ATHENS INSIDER SUMMER 2021

Summer 2021 ISSN 1790-3114

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ATHENS

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Publisher Sudha Nair-Iliades Copy Editor Elena Panayides Graphic Design Julianne Sedan Solal Caby Hospitality Media Services Lefteris Varelis Client Relations and Sales Regina Masselou Diana Labroulia Accounts Dimosthenis Therianos Digital Services Maria Armpelia Lara Papadimitriou, Iason Iliades Illustrations Daniel Egnéus, Diane Alexandre, Lila Ruby King, Julianne Sedan Photos Giannis Seferos, Christos Drazos, Nikos Karanikolas, Angelos Giotopoulos, George Tatakis, Myrto Papadopoulos, George Messaritakis, K. Vergas, Thomas Gravanis, Shutterstock Contributors in this Issue Sofka Zinovieff, Tom Hall, Els Hanappe, Nimrod Fridberg, Angela Stamatiadou Founder Steve Pantazopoulos Legal Counsel Christos Christopoulos Printing Pressious Arvanitidis Website and Digital Marketing Webolution Subscriptions Athens Insider published in English in Greece € 20, Abroad € 40 Also published in French, Chinese (Mandarin), Russian and Turkish.

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Athens Insider ISSN 1790-3114 Code: 216548 www.athensinsider.com

publisher’s note I

f Brand Athens could be distilled and traded on the stock market right now, it would be in a bull market. From international fashion labels like Dior who chose Athens to present their Cruise 2022 collection, shining a spotlight on the city and traditional Greek craftsmanship, (with the world’s press in tow), to Monocle’s Tyler Brûlé, who has donned the mantle as the city’s most vocal cheerleader, Athens is making headlines for all the right reasons.

Until as recently as five years ago, central Athens looked spent. Now it is on steroids moving rapidly through the gears of dereliction, artistic renewal, entrepreneurial action, rising prices and gentrification.

The psychological shift is palpable. People are starting to dream again, they’re starting to consume again. It has been attracting investors (especially in the hospitality, real estate and tech sectors) and film production companies have been tapping into Athens’ glorious mash-up of the ancient and the contemporary.

But as importantly, it has been attracting a new breed of sophisticated nomads - the global creative class. Tom Hall, our food and drinks columnist and creative exile from London, being a case in point. Tom, who moved here during the second lockdown, draws the analogy between bigger cities with expensive rents to nightclubs the morning-after – ‘dark, with sticky floors and the nauseating overhang of stale beer and tobacco, minus the fun and fireworks.’

Interestingly, part of Athens’ appeal lies in the exact opposite of a shiny, functional city.

It lies in the way the city has responded to its years of economic battering with resourcefulness and imagination - behind every graffiti-splattered, abandoned warehouse is a repurposed art space or speakeasy bar.

It is something that fascinates writer Sofka Zinovieff, who moved to Athens before the Olympic boom, as she delves deep into the soul of this captivatingly complex city in her podcast to decipher the city’s allure beneath its gritty facades and venerated landmarks.

Historian Els Hanappe draws an interesting parallel on the different fates of two of Athens’ beloved squares – Omonia and Syntagma. Hopefully, Omonia’s recent facelift goes beyond its effervescent fountains to demonstrate political will to restore some of the city’s bygone glory and a commitment to its investors who believe in the city’s untapped potential.

Still, it’s cause for celebration that a great old city should find new momentum. The really smart thing for Athens would be to do better than cities that have trod this path before: to achieve vitality while also nurturing the things that make the city so appealing in the first place - its untamed soul, its restless nights, its inexplicable paradoxes, its infinite possibilities.

Athina, s’agapo!

Sudha Nair-Iliades

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contents

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CULTURE 8

Arts & Events From Neon’s Portals to Ubuntu at EMST, cultural highlights to look forward to this summer.

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A Quick Guide to the National Gallery What you can expect at the newly renovated National Gallery.

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1821 Before and After: Modern Hellenism at the Benaki Museum The most extensive exhibition ever on modern Greek history.

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Must-see highlights at the Athens and Epidaurus Festival Mark your calendars around these dates at iconic venues.

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Weaving the Past through Greek folk costumes A photo essay by George Tatakis on Greece’s rich sartorial traditions.

106 Kaleidoscope As much a symbol of Athens as the Acropolis, we take a peak beneath the 400-pleat fustanellas worn by Evzones.

STYLE 46 Dior in Athens!

Brand Athens shared the podium with Dior at the fashion brand’s spectacular show at the ancient Olympic stadium.

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Freedom Fashion Get swept up in bicentennial fever and snap up some 1821-inspired fashion.

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Summer Essentials Fashion and Beauty must-haves this summer.

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Athens’ best bargains revealed!

Nimrod Fridberg generously divulges his thrifty secrets.

PEOPLE 44

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At the crossroads of Art and Crime Christos Markogiannakis reflects on the role of art in crime.

Tourism in the pandemic era UNWTO Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili on making travel safe and seamless in the Covid-era. athens insider |4|

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CITY LIFE

32 A tale of two squares: Omonia and Syntagma Historian Els Hanappe delves into the sibling rivalry of Athens’ favourite squares.

36 Writer Sofka Zinovieff unpacks Athens An anthropologist’s curiosity, a writer’s instinct and a barely concealed affection for her adopted home - Sofka Zinovieff’s brilliant podcast gets under the skin of the city.

39 A guide to exploring Athens An in-depth look into the city’s quirks snd customs.

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Let the lake work its magic Soak in the lake’s temperate waters all year round.

FOOD & DRINK 66

Why Athens Riviera has emerged as a fine-dining destination Seaside views and spoilt for choice - the definitive guide to Athens Riviera dining.

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French Wines and their Greek cousins Tom Hall uses the pretext of pairing Greek wines to French favourites to drink some more.

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Hottest new Athens restaurant openings for 2021 A quick review of new restaurants you should try out this summer.

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Athens’ coolest ice cream bars for hot summer nights Where to find your favourite scoops in the city.

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TRAVEL 80 Is Paros the new Mykonos?

Has the action shifted from Mykonos to its Cycladic cousin. Elena Panayides on what she loves most about her island.

84 Wines of Santorini A timely summer guide to falling in love with Santorini’s exquisite wines.

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Shot in the manifacture

ARTS & EVENTS

The Definitive Athens Art Guide NEON’s Portals at The Public Tobacco Factory WHAT: Portals, one of 2021’s biggest art exhibitions touches on two events that have marked the Greek psyche this year: the bicentennial anniversary of Greece’s independence struggle and the pandemic. As Greece celebrates the bicentenary of its War of Independence from Ottoman rule, Portals will address today’s international political and societal upheavals with new works by 40 influential Greek artists and numerous pieces from global heavy hitters including Michael Rakowitz, Glenn Ligon and Danh Vo. The exhibition that runs until December is co-curated by NEON’s Elina Kountouri and Madeleine Grynsztejn, director of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, in partnership with the Hellenic Parliament.

The choice of the former Public Tobacco Factory to host the exhibition goes beyond the architectural merits of this stunning venue.

The landmarked building is a paradigm of interwar industrial architecture – but it also serves as a reminder of Greece’s trading history, and by extension, the course of its socio-political trajectory The bicentennial-inspired show has prompted the transformation of the old Tobacco Factory on Lenorman Street into a new urban hub of contemporary culture.

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WHEN: Until 31 December 2021 WHERE: The Public Tobacco Factory, Lenorman Avenue.

Sonia Gomes

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Adam Pendleton

UBUNTU: The Harry David Art Collection at EMST

ARTS & EVENTS

WHAT: An overview of contemporary African art through 66 works by 34 artists from the Harry David Art Collectionat EMST, the Greek Museum of Contemporary Art. Harry David, prominent art collector and industrialist, showcases his cosmopolitan upbringing with his impressive collection of contemporary African talent.

Bold, powerful and engaging, the artists take on the issues of race and racial discrimination. After years of being ignored, African Art has come into its own and is increasingly finding international recognition. Ubuntu highlights works by young talent from the contemporary African art scene, selected from the Harry David Art Collection, and presented in five specially designed rooms at the National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens (EMST). Five curators, Osei Bonsu (Curator at Tate Modern), Rashid Johnson (Visual Artist), Elvira Dyangani Ose (Director of The Showroom art space), Emily Tsingou (Art Advisor to the Harry David Art Collection), Burkhard Varnholt (Collector, Founder of KINDL Centre for Contemporary Art) each take on a ‘room’, creating different discourses and approaches.

WHEN: Until August 22, 2021.

WHERE: EMST, Kallirrois & Frantzi Tel: +30.211.101.9000, emst.gr

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Zanele Muholi_Baindile. The Square, Cape Town. athens insider Romuald Hazoume. | 10 |Ma Poule, Photo by Lana de Beer David.

ARTS & EVENTS

Massimiliano & Doriana Fuksas, We have always dreamt of building something like a cloud.

Photo by Julie Georgantidou.

3 Michalis Manousakis, the Blue of the Main Grammar.

Symbols and Iconic Ruins

The Symbols & Iconic Ruins exhibition explores the ways in which we perceive and approach potent cultural symbols, bringing together under a common conceptual framework contemporary works of art and architecture by prominent artists and architects from Greece and abroad. The exhibition marks an attempt to synthesize different conceptualisations of the symbol, by drawing eclectic affinities and highlighting common features, regardless of the radically different points of departure and processes involved in their production. In addition to independent artworks, which reflect on the relationship between artistic and architectural creation, the core of the exhibition consists of three distinct but interconnected themes: the Acropolis of Athens, post-war architecture in Central Europe and the Berlin Wall.

According to Panayotis Pangalos, the chief curator of the SYMBOLS & Iconic Ruins exhibition, “the aim is to establish a unique dialogue between different species of ruins that hold pertinent symbolic value.”

WHEN: Until August 20, 2021.

WHERE: EMST, Kallirrois & Frantzi Tel: +30.211.101.9000, emst.gr athens insider | 11 |

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WHAT: 137 artists, architects and kai art historians from Greece and abroad present 110 works at the Temporary Exhibitions Space.

Anti-Structure at DESTE

ARTS & EVENTS

WHAT: Anti-Structure, curated by Andreas Melas, explores the farfetched realm of fine lines between order and chaos, stasis and flux, structure and fragility.

Taking an immersive installation by Urs Fischer as a starting point, and placing it in dialogue with the works of twenty-one Greek and Cypriot, the exhibition explores the delicate dance between structure and insubordination.Coined in 1969 by cultural anthropologist Victor Turner (1920–1983), “anti-structure” is a study of the state of mental and spiritual limbo that is characteristic of the second stage—the liminal stage—of any rite of passage, when the novitiate is neither here nor there but, betwixt and between, remains enveloped in abiding upheaval and disarray and a preternatural void. “Anti-structure” thus describes a stage of perpetual transformation characterized by moments of dissolution where “structural hierarchies are flattened or inverted.” Whereas the dominant ideology du jour was that any such breakdown would result in anomie and angst, Turner recognized that in times of great happenstance, culture in fact reboots itself and new symbols, models, and paradigms arise.

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César (1921 - 1998) Chaise “Expansion”

AntiStructure.

Greek gift.

It is not unusual to find such pockets of clandestine novelty simmering deep in the underground, the pregnant margins of normative order. It is in these lands of strangers and exiles, that one finds fertile ground for radical thought and very strange ideas. It is these ideas cultivated in the fringes of institutionalized etiquette that bring forth novel ways of dress, posture, and expression that either break or make the mainstream. DESTE’s Greek Gift, meanwhile will show at Hydra’s Slaughterhouse until October 31.

WHEN: Until October 27, 2021 Wednesdays & Thursdays 12 noon to 8 pm WHERE: DESTE Foundation, 11 Filellinon & Pappa, Nea Ionia, deste.gr

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58 New Works at The Goulandris Museum of Modern Art WHAT: The B&E Goulandris Museum of Modern Art welcomes summer 2021 with 58 new works in its collection. Wander among your favourite works of El Greco, Paul Cézanne, Auguste Rodin, Camille Claudel, Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque , Joan Miró, Pierre Bonnard, Fernand Léger, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee and Jean Hélion on the first floor.

Expect to see new artworks alongside the well-known Jackson Pollock, Francis Bacon, Alberto Giacometti, Max Ernst and Roy Lichtensteins. The renewed selection includes works by Picasso, Braque, Miró, Hélion, Marc Chagall, Jean Fautrier, César, Germaine Rich , Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, Henri Michaux, Claude Lalanne, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Fernando Botero, Nicholas Krushenick and Igor Mitoraj. The aim of the new mise-en scene is

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Both Sides of The Moon, Farida El Gazzar

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WHAT: Kalfayan Galleries presents a solo exhibition of the exceptionally talented Greek-Egyptian artist Farida El Gazzar titled ‘Both Sides Of The Moon’. All her paintings have a wistful quality about it, capturing fleeting moments of twilight when colour and light change quickly as night falls. Few artists capture those ephemeral moments of daylight being drained from the sky - and that of a deep cobalt blue pervading everything before the deep indigo of the night sky blots it all out - with as much poignancy as El Gazzar. In Both Sides of the Moon, she revisits another favourite theme, that of her native Egypt.

Unable to travel during lock-down and looking for elements that would allow her at least a mental journey to her second homeland, Egypt, her paintings are transformed into portraits of Athens where the East meets the West. Distorted city-scapes, vivid colors and an ethereally dreamy atmosphere all figure in Farida El Gazzar’s works, brilliantly capturing the peculiar psycho-emotional state of lockdown when one’s immediate neighbourhood was the beginning and end of our empirical world.

In her new paintings, Athens stars as the artist’s Alter Ego depicting the city’s architectural landscape in all its grandeur and ugliness as experienced by her during her long walks.

WHEN: Until September 18, 2021 WHERE: Kalfayan Galleries, 11 Haritos Street.

Tel: 210. 721.7679, kalfayangalleries.com

Fernando Botero (1932 - ) Still Life with Green Curtain

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to highlight the special relationship that the Goulandris couple had with some of these artists, such as Picasso, Chagall, César, François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Fernando and Sofia Vari.

The fourth floor highlights the pioneering researchers and poets of abstraction, who in many cases, moved abroad to establish their art careers. The already popular works of Giannis Moralis, Nikos Hatzikyriakou-Gika and Jannis Kounellis are presented alongside Takis, Chryssa, Thanos Tsigos, Theodoros Stamos, George Zongolopoulos, Pavlos and Alexis Akritakis.

The renewal of the collection was edited by Kyriakos Koutsomallis, with the help of Maria Koutsomalli-Moro. They collaborated again, for the new set design proposal, with Andreas Georgiadis and Paraskevi Gerolymatou from Mikri Arktos.

OPENING HOURS: Wednesday to Sunday: 10 am to 6 pm, Mondays and Tuesdays closed.

WHERE: 13 Eratosthenous str.Athens 116 35, Greece|www.goulandris.gr athens insider | 13 |

Ruins by Roberto Sironi, Carwan Gallery WHAT: Ruins, exclusively commissioned by Carwan Gallery is finally ready to be unveiled in Athens in June 2021 Ruins features a series of works that re-signify architectural fragments belonging to different historical periods and which refer to the most significant archaeological sites placed in the Mediterranean basin.

The project relates some constructive elements of the classical era as bases of columns, capitals, sections of amphitheatre with rudiments of the industrial era, such as the double-T beams, reticular structural elements and corrugated sheet metal, which are reshaped according to a new aesthetic perspective.

The collection is conceived as a series of contemporary ruins, freely deconstructed and reconstructed, imaginary simulacra, programmed artifices where the materials and techniques of execution do not correspond to the original but rather become functional to the postarchaeological message conveyed, transmitting a feeling of “Indefinite time” that becomes hypothetical, evanescent, suspended.

Roberto Sironi got the opportunity to develop RUINS thanks to the selection of the international residency program IN Residence Design, curated by Barbara Brondi and Marco Rainò and to produce the works with bronze experts Fonderia Artistica Battaglia and Simone Desirò, Marmi Artificiali di Rima.

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WHEN: Until September 4, 2021 OPENING HOURS: Wednesday & Thursday 12:00–20:00 WHERE: Carwan Gallery Polydefkous 39, Piraeus. info@carwangallery.com carwangallery.com Tel: +302104114536 Palmyra, Bench.

Hubert, Mirror detail

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ARTS & EVENTS

Alexander the Great, Philip Tsiaras WHAT: The Blender Gallery in collaboration with Varvara Roza Galleries hosts an exhibition of new works by New York artist Philip Tsiaras. As a painter, photographer, ceramicist, bronze and glass sculptor, Tsiaras’s work touches on practically all art forms. In a conceptual sense Tsiaras believes that “each exhibition should contain an unexpected element of surprise”.

The new Tsiaras works that will be presented at The Blender Gallery till the 30th of June, in fact, explore the world of an obsessed Pointillist artist with a love of Portraiture – The Tsiaras DOT, tiny but with intense power -transforms the many Myths of Alexander the Great in constantly changings visions of the historic Legend. Alexander is infused with a myriad of painted, multicolored coordinates and activated dots, bordering on what Tsiaras calls “the scientific of sensualism”, or in archaic terms, a modern Greco-Roman Tsiaras comes full circle, as a classic black and white photographer experimenting with portraiture in his early career, to realize a new painterly language in realistic hand-dotted personas.

Tsiaras himself, of Macedonia origin, focused on Alexander the Great as the quintessential figure to represent the 200th anniversary of Greek Independence. “For me Alexander is the ultimate Hellenist, no other figure is history has the exotic power, romance, and legendary fantasy of Alexander the Great.

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WHEN: Until July 30, 2021 OPENING HOURS: Monday - Friday: 10:00-18:00 Saturday: 12:30-16:30 WHERE: The Blender Gallery, Zisimopoulou 4 Glyfada. theblendergallery.com

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Objects of Common Interest, Cycladic Museum Cafe WHAT: An installation of ethereal sculptures by Archipelago.

