Athens, the historic capital of Greece, is a city rich in culture, history, and vibrant energy. As one of the world's oldest cities, Athens offers a diverse range of neighborhoods, each with its own unique charm and character. Whether you're a history buff, an art enthusiast, or someone who simply appreciates a lively atmosphere, Athens has a neighborhood to suit every taste.

Known as the "Neighborhood of the Gods," Plaka is nestled at the foot of the Acropolis and is one of Athens' oldest neighborhoods. Cobblestone streets, neoclassical architecture, and traditional tavernas characterize this charming area. Plaka is a perfect blend of old-world charm and modern amenities, making it a popular choice for both locals and tourists. Residents enjoy the convenience of being close to major archaeological sites, museums, and a plethora of cafes and boutiques.

If you're looking for a more upscale and cosmopolitan atmosphere, Kolonaki is the neighborhood for you. Situated on the southern slopes of Lycabettus Hill, Kolonaki is known for its high-end boutiques, sophisticated cafes, and upscale restaurants. The area attracts a mix of artists, intellectuals, and professionals, creating a dynamic and cultured community. With its proximity to the city center and luxurious amenities, Kolonaki is a favorite among those seeking an elegant urban lifestyle.

For a more alternative and bohemian experience, Exarchia stands out as a haven for artists, activists, and free spirits. Known for its vibrant street art, eclectic cafes, and lively music scene, Exarchia is a melting pot of creativity and individuality. While it may be considered unconventional, this neighborhood has a unique charm that draws in those who appreciate a more laid-back and artistic way of life.

If you prefer a quieter, more suburban setting, Kifisia, located in the northern suburbs of Athens, offers a tranquil escape. With tree-lined streets, large mansions, and green spaces, Kifisia exudes an air of elegance and exclusivity. The neighborhood is home to upscale shops, gourmet restaurants, and prestigious schools, making it a preferred choice for families and those seeking a peaceful retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city center.

For those who love a lively nightlife scene and a trendy atmosphere, Psiri is the place to be. This once-industrial neighborhood has transformed into a hotspot for nightlife with its abundance of bars, clubs, and live music venues. During the day, Psiri retains its boho-chic vibe with street art, boutique shops, and cozy cafes. If you thrive on energy and excitement, Psiri offers an urban lifestyle that never sleeps. 

The Acropolis in Athens is one of the most photographed and recognised landmarks in the world. Getting a great photo may seem daunting, but Why Athens gives us the inside scoop on the best places to photograph one of the most important monuments in Western civilisation!

Standing 277 meters above sea level, Lycabettus Hill is the highest point in central Athens. The view from Lycabettus Hill is best enjoyed at sunset whilst waiting for the lights of the Parthenon, Temple of Olympian Zeus, and the Panathenaic Stadium to illuminate at dusk. You will also be reminded that Athens is surrounded by sea with spectacular views across the Aegean.

Strefi Hill is located in the inner city suburb of Exarchia, Northeast of the Acropolis and has commanding views over Athens. It is one of the best places to capture both Lycabettus Hill and the Parthenon.

Pnyx Hill overlooks the Ancient Agora, directly to the west of the Acropolis and offers spectacular visibility both day and night. The hill is easily accessible by foot from the inner suburb of Thissio and is a favoured point to take photos from during a full moon and for stargazing in the clear night skies above Athens.

To read this article in full, please visit: Why Athens

Photo Credit: Why Athens

Alexandros Maragos, an Athens-based filmmaker and photographer captures stunning photos of nature around Greece and this month he is showcasing landscape photography of the natural light in Greece under the sun!

Alexandros tends to take photos for landscape photography in the 'Golden Hour' and with certain weather conditions to use the powerful impact of the sun’s golden tones to create dramatic and contrasting light.

This latest collection is of spectacular dramatic sunsets with the shadows of clouds creating images from the sunlight over the skies of Greece!

To view this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

Please click HERE to see more photos from Alexandros Maragos’ collection.

