I ran from the City Center towards the Syntagma neighborhood, passing the famous Panathenaic Stadium. With a capacity of 50,000 and dating back to the 4th century B.C., the stadium was originally constructed by an Athenian named Lycurgus and later rebuilt in marble by the Roman senator Herodes Atticus in 144 A.D. It gained international fame as the venue for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Though I hoped to run a few fast laps inside, the entrance fee was a deterrent. Instead, I discovered a hidden 500-meter racetrack encircling the stadium’s rim, offering some of the city’s most breathtaking views......