The "2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture" program kicks off with a weekend of special opening events, at the coastal front of Elefsina, west Attica, on Saturday, February 4, ANA reports.

The opening events will be organized throughout the weekend with a program of exhibitions, concerts, DJ parties and side events across the town of Elefsina.

By becoming the European Capital of Culture, Elefsina is joining an ECoC family of over 70 European cities that have held the title so far.

To read the full program of events (in English), please click HERE.

The Saronic island is among the UK newspaper’s top 23 travel destinations this year, thanks to two major Hollywood productions.

“It’s easy to see why there’s a buzz about Spetses,” the UK newspaper says, noting that in the last two years, the small Saronic island has been the location for two major Hollywood productions: “The Lost Daughter,” starring Oscar-winning actress Olivia Colman, and Netflix’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” featuring Daniel Craig, famous for his 15-year stint as James Bond, 007.

The article also references the iconic Poseidonion Grand Hotel, which is featured in the opening scene of the trailer for “Glass Onion.” Overlooking the waterfront, the luxury 5-star hotel, which first opened in 1914, oozes style and sophistication. It’s easy to see why it became such a popular haunt for Athenian high society and European aristocracy throughout the 20th century.

Famous for its old-fashioned charm, neo-classical architecture and horse-drawn buggies (private vehicles are prohibited within town limits), Spetses is anticipating even more visitors in 2023, according to the article. “We’re all feeling blessed to live here,” says Yannis Manitaras, aged 74, who was born and bred on the island.

And despite its burgeoning popularity as a holiday destination, the article notes there are still relatively affordable places to stay, including several cheap B&Bs.

To read this article in full, please visit: greece-is.com

Life is inherently stressful, especially when you live in the big city. We often experience unpleasant, boring, even miserable moments that we would rather avoid. We seek escape from them through activities that take the mind and body away from problems and everyday life. Methods of escape vary with each individual, including travel, reading, music, music, sports, dancing, gardening, as well as drugs and alcohol, aimless walking through the city, casual sex, perhaps even the pleasure of doing absolutely nothing. Exploring what leads us to relaxation, joy and daydreaming, the small doses of happiness in the city, FokiaNou Art Space, continuing its January group exhibitions with Athens as its subject, held an open call asking artists to showcase the most characteristic Athenian expressions of escapism, in any medium.

Participating artists:  Marianeli Anastasiadou, Maria Argyrakopoulou, Maria Bourbou, Mary Cox, Sofia Charoni, Katerina Christou, Dimitris Chryssafidis, Adrienne Delbecq-Backos, Dimitra Gounari, Constantina Halkia, Vasiliki Kanellou, Maria Karasavvidou, Yorgos Kostakis, Kalliopi Kouklinou, Kostas Lales, Panos Liapis, Dimitra Maltabe, Despoina Pantazi, Lea Petrou, Eleutheria Rapanaki, Geeta Roopnarine, Stella Sevastopoulos, Christina-Sylvia Simantira, Iliana Theodoropoulou, Georgia Maggy Touliatou.

Curated by Mary Cox and Panagiotis Voulgaris

FokiaNou Art Space is an artist-run project space in the intimacy of a small apartment in an old building in the center of Athens. The space encourages collaborative creative efforts between Greek and foreign artists, thereby promoting and supporting the local art community. Since 2016, under the direction and curatorship of visual artists Mary Cox and Panagiotis Voulgaris, over 50 exhibitions have been held, as well as workshops and talks. 

Opening:  Thursday, 19 January 18.00
Duration:  19 January – 4 February 2023
Hours:  Thursday – Saturday 17.00-20.00
FokiaNou Art Space, Fokianou 24, 7^th Floor, Pagrati 
Μetro:  Evangelismos

 

The huge port city of Marseille in southern France was founded by Greeks back in 600 BC when the first immigrants arrived in the area and established a trading colony.

The Greeks are well known for their ancient tales of glory and tragedy, as well as their civilization’s innumerable contributions to the very foundations of our modern world.

However, what is lesser-known is that throughout the centuries, they founded scores of cities across the Mediterranean which not only exist today but thrive and play a crucial role in their region’s affairs.

One of these cities is the huge port city of Marseille, the second-largest city in France and definitely among the oldest in Europe.

This was at a time when many Phocaeans left their homeland in today’s Turkey (then Greek-speaking Asia Minor) and reached the northern shores of the Western Mediter-ranean.

They found a locale which could easily accommodate a large port and in a few years’ time, a new Greek colony had been established. Its name was ”ΜΑΣΣΑΛΙΑ” (”Massalia”).

The Greek myth of Marseille

The Greek philosopher, Aristotle, informs us about the myth concerning the foundation of Massalia.

According to this tale, Protis, the son of Euxenous from Phocaea, married Gyptis, the daughter of a King of a Celt tribe named Segobriges or Segusiavi, who lived in Gaul, ancient France. This marriage was the beginning of the story of Marseille.

When the Greek man married this rich and beautiful Celtic woman, the local King gave him the right to obtain a piece of land and build his town. This small settlement was the foundation of what was to become the well-known city of Massalia.

The greater Mediterranean region, ca. 800-550 BC

However, this well-known legend may have been disproven since, according to archaeological evidence, the Phocaeans were not the first Greeks to arrive on the northern shores of the western Mediterranean Sea.

The entire coastal region comprised of the modern regions of Catalonia, Spain, and France had seen the arrival of many Ionian Greeks before that time during their expeditions to the West to find new places to live and people with whom to trade.

Nonetheless, the city of Massalia itself was indeed established by Phocaeans, as they were the first to permanently settle there.

Other neighboring Greek colonies

The “Massaliotes,” as the Greeks of Marseille were known, first established good relations with other neighboring Greek colonies in the region beginning in the early stages of their colonization.

These colonies included the cities of Agde (Agathe Tyche, meaning ”Good Fortune”) in France; Antibes; Emporiae (the modern city of Empuries in Catalonia); Rhoda (the modern Roses in Catalonia); and, of course, the well-known cities of Nice (Nikaia) and Monaco, the modern-day cosmopolitan principality.

Originally published on: greekreporter.com

For the first time, Greece’s Health Ministry is taking care of the dental care and is proceeding with the implementation of a free preventive dental care program, through the so-called Dentist-Pass voucher for children aged 6-12.

Goal of the Health Ministry is that starting from March 2023 parents will be able to book an appointment with a dentist of their choice simply using the new Dentist Pass voucher.

Dentists who wish to participate in this new service network will be able to participate, provided they have a registered POS.

The program Dentist-Pass includes a visit to the dentist and thus for the following services:

• Control of the child’s oral hygiene
• Dental fluoridation
• Cleaning Oral hygiene information and instructions for children and parents 

Regarding the process of granting the “Dentist Pass” voucher, parents should take the following steps:

One of the two parents submits an application for the issuance of the financing card through gov.gr or through the KEPs on the Program’s Electronic Platform.

The card will then be stored in the digital wallet of the beneficiary parent’s mobile phone and can be used at the POS of all dental offices.

Each voucher that will be activated will be valid for six months.

The Dentist Pass voucher is reportedly set to cover 600,000 children aged 6 to 12.

Originally published on: keeptalkinggreece.com

Meteora, in the Greek region of Thessaly, is included as one of the world’s must-visit destinations on the 2023 Travel List published recently by French newspaper Le Monde.

Founded in 1944, the daily afternoon newspaper is considered France’s most trusted national newspaper, according to a 2021 Reuters Institute poll, operating a website among the country’s 50 most visited and can be easily obtainable in many non-French-speaking countries.

Le Monde’s annual Top 20 list for 2023 includes Meteora in the sixth place, referring to it as “the suspended islands” due to its unique geological landscape shaped millions of years ago, when the sea covering the area gave way to dry land creating the famed UNESCO Word Heritage site.

The newspaper’s journalist Bénédicte Bocays mentions Meteora as a family of “limestone giants” that are home “to monasteries built between the 14th and 16th century”. Bocays visited the area last year during a fam trip organized by the Greek National Tourism Organization’ (GNTO) branch in France.

Furthermore, Yoanna Sultan-R’bibo, Le Monde’s editor responsible for its travel, design and gastronomy sections, says that Meteora is the “second most popular site in Greece after the Acropolis in Athens“. She adds that the area is ideal for walking tours starting from the nearby town of Kalambaka and continuing up to the “incredible” seven-century-old cave monasteries.

The newspaper’s travel feature on Meteora also offers a detailed description of the area, emphasizing on its historical and cultural heritage. Useful information for those interested in organizing a trip to the region is also included.

Originally published on: news.gtp.gr

An archaeologist published a photo of several helmets kept in the storeroom of the Archaeological Museum of Olympia.

Archaeologist Ticia Verver piqued the interest of fellow archaeologists when she took a photo, which showed rows of well-preserved helmets dating back to antiquity.

According to Verver, warriors who returned victorious from the battlefields showed their gratitude to Zeus by offering him their weapons. Olympia, due to the existence of the temple of Olympian Zeus, proved to be an important place for collecting weapons. The result is that a large number of helmets, shields, and spears can be found there.

The archaeologist also pointed out why visiting Olympia is so important. Individuals, as well as city-states, made offerings to Zeus, both money and statues (among them the famous Nike of Paionios from 421 BC), bronze tripods, shields, helmets, and weapons. Olympia is still a living Museum of Greek art and culture.

Originally published in Greek, on: iskra.gr

Translated by: Codico Lab

Leaving behind the pandemic, with travel having fully recovered, more and more people are looking for destinations to visit in the new year, and the New York Times, as they do every year, made suggestions.

At the top of its list of proposed destinations for 2023 is London, with the NYT noting that the bustling city is preparing for the coronation of King Charles.

The American newspaper in its list chooses destinations that are ideal for their cuisine, culture, for adventure or thanks to their natural beauty.

Regarding our country for the New York Times, Methana is one of the places one should visit in 2023, which ranks 39th on the list.

"Athens’s nearest active volcano, Methana, sits on a peninsula of the same name some 30 miles southwest of the Greek capital. Though largely unknown to tourists, the area is slowly evolving, in part because of its increasing popularity as a hiking destination.

"In recent years, groups of locals have managed to reopen and map old walking paths, some of which date back to the Mycenaean Era, creating hiking trails that attract visitors from around the world. (So far, more than 18 miles have been cleared and marked.)

"The Methana Volcano Challenge, first organized in 2021, offers a trail run across the peninsula’s sloping landscape.

"Visitors to this volcanic peninsula can also enjoy several hot springs, the most interesting of which is an ancient (and recently renovated) tub known as the Pausanias Baths near the village of Agios Nikolaos."

To read this article in full, please visit: greekcitytimes.com

From January 1, 2023, citizens and professionals of Athens have the opportunity for fast and effective services during their transactions with the municipality of Athens after the completion of the digitization of the municipality’s agencies.

The digitization of the total of the municipality’s agencies until the end of 2022 was mayor of Athens Kostas Bakoyannis’ personal commitment, according to an announcement on Monday.

A total of 207 services are available to all Athenians after the addition of the last 56 services to the municipality’s platform.

The platform is in Greek.

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To visit the platform, click HERE. 

 

Originally published on: keeptalkinggreece.com