Syntagma

Greek pensioners hold a banner that reads 'We're reclaiming what we lost' at an anti-austerity protest in central Athens on Saturday.

The lights decorating a Christmas tree on Syntagma Square in central Athens were switched on Tuesday night by Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis. [ANA-MPA]

Police in Athens have shut down much of the city center amid concerns of violence breaking out during two separate rallies marking the 10-year anniversary of the killing of teenager Alexis Grigoropoulos by an off-duty police officer in 2010.

The lights on the Christmas tree in Syntagma Square, central Athens, will be switched on next Tuesday night as part of festivities in the capital that are to last well into January 2019.

"More than 230 events, which will be completely free of charge, will transform the center of Athens and its neighborhoods into a city of angels," said Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis.

The 32nd Round of Athens gets under way from central Syntagma Square at 10 a.m. on Sunday.

The cycling event includes two 10-kilometer routes that will begin at the beginning of Ermou Street and a 5k route starting in front of the Parliament building on Amalias Avenue. All races end at Syntagma Square.

A girl stands before a monument surrounded by flowers in the courtyard of the former Athens Polytechnic Friday, ahead of Saturday's 45th anniversary of a student uprising that was bloodily repressed by the junta. A march Saturday will see the closure of Megaro Mousikis, Evangelismos and Syntagma metro stations while some 5,000 police officers will be on duty.

International visitors to Athens now have the opportunity to expand their cultural scope, as performances at a landmark theater in the center of the Greek capital now feature English supertitles.

Environmental protection group Mesogeios SOS (MedSOS) has launched a smartphone and tablet application that helps visitors and residents in Greece locate the nearest tap of drinkable water where they can refill their bottles.

Local vocalist Sugahspank has teamed up with four-piece band the Swing Shoes for a series of appearances on the Greek capital's live music circuit. On Thursday, September 6, they will be performing at the Numismatic Museum's garden in an evening of swing, funk and soul. The show starts at 9 p.m. and admission is free with a one-drink minimum charge.

Far from the summits, the markets, the polemics and the posturing, the Greek crisis was about ordinary families whose lives were upended. Few more so than the Papathanasopouloses.

I met them on a drizzly day in Patra, southwestern Greece. They had recently lost their daughter Angeliki in the Marfin fire.