Agora phobia

摘要

In Iain Sinclair's book, Ghost Milk, a trip around the modern-day ruins of Athens' Olympic sites, prompts one of Sinclair's hosts to comment: 'We are used to living among ruins.' Hellinikon, the huge site of Athens' former airport - and later home to a clutch of Olympic venues - has lain empty and deserted since the Games left town 10 years ago. Ghost Milk, which is subtitled Galling Time on the Grand Project, was published in 2011. At that time, it seemed as though the 'Grand Project' model, based on 'property-led' development, was in its death throes, killed off by the financial crisis. These very large schemes depended on the borrowing of large amounts of money by property companies, but as banks refused to lend activity dried up, leaving sites empty and deserted.