Two talented designers who spend time between Athens and New York, Eleni Petaloti and Leonidas Trampoukis create still life installations, experiential environments and objects, demonstrating a fixation with materiality, concept and tangible spatial experiences. Work roots from an amalgamation of thinking and making between two diverse poles, Greece and the US, switching between the formal and the intuitive, embracing the handmade and the tactile, the experimental and the poetic aiming to create projects that balance between the long-lasting and the ephemeral.

Building upon the legacy of the Cycladic culture and the highly stylized marble figurines abstracting everyday or anatomical forms, presented here is a series of sculptures that simultaneously furthers the Studio’s ongoing study into softness —both in form and as a material quality.

Cast as translucent inflatables, what was heavy, solid, hard is now light, airy, and soft. These shifts offer a reinterpretation of ancient forms and allow for viewers to develop new relationships to the work.

The transparent archipelago of curvy forms is complemented with light sculptures, traced trajectories of glimpse passing light.

Building upon the legacy of the Cycladic culture and the highly stylized marble figurines abstracting everyday or anatomical forms, presented here is a series of sculptures that simultaneously furthers the Studio’s ongoing study into softness —both in form and as a material quality.

Cast as translucent inflatables, what was heavy, solid, hard is now light, airy, and soft. These shifts offer a reinterpretation of ancient forms and allow for viewers to develop new relationships to the work.

The transparent archipelago of curvy forms is complemented with light sculptures, traced trajectories of glimpse passing light.

WHERE: Neophytou Douka 4, Athens (+30 210 72 28 321-3) museum@cycladic.gr

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Takis: Cosmos in Motion | 46 sculptures at the SNFCC

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WHAT: An exhibition of iconic sculptures by the internationally-acclaimed visual artist Takis at SNFCC, a cultural landmark designed by architect, Renzo Piano.

Part of the influential group of post-war artists who made Paris their home, Athens-born Takis (real name: Panayiotis Vassilakis) sought out the essential poetry and beauty of the electromagnetic universe. He was one of the most original artistic voices in Europe from the and remained a pioneering figure throughout his life.

By tapping into forces such as magnetic fields his art explores the mysterious energies of the universe. Using magnetism, light and sound as his raw materials, Takis’s audacious mobile sculptures were a radical break from convention.

Drawing on concepts and experiences from scientific enquiry to ancient philosophy and spirituality, his electrified sculptures and magnetic installations spawned a new modernity of artistic expression. Over a seventy-year career, Takis created some of the athens insider | 16 |

twentieth century’s most intriguing and innovative artworks, such as his famous Signals series. Made from long thin rods, the sculptures vibrate and bend with the movement of air. Like radar transmitters, Takis saw his Signals as capturing the energy of the air or sky. He then began to experiment with magnets and magnetic energy in his sculpture as a way of showing the unseen forces of nature and the cosmos.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation with the Takis Foundation pay tribute to the legendary artist who passed away two years ago, with a major retrospective. Forty-six of his representative works will be spread across the public spaces of the SNFCC, letting visitors ‘bathe in energy’ and to enhance their awareness of invisible energies, such as magnetism and gravity, through art.

WHEN: Until 7 November 2021 WHERE: SNFCC. 364 Syngrou Avenue, Kallithea.

Tel: 216.809.1000

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Usually Surrounded, Paul Insect WHAT: Deeply influenced by the late 90’s Street Art movement and the underground club scene in London, Paul Insect’s creative expression has always been fuelled by the sense of rebellion, nonconformity, and constant experimentation and innovation.

Free from rules or expectations of the existing formats, yet genuinely appreciative and respectful for the painterly tradition, the London-based artist enjoys exploring different mediums, materials, and techniques while painting distinctive portraits as his signature type of work. Reducing the subject’s appearance to a pair of eyes, the artist builds his visuals and concepts on these compositional and contextual pillars. Through pop imagery and Warhol’s reinvention of screen print as an artistic technique or by tapping into Lichtenstein’s use of rasters and graphic colours, the visuals keep the raw and unforgiving aesthetics of the artist’s stencil or pasteup endeavours.

WHEN: Until August 31, 2021. Tuesday – Friday: 11am - 7pm Saturday: 11am - 5pm WHERE: Allouche Benias Gallery Kanari 1, Kolonaki Tel: 30 210 33 89 111, allouchebenias.com

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WHAT: Historically significant pieces from the valuable Collection of Michalis and Dimitra Varkarakis at the B. & M. Theocharakis Foundation.

A curated selection of 100 paintings, porcelain objects and clocks of the 19th century that capture the role of women in Greece’s independence struggle and how they were received in salons across Europe.

The collector, Michalis Varkarakis, characteristically states: “European travellers and artists were the first to become interested in the Greek monuments; in the images they produced, human figures played a supporting role. With the Greek Revolution, the sources of inspiration for artists changed; the individual now became central in their work. Early on, the battles were their main subject; military successes fuelled the movement. Portraits of the protagonists were also popular. Major historical events – the struggles of the Souliotes, the proclamation of the Revolution, the massacre at Chios, the dramatic siege of Messolonghi, the naval battle of Navarino, the landing of the French at Morea in 1828 – all enjoyed pride of place in the Philhellenic iconography. Chateaubriand’s fiery calls to freedom, Byron’s poems celebrating the beauty of Greece and heroism of the Greeks inspired a large number of artists. Evocations of the ancient lineage of Modern Greeks, the Christian ideals, and a love of antiquarianism were particularly popular. The passions, sufferings, and hardships of the vastly outnumbered fighters were especially praised. In tune with Orientalist and Romantic art, Philhellenic artists often embellished their works to emphasise the valour of Greek men and beauty of Greek women.”

WHEN: Until: 31 October 2021, daily from 10 am to 6 pm WHERE: B&M Theocharakis Foundation for the Fine Arts and Music athens insider | 17 |

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Women in the Greek Revolution of 1821, Theocharakis Foundation

CULTURE

A Quick Guide to the National Gallery The National Gallery opens in its newly renovated, swanky 11,000 sqm home in Pangrati, a remarkable addition to Athens’ rich cultural repertoire. A bright and cheery triptych by Panagiotis Tetsis with vibrant scenes from a raucous farmers’ market greets visitors, mirroring the inclusive ethos of the gallery. Sculptural masterpieces adorn its outdoor space, including Costas Varotsos’ Spiral that seems engaged in conversation with the Runner just across the avenue. Athens Insider gives you a sneak peek on what you can expect.

Brief History It started off as a modest collection of 117 works, displayed as part of a permanent exhibition at the Athens University in 1878. In 1896, Alexandros Soutzos, a jurist and art lover, bequeathed his collection and estate to the Greek Government with the express wish of creating a national art museum. The museum opened in 1900 and the first curator was Georgios Iakovides, a famous Greek painter and proponent of the Munich School artistic movement.

Collections

A custodian of Greek art and heritage, The National Gallery’s collections comprise more than 20,000 works of paintings, sculptures, engravings and other forms of art. The gallery exhibitions are mainly focused on post-Byzantine Greek Art but it also owns and exhibits also an extensive collection of European artists. Particularly valuable is the collection of paintings from the Renaissance. Expect to see original artworks by El Greco, Eugene Delacroix, Piet Mondrian, Auguste Rodin, Pablo Picasso and Greek artists such as Theodoros Vryzakis, Spyros Vassiliou and Dimitris Mytaras.

Its name

In 1954, the National Gallery merged with the Alexandros Soutzos Estate, hence its name. It houses an extensive library with invaluable archival material and specialized conservation studios, equipped with up-to-date scanning, examination and restoration systems.

There is a wing funded and named after the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

The new gallery Marina Lambraki-Plaka, the grand doyenne of The National Gallery describes it as ‘a project that will fill all Greeks with happiness and pride.’ The building with its translucent façade makes it a modern, athens insider | 18 |

The 1821 bicentennial anniversary exhibition The exhibition is set up on the first floor for the 200 years since the beginning of the Revolution, with paintings on the subject of the struggle for independence and heroes of the Revolution of 1821, as well as a section with works by Greek artists (portraits, landscapes etc) of the 19th century.

Future exhibitions

Mark your calendars for the much-anticipated ‘Art of Portraiture’ from the Louvre, slated to take place in autumn after the museum’s grand reopening.

The rest of the floors will showcase the National Gallery’s collection of paintings from the 19th and 20th century.

The Sculpture Garden

The exterior is adorned with works of art by Auguste Rodin, a sculpture by the late Takis dominates the main entrance; just below the bridge that connects the reception area with the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Wing, Costas Varotsos’ Spiral, a fluid sculpture in glass that radiates hope stands tall in a canal of water, symbolically representing the river Ilissos which used to flow in the area.

The National Gallery-Alexandros Soutsos Museum, Vas. Konstantinou 50. Open daily from 9am to 8pm, on the weekend from 9am to 4pm. Closed on Tuesdays. Tel. 214 408 6212

The artwork in the lobby The piece that will welcome the public is Panayiotis Tetsis’ monumental ‘Farmer’s Market’ (1983). It was deliberately chosen to symbolize that the National Gallery is accessible to all, everyone who knows about art and those seeking the tools to learn about it. athens insider | 19 |

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functional museum, at the intersection of the city’s other architectural landmark, the iconic Hilton Athens and Costas Varotsos’ ‘The Runner,’ just below Mt. Lycabettus.

• A 11,000 sqm building in addition to the existing 9,720 sqm, doubling its space to 20,000 sqm.

• An additional 2,000 sqm of exhibition space, 1600 sqm of warehouses.

• An auditorium seating 450 and an educational venue.

• A 1000sqm museum shop • A third-floor restaurant with panoramic views of the Acropolis and all of Athens.

• Another cafe will operate on the ground floor and garden.

• The museum will be modernized, acquiring visitor access ramps, the required elevators and stairs, disabled access.

ARTS & EVENTS

1821 Before and After: Experience a Complete Panorama of Modern Hellenism at the Benaki Museum With a whopping 1,200 exhibits spread across the 2,500 square metres of the Benaki Museum’s Pireos Street site, 1821 Before and After is the most extensive exhibition ever presented on modern Hellenism.

These works create a deeply meaningful assemblage that traces the enchanting story of modern Greeks and brings to the fore the reasons for their very existence, their perseverance and how far they have travelled: all the positive elements that have shaped modern Hellenism.

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ake a date to see this comprehensive panorama of a pivotal century in Greek history. 1200 objects in an exhibition, curated by historians Tassos Sakellaropoulos and Maria Dimitriadou, showcasing 100 years of modern Greek history. The exhibition, organised by the Benaki Museum in partnership with the Bank of Greece, the National Bank of Greece and Alpha Bank is the most extensive exhibition on modern Hellenism ever presented.

More than 1200 artefacts from the history of modern Greece are on display to honour the 200 years since the Hellenic Revolution in a first-ofits kind exhibit of such scale and scope, internationally. The exhibit highlights the 100 years that begin with the moral and economic preparation of the liberation of the Greeks, culminating with the Revolution of 1821 and the first decades of operation and development of the modern Greek State.

Visitors to the Benaki Museum’s 1821 Before and After exhibit will find interesting relics from 1770 to 1870, including historical correspondence urging the Greeks to fight, masterpieces athens insider | 20 |

The catalogue that accompanies the exhibition is a 1,218 page labour of love showcasing one hundred years of modern Greek history, between 1770 and 1870. This century begins with the moral and economic preparations for the liberation of the Greeks, reaches an apex with the 1821 Revolution and concludes with the first decades of the operation and development of the new Greek state.

Through rare works of art and special testimonies from each era, the three parts of the

exhibition and the corresponding chapters of the catalogue offer a fascinating journey of history and art, a journey that in each step reveals why this adventurous century remains so deeply engaging, even in the 21st century.

1821 Before and After is a very special exhibit for the Benaki Museum, as it is the longest lasting in duration and largest event in the museum’s history, as well as the first such event that takes up the entire museum building on Pireos Street, said Benaki Museum President Irini Geroulanou in a statement.

The exhibition will be open to the public every day until November 7, 2021, from Tuesday to Sunday at the following hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, 10am6pm; Friday and Saturday, 10am to 4pm.

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depicting life in Greece during the era, and the fashionable garb of freedom fighters and royalty. Enriching their experience, they will have the opportunity to read a compelling historical narrative displayed throughout the exhibit’s walls, with relevant items accompanying each section.

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Must-see highlights at the Athens and Epidaurus Festival Spread across 5 months, the Athens and Epidaurus Festival has always marked the beginning of the summer cultural season. Expect an adrenaline-charged programme with 80 open-air performances, experimental theatre, contemporary dance, classical music, subverted operas and more in 2021’s packed repertoire.

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CULTURE

In July MUSIC

Max Cooper

06/07 21:00

This summer, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus welcomes one of the most innovative electronic musicians of our time: beloved techno producer Max Cooper, celebrated by his many fans around the world thanks to his unique music and spectacular audio-visual shows. His complex, intricate compositions are inspired by his scientific background in genetics, encompassing subtle, recurring elements culminating in an abstract narrative that emotionally moves audiences. His much-anticipated concert at the Odeon will come complete with breathtaking, visually arresting projections.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus

MUSIC

Olafur Arnalds

15/07 21:00

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Icelander Ólafur Arnalds is a global powerhouse of composition and sound design, widely beloved for his unique compositions, combining strings and piano with beats in unexpected loops. Arnalds offers a fresh, modern twist on classical music, winning audiences over ever since his first album was released in 2007. His latest album, Some Kind of Peace (2020), is the journey of his personal and creative growth, set against the backdrop of a chaotic world. In this intriguing work, we’ll hear hints of those private experiences - sometimes even samples of the significant events themselves – woven into an album that is remarkable in its openness and its beauty.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus

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VISUAL ARTS

Vrettos

15/0631/07 19:00

An adults-only installation capturing the underground clubbing scene in Athens from 2005 onwards, carrying us to that largely unseen part in the lives of Greek and international clubbing performance artists and those of the BDSM scene, as well as LGBTQI+ activism, as experienced and recorded by well-known Greek photographer Tassos Vrettos. The multimedia installation of The Feel. Backstage, one of the artist’s most original research projects, will be held at Hall A of Peiraios 260, as the starting work of a broader presentation of Vrettos’ body of work across different spaces and times, with the support of the NEON Organization for Culture and Development, in collaboration with the Onassis Foundation for the creation of a bilingual printed edition on Vrettos and his work.

Opening hours: 19:00-24:00 Peiraios 260 (A)

DANCE

Greek National Opera Manos Hadjidakis Dance With My Own Shadow

25+27 +29/07 21:00

Konstantinos Rigos choreographed four remarkable works by Manos Hadjidakis for the Greek National Opera Ballet. In Kyklos tou C.N.S (C.N.S Cycle), loss and suffering unfold against the backdrop of the rough sea; in Kapetan Michalis (Captain Michalis), the wet, nocturnal, Southern wind “falls upon women like a man and upon men like a woman”; in Katarameno Fidi (The Accursed Serpent), the iconic figure of Karagiozis epitomises the timelessness of folk art; in To Chamogelo tis Tzokontas (Gioconda’s Smile), the glamour and hustle and bustle of New York City accentuates loneliness and despair.

Originally presented on November 9, 2019, at the Stavros Niarchos Hall of the Greek National Opera at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, the well-received performance will be repeated this year at the Athens Epidaurus Festival.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus

1821 BICENTENNIALPREMIERETHEATRE

Anestis Azas The Republic of Baklava

2629/07 21:00

Anestis Azas’ new play, part of the 1821 Bicentennial tribute, is set in modern-day Greece, and can be classified as part-documentary, partfiction, though it boasts a fictional plot. Featuring a mixed-race couple, a Greek man and a Turkish woman, who decide to form their own nation state using their home and private business as headquarters, this performance theatrically renegotiates tensions that have been active since the Greek Revolution to this day. Through a number of hilarious situations, the heroes are confronted with the contradictions of contemporary Greek society, the problematics of national identity, and the utopian reality of a future, global digital nation, taking us, the audience, along for the ride.

Peiraios 260 (E)

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THEATRE

Argyro Chioti The Frogs by Aristophanes

0911/07 21:00

CULTURE

Does Poetry have a place in a seemingly prosperous society? In this hilarious and thoughtful satire, Aristophanes depicts a descent to the Underworld, in quest of the poet that will save the ailing city. The poetic duel between Euripides and Aeschylus is sidesplittingly funny as well as giving us food for thought, especially in our current times of cultural poverty, with poetry more instrumental than ever in securing some form of social unity. The play will be presented in a new, modern Greek translation by poet and translator Nikos A. Panagiotopoulos, in this performance directed by talented Argyro Chioti in her debut at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus.

The text will be published as part of the Festival’s newly launched theatre book series, featuring Nikos A. Panagiotopoulos’ new translation, with an introduction and a complete list of previous productions of the play by Professor Agis .

With Greek and English surtitles Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus

In August MUSIC 04/08 21:00

Brothers Brian Eno and Roger Eno have been recording together since 1983. They first collaborated with Daniel Lanois on the soundtrack to For All Mankind, Al Reinert’s epic documentary on the Apollo moon landing and released as the highly acclaimed album, Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks. They have also contributed to soundtracks for the films Dune (1984) and Opera (1987), and were nominated for a BAFTA award for their score to Danny Boyle’s TV series, Mr. Wroe’s Virgins (1993). In 2020. the duo released their first full collaboration album, Mixing Colours, on the prestigious Deutsche Grammophon label. It has received very enthusiastic reviews around the world and was followed by a 6 track EP, Luminous, later in the same year. At the Odeon of Herodes Atticus we will enjoy a spectacular concert with the two brothers creating atmospheric musical landscapes in this iconic Roman site. This will be a unique musical event as the two creators appear together on stage for the first time, one of the very rare occasions that Brian Eno has ever performed live in front of an audience.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus athens insider | 25 |

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Brian Eno & Roger Eno, Live at the Acropolis

In September

MUSIC

Rugile Barzdziukaite - Vaiva Grainyte Lina Lapelyte Sun and Sea – An Opera-Performance

0102/09 21:00

A sunny day on a dreamy, sandy beach. A host of bodies sunbathing, singing, telling their stories, talking in unison and becoming a Chorus. At the crossroads of theatre, music, and visual arts, the visually stunning opera-performance Sun and Sea highlights the connection between realism and poetry in an emotional manner. The performance represented Lithuania in the 2019 Venice Biennale, where it won the Golden Lion for Best National Participation.

