thus
far, we've seen tons of beer tents pop up around the city. Even here,
in the Main Press Center, a thirsty fella can grab an Amstel for a euro,
or about $1.40 in US dollars. To borrow from John Travolta in Pulp Fiction:
"I ain't talkin' about no paper cup, I'm talkin' about a glass
of beer."
The selection of liquor here in Greece is also much different than
home. Import vodkas from Czechoslovakia and rums from Cuba line the
shelves of stores here, giving the average customer a few more choices
at his/her weapon of mass consumption. And who can forget the Ouzo,
Greece's signature shot that apparently tastes like black licorice.
And who doesn't like black licorice, right!?
Greece will certainly not just be about the quest for the next great
party. Being able to see the ruins of the Acropolis and Mount Olympus
everyday on my way to work is evidence enough of that fact. Greece is
the birthplace of the Olympics, the home of the great philosophers and
the origin of thousands of great works of art and literature. But for
two weeks in August, it will also be a place where people of all walks
of life can share a moment, be it huddled together at a gold medal ceremony
or over an Ouzo at the pub down the street.
More to come!
Eric Velazquez is the Public Relations Director for USA Water
Polo.
 Next
stop on the Party Bus: Athens City Guide!
Mykonos
Island and Nightlife!
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