Messinia will be in a “festive” mood for a 5th consecutive year, as it hosts the ultimately successful sports tourism event “Navarino Challenge”; which is now considered an annual establishment of Greece.

Hundreds of professional and amateur athletes are expected for one more year to visit Messinia and Costa Navarino, on October 13-15, 2017, in order to take part in the event’s numerous activities. Several sports will also be included in this year’s schedule such as running, TaeKwonDo and boccia while many more activities are expected to be announced.

“Navarino Challenge” has been awarded with a Grand Ermis in the Production category of Ermis Awards and distinguished for its best production among the sports events organized in Greece. Further to its successful course in the last four years, setting a record at booking level in The Westin Resort Costa Navarino in the month of September; the event is now organized in October in order to support even stronger, the goal of the tourist season extension not only for the hotels of this region but also for Messinia as a whole.

On the occasion of this big sports “appointment” recognized athletes will be present in “Navarino Challenge”, initially teaching ethics and then the “secrets” of their sports to people of all ages. The Greek American ultramarathon Konstantinos (Dean) Karnazes and ambassador of the event over the years highlighted, “Navarino Challenge is a truly world class event that offers something for everyone, not only runners. This is our 5th Anniversary and the Navarino Challenge showcases the very best Greece has to offer. I am incredibly honored to be part of this enduring legacy. I’ve traveled all across the world running and racing and am the proud ambassador of the 5th Annual Navarino Challenge this October!”

Grigoris Polychronidis, holder now of four Paralympic medals in boccia stated on the occasion of his participation in the event, “Sports create strong characters, everyone deserves to participate and it also offers entertainment! I am happy that my sport, boccia is loved by children and that we have the opportunity for a 3rd year in Navarino Challenge to play and have fun with children and adults.”

At the same time, the twice silver Olympic medalist in TaeKwonDo, Alexandros Nikolaidis added, “I am proud to be a member of “Navarino Challenge” family for a 5th consecutive year. The event becomes enormous every year and the goal always remains the same; to introduce to as many people as we can sports, the right nutrition and good life. We educate youth through sports, without any kind of discrimination, maintaining the principles of the Olympic spirit and ideals, which require mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, brotherhood and fair play. Costa Navarino will be for another year, the center of interest for athletes and amateurs who love TaeKwonDo. Together, young and old will learn the secrets of this unique sport in one of the most enchanting destinations in Greece.”

“Navarino Challenge” will take place for another year with the support of Costa Navarino and The Westin Resort Costa Navarino as well as the Municipalities of Pylos-Nestor and Trifilia.

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Photo Credit: Elias Lefas

It's all greek to me - how well do you know your greek alphabet? This is a fun quiz to see how well you know the Greek alphabet. See if you can get 12 out of 12!

Conveniently located near the Acropolis Museum, the new Contemporary Art Museum and Panteion University, Koukaki, a once-quiet residential district has become the talk of the town among food lovers and night owls. Modern and traditional eateries, cafeterias, bars and bakeries keep popping up, and as competition gets tougher, the quality gets better and prices get all the more attractive. Culinary Backstreets takes us to Fabrika tou Efrosinou, a place noticed for its name and then for its food and wine!

Fabrika tou Efrosinou opened its doors almost two years ago. Its unusual and clever name immediately captures one’s attention: Fabrika, factory in Russian, has the same meaning in Greek slang, usually with communist connotations; Efrosinos is the Greek Orthodox patron saint of all cooks.

The atmosphere at Fabrika tou Efrosinou is vibrant and modern. Serbian artist Gora oversaw the interior design, which combines elements of a traditional kafenio with contemporary artworks and unique retro pieces like the antique refrigerator and the bronze chandeliers hanging on the ceiling – which, incidentally, came from the summer home of Josip Broz Tito, the revolutionary leader of former Yugoslavia.

The menu is simple, focusing on traditional, seasonal dishes from different regions of Greece, using special ingredients brought in from all over the country, and executed in a more modern and refined way. The daily specials are plenty and varied, but always faithful to the restaurant’s main philosophy.

