For many Greeks, Easter is one of the biggest religious holidays of the year, with celebrations having a direct connection with the Orthodox faith. Preparations have already begun for Easter with Kathara Deutera, or Clean Monday, which takes place 40 days before Easter. This religious holiday has also become a celebration of Spring, the season of hope and rebirth.

There are four main traditions associated with Easter, like the dying of red eggs on Holy Thursday, the funerary procession of the Epitaphios on Good Friday, and so on, but there are some places in Greece that celebrate Easter in their own way. From Greece Is, here are 11 of the most unique celebrations in Greece!

The competition between these two gems of the Saronic Gulf is quite intense. On the island of Spetses, the Epitaphios processions of each of the four main churches of the island converge on the square in front of the Poseidonion Hotel on the evening of Good Friday. The young people strive to lift the heavy, decorated biers as high as they can so they may earn a special blessing.

In cosmopolitan Syros, the two main religious dogmas – Orthodox and Catholic – come together to celebrate in unison. In an atmosphere of solemnity, the Epitaphios of the Catholic Evangelistria and the three Orthodox churches (the Assumption of Mary, the Transfiguration of the Savior and Saint Nicholas) meet at the main Miaouli Square, where they join in prayer. The youths participating in the Orthodox procession often carry spears, or sponges – clear references to the passions of Christ.

Its Easter traditions also differ in that they have a heavy focus on honoring the Virgin Mary. The locals clean and whitewash their houses in preparation for the passing of the icon of Mary. Starting on Holy Saturday, the icon is taken past all the houses to the sounds of fireworks and the exchanges of wishes.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greece Is

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Launched in September 2017, Akapnos is dedicated to promoting and rewarding all shops, cafes, restaurants, etc. that don't allow smoking inside. They are by no means anti-smoking - they just want to help those who want to have a smoke-free environment. Listed on their site, the venues they include have the following requirements:

Akapnos is a group of Greek citizens who wish to improve the self-image of its citizens, as well as the image of Greece from foreigners. They care immensely about the long-term interest in Greece and wish to preserve its legacy and heritage.

To explore the 244 verified smoke-free venues in Greece (so far), please visit: Akapnos

Shot primarily from the rooftops, hills, and mountains in Athens, Greece, 'City of Athens' was created by Filmmaker and award winning Photographer Alexandros Maragos as a homage to the capital of Greece. Stunning hyperlapse and timelapses cinematography features Athens' skyline and the evening urban landscapes that makes Athens one glorious city. If you haven't watched it yet, check it out below!

Source: Vimeo

To learn more about the Filmmaker and Photographer, please visit: Alexandros Maragos

Inscribed in 2017 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, Greek Rebetiko is a musical and cultural expression linked directly to song and dance. It initially spread amongst the lower and working class people in the early twentieth century, but Rebetiko songs are now a standardized repertoire in almost every occasion involving music and dance.

The element is performed in public and performers encourage audience participation. The practice is open to everyone and participants can include any Greek or Greek-speaking person who enjoys this form of music and dance. Rebetiko songs contain invaluable references to the customs, practices and traditions of a particular way of life, but above all, the practice is a living musical tradition with a strong symbolic, ideological and artistic character.

To learn more about Rebetiko, watch the video below!



Source: Intangible Cultural Heritage UNESCO

Held at the Athens Concert Hall (Megaron Mousikis), Athens had the pleasure of launching the first European Cultural Heritage celebration with the event 'Rebetiko Meets Flamenco and Fados." The event was organized by the Greek Culture Ministry and marked the official start of festivities of the European Year of Cultural Heritage.

2018 will be the year to encourage Europeans to discover and engage with their history, identity, and traditions through a series of events across the continent. It is an initiative of the European Commission with major themes this year in research and innovation and efforts to make cultural heritage more accessible to people across Europe.

The Athens concert showcased three urban popular traditions, which were born and developed in the ports of the Mediterranean. One in particular was the Greek rebetiko genre, which was listed on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list in December 2017. What is Rebetiko? Click HERE to learn more!

 

Source: Greek Travel Pages

At the age of 16, Vivian Economy came to the U.S. from Kalamata. Her adopted country offered many more opportunities than her beloved Greece. The young woman missed ‘home’ and came up with an idea to bring some of her old home to her new home. In 1949, at the tender age of 18, she launched the very first Greek radio show in the Southeast.

‘Echoes of Athens was broadcast on WATL in Atlanta, GA for 50 years. Vivian’s daughter, Vickie Henson, the show’s current host, recalled those days. “The entire Atlanta Greek Community would rush home after church each Sunday to tune in. Imagine, my mother, the young woman, a trailblazer! Her listeners would find out the latest in the world of Greek news, politics, music, concerts, local community events. From marriages to deaths — she covered it all.”

 

When Vivian retired in the 1990s, there was a void in the community. Vickie took up the torch in recent years, armed with a new technology her mother would never know — the internet — which now allows ‘Echoes of Athens’ to be broadcast all over the world.

To read this article in full, please visit: Windy City Greek

Please click HERE to listen to Echoes Of Athens!

In a village 200 kilometers west of Athens lies Galaxidi, a place of only about 1,700 inhabitants. Every year on Clean Monday, carnival celebrations ensue and residents and visitors "have a right to lose their civility."

They have what's known as a "flour war" — participants pelt each other with bags of dyed flour along the coastal road lining Galaxidi's old harbor.

"It's an explosion of color that takes place every Clean Monday, an Orthodox Christian holiday marking the start of Lent and the end of the carnival season which holds onto many of the country's pre-Christian traditions."

To read this article in full, please visit: NY Daily News

Greek wines are finally gaining recognition around the world, recently reported by Tornos News. "With near-perfect grape-growing regions and oodles of sun and favorable conditions for producing wine in a wide range of varies, from the bitter retsina to the silky smooth Assyrtiko and a host of others, Greece is finally being discovered."

At a recent event organized by the National Inter-Professional Organization of Vine and Wine of Greece (EDOAO), Greece has been involved in a campaign to extensively market their wines beyond the borders of the European Union.

Greek winemakers have not only seen increases in their sales abroad, but also in the prices buyers are willing to pay, a fact that demonstrates that the country is gaining recognition as a source of high-quality wines.

To read this article in full, please visit: Tornos News

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