Thiseio sits on the western flank of the Acropolis, and its great asset is the view. The pedestrianised Apostolou Pavlou promenade curves around the foot of the sacred rock, looking straight up at the Parthenon and across the rooftops of the Ancient Agora, and on summer evenings it fills with Athenians strolling, buskers, and café tables angled at the floodlit ruins. It is one of the most pleasant walks in the city, and entirely free.
Above the promenade rise the green hills that give Thiseio its other character. Filopappou Hill — the Hill of the Muses — is a pine-covered park threaded with old stone paths, topped by a 2nd-century monument and offering the classic postcard view of the Acropolis from the south-west. The neighbouring Pnyx, the rock terrace where the citizens' assembly of ancient Athens met to vote, has a fair claim to be the birthplace of democracy, and the National Observatory crowns the Hill of the Nymphs alongside.
Down at street level the district stays low-key and residential, with old-fashioned cafés and ouzeries around the Thiseio metro station and the antique-and-bric-à-brac stalls that spill over from the Monastiraki flea market on Sundays. Come for sunset on Apostolou Pavlou and stay on for dinner.