Address: An. Zinni 34, Koukaki
Telephone: 210 924 6354
Hours: Tuesday through Thursday - 13:30 to 23:00, Friday through Saturday - 13:30 to midnight, Sunday - 13:00 to 22:00, Closed Monday

To read this article in full, please visit: Culinary Backstreets

The heart of Hellenism beats in the heart of culture. The 1st ‘Greek Panorama’ exhibition opens its doors on May 11-13 in Manhattan, New York, with the sole purpose of successfully promoting and advertising Greece abroad.

Incorporating the elements of Tourism, Culture and Gastronomy into one successful recipe will bring out the aroma of Greece inside one of the most impressive and historical railway stations in the world, the Grand Central Terminal in New York, reaching out to over 750,000 daily passersbys.

A firm supporter for promoting Greece’s most important business sectors in tourism and exporting of food products, the Greek Embassy in Washington has invited Hellas North American Events Inc., organizer of the Greek Panorama, to supply the embassy with tourism-related brochure material and Greek products on the annual EU Open House event on Saturday, May 13th (10.00-16.00), along with the Manhattan exhibition. Further enhancing and strengthening Greece’s tourism destination identity and market positioning of Greek products in the U.S. capital is the basis of the above-mentioned agreement as both parties share common goals.

The 1st Greek Panorama exhibition will be held under the auspices of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE), the Federation of Hellenic Associations of Travel & Tourist Agencies (FedHATTA) and the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH).

We should not forget that Athens and New York are directly connected with three airlines, among which the recent daily flight of Emirates is included. The exhibition takes a further step to bring Greece closer to the American public.

Not only the Greek expatriates but the entire Greek American community stands side-by-side on this important initiative. Among them the ultramarathon Konstantinos (Dean) Karnazes who will attend the exhibition and sign copies of his latest book “The Road To Sparta” while many more surprises will await the visitors. Mr. Karnazes is internationally recognized as an endurance athlete and bestselling author, he has run 350 continuous miles, foregoing sleep for three nights and has participated in 50 marathons, in 50 US states, in 50 consecutive days.

It should be noted that the exhibition will be free and open to the public on May 12-13.

The interest of many professionals in the US travel market is intrigued by the b2b event being held on Thursday, May 11th on the occasion of the exhibition, as it offers a unique opportunity to carry out individual business meetings with Greek tourist companies and destinations.

Greek Panorama exhibition and its parallel events are the basis of Hellas North American Events’ marketing strategy for the Northern American market, including a number of targeted campaigns and events taking place throughout the year.

North Events – a strategic partner of Hellas North American Events in Europe, has been organizing tourism exhibitions for Greece with great success in major markets including Grecka Panorama in Poland and Grekland Panorama & Mediterranean Panorama in Sweden, since 2014.

For more information, please visit: Greek Panorama

Photo Credit: Grand Central Terminal 

Running and swimming through breathtaking routes, for the 3rd year in a row!

The preparations for the 3rd Santorini Experience, which will take place on October 6th - 8th 2017, are finally coming to an end. Following the two, highly successful, previous years, Greece’s biggest tourist sporting event, is opening its gates to professional and amateur athletes, challenging them to try out their running and swimming skills. As before, the event’s beauty is largely based on the magnificent routes that the athletes will follow. The course that the runners will take will go through villages, such as Imerovigli, Firostefani and Oia, with its breathtaking view of the Caldera. For those who choose to take part in the swimming event, the starting point of the race will be the volcano, and will end at the old port in Fira, thus giving the athletes the opportunity to swim through Santorini’s black waters.

Santorini Experience is a collaboration between the Municipality of Thira of the Municipal Sports Cultural Environmental Organization of Santorini (D.A.P.P.O.S.) and Active Media Group.

