Perception is reality indeed.

What you call a riot, i call it a police riot.

What you call injury, i call it police violence :)

No one will deny your numbers. They are absolutely true.

The 3 casualties in 2010 are indeed relevant to what we are talking. The 1 + 1 in 2011 and 2012 not really. They were a result of stress during the demonstrations but, as cynical as it may sound ( it's not ) we have this kind of losses in a stressful football game.

The 3 2010 casualties are absolutely related to what we are talking though; and it's a huge shame no one has been caught for the attack, nor one has been punished for the firesafety regulations fail that at the final staged led to the event.

No one is trying to hide under a rock. Everyone certainly knows Athens is going from time to time through big and possibly violent demonstrations. Riot or police riot really is not what matters indeed.

I still feel safer in Athens than NYC though :) Perception is not reality most of the times.

You still don't know what you are talking about...

>May 5, 2010 3 deaths<

This did not happen during a protest and of course not IN THE STREET,it was the unfortunate result of a fire in a bank (set by rioters who threw a Molotov cocktail,the bank did not follow the evacuation procedures neither had any contingency plans as it should),by reading your post people will think that people ...died in the street after a clash w/ police/rioters

>Oct 20, 2011 1 death

April 4, 2012 1 death<

Both of these deaths were HEART ATTACKS from protestors that were having serious health problems but chose to demonstrate again they were NOT the result of a clash,

Athens is far from the best city in the world (in fact it has a low quality of life for its inhabitants,extremely high cost of living,pollution,a hectic pace of life,noise and outside the city center it is an ugly architectural disaster) but it is also maybe the safest city in Europe (apart from petty crime and pickpocketing that happens everywhere) ,it is neither Damascus nor Cambul as you present it...

One was a hear attack, the other was a heart failure to be accurate.

The injuries you refer were actually victims of extreme police violence, not that honoring situation for police forces in Greece really.

Situation is reverse really and you have mixed up the good guys with the bad :)

and talking about perception, reality, stereotyping and dumbness, you may want to see this short video:

www.youtube.com/watch…

The Taxi's or private guides are not public servants...so, not a problem.

And, as one of the people above said...call the hotel for a private car if there is a strike and can not get a taxi.

It is a large, large city. And, fabulous!

Hi..all I can say is that after visiting Athens last week is that at no time did I feel threatened or worried about my safety.

We walked round the city till bout 2300 and felt as safe as anything and used the metro again with no worries.

Don't let the media or reports put you off visiting..

Just visited Athens for several days in late October - my eighth visit. There were no demonstrations when I was there. If you are worried about running into a protest, avoid the Syntagma Square area. The Parthenon, New Acropolis Museum are many blocks away and you won't be aware that any action is going on. I had a great time. Ate at Strofi and Filistron Restaurants and stayed at the Philippos Hotel near the New Acropolis Museum - a great value in a really convenient hotel. The media have a job to do but sometimes blow demonstrations out of all proportion.

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