ATHENS, Greece - It’s hard to walk 20 meters on an Athens street without passing a kiosk, the substitute for the corner shop or convenience store in many countries. The Greek version is a New York newspaper stand on steroids, proffering not only newspapers and magazines, but also toothpaste, batteries, sunglasses, and pocketbooks. It seems the only thing you can’t get here is a freshly made sandwich.

A classic part of Greek life, it’s often difficult to tell if anyone is inside. The walls, shelves, ground and any other bit of free space are so filled with goods that it’s hard to see more than the shopkeeper’s eyes peeking out.

Andrew Staikos works three days a week at his uncle’s kiosk while he gets his degree from University of Athens in finance. Though there is air-conditioning, there’s room enough inside for only one person, and even then, it’s a tight fit.

“It is too small in here for me to want to do this the rest of my life,” said Staikos.

Each evening his uncle comes to rearrange the products – with not an inch to spare, this is no easy task. Fanny packs hang from one corner, international magazines sit on the right wall and snack food and gum are stacked in front. On the left lies the “adult” section, with products that in America would be behind a closely watched door or at least covered in black signs. If you’re looking for porn, you need go no farther – an entire wall is devoted to videos, DVDs and magazines, all in plain view without the familiar brown paper wrapping.

Periptero, as they are known in Greek, are often passed down from father to son. They are small but profitable businesses and can go for a hefty profit when an owner decides he wants out.  Staikos’s uncle bought his stand for more than 90,000 euros (About $111,320 U.S. dollars).

Selling a hat here and a pack of cigarettes there, a kiosk can take in more than 2,000 euro (that's roughly $2,475) a day.

“This is not an easy life,” said Stamatia Marko, 31, the owner of a kiosk near the busy Montastiraki Square in downtown Athens.

Marko and her husband own two kiosks in the same area and work at least 17 hours a day. Though each stall brings in on average more than 1,000 euros (about $1,237) a day, the Markos take home only a fifth of that. On her small block -- no longer than an Olympic swimming pool -- there are three kiosks, and that’s only on her side of the street.

Cashing in on Olympic fever, the kiosk has hats, flags and sweatbands with the Greek flag.

“We buy every product from a different seller, it can get very confusing,” she said.

For visitors to Athens, it is a part of Greek life that will be dearly missed.

“It’s so easy to just grab a cold drink anywhere, anytime,” said Sarah Prescott of Liverpool, England, who is volunteering as a nurse at the Olympic tennis stadium. “It would be really handy if we had them.”

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