As far as entertainment and night life are concerned, Athens offers an endless amount of possibilities, reflecting all tastes and all cultures. To begin with, it has a great number of multiplex as well as romantic open air garden cinemas, more theatres than any other European city (including ancient marble ones that are home to the Athens Festival from June to July) and many music venues including a state of the art music hall known as the "Megaron Moussikis" that attracts world-famous artists all year round. The Athens coastline, extending from the major commercial port of Piraeus to the southernmost suburb of Vouliagmeni for more than 25 km, is also connected to the city centre with a gleaming tram and it boasts a series of high class restaurants, cafes, exciting music venues and sports facilities. It is justifiably named as the "Attican Riviera" by many. In addition, Athens is packed with trendy and fashionable bars and nightclubs that are literally crowded by the city's youth on a daily basis. Especially during the summer time, the southern elegant suburbs of Glyfada, Voula and Vouliagmeni become home to countless such places, situated all along Poseidonos and Alkyonidon Avenues. Turning now to the city centre, the Psiri neighborhood - aka Athens' 'meat packing district'- has acquired many new mainstream bars, thus becoming a hotspot for many youngsters. It also features a number of live music restaurants called "rebetadika", after rebetiko, a unique kind of music that blossomed in Athens from the 1920's till the 1950's. Rebetiko is still admired by many, therefore virtually every night rebetadika get crammed by people of all ages that will sing, dance and drink wine until the dawn of the following morning. Plaka remains the traditional top tourist destination, with many tavernas featuring 'traditional' music, but the food, though very good, is often more expensive compared to other parts of the city. Plaka, lying just beneath the Acropolis, is famous for its numerous neoclassic buildings, making it one of the most scenic districts in central Athens. Monastiraki, on the other hand, is famous for its loads of small tourist shops as well as its crowded flea market and the legendary tavernas that specialize in what many consider to be the best souvlaki in town. Yet another district notably famous for its student-crammed, stylish cafes is Theseum, lying just west of Monastiraki. Theseum, or Thission is home to the remarkable ancient Temple of Hephaestus, standing on top of a small hill. The Gazi area, one of the latest in full redevelopment, is located around a historic gas factory in downtown Athens, that has been converted into the Technopolis (Athens's new cultural multiplex) and has a number of small clubs, bars and restaurants as well as Athens' nascent gay village.