The Mayor of Thira, Mr. Anastasios Nikolaos Zorzos commented on the event, “It is with great pleasure that we welcome the 3rd Santorini Experience, on our island! Another unique life experience filled with energy and volcanic aura. The event has been established, becoming a tradition, while the partaking of the locals, as well as the visitors, each year, proves this more than anything else.”

“Santorini, which is a tourist destination throughout the year, offers alternative experiences and the Santorini Experience is no exception. We continue this effort, we support and participate actively, so that our island can continue being a tourist favorite.”

Along the same lines were the comments made by President of D.A.P.P.O.S., Mr. Eleftherios Tzouros, stating, “We are waiting for you to visit us at the 3rd Santorini Experience, which will take place between 6th-8th October. A unique sporting event that has, from day one, with the participation of athletes from all over the world, shown us that it has the potential to become a global sporting event. The Santorini Experience is considered a tradition, but we choose to evolve it and it is of outmost importance that every year we try to improve the organizing, we include innovation and safety measures above all. We are waiting for you on October 6th-8th on our island.”

 

 

Photo Credit: Elias Lefas @Santorini Experience

‘What happened next? What happened to the boys?'

Once upon a lifetime, twenty-five years ago or more, I wrote a book called A Foreign Wife. In it I recorded my experiences during my first five years in the Peloponnesian village to which I had unexpectedly migrated in 1980.’

Life in the Peloponnese continues to delight and challenge Gillian Bouras. Seeing and Believing resumes the narrative as her sons create their own families and time delivers a fresh crop of joys and heartaches, to which she tries to adjust.

Acutely responsive to what she calls ‘the conspiracy of beauty in Greece,’ she celebrates the natural world in prose that indicates a lifelong engagement with words. Global events send her to historians for enlightenment, while tragedy closer to home —fire, unexpected death— prompts reflection on the solace of contrasting creeds. In between she observes the human comedy with dry humour.

Gillian Bouras was born in Melbourne in 1945. She worked as a teacher in Australia before moving to Greece with her husband and children in 1980. Her first books were about this experience. She lives in the Peloponnese, Greece, as well as maintaining ties with Australia. Her journalism has been published in six countries.

For more information, please visit: Gillian Bouras.

 

This is a great story from WindyCity Greek about an American woman, who after having met and married her husband in Chicago, returned to his family’s homeland of Kavala in Greece. It was there that she began down a path much different from her corporate career in the US. Staci Wagner learned the art of traditional soap making and founded the successful Vilia Soap Company.

American Staci Wagner Hamalis met her husband in Chicago, where she lived for four years. The city was especially romantic for him because that is where his own parents met. Since he proposed to her in 2012 at The Bean (a sculpture in Chicago’s Millennium Park), she began visiting his homeland. Gradually, she fell more and more in love with Greece — and his family — while also learning about traditional soap making. Her life changed dramatically when she settled in her husband’s hometown of Kavala.

Her high-flying career had her traveling around the world and living in cities such as Brussels and London, but she found her true path upon settling in northern Greece in 2015. She moved soon after her marriage, and was immediately inspired by the fertile Greek landscape and its cornucopia of natural products — most of which have curative and cosmetic properties. Above all, she became fascinated by what her father-in-law, a retired chemist, began teaching her in 2012: traditional soap-making. Using the purest of nature’s bounty and employing old school artisanal methods, she is now running the successful Vilia Soap Company. Her use of old methods is most impressive, especially in a world of mass produced, chemically-laden products.

Vilia Soap Company uses Greek organic olive oil from Kavala combined with almond oil from Volos in central Greece. Inspired from local flora and fauna, they use lavender from the local market, and various other indigenous herbs like rosemary. Ingredients like Tea Tree oil and lemongrass are sourced from foreign suppliers.

Their soaps have already proven a great success among customers in 11 countries across the world. Their largest demographic is women, from late 20s and up, who seek pure, handmade, high-quality, chemical-free and uniquely fragranced soaps. But they aren’t stopping there.

To read this article in full, please visit: WindyCity Greek

 

Photo Credit: Vilia Soap Company