The carefree, exuberant nightlife that Athens has had a reputation for has gradually lost its gloss. The economic pressures of the past few years don’t seem to have affected some of the capital’s clubs and bars. However, a much darker and seedier side of the city has grown. In the shadows of the narrow and winding streets of the historic center, junkies, often immigrants, numb their pain.
The thumping bass rumbles in the cement downtown, as 60 Euro carnations shower the spotlight-lit pop stars on stage. The night is long and so is the reach of the canvas of the city. The members of the newish Dias motorcycle police squad patrol its asphalt arteries, often risking their lives while navigating through the crooked streets. At the edge of Athens’ crust, a controversial new rubbish dump has caused the locals of Keratea to erupt in a series of often bloody confrontations with the riot police.
The city lights flicker, humming to the vibration of the people’s energy, as some dance, some sleep, some guard, some protest and some wonder the streets aimlessly, trying to cure their insomnia with a camera.
