"Athens, the eye of Greece, mother of arts and eloquence. "

"I sensed the presence of a different Greece, less in thrall to an ancient past, more intimately linked to neighbouring peoples, languages and cultures."

"Athens embodies the pre-eminent quality of the antique world. Art."

"The approach to this city is very imposing. It is seen from a great distance, placed on the acclivity of a steep hill."

"Our admiration of the antique is not admiration of the old but of the natural."

"As long as Thessaloniki exists, no man shall be left without a homeland."

"...and Athens, the sapphire stone of the world's ring"

"Thessaloniki steals a march on me in several ways. Through her historical memory, her vibrant tradition, her attractive topography, her multinational stratigraphy of cultures, her indomitable stubbornness for survival, her inexhaustible ability for renewal."