Athens
How Athens handled asylum seekers
Since, in the absence of border posts, people in the ancient world could come and go at will, refugees and…
It’s a wonder that the Parthenon remains standing at all
From a temple to Athena, it became a Byzantine, then Latin, church, a mosque, a powder magazine and finally a ruin. Lord Elgin’s vandalism was hardly anything new
How Ancient Greece handled riots
Riots are difficult enough for us to deal with, let alone for the ancients, who had neither police nor prisons;…
What kind of empire is China building?
As Britain’s small fleet, headed by HMS Queen Elizabeth, cruises towards the South China Sea, there remains a question over…
High life
Gstaad It is not exactly a stop all the clocks occasion, let alone cut off the telephone, but I’ve finally…
Rotating the Lords
Arguments about the purpose or indeed very existence of anything resembling the House of Lords would have struck classical democratic…
High life
Athens This ancient city without tourists reminds me of the Athens I once knew and loved, but for the…
City of myth and mystery
The Spartans were not the only Greeks to die at Thermopylae. On the fateful final morning of the battle, when…
Ancient and modern
Plagued by the past
Beyond impeachment
An impeachment trial is overseen by Congress and Senate, who both make the law and (in this case) sit in…
Would the Athenians have held a second referendum?
The Athenians invented the referendum: after debate in the citizens’ assembly, they voted through all political decisions by a show…
Tantrums and a top-notch tabbouleh: Ergon House in Athens reviewed
Ergon House is an epicurean boutique hotel in downtown Athens. (I quote the blurb — I never write ‘boutique’ willingly.)…
Don’t damn the ancients for failing to give women the vote
This year will be the 100th anniversary of some women over the age of 30 getting the vote, and for…
Don’t damn the ancients for failing to give women the vote
From The Spectator, 2 January 1847: The New Year opens for England with heavy clouds in the sky, but with…
High life
I’ve stayed far away from the new barbarians with their choppers, tank-like cars, home theatres on board, and fridge-shaped super…
High life
Athens I am walking around downtown Athens watching as thousands of migrants field pitches from smugglers offering alternative routes…
High life
Athens Viewed from Mars, this is a sunny, peaceful city. Up close, however, things ain’t what they used to be.…
Plato and think-tanks
In Living with Difference, a think-tank report on the problems raised by a multi-faith UK, the chair Baroness Butler-Sloss says…
Be your own boss
There is much talk today of the enthusiasm with which young entrepreneurs are setting up businesses. One reason why this…
True dedication
Benjamin Clementine, who won the 2015 Mercury Music Prize for his debut album At Least For Now, received his cheque…
High life
Gstaad Last week I dreamt of a girl I met in the summer of 1953, in Greece. I had never…
High life
These are the languid, sensuous days of summer, and I’ve had another birthday, which is the bad news. But it’s…
High life
Nestled under the Acropolis, snug and safe among the ancient ruins of a long-ago grandeur, Plaka is the only remaining…
Low life
The entries are crawling in on their hands and knees for the ‘drunkest I’ve ever been’ competition to win a…
High life
Athens I am walking on a wide pedestrian road beneath the Acropolis within 200 meters of the remaining Themistoclean wall…