Audiences may freely enter and exit the performance venue at all times Peiraios 260 (D)

THEATRE

0204/09 21:00

TR Warszawa Kornél Mundruczo Pieces of a Woman

A traumatic experience marks the beginning of a complete turnaround. Thirty-year-old Maja loses her baby. Will she be able to find the motivation necessary to fight for herself?

Will she be able to reclaim her personal freedom? Following his captivating Imitation of Life, presented at the 2018 Athens Festival, internationally acclaimed film and theatre director Kornél Mundruczó and the TR Warszawa’s ensemble deliver an absorbing family drama, centred around a woman in modern-day Warsaw. The story of Pieces of a Woman, based on Kata Wéber’s script, was recently adapted by Mundruczó into a motion picture.

The performance contains strobe lights.

With Greek and English surtitles Duration 2 hours 40 mins Peiraios 260 (H) athens insider | 26 |

CULTURE

THEATRE - PERFORMANCE

Florentina Holzinger TANZ

0910/09 21:00

How can the cult of beauty inherent in the tradition of dance be reconciled with the cruelty to which female bodies are exposed through this form of art? Third part of a trilogy about body as a spectacle and its disciplining, TANZ by Austrian Florentina Holzinger focuses on the legacy of classical dance.

Performers between the ages of twenty and eighty, under the direction of the first ballerina to dance Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring naked, back in 1972, undergo rigorous training in a ballet d’action. In an operatic setting, the frantic quest for perfection in an ephemeral world comes alive through brutal, parodic images.

Viewer discretion is advised: The performance contains scenes of nudity, self-harm acts, and stroboscopic effects.

Duration 110’ Peiraios 260 (D)

DANCE

Martin Zimmermann Eins Zwei Drei

0910/09 21:00

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Museum: a seemingly neutral space, with its own set of rules. What happens when three clowns show up and turn everything upside down? Three virtuoso performers unleash their talents against the backdrop of an impressive setting, a total work of art, a miniature of our society, to the sounds of pianist Colin Vallon. A hilarious spectacle, mirroring the complexity, violence and poetry of contemporary relationships and power struggles.

Above all, a clown performance for grownups!

Peiraios 260 (H) athens insider | 27 |

THEATRE

17-

19/09 Nowy Teatr – 20:00 Krzysztof Warlikowski Odyssey. A Story for Hollywood

Drawing on the Homeric theme of ‘return home’, renowned Polish director Krzysztof Warlikowski creates a brand-new performance revolving around a woman’s Odyssey of sorts during World War II, inspired by Homer’s epic and two works by Hanna Krall, Chasing the King of Hearts and Story for Hollywood. The main heroine, a modern-day Penelope, risked her life to ensure her husband’s return home; a story that could very well be adapted into a Hollywood movie, as the title suggests.

With Greek and English surtitles Duration 4 hours Peiraios 260 (D)

DANCE

La Veronal – Marcos Morau Pasionaria

2021/09 21:00

Joy and pain. Love and death. The dichotomies of life represented through images that will haunt spectators long after this performance by multi-award-winning Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau. Pasionaria refers to a passionless planet. An imaginary, dystopian world, imitating the human world, whose inhabitants move like robots or statues, seemingly oblivious to any feeling. A visually stunning production with a strong theatrical quality and an idiosyncratic choreographic style that draws inspiration from hip hop, popping and animation.

The performance contains strobe lights.

Duration 75’ Peiraios 260 (H)

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CULTURE

GREEK DEBUT PERFORMANCE THEATRE

Infrarouge Marie Brassard, Violence

2425/09 21:00

How is children’s innocence transformed by the darkness of adulthood? In her new, strikingly fairytale-like, dreamlike work, Canadian artist Marie Brassard contemplates the notion of time and humans’ gradual exposure to violence as they grow up. Using an imaginative observation of her two-year-old goddaughter as a starting point, the director creates a hybrid performance, combining aspects of cinematic realism and expressionist theatre, sound arts and visual arts.

Peiraios 260 (D)

DANCE

Serge Aimé Coulibaly Wakatt

2930/09 21:00

How can we be open to different visions for the future? For Belgian-Burkinabe choreographer Serge Aimé Coulibaly, the universal language of dance tackles complex issues, calling our certainties into question. Bringing together movement and rhythm, the energy of dance feeds into our hopes and sets them free.

In his new, African-inspired piece, Wakatt, Coulibaly focuses on humankind’s endeavours to create a sustainable future, composing a rich, multifaceted work, featuring ten dancers and the three musicians of the Magic Malik Orchestra, performing Afro-jazz live, in what is a truly electrifying performance.

Duration 75’

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Peiraios 260 (D)

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In October

MUSIC

Hildur Guonadottir Chernobyl Live With Chris Watson and Sam Slater

0910/10 23:00

This year’s programme features a huge, world-class surprise concert. Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir (winner of an Academy Award for Best Original Score for the film Joker) invites audiences to Peiraios 260 for a live performance of her Grammy-winning soundtrack for the acclaimed HBO television series Chernobyl. Recorded in a decommissioned nuclear plant in Lithuania, Guðnadóttir’s haunting soundscapes will now be recreated live against the backdrop of the Festival’s beloved industrial venue at Peiraios 260.

The performance contains strobe lights.

Duration 60’ Peiraios 260 (H)

THEATRE

Teatro La Re-sentida – Marco Layera Paisajes para no colorear Non-Colouring landscapes

0304/10 21:00

Nine adolescent girls from Chile take to the stage and speak out about the violence against women. The Teatro La Re-sentida team draws on interviews with over 100 underage girls and young women who have experienced abuse either as eyewitnesses or as victims.

The young actresses narrate these true stories, commenting on them and reconstructing many of the incidents narrated. At once emotional and sensitive, angry and polemical, but also distant and rich with a plurality of voices, this performance begs for a response from audiences.

Duration 90’ Peiraios 260 (D) athens insider | 30 |

CULTURE

THEATRE

0506/10 21:00

Schaubühne – Thomas Ostermeier History of Violence Based on the novel by Édouard Louis

One Christmas night, Édouard meets Reda, a man of Algerian origin, and they end up in the former’s apartment. However, things soon take a turn for the worse.

A remarkable commentary on class hatred, homophobia, xenophobia and self-loathing written in a breathtaking language, young French author Édouard Louis’ autobiographical novella, acclaimed all over Europe, is adapted for the stage by Schaubühne. With gender-based violence one of the most hotly debated issues right now, German director Thomas Ostermeier, a favourite of Athenian audiences, returns to the Festival with a gripping, internationally acclaimed production, that is also expected to make an impact here.

Suitable for audiences 16+. Viewer discretion is advised: Strobe lights, aromatic sticks, and live smoking are used in the performance. With Greek and English surtitles Duration 135’ www.athensinsider.com

Peiraios 260 (D)

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CULTURE

Omonia square gets a new fount of life © Petros Giannakouris

A tale of two squares : Omonia and Syntagma

Art Historian Els Hanappe delves into the fascinating rivalry between Athens’ two most prominent squares – one that went on to become the hub of social and political activity and the other that is fast emerging into the role it was always destined to play – as a meeting point for Athenians from all walks of life!

O

nce upon a time there was a young German prince named Otto of the House of Wittelsbach, son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, who was offered the throne of the newly established independent state, the Kingdom of Greece, by the three Great Powers of France, Britain and Russia. His father had always been a fervent admirer of Ancient Greece and had therefore greatly supported the Greek struggle for freedom from the Ottoman yoke during the 1820s.

Otto grew up watching his father’s designs for Bavaria’s capital Munich to be developed as the German Athens following neoclassical urban planning concepts, and his commissions for neoclassical buildings such as the Museum of Sculpture (Glyptothek) and the King’s Square (Königsplatz), and now he is appointed king of that very same country that played such a big cultural role in the legacy of his father’s reign.

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CITY LIFE

It seems like a fairy tale come true. So it is that in 1833, he sets sail for Greece on board the British frigate, HMS Madagascar, and lands in Nafplion from where he moves further to his capital of choice, Athens, with his Bavarian entourage in tow, the royal household, military troops, artists, and renowned neoclassical architects. Without a palace to match his title, Otto is hosted by the notables of the city, such as banker and politician Alexandros Contostavlos, and later on, this time with his young bride, Amalia, at the Stamatios Dekozi-Vouros mansion, now the Athens City Museum.

Throughout the centuries, Athens had been reduced from a glorious power under the leadership of Pericles to a provincial town clustered around the Acropolis. Work is started to restore some of its former grandeur, worthy of a king. Prior to Otto’s arrival, architects Stamatios Kleanthis and Eduard Schaubert had laid out an urban plan that would connect the royal palace with the Acropolis, the port of Piraeus and the Panathenaic Stadium. The palace square is to be constructed on the northern edge of the city at the top corner where the three avenues converge, and many a wealthy citizen invests in land around the rural area. Unfortunately, their investments do not pay off as plans gradually change : first because of the cost they involve, second because King Ludwig lends money to his son for the construction of the palace for which he seeks the advice of German architect and Director of the Munich Arts Academy Friedrich Wilhelm von Gärtner, who considers his personally selected location, later called Syntagma Square after the 1844 Constitution, safer and healthier in climate. The zone around Omonia is abandoned, plots of land are sold as are half-built homes, creating a dichotomy of the city.

© BC Harry

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Paris has its own Place de la Concorde, which was first named after its king but re-baptized in veneration of the French Revolution, and so Athens renamed the initial Palace Square from Othonas Square to ‘Omonia’ or Concord Square following King Otto’s overthrow in 1862 and the eventual reconciliation of the rival political factions. Around the square, working class neighborhoods rise up. Omonia becomes the boundary between the wealthier bourgeois ‘upper side’ and the poor, neglected ‘lower side’: whereas Syntagma forms the center of political and civilian life, Omonia develops into a traffic hub with the opening of the first underground railway between Athens and Piraeus, and a commercial center where social life thrives around the popular theatres and many coffee shops. athens insider | 33 |

by immigrants. The square falls into disrepute, prostitution is rife and drug addicts seek refuge in the many dark alleys.

Tourists view it as thoroughfare to reach the National Archeological Museum on nearby Patission Street, and the illegally arrived migrants use the now cemented square as a traffic island on which they can rest on their flights as if the fast traffic roaring past on all sides protects them from the world. Omonia becomes a non-place and the economic crisis at the beginning of the 21st century only makes matters worse.

The more aristocratic Syntagma finds its counterbalance in democratic Omonia where people of all social strata mingle.

Both squares form the center of modern Athens, connected through two main avenues, Panepistimiou and Stadiou, both within walking distance.

From the late 19th century onward, large hotels are added to its urban landscape, Bageion, Megalos Alexandros, Carlton, Viktoria, most of which can still be seen today. During its heyday in the 20th century, Omonia undergoes many changes, from the statues of the muses placed around the underground entrances, to the fountain from the fifties, a landmark surrounded by palm trees, around which life swirls day and night. Athenians meet up on the square at the Bakakos pharmacy or, after an intensive night out, to buy an early morning newspaper and sober up with a strong Greek coffee at the Loumidis roastery or sip a nightcap at the legendary Neon café. With the nearby Varvakios Agora on Athinas Street, the Rex cinema on stately Panepistimiou Street, and the National Theatre on Agiou Konstantinou Street, its sphere extends far beyond the confines of a square.

Since the late 1990s and with the run-up to the Olympic Games of 2004, young people and alternative crowds appreciate the undervalued neighborhoods of Psyrri, Kerameikos, Metaxourgeio and Gazi with their lower rents, abandoned workshops that make for perfect studios and lofts, and homes for multicultural residents. Restaurants, galleries, bars, and later on start-up companies that recognize the beauty of former industrial and warehouse architecture bring new life to the area.

More recently, plans to convert the historical or commercial center into one large pedestrian triangle linking the archeological sites between the squares of Syntagma, Omonia and Monasteraki into The Great Walk of Athens seem to recognize Omonia, the oldest square of modern Athens, as an integral and important part of the city. The inauguration of its large new fountain may yet prove to be its defining moment.

As Athenians increasingly flee the center of the city for the suburbs to get away from noise and pollution, Omonia and its surroundings are gradually taken over athens insider | 34 |

Omonia, view from above© Tatiana Bollari

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Writer Sofka Zinovieff unpacks Athens

Sofka Zinovieff busts a few Athenian myths© Thomas Gravanis

Acclaimed author and Athens-based anthropologist Sofka Zinovieff explores her relationship with the city for an 8-episode podcast series Athens Unpacked. In an exclusive interview with Athens Insider, she takes us through cemeteries and bustling farmer’s markets as she delves deep into the city’s psyche.

Your new podcast series Athens Unpacked launched in May as Greece reopened its doors to tourists. Did you feel like a firsttime tourist at times while making the series?

Most of the work for Athens Unpacked was done before May. It was sometimes strange to move around a city that was much quieter than usual and which I saw with fresh eyes after months of lockdown. As Madonna said, ‘Like a virgin’, or even a first-time tourist, though my interest in Athens and my love for the place is longstanding and deep.

I hope to bridge the gap between interested new-arrival and loyal old-timer. I’d like to think that I would listen to these podcasts if I hadn’t made them.

If you were to suggest three experiences every tourist should have, what would they be?

Athens is not always an ‘easy’ city and it’s particularly hard in midsummer heat, or if you’re in a rush and don’t know the place. If you can, choose the time of year (first choices: spring and autumn), don’t try to see ‘everything’ and follow the habits of the locals.

First, stroll through Athens’ neighbourhoods, stopping for coffee, drinks and meals.

Second, if it’s summertime, go to an open-air cinema or concert in the evening.

Third, go up a hill: try something other than the Acropolis, like Ly-

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cabettus, Hymmettus or the Tourkovounia. Go at sunset to gaze across the city sprawl and watch the sea and sky as they turn orange, pink and mauve.

What was the most interesting discovery you’ve made in the making of your podcast series?

There was so much that I learnt from the various interviewees – not to mention all the people who helped me in discussions about Athens behind the scenes but who weren’t interviewed. I first came to Greece as a social anthropologist and the habit of being curious and interested has kept my relationship with the place fresh and lively. I’m a great believer that the more you understand a place, the more you can appreciate it. So for example, I loved hearing more about the history of Athenian architecture, the links to Greek identity and the great traumas of the 20th century.

I was fascinated to discover from Athens Insider’s very own Sudha Nair-Iliades about the real-life rivalry between shipping magnates Onassis and Niarchos in the 1960s and the on-going rivalry between the cultural foundations that bear their names. Perhaps most surprising was going underground with Water Board employee and Urban Dig community arts activist to see Hadrian’s Aqueduct (episode 1). A 22 km tunnel built almost 2,000 years ago during Hadrian’s reign, it provided water for the city and is still functioning today; a true living monument.

ing to be overtaken at speed on the inside lane or find cars parked across the pavement. But it’s mostly because so many people are killed and injured on the roads. But I have a three-pronged solution which I think should be immediately taken up by the authorities! It would help reduce unemployment by hiring numerous monitors/municipal police to catch speeders; it would make lots of money for the municipalities with fines; and best of all, it would help reduce the terrible statistics of crashes. What’s not to like?

What do you find most seductive?

Not much beats wandering around Athenian backstreets on a warm evening with the scent of jasmine in the air and a sprig of basil behind your ear. I adore the city’s amazing aromas and dedicated a whole section of episode 4 to attempting to ‘bottle’ Athens’ scents as a perfume. Add some music by one of the great old Athenian songwriters like Hatzidakis or Theodorakis and you’ve got me!

As Melina Mercouri said: ‘Greeks are poets.

Greeks are fighters. And Greeks are lovers. We do all three well. And sometimes we do all three together!”

Each of the chapters in your podcast series explores a different aspect of urban living: why did you choose those specific themes to focus on? Are there topics you wish you’d covered - or would like to delve into in the future?

Many of the subjects were things I was already interested in. I’d addressed some in my 2004 travel book/memoir Eurydice Street: A Place in Athens. So. I was happy to take another look and see how the city had changed since the glory days of the Olympic Games and unprecedented prosperity – we’ve had a severe economic crisis and a large influx of refugees in the meantime. Of course, certain things – the essence of the place – remain, but Athens has become a much more international, cosmopolitan city during these first decades of the new millennium.

It was often painful deciding what to leave out. It’s the same with writing though, and I’m aware of how fundamental editing is to creating something good. I often wished I could make a whole episode around one of the interviewees, or a whole series about the subject covered in one episode. I would adore to do more on Greek music and song, which I believe has been overlooked outside Greece because of the language barrier, but which deserves more attention. There’s definitely a podcast series waiting to be made about food in Athens; it was frustrating fitting it into 30 minutes.

What upsets you most about the city?

I’m most upset by how Athenians drive – partly because it’s annoy-

© Thomas Gravanis

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Any funny anecdotes that will find their way into your dinner table conversations ?

Walking around the First Cemetery of Athens with celebrated American poet A.E. Stallings, we found much to laugh at in this beautiful ‘sculpture park’, even if it also is a place of sadness. The memorials range from the sublime to the ridiculous: the exquisite ‘Sleeping Beauty’ by famous sculptor Chalepas, who almost always has a fresh flower in her open hand; or film star/politician Melina Mercouri’s large but austere stone, which has her husband, Jules Dassin’s ‘entrance’ around the back. We spotted some splendid moustaches on display, but the funniest moment was when Alicia pointed out a stone angel with a decided resemblance to Benedict Cumberbatch! (episode 7).

How different are the creative processes of writing books set in Athens to making a podcast about the city?

The two processes are shockingly different! I’ve loved listening to podcasts for many years – when I’m cooking, walking, driving or travelling – but that doesn’t mean I automatically knew how to make one.

When the focus is on the listening experience, it’s unlike reading.

Sounds, pauses, and music running underneath the words become vital. And whereas a written (or filmed) interview might be able to run on longer, on audio, it has to be straight to the point or the listener can drift off; I have certain favourite podcasts (which I won’t name) for helping me get to sleep! So yes, crisp sound bites had to be coaxed and clipped into existence! And it was a steep learning curve for me, being accustomed to the written word as my medium.

I suspect that my next book will be influenced by the podcast experience and will be closer to the spoken word, which may be a good thing.

I’ve written about Athens in two novels and the latest, Putney, is available on audiobook for those who prefer to listen. The research for my first novel, The House on Paradise Street, helped me with some of the interviewing for the podcasts, for instance, with Guardian correspondent Helena Smith, with whom I discussed the Athenian penchant for street protests.

(episode 3). It’s filled with a variety of desirable cafes, restaurants and intriguing shops. And you can continue into Mets, one of the loveliest residential districts, with its low-rise buildings, beautiful Ardittos Hill park behind the 19th Century Olympic Stadium and the First Cemetery (episode 7).

Kypseli is another place that has changed dramatically. Starting as a middle-class residential neighbourhood, it became a fashionable, society meeting place in the 1960s. Following a steep decline in its fortunes, many migrants found cheap housing there. Recently, it’s gone up in the world. The municipal marketplace in now a trendy, multicultural hub and the leafy pedestrian street of Fokionos Negri has resumed its position as a delightful and more cosmopolitan place to stroll, people watch and stop for a coffee or genuine Syrian felafel.

For a third choice, try crossing Syngrou Avenue from Koukaki, the now fashionable area below the Acropolis Museum, and going into Neos Kosmos (or “New World”). This was a neighbourhood for refugees from Asia Minor, who fled the 1922 ‘Catastrophe’ (episode 3).

Until the 1960s there were remnants of their shanty town shacks, though now all you can see are the old Bauhaus style refugee buildings of Dourgouti. Other attractions include the fabulous Onassis Stegi cultural centre and the new Museum of Contemporary Art in the former Fix Beer factory.

Three neighborhoods that tourists often overlook that best channel Athens’ new energy?

We’re spoilt for choice in this category. The old favourites of Plaka and Monastiraki are great and I’d recommend everyone take the classic walk around the base of the Acropolis, past the Theatre of Herodes Atticus and Philopappos Hill. But there are plenty of other areas to choose from that show another side to this complex, fascinating city.

I’d suggest Pangrati as a neighbourhood that has become fashionable in recent years, while remaining true to its slightly unkempt character

Sofka Zinovieff is an Athens-based British best-selling author of five books including Putney, Eurydice Street: A Place in Athens and The House on Paradise Street. Her books have featured in The New York Times’ ‘100 Notable Books’ and Eurydice Street was listed in Oprah Magazine’s 2020 list of ‘26 Best Travel Books of All Time’.

The 8-series podcast Athens Unpacked, produced by This is Athens and pod.gr launched in May 2021. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Music, Pocket Casts to make sure you don’t miss an episode. sofkazinovieff.com, pod.gr/athens-unpacked, thisisathens.org

Pangrati’s café culture © Nikos Karanikolas

Kypseli’s Municipal Market is a hub of creativity © Nikos Karanikolas

A guide to exploring Athens Join Sofka Zinovieff as she explores Athens in a quest to understand this complex, seductive city through 8 fascinating episodes of Athens Unpacked

1

ATHENS, UP ABOVE AND DOWN BELOW

From a little-known hill to a hidden tunnel. Sofka introduces the series and herself: a British writer and one-time anthropologist, she’s an adopted Greek with a Russian name. We visit an unfamiliar hill – the Tourkovounia. Former US diplomat and archaeologist Brady Kiesling gives a sense of Athens’ geography - an urban sprawl surrounded by mountains and sea.

Sofka goes down below for a taste of the remarkable riches lying underground and pays her respects to the city’s most famous skeleton.

George Sachinis - a community artist with Urban Dig and a Water Board employee, leads us inside an aqueduct tunnel built by the Emperor Hadrian, which is still functioning after 2,000 years.

ATHENS, FROM DREAMS TO DEMOLITION

2

From Bavarian grand plans to “part-exchange” building schemes.When Greece became an independent nation state in the 1830s, King Otto arrived with his Bavarian entourage. They introduced beer… and planned a new Athens inspired by ancient aesthetics. Sofka meets architect Lazaris Zaoussis at the neoclassical Academy to discuss this city of dreams.

During the 20th century most neoclassical buildings were destroyed. Architectural historian Ioanna Theocharopoulou unpacks the controversial ‘part exchange’ building system of antiparochi. Some people blame this for Athens’s chaotic collection of apartment blocks.

‘Athens is a city of the 20th century’. Famous journalist Nikos Vatopoulos shares his obsession with documenting the stories behind the buildings.

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View of Athens from the Lycabette.

Polytechnio.

ATHENS, A CITY OF VILLAGES

3

Athens as a collection of villagers, refugees and outsiders.

Few Athenians are so-called ‘True Athenians.’ Author and journalist Diane Shugart walks Sofka around the changing neighbourhood of Pangrati to discuss this, the ‘15-minute city’ and why the kiosk or periptero is so significant. Anthropologist Roxane Caftanzoglou reveals how Anafiotika, under the Acropolis, was built by islanders from Anafi.

Refugees are nothing new in Athens. Historian Nikos Nikolaides unpacks the traumas of the Greek refugees fleeing Turkey in the 1922 ‘Catastrophe.’ From Armenians in Neos Kosmos to Syrians in Kypseli, where Marina Liakis discusses how she started the NGO Zaa’tar with its refuge and falafel café, Tastes of Damascus.

At the Victoria Square Project there are community arts projects for all. Young director Niovi Zarambouka-Chatzimanou says, ‘We do not talk about refugees and migrants inside our space; we talk about neighbours.’

Under the Acropolis.

ATHENS, FEASTING AND FASTING From Farmers’ markets to kite-flying picnics.

Athenians love their weekly street markets and chef and food writer Carolina Doriti takes Sofka around one to discuss Athenian culinary habits. Seasonal cooking, the monastery tradition and a recent return to traditions.

4

Author and cookery writer Diana Farr Louis picks wild greens in a park. Why are horta the popular basis of the Mediterranean diet, while also provoking collective memories of hunger ? The Greek calendar is filled with fasting days, but the first day of Lent has become a joyful opportunity to have a picnic feast and fly a kite.

Sofka tries to ‘bottle’ Athens as a perfume.

From ‘high notes’ of herbs and bitter orange blossom, the low notes include Frankincense and a plume of traffic fumes.

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5

ATHENS, TAKING TO THE STREETS

From ancient philosophers and open-air cinema to protest marches and street dogs. Athenians have always lived much of their lives outdoors.

Writer and journalist Bruce Clark gives the long view back to Socrates, and we drop by the former gasworks Technopolis to learn from Anna Gagga about summer concerts.

Legendary Guardian correspondent Helena Smith meets Sofka in central Syntagma Square to look back over the many protests and celebrations that have happened there. Foteini Pipi reveals how Athens Pride is changing attitudes towards the LGBTQ community.

We unpack the political and cultural significance of Athens’ Polytechnic and the edgy neighbourhood of Exarchia with Architect Stavros Martinos.

And we hear the secret confessions of a graffiti tagger.

Gay Pride

ATHENS, SONGS AND POEMS From popular songs to great poets. Sofka meets Lysandros Falireas, founder of the fusion band Imam Baildi. They unpack how the Asia Minor refugees of 1922 established rembetika (or ‘Greek blues’) in Athens.

6

Former UK Ambassador, John Kittmer, reveals his deep love for the poet Yiannis Ritsos who collaborated with Theodorakis when both were imprisoned by the Junta.

Finally, translator and bicycle tour guide Joshua Barley dives into why dimotika traditional village ‘folk’ songs are so popular in Athens.

Trova, by Nikos Maraveyas.

Maraveyas Ilegal Trova.

Former British Ambassador John Kittmer and scholar on Greek poet Yiannis Ritsos (seen here at the British Embassy in Athens under a portrait of Lord Byron. Image by Kostas Mpekas)

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The celebrated singer Elly Paspala discusses her collaboration with two of the greatest Greek composers: Mikis Theodorakis and Manos Xatzidakis and how they used poetry from Nobel-prize-winning Greek poets.

CITY LIFE

ATHENS, BIRTH AND DEATH THE ATHENIAN WAY Greek Orthodoxy and its customs. Athenians remain attached to the traditions of the Orthodox Church. Prize-winning poet American poet A.E. Stallings walks us around the First Cemetery – a beautiful sculpture park that reveals the Athenian way of death.

And we visit Papios, a shop selling kollyva or food for mourning the dead.

7

Sofka calls up her koumbara (Georgina Solo, the mother of her goddaughter) to discuss why what anthropologists call ‘spiritual kinship’ is so important. Greek baptisms often involve a level of drama and UK cellist Chris Humphrys revisits the church where he experienced full immersion as an adult.

Why are name days more significant than birthdays and what part do priests play in removing the evil eye?

First cemetery of Athens.

August 2017

ATHENS, FROM BENEFACTORS TO BUSKERS

Billy Gee & Grams Alex Martinez, “All dogs go to heaven”.

How high & low cultures co-exist. The financial crisis hit Athens hard, but the arts flourished - against the odds. Germany’s massive Documenta14 arts festival transferred to Athens, ambitious cultural foundations mushroomed and street arts blossomed.

8

Sofka visits the new Niarchos cultural centre and talks with magazine publisher Sudha Nair Iliades about big benefactors. Shipping magnates Onassis and Niarchos were rivals in love; their foundations now compete over their cultural legacies. We go to the lively neighbourhood of Psirri and seek out street art with George Papam (or Papamattheakis).

British cellist Chris Humphrys joined the ‘Camerata’ or Armonia Atenea orchestra when it was founded 30 years ago. He discusses classical music and plays us Bach in a park. Finally, we dance our way out with Balkan brass band Agia Fanfara (Saint Fanfare) and street music.

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At the crossroads of Art and Crime When criminal lawyer and criminologist Christos Markogiannakis decided to encounter murderers on the written page rather than face them across the aisle, little did he realize that he’d embark on a fulltime writing career, probing into the sinister collusion of art and crime throughout history. Are works of art innately troubling?

Can crime be considered an art form? Is crime but an ugly depiction of human darkness?

Christos Markogiannakis meditates on these questions with Sudha Nair-Iliades.

We’re glad you moved from practising law to writing crime fiction. What prompted you to give up a promising career to writing murder mysteries?

Although I enjoyed practising (criminal) law, I couldn’t bear the thought that I’d be doing it for the rest of my life. I now realize that it was meant to be a stepping-stone to criminology and then writing.

And I’m grateful for it, because studying law taught me how to develop my thoughts, and practising criminal law allowed me to meet and understand criminals, both of which came in handy. When my first book in France was published and was well received, I decided to give writing my all and gave up my career as a lawyer. I never regretted it!

I prefer murderers on the written page than in real life.

Christos Markogiannakis at Athenée © Giannis Seferos

You split your time between Paris and Athens, and you’ve had crime scenes set in both cities. Which of the two capitals is a natural stage for a perfect murder mystery?

I love both cities, and I love Greece and France, the country that raised me and the country that gave me the chance to become me. I set crimes in both Paris and Athens, but in a different way: Paris, with its indisputable beauty and artistic character, inspired the criminartistic series of books, which deal with murder as represented in art and as a form of art, while Athens with its harsh exterior, often surrealistic reality and beautiful light gave birth to my police captain, Christophoros Markou, and his murder investigations. To each city, its murders, either criminartistic or whodunits!

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Is crime an art form? Would you agree with murderers calling themselves artists or geniuses?

It was an English 19th-century philosopher, Thomas De Quincey, who attached aesthetics to crime, provokingly defining “Murder as One of the Fine Arts.” This work is the cornerstone of my criminartistic books, where I take readers by the hand, and we become witnesses and CSI experts of mythological, biblical, or historical crime scenes, standing before works of art in museums.

In real life, murderers are neither artists nor geniuses - no matter what they might consider themselves to be. They are most often ordinary people, just like you and I, which is even more frightening.

Do you think that glorifying crime glamorizes violence?

This is a question tantalizing criminologists for decades. It’s like asking if violent video games push children to be violent, or on the contrary, if they help them manifest their instincts in a harmless way.

Will someone become a murderer only by looking at a superbly depicted murder on canvas or reading beautiful words describing it?

I don’t believe so. We are capable of distinguishing between reality and fantasy or fiction, between Art and Act, to put it in criminartistic terms. If someone isn’t capable of this, there are other problems, other factors that might lead them to violence, a cleverly thought-out whodunit or a perfectly directed TV series isn’t the cause; we must look deeper. Can we blame the film Taxi Driver for the assassination attempt against President Ronald Reagan, by John Hinckley Jr., or The Catcher in the Rye for the murder of John Lennon by Chapman?

No, they were just the triggers, and pretexts for committing a crime can be found anywhere. This debate on theory vs. practice, art vs. act, is skillfully treated in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope.

The perfect crime is.... ... harder than you think, especially nowadays when technology offers such powerful tools to forensic teams and the police. So, for me as a criminologist, the perfect crimes are those included in the dark figure of crime, the unreported and undiscovered ones. If you don’t know a crime has been committed, you will never look for, and find, the perpetrator.

Your books have been set at the Louvre and at the Musée d’Orsay - contrasting the majesty of these buildings and their precious artworks by taking your readers into the dark, macabre world of crime. What is it about museums and their art collections that appeal to you as a writer?

They are indeed majestic, but both the Louvre and the Orsay buildings are related to murders! Before becoming a museum, the Louvre was a royal palace and the place where the horrific killing of the Parisian Protestants started on the night of August 23–24, 1572, the episode we call the Saint Bartholomew’s Massacre. The Louvre’s walls and floors are literally soaked in blood. The Orsay was built and served as a train station for more than 4 decades since 1900. Trains, train stations, and passengers are synonymous with anonymity and are often used as material for crime fiction (from Murder on the Orient Express

by Agatha Christie, to Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith, or La bête humaine by Émile Zola). Furthermore, the Orsay station welcomed back French survivors from the most atrocious genocide of all, the Holocaust, when the concentration camps were liberated.

To answer your question, now, when I moved to Paris, not knowing anybody, and not speaking French, museums were my refuge. Standing before a painting that fascinates me, King Edward V and the Duke of York in the Tower of London or The Princes in the Tower by Delaroche in the Louvre, and looking at it through a criminologist’s lens, I realized that murder is omnipresent in art, in every era, just like in society, but no one had written a book about it! It was a moment of revelation, and the trigger for the manhunt in these two museums, looking for murder(er)s.

Are there any crime writers who have influenced your brand of ‘crime art’ writing?

The one who gave me the theoretical foundation for my criminartistic quests is Thomas De Quincey. My interpretation of what we see in art is based on Greek and Roman mythology, the Bible, and History, but also the literary sources that inspired the artists, from Euripides to Shakespeare, from Zola to Hugo.

As for my whodunits, I’m a fan of the golden age of detective fiction, the 1920’s and ‘30s that influenced my style and drew my attention to the characters, their psychology, and motives, rather than raw violence and blood-lusting narrative.

Christos’ books, The Louvre Murder Club / Scènes de crime au Louvre, (Le Passage Editions,) The Orsay Murder Club / Scènes de crime à Orsay, (Le Passage Editions), Au 5e étage de la faculté de droit, (Albin Michel and Livre de Poche Editions), Mourir en scène, (Albin Michel Editions) are available in the Lexikopoleio Bookstore at Stasinou 13, Pangrati), on Amazon. fr, and in the Louvre and Orsay Museum gift shops.

Christos’ latest Greek crime fiction novel, Mythistorima me Kleidi(Minoas Editions) is sold in all Greek bookstores and online.

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www.athensinsider.com

You’ve been researching crime in art over centuries. From Magritte’s assassin to Caravaggio’s cardsharps and Warhol’s take on race riots in the US, do you believe that the most compelling artworks are those that depict murder, intrigue, jealousy?

According to Durkheim (one of the fathers of Sociology), a society without crime doesn’t exist. So, criminal behavior, like so many others within a group, has found its place in art, from writing and theater to visual arts, from ancient Greek amphorae to contemporary TV series.

And these works were and remain compelling for two reasons: To begin with, they give artists the opportunity to explore and expose extreme human emotions, create gripping subject matter, and ignite intense feelings for those reading or looking at it, as art should engender (I love the story of Parisian ladies fainting at the realistic depiction of a freshly severed head in a painting by Regnault, entitled Exécution sans jugement, when it was first exhibited in 1872).

Secondly, living these dangerous situations vicariously, through art, allows us (the readers and spectators) to feel safe in our own environment and at the same time evacuate our own violent instincts through an anodyne channel.

FASHION

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Dior staged its first major runway show at the emblematic Panathenaic stadium, showcasing the creativity of local artisans.

A victory lap for both fashion and Brand Athens.

Words by Alexia Kefalas and Sudha Nair-Iliades

Illustration by Diane Alexandre.

The setting of the Dior Cruise 2022 show was the majestic Panathenaic stadium © George Messaritakis

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described the synergy as a “tribute to the idea of community and a celebration of cultural exchanges” In a post-pandemic world, a live event like a catwalk is even more of a celebration that brings to fashion the visibility it deserves, and also serves as a powerful agent of change. As an influential lever for generating attention and prestige, and by lending it a voice in wider conversations, Dior’s choice of Athens as its catwalk venue, couldn’t have come at a better time for Greece whose economic recovery after years of financial crisis, was tested again by the pandemic.

At the Dior 22 Cruise collection, Grecian grace and fluidity were in ample evidence along the 1,650 foot-long catwalk. Chiuri’s revisited peplos, gossamer chiffons and sheer goddess dresses were paired with chunky sneakers and sports socks – an allusion to Greece’s ancient heritage as well as an embodiment of the contemporary woman who favours freedom, movement, creativity and post-lockdown dress codes.

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T

he rain gods let Greece bask in the spotlight as they took a brief respite from mid-June thunder showers for Dior’s catwalk, at the very venue where nude male athletes took their victory laps 2,300 years ago. The stunning Panathenaic stadium entirely built of Pentelic marble, (fondly referred to as Kallimarmaro or ‘beautiful marble’ by Athenians) was the setting that Dior’s Creative Director Maria-Grazia Chiuri chose for her blockbuster catwalk.

The 4th-century iconic monument in the Greek capital bridges sport and culture, emblematic of antiquity and contemporary youth. The stadium, buried for centuries and restored in the latter half of the 19th century to host the first modern Olympics, was highly symbolic for Chiuri, for its allegory to the body and freedom of movement she so cherishes, but also through the motifs that inform Dior’s sportswear collection.

This wasn’t Dior’s first visit to Athens. For a photo shoot for Paris Match by celebrated photographer Jean-Pierre Pedrazzini, Christian Dior posed models in sculptural ball gowns against the graceful Caryatids at the Acropolis, echoing the parallels between constructed forms and ancient architecture.

Acutely aware that a global brand using an ancient Greek monument as a mere stage prop could be provocative, Chiuri engaged in an artistic dialogue with the local fashion community. As opposed to merely drawing inspiration from the locale, Chiuri collaborated extensively with Greek artisans and craftspersons to work on the collection. She

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Illustration by Diane Alexandre.

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Look 1

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Illustration by Diane Alexandre.

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STYLE

Illustration by Diane Alexandre.

But beyond the symbolism, the collection also reflected the research that had gone into its realization. Chiuri made several trips between Paris and Athens, re-reading Greek classics and taking a crash course in Greek history and living traditions. From the treasures of Akrotiri in Santorini to the Temple of Knossos in Crete, through to the Temple of Delphi, Chiuri sought to weave in cultural references without succumbing to clichés.

The collection also showcased the work of Greek fashion talent, providing them with a global platform to promote their ancient techniques and employment to keep their traditions alive. From silk-weaving and jacquard embroidery typical of Soufli to Atelier Tsalavoutas’ iconic fishermen’s caps worn by Hydriots, to passementerie techniques from the Peloponnese, the show promoted traditions tied to places.

The collection also makes references to Surrealist pioneer Giorgio de Chirico’s special relation to Greece and to legendary gallery owner Alexander Iolas’ incredible collection of ancient vases depicting the intertwined bodies of wrestlers – cleverly reproduced by Dior artist Pietro Ruffo and camouflaged on the sportswear pieces.

Look 44

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STYLE

The parade ended with a majestic fireworks display filling the night sky, sending a blazing message to the 150 million people who followed the event online. Beyond fashion, it was a blistering image boost that Greece received internationally, in this year of its bicentennial celebrations. A victory lap for both Dior and Greece at an iconic sporting venue.

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Stars gracing the Dior Cruise 2022 runway show: Anya Taylor Joy

Model Cara Delevingne

The grand finale of the Dior Cruise 2022 show blazing the night sky with a flurry of fireworks. © Myrto Papadopoulos

It was LA-based Greek musician Ioanna Gika who had already collaborated with Dior for the 2018 Cruise Show, whose hauntingly rich voice moved the guests at the ancient stadium with tingling emotion as she performed at the finale. Her structured Arachne dress, boldly symbolizing an enduring female figure from Greek lore, was fitting for a modern-day heroine.

The guest list at Dior’s catwalk show was capped at 400. The Greek President was present as were international buyers, fashion journalists and an impressive line-up of celebrities from the worlds of art, sports and fashion. athens insider | 53 |

Acting legend Catherine Deneuve

LA-based Greek musician Ioanna Gika www.athensinsider.com

Tennis talentMaria Sakkari, who had a great run at Roland Garros

Freedom Fashion

SHOPPING

Tsarouchi Pillow

From revolutionary jewellery, ceramic keepsakes, colour-soaked silk scarves, blueand-white spangled dresses and cheeky ties, Greek designers and international fashion houses celebrate Greece’s defining moment in history with humour, sophistication and style. We’ve curated a tempting collection to commemorate Greece’s bicentennial milestone. Treat yourself to a stylish souvenir of the Greek Revolution and you’ll also be celebrating the creativity and momentum of our contemporary Greek artist and designers.

Zeus + Dione

Porcelain Plate | Konstantin Kakanias

Kakanias at the Cycladic Museum It’s hard not to love anything artist-illustrator-ceramicist Konstantin Kakanias gets into – from the ab-fab Mrs Tependris to his boyish evzone, we’ve fallen head-over-heels in lust with these collectable plates. As well as with the Cycladic Museum’s richly symbolic commemorative scarves that capture the Greek struggle with vivid imagery and their tsarouchi cushions. cycladic.gr

Zeus+Dione’s SS‘21collection

by Marios Schwab Nothing spells Greece like Aegean blue and pristine white. From their 1821-themed window displays to their 2021 SS collection designed by the talented Marios Schwab, Zeus + Dione celebrate Greek defiance with a nod to its emblematic symbols and traditions.

Schwab draws on his Austrian-Greek heritage to design a fluid flag dress which we predict will be the statement piece of choice this summer. Playing with extremely structured pieces like the fermeli-inspired blouse and contrasting it with free-flowing pleated fustanella-like skirts, the result is a breathtakingly stunning collection that eschews the familiar traps of being cloyingly folklorish and sentimental. zeusndione.com

The pleats that inspired a thousand designs: Callista’s fustanella pouch Perhaps the most beloved living Greek symbols are the evzones and their uniform has been the source of much inspiration for designers. Jean-Paul Gaultier famously donned the 400-pleat fustanella, said to symbolise 400 years of Ottoman occupation. Callista’s creative team too cleverly draw on the colours and symbolism of this hallowed uniform to convert it into a covetable fashion accessory, pompoms and all! callistacrafts.com Callista

Hermès stunning Eleutheria scarf

by Elias Kafouros Popular belief has it that the nine stripes on the Greek flag stand for the nine letters in the word Eleutheria.

Perhaps no piece of fashion real estate is as coveted as the Hermes carré. Their limited-edition scarf, rich in colour and motifs, looks like a savagely beautiful garden in spring. Available at the Hermès Athens store from 26th March 2021. www.hermes.com Hermès’s Eleutheria scarf Benaki Museum

As part of its “1821 Before and After” exhibition, the Benaki Museum Shop creates a series of emblematic objects from key chains to embroidered earrings, geometric scarves designed by Pantelis Vitaliotis to commemorate the bicentennial of the Greek War of Independence.

We love the playfulness of the cheeky ‘We can do it’ charms with Greek freedom warrior Manto raising a defiant fist (a tease in these confined times!!) and the subtle elegance of Athenian ceramist Daphne Leon’s ceramics. www.benakishop.gr

Thalassa

Thalassa’s moustachioed warrior scarves and ties Classy, whimsical and revolutionary is how we’d describe Greek design store Thalassa’s 1821 inspired kleftiko scarves and neck-wear. thalassacollection.com athens insider | 55 |

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Revolutionary emblems from the Benaki Museum Shop

AGORA

SUMMER ESSENTIALS BEAUTY

Nuxe Sun Fragrant Water Inspired by the addictive fragrance of the NUXE Sun range, this unique fragrant water is filled with energy and sensuality.

Sparkling summer notes of citrus fruit, coconut and flowers encapsulated in one bottle. stores.nuxegreece.gr

Fashion and beauty essentials for morning-toevening Greek summer living.

Illustrations by Julianne Sedan

Nuxe Tanning Oil Nourishing, non-greasy tanning oil for the face and body, with double protection against UVA/UVB. Macademia and sunflower oil as well as shea butter ensure offers deep nourishment to the skin stores.nuxegreece.gr.

Zelesse

Intimate Cleanser With Chamomile and Arctium Lappa ITF italfarmaco.gr

YSL

YSL eye palette couture colour clutch Hondos Center hondoscenter.com

Bulgari

Omnia, Mary Katrantzou, eau de parfum

YSL

Libre, eau de toilette

Narciso Rodriguez For Her, Musc Noir Hondos Center hondoscenter.com

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YSL YSL Rouge Pur Couture Lipstick Hondos Center hondoscenter.com

FASHION Show

Bandeau in Canary, the ultimate underwire bikini top with a U shaped metal link.

Eres eresparis.com/eu

Asia

Tank one-piece swimsuit in Eau de rose, that sculpts the figure with reinforced bands around the waist.

Eres eresparis.com/eu

Tommy Hilfiger

Swimsuit "One Piece" in dark blue.

Hondos Center hondoscenter.com

Rianna + Nina

Athena

Tote bag in cashmere nude Vinge Project vingeproject.com

Superdry

Swimsuit, Men's special edition, Summer 2021 Hondos Center hondoscenter.com

Kendima one of a kind embroidered kimono Luisa luisaworld.com

Orlebar Brown

Orlebar Brown Bulldog Rushy Toucan Skydiver Navy Saltwater saltwatergreece.com

SHOPPING

Athens’ best bargains revealed!

When not canvassing for political campaigns, Tel Aviv-based communications strategist and University professor Nimrod Fridberg is busy scouring Athens’ bylanes for the best buys to impress his powerful clientele and students alike!

So enthused is he with the bargains that Nimrod suggests making shopping therapy the number one priority when in Athens – the sites can wait a few more centuries!

V

isiting Athens for the first time, shopping wasn’t really on my mind. I expected great food, nice drinks and some iconic archaeological sites. After strolling around the city for a few days, I had to buy a new suitcase and to upgrade my flight ticket home, shop for a whole new wardrobe, promising myself to check the Acropolis the next time round.

My fear of holiday shopping sickness was soon gone when many people asked me where my clothes were from. Of course, I refused to reveal the secrets, until now!

B.Loose

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So, my first recommendation is to travel light, because you’re going to buy so many great pieces, at affordable prices.

Second-hand stores were never on my mind, being prejudiced that those stores are for cheap hipsters. Well, I wasn’t completely wrong, but I spent almost a day at the Kilo store located in Ermou, part of a Francebased chain store. Clear half a day for fun gems hunting in a clean 2 floors store. From stylish Kimonos, jeans jackets, silk shirts, and many more items I thought that I would use on my next Burning man trip, and eventually I was the guy wandering out in a black kimono and heart shaped sunglasses.

Round 40

Not far away, you will find my favourite store in Athens - B loose.

Don’t let the name fool you, it sounds like a maternity store, but here is genuine Greek-style with a variety of handcrafted clothes, designed and manufactured by two sisters Zeta and Melitini. I bought so many coats forgetting I live in a country with no winter. But no worries, they cover all the seasons using amazing fabrics and colours in unisex designs.

At the shop next door, you will find TRI, another Greek fashion house established in 2012 by two graphic designers (Greeks love to design in pairs?). The style reminds me of Deus but with a greater soul T-shirts, sweaters, work coats and even some art and motorcycle parts.

Round 40 offers a few known brands, but we want to go local with high quality T-shirts with great pastel colors at affordable prices - a very rare combination for men. If you desire a skater look, don’t miss The Dudes, originally from Berlin but a great fit for Athens.

After all this walking you’ll need cool shoes, so stop by Phat soles.

A surprising sneaker store that has the standards of the best online shops with better style and great prices - hand-picked shoes of all the brands we know and love, with models you have never seen before.

Don’t miss the back room with more fashion, if you can still shop.

www.athensinsider.com

The Real Intellectuals

CULTURE

Weaving the Past through Greek folk costumes

George Tatakis’ stylized black and white scenic portraits showcase Greece’s rich folk culture. From costumes that honour seasonal rituals to communal crafts handed down generations, he shines a light on the complexity and sheer diversity of Greek costumes.

Traditional costumes of Salamina, 2019.

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Engagement day in Olympos, Karpathos, 2016.

G

reece.A country where tourists all over the world flock every summer to enjoy their share of sun, sea, fun and maybe a glimpse of antiquity marvels that have withstood the passage of centuries, under the bright light that illuminates the Pentelic marble and provides the Aegean Sea with her characteristic deep blue shades.

Nobel prize-winning Odysseas Elytis wrote: “Oh God, you spend so much blue so that we cannot see you”.

Nevertheless, beneath its obvious charms and shallow endeavours, lies Greek Culture. A culture impregnated by the seed of thousands of years of philosophy, wars, and influences from other civilizations. A country that has striven to understand its place in this world, its soil soaked, as it were, by both the sweat and blood of Eastern, as well as Western conquerors and indigenous inhabitants.

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Many of us believe that we are made of choices - that choosing one over another sculpts our destiny. Maybe the answer to Greece’s dilemma lies in letting go and embracing its place as an acrobat on a string between these two main pillars of civilization. What if its role lies in being the transitional link from the Western to the Eastern civilization and vice versa?

Towards the church on Virgin Mary’s Assumption Day (August 15), Olympos, Karpathos, 2016. athens insider | 61 |

This, to my mind, is intrinsic to Greece’s customs and traditions, where the values, ways of life and practices of people reflect.

An unorthodox, vast mixture of Christian and pre-Christian, Dionysian rituals and practices, that proves the unity of the human species through diverse manifestations.

These magical-religious events take place throughout the cycle of life and the cycle of seasons to signify transitions from the old to the fresh new status. It is not by chance that Christian traditions have settled on top of pre-Christian ones. It has occurred because through these practices, people tried to enfold their needs and desires that are common within our species.

Thus, where some communities expressed these needs through religious rituals, rural societies may have expressed the same needs by the use of zoomorphic (e.g. bell bearers) and phytomorphic (e.g. Purpuris) disguises respectively. Eventually any agricultural synergy still needs the aid of nature, universe, God, to function efficiently.

The presence or lack of rain for example, may prove devastating for crops. Therefore, there are a number of rituals, such as religious litanies, that try to induce rain, in a magical manner.

Tradition in Greece also dictates the concept of property. What we use does not make us its owners. This fact can shed light upon the reluctance of selling ancestral property or fortune. A house that was inherited by our parents, may be ours for now, but it won’t be ours forever. Instead, we are impelled to keep it safe and sound and pass it on to the next generation.

The same goes for traditional costumes, which have been the subject of my work for the past few years, for a project I like to call “Caryatis”.

Traditional costumes in Greece require significant effort by a number of people. Often, a number of family or community members from many generations before, have contributed to create the costume by hand.

We can now understand the emotional bond that the owner has with this set of clothing. Necklaces that complement a costume may be worth a fortune, but they are not to be sold, only made richer for the next generation. Although the costumes may not be worn during day-to-day activities, on many occasions, they are at hand to be worn during annual celebrations, or events related to the cycle of life.

This concept of “ownership” is reflected in the work “Caryatis” where traditional costumes are combined with environments, usually signifying ancestral, inherited property, through its architectural and other material features.

The journey’s outcome shows that no matter how different customs and traditions may seem at the beginning, they share many similarities. This is because people have always been people, with similar sensitivities and needs. This work attempts to depict the ability of people to come close through their differences, thus presenting a more complex but interesting approach which may help avoid the danger of monotony in our modern lives.

Traditional costume. Koufonissi. 2019 athens insider | 62 |

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George Tatakis exhibits his works internationally at renowned institutions such as the Benaki Museum and the Fragonard Museum. His works have featured in the National Geographic and LFI. His numbered and signed prints are available at the Benaki Museum.

Tourism: Safety and Sustainability UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili underscores the importance of a coordinated approach to make travelling safe and seamless, to rebuild trust and confidence.

Secretary General, Welcome to Athens. Athens hosts the UNWTO as the world opens up after ’the worst year in tourism history.’’

How does an industry recover from a 90% dip in arrivals?

First and foremost, we must work together. Coordination and harmonization are the two important principles as we work towards restoring trust and confidence of the travellers. Restrictions and uncertainties at every stage of the journey are damaging at this point, when the demand is high but confidence is still very fragile.

And the only way to work around them is to coordinate measures and harmonize protocols to make travelling safe and seamless.

As the minister of economic development in Georgia, you helped tourism kick off in your country, doubling tourist arrivals within a year. What advice would you offer to tourism ministers trying to deal with constantly changing travel-related challenges?

Again, the solution is in collaboration. Both among national stakeholders and with international partners. We are stronger together. And we can transform this crisis into an opportunity to build a stronger, more resilient and inclusive tourism of tomorrow. This pandemic has forced us to look into the mirror and see how we can do things differently. We must prioritize sustainability and innovation, both these can drive the future development of our sector. We must offer new products, new ways of travel. Now more than ever, we must adapt to the needs and priorities of the travellers.

What has impressed you most about Greece’s post-pandemic tourism strategy? Do you think Greece’s insistence on a digital vaccination card is the way forward?

Greece is one of the leading European if not global destinations.

And Greece has shown great leadership throughout this pandemic, working hard towards a safe restart of tourism. I am very proud of our close partnership with the Greek Ministry of Tourism, and in particular Minister Theoharis. But what is more, it is clear that the political commitment to restarting tourism in Greece comes across the board. PM Mitsotakis had a pivotal role in the establishment of the EU Digital Green Certificate, which will help reactivate tourism across Europe. We believe the adoption of this mechanism is absolutely crucial at this point and hope to see it replicated in other regions of the world - because of three crucial features: it is not discriminatory, meaning it takes into account different realities - vaccination, testing and recovery; it provides all the safety guarantees in terms of privacy and authenticity; and finally its use is limited to the duration of the pandemic.

For a small country like Greece, heavily reliant on tourism, what support does UNWTO offer to train tourism professionals and tourism-related businesses?

Training and education are of the essence as we prepare to safely restart tourism. Travellers have changed during this pandemic and this will change tourism as a whole. Tourism professionals must be prepared for the new circumstances and we can only achieve that by investing in human capital, including through capacity building.

UNWTO has intensified our training and education programmes, for example through the UNWTO Academy and continue to prioritize this as one of the main pillars of our work.

A part of the UNWTO sessions here will be aboard a cruise ship in Piraeus Port, the gateway to the Greek islands and a popular pit stop for Mediterranean cruises. What reassurances can you offer cruise industry operators that they will not be stranded on the high seas.

Tourism is the most severely affected economic sector in this crisis, and within the context of tourism, cruise industry is probably the one that has suffered the greatest losses after coming to a complete standstill of its operations for over a year. But we have seen great efforts by all the relevant stakeholders under the leadership of the Cruise Lines International Association. Working closely with experts from different specialties and across the globe, they have implemented all the necessary measures to ensure that passengers can return to the ships and enjoy a safe experience.

Tourism is a driver of economic growth. It is also a driving force in protecting natural and cultural heritage, preserving them for future generations to enjoy.

Do you believe that the fragmented approach by countries was partially responsible for a collapse in trust?

Protecting the health of their citizens was understandably and rightfully the main priority of every national government during the hardest times of the pandemic. We will never know how things would have rolled up if decisions were made differently. What we do know is that, moving forward, we must ensure a more coordinated approach in order to make travelling easy again.

What is your outlook for the travel industry?

Sustainability has certainly gained momentum and will continue to be highly valued by all consumers, including tourists. At the moment, we anticipate tourism to rebound fully in 2022, though a return to pre-pandemic levels of international tourism arrivals is only likely to happen by the end of 2024.

What strikes you as a visitor to Greece?

I am impressed by the unique cultural and historic heritage along with the beautiful landscapes and rich gastronomy.

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PEOPLE

A Well-Being Hive Apivita built its success and reputation on the honeybee and this store pays homage to that industrious insect, literally and aesthetically.

© Alina Lefa

TIE APIVITA EXPERIENCE STORE Solonos 6 & Kanaris, Kolonaki, Tel 210.364.0560 Open from: Monday to Friday 10am to 9pm, Saturday 10am to 6 pm www.apivita.com

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The elegantly restored neo-classical building that houses the store was designed and configured by architect Irini Bourlou who weaves the theme of a beehive throughout the store. The first thing one notices before entering the store is an imposing massive metal door with sculpted bees flitting around, designed by sculptor Nikos Papoutsidis – an exquisite work of art in itself. The store opens onto a courtyard with a large table weighed under trays of herbal teas and plates heaped with pastries and Turkish delights, encircling a beautifully sculpted olive tree, created by Constantine Valais. The ground floor hosts the beauty store, with regular Apivita products from bath gels to skin creams while the first floor is home to the Natural Pharmacy where pharmacists with years of experience and research create customized therapies and products on request. The apiary theme flows throughout the store with drawers and tables made of beehive crates. This floor also stocks a wide range of honey, each distinct in its flavour and remedial properties. Across the Natural Pharmacy, on the same floor, is Juicy Bee, an organic health bar that serves freshly blended smoothies and juices, both sweet and savoury.

The Juicy Bee is the first organic Juice Bar in Greece with original, fresh, energizing and detoxifying recommendations for those who’d like to boost their everyday life with natural energy.

In keeping with its integrated and holistic approach to health and beauty, Apivita regularly hosts nutrition workshops, meditation sessions, art exhibitions and as a platform for exchanging books and ideas on healthy Large paintings depicting the Greek landscape dominate the walls and potted herbs dot the balcony. On the third floor, done up in vivid red and black and white checkered tiles, is Nature’s Hair Studio & Barber Shop, the first green salon in Athens, with sophisticated natural cosmetic products for hair care, green dyes and expert advice from specialists. The barber shop is done up in retro style with two vintage wooden swivel chairs and old-style accoutrements, harking back to a different era.

The best is, of course, reserved for the last. The top floor houses the Beehive spa, done up in shades of warm amber and honey. With walls lined with cells and old beekeeping crates and special light effects that re-create the feeling of being ensconced in the interior of a cell, the Beehive spa offers 13 Hippocratic treatments that truly revitalize body and spirit.

Athens has emerged Riviera as a fine-dining destination Why

With enviable waterfront views, golfing greens and its forever-summer vibe, some serious culinary contenders have entered the fray to make the coastal strip from Glyfada to Varkiza into a fine-dining destination. After all, the food has a lot to live up to when a killer setting is its counterpart.

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G

one are the days of over-priced seafood taverns dishing out mediocre fare and frozen inedibles. The culinary scene has upgraded several-fold over with on-the-ball restauranteurs redefining what it means to create a luxury dining experience. At Athens Insider, we predict that the next Michelin restaurants will be one among the gastronomic outposts we’ve listed here, on the coast between Glyfada and Varkiza.

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ATHENS RIVIERA REVIVAL

Helios

Helios

Mercato makes up for a much-needed Italian trattoria in the Southern suburbs with wholesome Tuscan cuisine on the waterfront. There is something soul-warming about a carb-filled plate of pasta, cheese and cured meats. A spritzeria for your summer quaffs, a deli counter, an outdoor pizza oven, killer views and a wine list to match - need we say more? At extremely accessible prices too.

Taverna 37 perched on the water, serves unpretentious Greek seafood treats and taverna fare with flair. The taramosalata is perfectly buttery and briny, the grilled fish, deboned and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Nothing speaks more to Greek cuisine as fresh, lightly seasoned vegetables and grilled fish - celebrated here in all its refined simplicity.

Pelagos, Four Seasons Astir’s much-awaited seafood restaurant showcases the young Chef Luca Piscazzi's extraordinary talent. With evocative culinary displays that tease and provoke your palate into new territory, the young Italian chef sets the creative tone that currently defines Athens’ smart dining scene. His approach to seafood is honest and devoid of frills, the burst of unexpected flavours with every biteful, sheer poetry. The retro chic setting mirrors the Four Seasons Astir's glamorous legacy. We suggest getting in 20 minutes early to enjoy a drink at the bar before settling in for dinner.

Avra Lounge and terrace

Helios wins hands-down for its stellar view that spills beyond its olive-lined pools to the Saronic Gulf. Add sun-kissed flavours from the Americas - drawn from the unrivalled natural pantry that extends from the Andean peaks to the Amazonian rainforest, the Atlantic and Pacific oceans - and you have a winner. For an explosive burst of flavours, try the Nikkei Tiradito – sea bass with truffle ponzu, elevated with the berry-like smoky flavour of Peruvian chilli, Aji Panca. For summer freshness, try the ceviche, tinged with just the right doses of piquancy and zest. The bar at Helios celebrates a continent that takes its cocktails seriously and the bartenders really flex their mixology chops.

Pelagos

Beefbar: If you’ve got a penchant for fine meats, seared to perfection, and you’re looking to sample Kobe beef in one of the city’s most jaw-dropping settings, make sure you secure a place at one of the hottest tables in town. Chef Panyiotis Retzis promises to entice you with elevated street food that sates all your meaty cravings. Not just restricted to carnivores, Beefbar's Leafbar menu is desiged to seduce vegans too.

Nobu’s Matsuhisa Athens has been a bastion of gastronomy in Greece for the past 15 years. Its sublime, refined Japanese-Peruvian cuisine remains a destination of choice for Nobusan’s legion of fans and its spectacular locale matches the magic on the plate.

Island teeters on the edge of a dazzling bay, on its own little peninsula, on the outskirts of Vouliagmeni, frequented by celebs, models and royalty. For clubbing, celebrity-spotting, all-night parties that rival Mykonos and Ibiza, and meals cooked by a roster of the best chefs in the city, look no further than Island. Wednesday nights throughout the summer are reserved for guest chefs, so make sure you book ahead.

Jafari on Sunday nights has now been established as a weekly summer tradition where Island’s flamboyant host Chryssanthos Panas is often spotted in the company of fashion designers, Hollywood A-listers and Greek rockstars. A new venue, Island Escape offers a much-needed sanctuary for ourpost-pandemic times.

Island Escape

At Astir Beach, dining options include waiter service to parasoled sunbeds by Privilege Beach Club. The newly launched Privilege Beach Club promises Mediterranean cuisine with a twist, cocktails on the water and downtempo dance music by DJs. Waiters ply light salads and drinks to keep you and your family fueled up at your sunbed or at the restaurant.

At 40Forty, succumb to the pleasures of day-to-dusk beach-side dining at Astir Beach. Now in its sixth year, 40Forty has established itself as the go-to place for accessible, gourmet meals. Revel in the barefoot luxury of watching the sun dip into the horizon while sipping a cocktail. Book ahead to access the restaurant, even after the beach is closed to the public at 8pm.

Matsuhisa Athens

Privilege Beach Club

40Forty

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Pelagos

Krabo

Garbi, one of the oldest seafood destinations in Vouliagmeni, started life as a humble eatery for fishermen in 1924, and fast gained a reputation amongst celebrities and tourists. When the restaurant had Kraboto relocate from the current Astir Beach in the late ‘50s, it moved to Kavouri, where it is run today by founder Petros Garbi’s three daughters and their children. With a passion for food and hospitality (the staff here uncannily remember your name and culinary preferences), Garbi attracts not just locals from the southern suburbs, but from all over Athens.

At Blue Fish, Chef George Oikonomidis reworks the magic with which he wooed tourists and locals in Naoussa on Paros and brings his unique brand of Mediterranean-Japanese seafood cuisine. Its stone walls, white tables and rustic décor sets the tone for an unhurried meal. This is the closest you can get to having a meal on the water and the food here is a delightfully engaging play on textures and flavours. Perfect for pre-or post-swim meals or indeed, in between dips.

Ark

Ithaki suspended on a cliff above Astir Beach is worth the splurge for special occasions. The view, the service and the engagingly creative cuisine, beautifully plated, is a winning formula for celebratory times.

Moorings at the Astir Marina is a good pit stop for coffees, cocktails and gourmet meals with a side-order of yacht-envy. Work out your excesses by strolling along the harbour and taking in some serious eye-candy – no leaky fishing boats here, just gleaming, million-dollar sleek yachts.

Krabo is not just a great hang-out for an island-in-the-city vibe, it is a delightfully secluded bay, ideally designed for an all-day beach experience. Equipped with sundecks, this is where sophisticates come to play. Stay on for sundowners and thoughtfully crafted meals.

Blends: Part of the wave of enthusiastic, post-financial-crisis upscale all-day café-bar-restaurants, this sprawling space spread across several floors, oozes flamboyant Miami-esque appeal. It comes equipped with a private cigar lounge, doubles up as an art gallery, serves an interesting mix of dishes to cater to eclectic tastes, and has a killer bar to boot. A giant olive tree dominates its sun-lit atrium. Blends is as much a winter destination as a summer one.

Pere Ubu: Rolling with the times, this former fine-dining establishment has split in half to re-invent itself as a Night and Day Dining proposition. Pere is now a gourmet burger bar-restaurant, while Ubu next door offers healthy breakfasts and brunches during the day.

Sea Spice: Shaped like a luxury yacht with a staircase that looks like a giant cinematic reel, this is clearly the new People-Watching HQ of Glyfada. Sea Spice, Pere Ubu’s sister establishment, has just the right degree of fuss and fusion to elevate the senses without destroying the soul of comfort food. It’s bar alone with its veined marble-top should be a draw, but the inventive dishes here, plus its pet-friendly credentials make it a popular local favourite with local expats and Southsiders.

Blue Fish

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All Day Cafe Bar Restaurant Blends at Nymfon Square, in Glyfada, combines urban aesthetics with natural elements in its architecture, modern interior design with artworks, to create a patchwork of unique experiences by “blending” the senses.

19 Phoebis & Laodikis,16674 Glyfada, Attica, Greece. T +30 211.182.1711

Located at the Astir Marina in Vouliagmeni, Moorings Café | Bar | Restaurant stands with its elegant and discreet style as the most popular meeting point in the Southern suburbs. Fully renovated, it is the ideal place to enjoy a coffee, meal, dinner or cocktail from early in the morning until late in the evening. Combining the exceptionally panoramic view of Vouliagmeni’s natural landscape and the glamorous setting of swanky yachts, Moorings offers its guests a feeling of both calmness and understated luxury.

Astir Marina Vouliagmeni, 16671 Vouliagmeni T 210.967.0659. T 210.896.1310, info@moorings.gr, moorings.gr athens insider | 71 |

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A lovely place in a perfect location!

Colonial: Think lush, manicured golfing greens and elegant evenings with refined company, exquisite cuisine and sophisticated service. Dining at Colonial is heartfelt hospitality at its classiest. Open all day-long for brunches, lunches, dinners, coffee and cocktails, Colonial harks back to a different era and evokes the right kind of nostalgia its name suggests.

Ark: For a swish dining experience, by the water, look no further.

This is where southerners convene for cocktails and spell-binding views. Acclaimed chef Yiannis Baxevannis’ award-winning cuisine matches the stellar setting. Expect imaginative cocktails, a curated wine-list and personalised coffee-blends to complete your waterfront fantasy.

Balux House Project and Balux Pool Seaside: Hugely popular with families for its homey, intimate vibe, Balux manages to morph from a family-friendly venue to a chilled-out tiki-style setting by night.

The food is here is inventive, with eclectic influences. As is its upbeat music that sets the tone for the evening.

Drakoulis Dry and Raw: Its dark, intimidating entrance sends out a clear message: only serious epicureans need enter. This is a shrine to all things meaty. The chef-butcher here, after whom the restaurant is named, is obsessed with cuts, and Drakoulis is only one of two venues in Greece to serve Kobe beef.

Tartare: French cuisine at its most classic, this Glyfada institution has been around for at least two decades. In a cosy, bistro-like environment, this is where you head to when you crave a beef tartare or a Chateaubriand. Tartare manages to combine two rare virtues in the restaurant business: consistent quality and staying power – and perhaps proves that the two are intricately intertwined.

Coyoacan Plaza: Everything here exudes beachside indulgence. A play on Mexiterranean flavours, the décor here is distinctly bohemian.

Papaioannou in Kavouri is a brand new addition of the famed Mikrolimano chain. Expect good value-for-money seafood served the Greek way, ultra-fresh and simply cooked.

Nero, is a new upscale addition to Vouliagmeni’s fine dining scene at the cavernous Lake Vouliagmeni. The Il Barretto team bring their expertise to this most exquisite of settings. Dinner on the teak deck skirting the lake with the illuminated rocks is an experience unlike any other – this is the venue to declare undying love, or at the very least, to make amends for forgotten anniversaries. If you haven't added it on to your bucket list, this is one experience well worth the drive.

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addresses VOULIAGMENI Helios Mercato Pelagos Taverna 37 FS Astir, Apollonos 40 Tel. 210.896.1000 Matsuhisa Athens, Apollonos 40 Tel. 210.896.0510 Beefbar, Apollonos 40 Tel. 210.896.0510 Privilege Beach Club, Apollonos 40 Tel. 210.896.0510 40Forty, Apollonos 40

Tel. 210.890.1619 Ithaki Restaurant, Apollonos 28 Tel. 210.896.3747 BlueFish Restaurant, Poseidonos Ave 4 Tel. 210.967.1778 Moorings, Astir Marina Tel. 210.967.0659 Krabo, Thespidos Tel. 210.896.3309 Garbi, Iliou 21 Tel. 210.896.3480 Nero Tel. 210.896.2239

Papaioannou Iliou 2, Tel. 210.422.5059 VARKIZA Island, 27th km Athens-Sounio Ave. Tel: 210.965.3563 Coyoacan Playa, Varkiza Resort, Tel. 694.866.8855 GLYFADA Ark, Grigoriou Lampraki 2 Tel. 210.894.8882 Balux Seaside, Leof. Posidonos 58 Tel. 210.894.0566

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Illustration by Lila Ruby King

Colonial, Glyfada Golf Club. Tel. 210.342.0002 Blends, Fivis 19 Tel. 211.182.1711

Pere Ubu, Kiprou 74 Tel. 210.894.1450 Tartare, Alexandrou Panagouli 52 Tel. 210.968.0320 Sea Spice, Kiprou 80 Tel. 212.105.4489 VOULA Drakoulis Dry & Raw, Vas.Pavlou 103, Tel. 210.895.5655

ADVERTORIAL

Paradise is here

Indulge yourself with the ultimate luxury of being served cocktails and fresh salads while lounging on your sundeck, toes dipped in sand at Astir Beach. 40Forty serves everything from sashimi and ceviche by day to morph into a luxe dining destination by sundown. Candle-lit tables, matched by the rich palette of the sun dipping in the horizon, and an elevated menu where options segue from succulent lobster tail and oysters to impeccably grilled Sirloin steak paired with an impressive wine list, make 40Forty the most compelling choice for seaside dining. athens insider

40, Astir Beach, Apollonos 40, | Tel:+30 210.896.1261 | 75Vouliagmeni | athens insider

| 24 | 40forty.gr

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THE MOST COMPELLING CHOICE FOR SEASIDE DINING

CITY LIFE

Let the lake work its magic

Y

ou haven’t quite lived your Athens experience if you haven’t visited Lake Vouliagmeni. A lush, hidden, natural treasure, this is the lake that gives the coastal town of Vouliagmeni its name, as the ‘sunken one’. Believe the hype in this case, you will not regret your day here. Sheltered by 50 metre cliffs on three sides, Lake Vouliagmeni lies sunk in the remains of an immense limestone cavern, an emerald natural spa fed by tepid springs welling from underground and by the sea. Admire irises and green caper flowers clinging

to its crannies, as you swim in its mineral-rich, 21C – 29C waters, year-round, reportedly good for body and mind. The lush, manicured lawns that fringe the lake in the Privé area is open to VIP guests and lets you soak in the tranquility of this stunning setting from the comforts of your sun deck, in absolute privacy. Order from the deep recesses of your loungers as waiters ply your snack and drink requests.

To make the experience even more rewarding, book a massage in the secret little lake, tucked away from public view, in a magical private

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Lake Vouliagmeni, off Poseidonos Avenue.

Tel: +30-210-8962237 info@vouliagmenilake.gr

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oasis. This is one ritual that is so uplifting, you’ll want to come back for more. Stop by for a coffee or ice-cream dayside or stay back for a spectacularly romantic moonlit dinner at NERÕ, as the light dapples the water.

Brimming with the exuberance of Mykonian living, Cosset is a design store that reflects the frenzied energy of its owners. What started off as a desire to see island homes and hotels reflect character and style, has now transformed, 15 years later, into a business that has put its stamp on the design aesthetic of the island.

Theodore Zacharis and Marios Sergidis bring their singular vision to styling interior and exterior spaces with whimsy, craftsmanship and over-the-top creations. Their showroom is itself a cavernous collection of interesting pieces. Life-size baby elephants in driftwood grace the entrance. Arabesque teardrop light fittings in battered metal dangle off the ceiling, a cobalt blue gorilla shares his habitat with oversized banana leaves, there are tables, couches, painted donkeys and all manner of opulent fittings for a hotel or holiday home. A curated collection that is uplifting in its over-the-top fantasy as in its intricate craftsmanship.

Over espresso, Marios and Theodoris give us a short and snappy spin of their world.

Design to you is...

a way of living, Art is food for the soul and design is a life-giving force.

What does Cosset mean?

Cosset is something you handle with love, something that you take care of.

What hangs on your ceiling?

A blue gorilla.

Who are your clients?

Cosset: The art of Living When Theodoris Zacharis and Marios Sergidis got together 15 years ago ‘driven by a mutual passion for good taste’, Cosset was born. An eclectic mix of wildly fantastic to oneoff, handpicked conversation pieces, Cosset is a reflection of these two dynamic personalities who ‘travel the world, scouring treasures from Asia to South America, bringing soul to your interiors and exteriors.’

We started in Mykonos with established hospitality brands, and we count Four Seasons as one of our clients as well royal families from the Middle East and A-list celebs from Hollywood. The Kardashian clan even chose to film at our store in Myconos feeding thousands of Instagram posts!

What do you stock?

Collections from all over the world - from local artists to international brands such as Talenti, Varaschin, Riva 1920, Vondom, Gamma Italy and Eichholtz amongst others.

Your business philosophy?

Trust. Long term collaborations. Invest in a client rather than just a project. That’s how you get repeat clients!

What is it about Mykonos that you love?

It is creative, and anything but relaxing! It is the wind, the breeze, the light.

To unwind:

An amaretto for Marios, frozen rakomelo for Theodoris.

Vouliagmenis Avenue 44-46, Voula www.cossetdesign.com athens insider | 78 |

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SPECIAL PROMOTION

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TRAVEL

Is Paros the new Mykonos?

Paros is swiftly becoming a celebrity bolthole, taking over from its neighbour Mykonos as the summer destination of choice for sophisticates. Swanky hotels and international bastions of gastronomy have migrated to Paros. But despite its new-found attention, Paros seems to have retained its authenticity, and kept true to its character and customs. Long-term resident Elena Panayides explains why Paros’ appeal is timeless.

How would you describe the vibe or mood of your island?

Ethereal and ever-changing, as slow or as fast as you’d like it to be.

Describe your perfect day in Paros.

A leisurely breakfast of Parian wholewheat bread with sesame, local farm fresh eggs, and a cold cafe latte with almond milk at Pandora’s Box villa, followed by a beach day at Krios secluded beach, which has the divine, gourmet seafood restaurant Arodo hovering above the crystal-clear sea.

A sunset stroll in Naoussa, meandering

through the whitewashed alleyways that hide a multitude of boutiques, restaurants and cafes. Dinner at the always brilliant Marios tavern for entertaining owner Marios Tsachpinis’ elegant and creative twist on traditional seafood dishes, followed by a nightcap at...

Best spot for a sunset cocktail?

Sommaripa Consolato - it’s hard to say and remember the name but easy to remember the artisanal cocktails and fun you’ll have there.

Your favourite beach or swimming spot?

I love the tranquility of Lolantonis and Ayia athens insider | 80 |

Irene beaches, with its swaying palm trees and sandy coves. For more of a vibe and a scene there’s Mikri Santa Maria and Ambelas.

Finally, for those Instagram worthy moments, Kolymbithres with its otherworldly granite rock formations, created millions of years ago, is a must.

Where should we go for an always fabulous dining experience?

For a one-of-a-kind, truly authentic mageireuta meals there’s nothing that compares to Charoula’s tavern in Marpissa. Her family serve the always busy tables under the shade of an oak tree, and the exact dining scene is captured in a colourful wall-painting from many years ago. The must-have dishes are: marathopita with honey, meatballs, fava, pastitsio, horta and the ‘village’ lamb sausage.

Tell us one absolutely unmissable experience for first-time visitors …

Taking a leisurely morning hike along the magnificent, thousand year-old Byzantine Road, trod on by pirates and priests, that starts in the gorgeous village of Lefkes and takes you to the small, fortified Cycladic settlement of Prodromos. Parts of the route are covered in the same Parian marble that the Venus de Milo was carved from.

If your island was a celebrity or other famous person, who would it be?

Great question! Monica Bellucci who has expressed her love for Paros by visiting the island a multitude of times as prepares for the

role of Maria Callas in an Athenian theatrical production. Paros is like Monica in that she’s stunning, curvaceous, vivacious, multi-faceted, mysterious, a little older and definitely a lot wiser.

1. Where to shop (clothes, home décor, design) At the newly opened ‘Casa di Alma’ ​ named after her rescue dog Alma, run by the effervescent Rania Choueiri, a celebrated fashion designer from Lebanon for unique and sexy clothing, homeware, hats, scarves, jewellery designs and a whole lot more in a bright and colourful shop next to Ekatontapiliani church in Paroikia old town. www.athensinsider.com

2. A fun fact only insiders are privy to...

Lageri beach for the bold, brave and nudist.

3. A local specialty you absolutely have to try: athens insider | 81 |

TRAVEL

There are several: The revithada – baked chickpeas in a clay pot and lamb chops at Anna and Giorgos Taverna and the chocolate cake – sokolatina at Nikitas bakery, both in Marpissa. The Rodi tou Nisiou rose wine and the Parian all-star cheeses: krasotyri, gruyere and kefalotyri.

4. For zen moments and sweaty workouts Ohm shanti yourself to bliss at Yoga Shala Paros and Tao’s yoga and meditation centre. For the equestrian highs head to the Paros Horse Riding Center – Thanasis Farm on the Naousa-Ambelas Road and if deep blue is more you, the Paros Diving Center on Golden Beach offers all levels of scubadiving as well as snorkeling, windsurfing, SUP, wakeboarding and waterskiing.

5. For insta envy, go to: Kolymbithres beach for the lunar landscape Leukes for the oh so traditional Greek island village Aliki for the tiny fishing boats scattered in the water next to you as you dine on the catch of the day Parilio for minimalist, holistic design envy and gourmet dining Getting there: When travelling with your own car the best option is certainly the high-speed ferry from Piraeus, which takes approximately 3.5hrs. If renting a car on Paros, then I’d definitely recommend the daily 30min flights on Aegean or Sky Express from Athens International Airport. athens insider | 82 |

Innate hospitality Our story: Garbi has been a gastronomic destination since 1924, attracting lovers of fresh seafood - from humble fishermen to the international jetset - to enjoy founder Petros Garbi’s generous hospitality and enviable waterfront location.

Our philosophy: Now in our 9th decade, we are still guided by the same passion of letting our guests have a memorable time over carefully crafted meals, lovingly prepared with fresh ingredients and attention to detail.

Garbi Restaurant | 21 Iliou street, Kavouri, Vouliagmeni | +302108963480

www.garbi.gr

Wines of Santorini A taste journey into a fascinating volcanic terroir.

© Christos Drazos athens insider | 84 |

TRAVEL

Yiannis Karakasis’ new book explores the near-mythical status of Santorini in the world of wine. Written in an informative but extremely engaging fashion, Karakasis introduces beginners as well as wine veterans into the fascinating world of Santorini’s wines. A great gift for fellow oenophiles and a brilliant addition to your library.

W

ine writer, wine consultant and wine educator Yiannis Karakasis MW has been sharing his love for Greek wine through his blog, karakasis.mw, for many years now.

Not so long ago, in his e-book The Vineyards and Wines of Greece, describing the current state of Greece’s regional styles, he highlighted the rise of the Greek island wines. His most recent title, Wines of Santorini, that will be released on the 1st of July, focuses on the vineyards of the picturesque tourist haven of the Aegean sea, home to the oldest continuously farmed vineyards in the world. 3,700 years ago Santorini endured one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history. The magmatic flow that sculpted the landscape creating the postcard-perfect caldera and the black and red beaches has also shaped the island’s viniculture. The soil is a mixture of basalt, volcanic ash, sand, pumice and other lava formations. Together with its bone dry climate it forms a very distinctive terroir. Unique training systems, such as kouloura (wreath-shaped crowns, close to the ground) protect the grapes from violent winds and deflect scorching sunlight.

Volcanic wines are getting much buzz around the globe. Santorini’s vineyards gained respect and acclaim from wine critics, sommeliers and oenophiles. The island’s flagship variety, Assyrtiko, acidic, with a hint of salinity, fruity, earthy, pinned its flag on the world wine map with its beautiful structure and personality. There are many more interesting indigenous grapes to add to your wine journal though, such as Aidani, Mavrotragano, Mandilaria. You should also try Vinsanto, the island’s beloved sweet wine. As the writer points out, there were just six wine producers in 1989. Now there are 20, all listed and showcased in the book, along with some of their most interesting vintages. Browsing through the pages, one can see the ways that the market has changed over the last several decades, blending tradition and innovation and creating new styles.

Once you set foot in Santorini you know that this mystical island feels like no other place on earth. Its wines have a unique energy too.

Your new favourite might be a cork’s pop away. Mark Andrew MW, who forewords the book, writes ‘’Like any great wine region, there is much to discover once you scratch beneath the surface, so it helps to have an entertaining and well-informed guide. This book is both.

Through his regular visits to Santorini – tough work, but someone’s got to do it –Yiannis has become the authority on the history, grapes, people, places and methods behind the wines, not to mention the bottles we should be buying, drinking or saving for a special occasion.

It is this deep understanding that illuminates the pages of The Wines of Santorini and will transport you and your palate to this incredible place.’’

You can pre-order the book: In Athens: Mr Vertigo and at all Cellier stores In Santorini: At Selene Restaurant, Katikies Hotels and selected wineries in Santorini.

In Thessaloniki: At Moby Dick or at The Whale In Crete: At Mr. Vertigo Hub (Chania) In Zakynthos: At Prosilio Restaurant

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Yannis Karakasis, author of the book The Wines of Santorini

FRENCH WINES Tom Hall’s pursuit of the finer things in life brought him to the land that gave the world hedonism and still delivers on that early promise. In his quest to find contentment in the kitchens, bars and restaurants of Athens, he seeks a way into Greek wine via some of his French favourites and takes you on the journey with him.

Tom Hall illustrated by Diane Alexandre.

C

omparisons are odious, apparently. Comparisons are also undeniably useful, especially as a way into something new. They are more useful to novices than experts, which makes sense when you think about it. An expert can evaluate any given option in isolation and within its own context while someone without prior knowledge needs a frame of reference, something to grab onto.

I was thinking of the usefulness rather than odiousness of comparisons when I embarked on this mission to expand my keen novices’ knowledge of Greek wine. My intention was to ask Athens’ wine lovers to recommend something Greek based on something French that I knew and loved. Rather than a simple conversation starter this question opened a can of worms, as the result I mostly got was a full-throated defence of the uniqueness of Greek wines and grapes.

So, what follows is definitely not a comparison of two French wines to four Greek wines. It is a journey that starts with a wine I know and have a connection to, stops briefly on an island that is both new and familiar and then finally ventures into the unknown with guidance from locals who know the routes better than I. Don’t call it a comparison, and don’t whatever you do, call it an odyssey.

A vinous “grand tour” perhaps.

So onto the wines. My starting point was the Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell of French classics: a Sancerre and a white Burgundy. This first wine was an act of altruism because Sauvignon Blanc is far from being my favourite grape. I had a lot of bad Sauvignon Blanc at a formative point in my drinking career and it put me off. Sancerre must bear the brunt of this. (I’ll get to you later, New Zealand). It was one of those appellations that relied rather too heavily on its starry name. This led to lakes of overly acidic picnic liquid that only made sense if served at a couple of degrees above absolute zero. I’ve been trying to wean myself back onto it, as done well Sauvignon Blanc pairs wonderfully with so many good, good things that Greece has to offer. Seafood, shellfish and cheese (particularly goat’s) all get on with a good Sauvignon Blanc and Sancerre at it’s best is a great one.

Comte Lafond Grande Cuvee, 2016

Thinking that if I was starting afresh I should treat myself, I bought a bottle of Comte Lafond Grande Cuvee Sancerre. This wine is immediately recognisable by its distinctive champagne style bottle and name like a character from Dangerous Liaisons. An intense aromatic wine with white flowers on the nose and exotic and citrus fruits on the palette. This is what artistic young lemons dream of becoming when they grow up and hit the stage. Luscious and perfect with the aforementioned goat’s cheese.

Olivier Leflaive, Bourgogne Blanc, 2017 This wine is not going to win you any wine snob points. It is a well made chardonnay from a well known producer in Burgundy, an entry to their range. It is delicious and I would argue it’s value for money. So it’s not particularly remarkable but I have a love for this wine like few others.

The reason for that is to do with a member’s club in London’s Soho called The Groucho Club. This was for years their anonymised house white burgundy.

It was sold at a very attractive price and I have noisily consumed shameful amounts of it of which I’m quietly proud. I can remember friendships forged over this wine and thankfully have forgotten the opposite to the same juice. So when I saw it on the shelf of Cava Nektar, it transported me back to the best of what I had left and felt like a natural next step on the wine journey.

Taste-wise it’s a classic village Bourgogne - citrus, peach, exotic fruit, some whiteflower and a touch of honey on the nose. In the mouth, the peaches return for an encore in a buttery citrus mist.

A nice minerality and just a good old time. athens insider | 86 |

FOOD AND DRINK

AND THEIR GREEK COUSINS Sclavos, Vino Di Sasso, Robola of Cephalonia, 2020

So the first delicate step away from France and into Greece took me to a local expression of the same grape. This is a respectful and well done Greek version of a French sauvignon (as opposed to a New Zealand style for instance). It’s the kind of wine that I wished I had all those years ago. Exotic fruit, a touch of grass and citrus. Enough acid to carry it but not too much to pucker the cheeks.

Gaia Santorini Thalassitis Assyrtiko, 2019

No article on Greek wine would be complete without the inclusion of an assyrtiko. You could almost say that this whole piece was inspired by my new found love of Santorini’s native wondergrape. It’s capable of many of the transformations of chardonnay and is as comfortable in company as sauvignon blanc.

It pairs perfectly with seafood and shellfish and cheese but also with chicken dishes and buttery pasta and a multitude of other delicious things. While the maker doesn’t have the history of the Olivier Leflaive, having been founded in 1994 (the blink of an eye when thinking in Greek terms) this shares some similarities with that wine in that this is respectful wine making that let’s the grape do the talking - pleasant acidity and minerality balance restrained fruit and fragrant young summer flowers. This wine just begs to be drunk alongside a large gilthead bream that has been grilled to perfection over coals on the beach.

Ktima Katsaros, Chardonnay, 2019

This is one of the most famous Greek chardonnays and is made in a French style by someone called Euripides. It sells out early every year and I can understand why. It’s rich, balanced and buttery. My French tasting companion thought it was less refined than the white burgundy which is just fine with me. I can see what she means as there was a little smoky toasted note on the palette which I enjoyed. At the price, it’s definitely worth trying and definitely worth taking back to any French wine buffs, giving them blind and asking them how far south they think it was made.

Plato, a man so wise that he has an adjective named after him, said of wine lovers that “they are glad of any pretext of drinking any wine” and that sums up the point of this adventure. Greece has a cellar that is as rich and varied as any and an army of passionate and knowledgeable people who will tell you about it so get out there and start exploring.

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Ktima Karipidis, Sauvignon Blanc, 2020

The next leg of the journey is a bigger step and a wilder one. If you’re even vaguely interested in talking about wine and you’re in Athens it won’t be long before you hear the name Sclavos. The family story has many elements of the grander Greek story in it. Shipping (naval to start with), emigration (to Odessa in Russia) and repatriation to Kefalonia where great-grandfather Evryviadis planted the first vines in 1919. Everything I have had from them is delicious or interesting and usually both.

It has well balanced citrus and white flowers along with a pleasant acidity which is why I thought it worked as a distant cousin of the Comte Lafond. It also has an intense and intensely pleasing elderflower aroma which transports me back to summer afternoons in Devon drinking my father’s homemade elderflower champagne.

This may not be a useful tasting note for the vast majority of people but is one of the highest compliments I can pay a wine.

FOOD AND DRINK

Hottest new Athens restaurant openings for 2021 It has been a challenging year for the restaurant industry but you can always count on Athens restaurateurs to feed this city’s insatiable appetite for life. Killer views, vegan temples, French flair, Iberian shared plates, Cretan cuisine, Scandi-minimalism, meaty outposts - this year has been a great one for new, exciting and innovative cuisine. Angela Stamatiadou lists the hottest new Athens restaurant openings for 2021.

Gastone Grill & Spirits Gastone is a shrine to all things meaty. So, if crackling pig with piccalilli sauce, pork chops, lambchops, slow roasted short ribs, burgers and hots dogs make you salivate, head to this new carnivorous outpost by the Liakou brothers (of Cookoovaya and Basegrill fame) and their partners. Smart, casual, street-dining without compromising on the service and quality, this is a postpandemic trend we hope to see more of. The cocktails here do not disappoint either. Our Mai Tais and Old Fashioneds were just the way we liked them. We didn’t try the cheese platter and cold cuts, but we did covet them from afar!

Praxitelou 43 & Agiou Markou, Athens, tel. 2103211455.

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CTC Resto Chef Alex Tsiotinis has never been risk-averse, so, when the first lockdown put a spanner on many a chef-restaurateur’s ambitions, he dived right in, snagging a stunning property in Kerameikos. A side street leads into a sprawling garden that can seat 70 and a high-ceilinged restaurant with a design aesthetic that harks back to Athens’ Bauhaus period. Make time for your experience here – the 11-course CTC Voyage menu is definitely not a rushed affair.

Elegantly set tables, discreet service, with the heady fragrance of its enchanting herbal garden for company, this is fine dining as it should be. Pastry Chef Manolis Stithos does his bit to seduce you further.

Plataion 15, Kerameikos, tel. 2107228812

Dopios As its name suggests, Dopios means local, and Chef Christopher Peskias delivers just that – Greece-inspired cuisine, nudged ever so slightly to draw in flavours from his itinerant career. Just across the centuries-old Byzantine Ag. Theodoras church, the setting couldn’t be more postcard-Greek. We’d highly recommend you indulge in some good old-fashioned sharing of mezes. There’re familiar dishes on the menu paired with unexpected flavours - like smoked eggplant salad, served here with a deliciously sweet-pungent Florina pepper dressing, pies served with tamarind chutney, black-eyed beans with miso, smoked eel with beet puree and citrus dressing all served with copious amounts of Greek wines and spirits to wash it down.

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Skouleniou 1, Athens, tel. 2103310049

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Nuéra Contemporary Bistro Bar If it were to describe Nuera’s style in one word, it would be maximalist. A giant, multitiered chandelier draws your attention upwards, the patterned floor begs to be noticed, the green tiled arch behind the bar tries to steal the show, wide-rimmed banana trees and metre-high palms vouch for space, there are mirrors, attention-seeking light fixtures, inviting teal sofas – they all seem to amplify a sense of over-the top opulence, and yet strangely, it works spectacularly. When matched with hugely talented chef Michalis Dounetas’ noon-to-night fare (from ceviches for a light lunch to more consistent risotti if youre peckish) and paired with cocktails concocted by The Clumsies award-winning mixologist Nikos Bakoulis (those Mai-Tais…), there is little about Nuera that doesn’t scream love.

Kyprou 57, Glyfada, tel. 2108942949

Bocas Meze Greek-Spanish chef Miltos Armenis’ beautiful tapas bar in New Philadelphia is a colour-soaked, high-energy informal eatery with Catalan flair. The menu here straddles the chef’s dual culinary traditions, so expect roasted peaches with herring, sardines served with trahana, cheese and cold cuts and of course, irresistibly crunchy churros with icecream for an ultimate evening of Iberian indulgence.

Prousis 13, New Philadelphia, tel. 2102580908

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Brio Bistro We’ve been following gifted French chef Jean-Charles Métayer’s gastronomic ventures from his early days at Calypso in Elounda, to Premiere at the InterContinental, so we are doubly thrilled that he brings his extraordinary talent to two new ventures in the city that specialize in French fare. Start off with a typically French petit dejeuner with brioches, omelettes, croques and end with beef tartare and foie gras and a real entrecôte Café de Paris. Paired with a carefully curated wine selection.

Eleftheroton Square 8, Chalandri, tel. 21 0682 2777 & 146 Charilaou Trikoupi, Nea Erithraia, tel. 2108000222

Delta Restaurant Perhaps one of the most anticipated openings has been the Scandi-inspired Delta at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center. Chef Thanos Feskos, who until recently was Asst Head Chef at the award-winning three Michelin restaurant Geranium in Denmark shares his culinary secrets with the R & D (Research and Development) team, led by the equally impressive George Papazacharias, who until recently worked at the three Michelin “Maaemo” in Oslo. Rooted in sustainability and zero-waste, the duo promise to take fine dining in Athens to a whole new level.

Thanos Prounarous of the internationally-renowned bar Baba au Rum lends his expertise on all things spirits.

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Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, National Opera Building, Level 5A, 364 Syggrou Avenue.

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Athens’ coolest ice cream bars for hot summer nights Looking for some really good ice-cream, Italian-styled gelato, sorbet or soft serve? Many tempting ice-cream parlours are determined to keep you busy this summer. From long-term favourites to attention-grabbing newcomers with a huge line-up of flavours boasting the provenance of their ingredients, we raise a cone to the Big Chill. Here’s the scoop on the most mouth-watering deluxe gelato bars to hit town.

Kokkion A real and infectious enthusiasm for ice cream prevails in this tiny shop. As colourful as the charming backstreet it’s on, lined with bars, skate shops, vintage clothing stores, and record shops, Vassilis Papamattheou’s frozen treats, made with raw top-notch ingredients (and a pastry chef’s sensibility) are seriously good.

Top Scoops: Do try the traditional kaimaki with buffalo milk and mastic, the ice-cream made with fresh sheep yogurt, the tantalizing bitter chocolate-passion fruit and the delicate, aromatic raw almond and tonka bean ice-cream, but don’t miss on the sorbets either. Match your summery outfits to their delectable lemon-verbena or lemon-pineapple-basil sorbets.

Details: Address: Protogenous 2, Psirri, Tel.: +30 6981 563 511, kokkion.com

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Django Konstantinos Karakatsanis’ ice cream parlour was already a favourite on Syros when he decided to introduce his frozen fare to Athenians with a minimal second outlet, all dressed in white. This new arrival in Koukaki is one for the purists: its frozen treats are made in small batches with organic fresh seasonal fruits and local milk. There is nothing artificial in the mix.

Top Scoops: Fruit-lovers will appreciate the refreshing effect of the peach, lemon or melon sorbets, chocoholics are well catered for, but don’t leave without trying the really dense, chewy pistachio and the smoked hazelnut ice cream - as scrumptiously nutty as it gets.

Details: Veikou 15, Koukaki, tel: +030 6937395363, djangogelato.com

“This new arrival in Koukaki is one for the purists.”

Le Greche A small ice cream boutique in downtown Athens which fuses Italian expertise with premium Greek raw materials, without artificial additives and margarine or colourings. (their dreamy concoctions we are told, are at a deliciously low 8% fat!). You will be forewarned by the small queue extending at the door of the formidable reputation Evi Papadopoulou’s small gelateria wields. She trained under renowned Italian pastry chef Iginio Massari, and it shows in every scoopful.

Details: Mitropoleos 16, Syntagma, tel: +30 216.700.6458, Lykourgou 2, Faros Psychico, tel.: +30.213.041.6299 / Leof. Mesogeion 456, Aghia Paraskevi, tel: +30.210.010.1617 | legreche.gr

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“An institution whose reputation precedes it.”

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Top Scoops: In this evergreen hit on the Athenian ice-cream scene that stays buzzy right up until closing time the smooth-textured Sicilian pistachio, the fabulous figs and mascarpone and the dense Gianduja gelati speak for themselves; the sorbets are also a winning choice. As are the ice-cream sandwiches topped with grilled pistachios; chocolate ice-cream with rum and prunes; ricotta with bergamot and Aperol, and mascarpone with Kalamata figs. You will definitely be back to sample more.

Dickie Dee This is instagrammer’s heaven, Dickie Dee with its saccharin pink walls serves a picture-perfect artisanal soft serve ice cream on a oneof-a-kind candy cloud of sugary bliss. In five different flavours - fior di latte, salted caramel, dark vegan chocolate, salted Sicilian pistachio and cookie dough - they can be topped with an array of seductive choices or with a flamboyant cloud of candyfloss, Dickie Dee also offers an indulgent selection of gelati. Along with vanilla from Madagascar, Toblerone and mocha espresso, and fruity choices such as the fig or melon sorbet, you will find Greek-inspired creations, such as tsoureki (sweet bread), rizogalo (Greece’s traditional rice pudding with cinnamon and honey) and rose loukoumi ice-cream, that pay tribute to beloved treats, and brim with nostalgia! Not to be outdone, their freshly baked desserts include Carrot cake, Red Velvet cake, Devil’s double chocolate cake and their peanut butter brownies can brag about being made with 100% real organic peanuts.

Top Scoops: Fior di Latte, Dark vegan chocolate, Rosewater and Sicilian Pistachio.

You can enjoy them in a cup, in a cone or even wrapped in cotton candy with toppings galore.

Details: Voulis 23, Syntagma, tel.: +030 210 3238277

“Ice-creams that pay tribute to beloved treats, and brim with nostalgia!”

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The Waffle House With its prime Athenian Riviera locale, the Waffle House combines a delectable palette of sorbets and ice-cream with impressive Vouliagmeni Bay vistas, to deliver the “complete chill” experience. A lazy Sunday afternoon staple or after-school-treat for South-siders, Waffle House is an ice-cream institution celebrating its 20+ years of making all our frozen fantasies come true.

Indulge in one of the Waffle House’s signature piping hot waffles and waffins (somewhere between a mini-waffle and a muffin!) at the same time as your ice-cream splurge. It’d be rude not to.

Top Scoops: The Ferrero Rocher, Kinder Bueno, Maltesers and Snickers balls are pure ice-cream porn for choco-philes across the land. Other irresistible new hits include: chocolate with banana cubes; lime with basilicum; and white chocolate with Baileys.

Details: Leof. Poseidonos 17, Vouliagmeni, tel: +30 210.896.1227 | wafflehouse.com

Oggi Gelato The Italian maestro gelatiere Carmelo Chiaramida brings its expertise to the Greek capital, promising absolutely no artificial colourings or flavours, just gelato that’s churned everyday in Italian fashion. A small artisan cheesemaker in Puglia provides them with fresh ricotta, ricotta di pecora and mascarpone, pistachios come from Bronte, almonds from Avola and the fruit are as fresh as can be.

Top Scoops: Crema di mascarpone is spiked with a dash of Marsala wine, the tiramisu is velvety and tasty, and Pulcinella ice-cream, made with fresh ricotta cheese, chocolate flakes and orange is a must-try. The handheld delights served here also include pure seasonal fruit sorbets and granitas spiked with just the right dose of alcohol! (try their strawberry sorbet with vodka & mint or the lemon sorbet & tequila).

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Details: Voulis 17, Syntagma, tel.: +30 210 3246995

Epik Gelato Nestled between a pizzeria and a bar, opposite Mavili Square, with charming retro vibes, Epik Gelato source their ingredients from small artisan producers from all around Greece. There is an other-worldly, sacred quality to their ice creams and with good reason - the milk for their freshly made collection comes from a monastery in southern Corinthia! Try the velvety rich vanilla ice-cream or Greek yogurt ice cream.

Top Scoops: If you are feeling a bit adventurous, we’d suggest the bitter almond and royal dates gelato, the amygdaloto, inspired by the traditional Cycladic cookie of the same name, with caramelized almonds and fleur d’orange or the rose and lukum gelato.

Make sure to also try the refreshingly summery lemon-basil sorbet – for a cleansing aftertaste. athens insider Details: | 96Square, | Dorilaiou 2, Mavili tel. +30 210 6464105

Cats & Monsters You don’t need dairy products to make mouth-wateringly good ice cream. Franz and Claudia, a German couple who decided to leave Berlin for Athens and launch a cool, vegan ice-cream shop with a mint green exterior and an eye-catching logo, prove the point with their plant-based creations. ‘We have three cats and we love monsters,’ says Franz of their Exarcheia gelaterie!!

Top Scoops: Flavours run from strawberry brownie and banoffee to cappuccino caramel with spiced cookies or cinnamon cookie dough, so if you’re looking to cool down with some vegan ice cream, there are many reasons to drop by. Franz swears by the mango and vanilla ice-cream though concedes that for chocolate lovers, the sinfully good, guilt-free Kinder Bueno (hazelnut Bueno) and Snickers icecreams are worth every calorific spoonful.

Details: Patousa 4, Exarchia. Tel: 210.380.8748

Maraboo

“The best antidote to lockdown blues”

Top Scoops: The best-sellers here are always tinged in childhood nostalgia - so Kaimaki, chocolate, cream-jasmine-vanilla remain the firm favourites, though the fior di latte and salted caramel ice-creams have acquired a steady string of devotees too! Look out for their equally intriguing sorbets. Our hearts melted with each scoop of chunky mango sorbet, but the orange parsley sorbet is a firm second!

Details: Archelaou 17, Pangrati, tel. +30.210.724.7037

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In hipsteria lane, on Archelaou, Vicky and Igor’s cool little, ice-cream shop keeps it real. You know they’re on to something by the steady stream of regulars that throng to it, even in the winter! The best antidote to lockdown blues, Maraboo has established itself as a neighbourhood gelateria with a conscience - the ingredients are natural, clear of preservatives, artificial colourings and additives. The blackboard at the counter announces staples but also unexpectedly playful flavours that coax you out of your vanilla-chocolate comfort zones. Sample their stout beer ice-cream or their blue spirulina ice-cream, and you will be proud to have ventured into new flavour territory.

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see & do

Stavros Niarchos Foundation Syngrou 364, Kallithea Tel: 216.809.1000

CULTURAL INSTITUTES

A. Antonopoulou Art Aristofanous 20, Psyrri, Tel: 210.321.4994 Artzone 42 42 Vas. Konstantinou, Athens, Tel: 210.725.9549 Astrolavos ArtLife Irodotou 11, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.722.1200 Athens Art Gallery Glykonos 4, Dexameni Sq., Athens, Tel: 210.721.3938 Bernier - Eliades Gallery Eptachalkou 11, Thissio, Tel: 210.341.3935 (The) Breeder Gallery Iasonas 45, Metaxourgeio, Tel: 210.331.7527 Citronne Gallery Athens Patriarchou Ioakim 19, Tel: 219.723.5226

Stavros Mihaliaras Art

Eratosthenous 13, Athens, Tel: 210.725.2895, goulandris.gr

Hellenic American Union Massalias 22, 10680 Athens, Tel: 210.368.0900

Koumbari 1 & Vas. Sofias Avenue,

British Council Kolonaki Square 17, 106 73 Athens, Tel: 210.369.2333

Benaki Museum of Islamic Arts

Instituto Cervantes Mitropoleos 23, 105 57 Athens, Tel: 210.363.4117

Benaki Museum, Pireos

260 Kifissias & Diligianni, Kifissia,

The Blender Gallery

Athens, Tel: 210.367.1000, benaki.gr

Dipylou 12, Kerameikos, Tel: 210.325.1311, benaki.gr

Zisimopoulou 4, Glyfada, Tel: 213.028.0597 The George Economou Collection Grammou 77, Kifissias Av. 80 Marousi, Tel: 210.809.0519 Xippas Gallery Sofokleous 53D, Athens,

Goethe Institut Omirou 14-16, 100 33 Athens, Tel: 210.366.1000 Onassis Cultural Centre Syngrou Ave. 107-109, 117 45 Athens, Tel: 213.017.8000

Tel: 210.331.9333 Zoumboulakis Gallery Kolonaki Square 20, Kolonaki

Instituto Italiano di Cultura Patission (28 Oktovriou) 47, Tel: 210.369.2333, 210.524.2646

Tel: 210.360.8278, Kriezotou 6, Syntagma, Tel: 210.363.4454

THEATRES

CULTURAL VENUES

Pireos 138 & Andronikou, Gazi Tel: 210.345.3111, benaki.gr Byzantine Museum Vas. Sofias 22, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.721.1027, byzantinemuseum.gr EMST National Museum of Contemporary Art Kallirrois Av. & Amvr. Frantzi, Athens, Tel: 210.924.2111- 3, emst.gr Hellenic Cosmos Foundation of the Hellenic world Pireos 254, Tavros, Tel: 212.254.0000

Athinais Cultural Centre

Badminton Theatre Goudi, Athens, Tel: 211.101.0020

Astorias 34-36, Votanikos, Tel: 210.348.0000.

B&M Theocharakis Foundation for the Fine Arts & Music Vas. Sofias 9 & Merlin 1, Athens, Tel: 210.361.1206 Ileana Tounta Contemporary Art Centre

Eleni Marneri Galerie Lebessi 5-7 & Porinou 16, Acropolis, Tel: 210.8619.488 Kalfayan Gallery Haritos 11, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.721.7679

(The Athens Concert Hall)

Skoufa Gallery Skoufa 4, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.360.3541

B&E Goulandris Museum of

Benaki Museum

Armatolon-Klephton 48, Athens,

Kapopoulos Fine Arts Varis - Koropiou Av. 94, Koropi, Tel: 210.642.6573

Tel: 210.368.9502

Modern Art French Institute Sina 31, 10680 Athens Tel: 210.339.8600

Tel: 210.623.0928 Artion Voukourestiou 21, