The National Gardens are 38 acres of green in the center of Athens. Directly behind the Greek Parliament building (old Palace) the gardens were once annexed to the palace and the site of the Royal Gardens.

Commissioned by Queen Amalia in 1838 and completed in two years by German agronimist Friedrich Schmidt who imported over 500 species of plants and a wide variety of animals, such as peacocks, ducks and turtles. Unfortunately, many of the plants did not manage to thrive in the dry Mediterranean climate.

Amalia Street was named in the queen’s honor and, when the gardens were opened up as a park in the 1920s, its entrance was moved to the 12 palms Queen Amalia had planted.

The National Gardens are opened from sunrise to sunset. There’s a sundial at the Amalia Street entrance where you can check your bearings.

Children can play in the special designated playground with swings and seesaws.

The ducks that once filled the duck pond have been put into a special cage since bird flu panic swept the land.

The zoo is a little worse for wear but kids enjoy feeding the ducks, geese, goats or admiring the various bird species.

The children’s library is housed in a quaint stone building and offers free storytelling events on the first Saturday morning of every month.

The National Garden of Athens has a Botanical Museum that provides more info about the history of the park and the species that can be found here.

The cafe is a little overpriced but it is a cool oasis right in the center of Athens, exuding peace though it is a stone’s throw away from the mad bustle of the city.

Check out the ancient ruins scattered throughout or busts of Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first governor of Greece, hero Ioannis Varvakis (pictured), philhellene Jean-Gabriel Eynard, celebrated Greek poet Dionysios Solomos or Aristotelis Valaoritis.