We all know who Socrates was: only one of the greatest Greek philosophers of all time.  Socrates Now is a 75 minute solo theatre performance (in English with Modern Greek subtitles) highlighting the Apology of Socrates. Performed in seventeen countries so far—festivals, universities and theatres—in 2015 performances are planned from 27th June until 19th July and is expected to attract over 2000 viewers of all ages.

Starring and co-directed by the Emmy Award Winning actor and scholar Yannis Simonides, he gives us some insight.

To read more, please visit: Life Beyond Borders

For detailed event information and to book tickets, please click HERE.

Athens commuters may take it for granted on a day-to-day basis, but for visitors to the Greek capital the metro is one of the sites worth visiting. In fact online travel guide Frommer’s recently ranked the Athens metro among the top 10 subways in the world because of the archaeological exhibitions and contemporary art installations at a number of its stations.

The feature by Charis Atlas Heelan compares different subway systems around the world, asking: “What makes the world’s best subway, Metro, and Tube systems? Other than safety, cleanliness, and cost, it doesn’t hurt to have amenities like great architecture or underground shops and eateries. Bonus points if the transit stations aren’t too crowded or have endless staircases.”

The Athens metro is presented among the world’s top 10 in most flattering terms: “One of the crowning achievements of this city’s Olympic bid was the creation of Attiko Metro, a system with stations housing archaeological exhibits and items that were uncovered while digging (walls, cisterns, urns, and even sarcophagi). Even if you don’t need to get to any of the 50-plus stations, it’s well worth a visit to Syntagma Square or Akropoli stations to see the relics or Ethniki Amyna station for more contemporary art installations. Though the trains aren’t that modern or efficient, the visual surroundings make it all worthwhile,” the writer says.

To read more, please visit: ekathimerini

The 17th century Ottoman monument, one of the most important historic buildings in Athens’ historic center, will operate as an exhibition venue for photography or antiquities, the head of the Athens Ephorate of Antiquities told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency.

The monument is located on the northern side of the ancient Roman Agora in Athens, near the Tower of the Winds and is a listed building. It was built on the ruins of a Christian basilica from the middle Byzantine period (8th-9th centuries), which was converted into a mosque. Initially it was believed its construction was completed to coincide with the visit to the city of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1458. However more recent studies, combined with excavation data, led to its redating and its integration in the second half of the 17th century, probably between 1668-1670.

It was built according to the architectural style of “quatrefoil” or “clover-leaf-cross-in-square”, as its broad central dome is supported by four quadrangles in cruciform arrangement.

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

Photo Credit: Greek Reporter

Get to know Lucifer, the heatwave that affected Athens, and explore the city with these top roof gardens. BBC also gives us 50 reasons to love the world!

 

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The tourism developments along the Athenian Riviera that have been underway during the past few years will help the city of Athens to become one of the leading leisure and business destinations in the world. More specifically, according to Mario Kontomerkos, CEO of Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment a leading developer of integrated resort casinos (IRC), the tourism development of the former Hellinikon airport can place Athens in the ‘center of the world’ in terms of leisure and tourism.

 

The ambitious, 8 billion-euro Hellinikon, project aims to develop the city’s old airport complex into a spectacular hub complete with luxury hotels, museums, malls, theme parks, educational and sports facilities, cultural venues and a yacht marina.

 

 

Apart from the Hellinikon project, there are currently many other projects underway on the Athenian Riviera. Among them is the fully renovated Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens, which is expected to start welocomg guests in the next few weeks.

 

‘Our aim is to create a world-class destination for the wider Mediterranean region, and place the Athenian Riviera at the center of the global luxury tourism industry,’ Astir Palace CEO Stelios Koutsivitis said during the Delphi Forum.

 

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

Guarantee Sandwich has been serving sandwiches since 1988. Since then, their only goal is to become better and maintain their renowned quality consistently. With the carefully selected fillings and the great variety of sandwich bread and buns, you will be able to create your very own unforgettable sandwich.

Duck Soup Cafe is rightfully considered as one of the best sandwich spots in Europe. It serves sandwiches with creative fillings and only the freshest ingredients as well as great coffee, and fresh fruit smoothies. Even though you can create your own, we suggest you try one of their unique sandwich suggestions, and you won't be disappointed.

Its name derives from John Montagu, fourth Earl of Sandwich who is famous for inventing the sandwich. Here, you will perhaps find the best coffee in Athens (and they use organic milk!) and delicious sandwiches, filled with quality ingredients and freshly sliced cold cuts.

When the word “Greece” comes to mind, one image can describe it and it involves marble statues. For centuries, Greece has been globally famous for its mythology, architecture, and marvelous statues. However, throughout the course of time, many of these artifacts have either been destroyed, lost or taken from their homelands and given new homes in different museums, scattered all over the world. Here is a small list of artifacts that can be found abroad.

 

Venus, originally named Aphrodite by the Greeks was the goddess of beauty and love. This statue was sculpted by Praxiteles around 130-100BC and represents the perfection of Greek female beauty. It was found later in 1820 during the Ottoman Empire, amongst the ancient ruins on the island of Milos. Her arms for unknown reasons were lost and this is the form of the statue we know today.

 

 

Date of creation 420-400BC by potter Meidias and assembled by Sir William Hamilton who sold it to the British museum in 1772. The vase is divided in two zones. The upper zone illustrates the story of the abduction of the daughters of Leukippos by the Dioskouri and the Goddess Aphrodite conspiring in the abduction. The lower zone portrays Hercules’ final labor, Cerberus the guardian of the gates to the Underworld.

 

 

This 29-inch statue, who’s sculptor’s identity is unknown, was influenced by the 40-foot tall statue by the sculptor Phidias made by ivory and gold in around 430BC. The statue was displayed in the temple of Zeus in Olympia and was deemed one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

 

 

This is another statue by Praxiteles, made in the 4^th century BC. This statue is made in bronze and portrays the god Apollo, god of the sun, poetry, and music. According to mythology, Apollo slayed Python, a dragon-like serpent, sent by Hera to harass his mother Leto, while she was pregnant with him and his sister the Goddess Artemis. Python had them on the hunt for a long time, until many years passed and when Apollo was old enough, he went after him and slayed him with the bow and arrow given to him by the God Hephaestus.

 

This statue is one of the 6 pillars of a temple named Erectheion (or Erechteum), located on the north side of the Acropolis in Athens, that was built around 421-406BC. In the early 1800s, Lord Elgin had one of the statues removed from the temple and sold to the British museum. Today, the remaining 5 statues can be found in the Acropolis Museum in Athens.

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The Messinian land constitutes a special and historic place for the Greek Revolution of 1821. It is a region where some of the most important battles were given, such as the battle of Sphacteria, in Niokastro, the battle of Maniaki, which cost the life of the Greek hero Papaflessas, but also the naval battle of Navarino which essentially sealed the end of the Revolution and marked the liberation of Greece, resulting in the establishment of the modern Greek state.

Run Messinia is an ultramarathon race of a total distance of approximately 421 kilometers, a tribute to the important events and unforgettable battles of the heroes of 1821. At the beginning of March 2021, during the “Run for Freedom” edition, 10 runners will attempt to run 10 long distances, in 10 days, crossing historical places and monuments of Messinia, which are related to the Greek revolution.

10 runners - 10 marathons in total - 10 days!
Every day, a total of 10 runners will participate in each race. The ambassador of the Run Messinia - Run for Freedom will be the remarkable Greek-American ultramarathon runner Dean Karnazes, one of the 100 most influential people in the world, according to TIME magazine. Karnazes will run all 10 races, in 10 consecutive days. At this point, we should note that a lot of American volunteers fought heroically alongside Greeks during the Greek Revolution.
In the context of his participation in this historic ultra marathon, Karnazes stated: “As a proud Greek-American, it is a great honor to be part of this historic undertaking which recognizes and celebrates Greek independence on this momentous 200-year anniversary. The run will not be easy, though neither was the Greek fight for freedom”.

Maria Polyzou, the Greek running champion, born in Patras, who won the First Gold Medal in the Balkan Marathon race, the first Greek woman to compete in a marathon at the Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996, the woman who holds the Greek record in the Marathon (2:33:40) and completed the Pheidippides Feat Athens-Sparta-Athens 524km run and eventually an endurance running coach, said about this project: “This is an event that honors the great war of 1821. It is very important that the Greek revolution will be recognized by a race like an ultramarathon and that we will honor the cities from which the revolution began in our own way. I wish you good luck in the event. I am by your side”.

We honor history by running!
The region of Messinia led the Greek War of Independence, with chiefs and politicians originating from the specific area, while their descendants still play a leading role in the political and social life of Greece. On the eve of the 1821 Revolution, where revolutionary upheaval prevailed throughout Greece and mainly in the Peloponnese, with the start of the Revolution already being decided, Messinia contributed with a number of warlords and 2 fighters who had been initiated for the purposes of the Philiki Eteria “Friendly Society”, such as Theodoros Kolokotronis, Grigorios Dikaios or Papaflessas, Nikitaras, Anagnostaras, Papatsonis and many more.

The event honors these great heroes of 1821 who led the War battles to the liberation of Greece. The greatest moment in the history of Messinia and especially of Kalamata was the liberation of the city on March 23, 1821, when the Greek chiefs, with the assistance of the fighters from Mani under the leader Petrobey Mavromichalis, entered the city and liberated it.

In collaboration with the world-famous Peloponnesian ultramarathon runner, Karnazes, the event highlights the values ​​of the heroes who covered long distances on foot with great vigor and self-denial in order to fight and move from city to city, comparing these values with the ones that we find today in the long distance running. After all, running is a sport that was born in Greece. A long-distance race demands much more from the athlete than the shorter distance races, not only physically but mainly psychologically and mentally. This race, taking place in the mountains offers the athlete the opportunity to experience situations that no other road race can offer. The challenge is great, as so is the reward. In Run Messinia, each athlete competes not only with other runners but also with the mountain and nature itself, as well as his own personal boundaries. The event came to highlight the importance of overcoming adversities and never quitting, values synonymous with those of the 1821 Revolution and Greek History in general. As the athletes consider it impossible to achieve the 10 long distances within 10 days, similarly, people considered the result of the Revolution historically impossible.

421km run in Messinian land!
The event aims to highlight the history and feature both culturally and touristically all the areas associated with the Greek Revolution in Messinia. The starting point of “Run for Freedom” will be Areopoli. Runners will have the opportunity to pass through historical places of Messinia such as Kardamyli, Verga, Kalamata, Nedousa, Poliani, Skala, Neochori, Katsarou, Solaki, Meropi, Loutro, Diavolitsi, Kallirroi, Ramovouni, Maniaki, Kato Minagia, Koroni, Methoni, Neokastro, the village of Kremmidia, Schinolakka, Paleokastro and of course to finish at the historic Pylos.

Messinian ultramarathon runner Vassilis Koumanakos, who has completed the “Marathon de Sables” 260km race in the Sahara desert, said about his participation in Run Messinia: “It is a special honor to run in the footsteps of great warriors and visit their dens, which were the strongholds of the Greek national liberation war of ‘21. What we will remember is that FREEDOM is not just a word in our national anthem, but it is a situation for which we must fight every day. And this struggle determines our Fate”.

Participations in the race will be by invitation only, while very few spots will open to the public. The event will be held in accordance with the strict health protocol and the approval of the Health Scientific Committee of the General Secretariat of Sports, with respect to the Covid-19 pandemic conditions. Active Media Group has undertaken the event’s Sports Production. More information on the dates, schedule, routes and details of Run Messinia will be announced in the upcoming weeks.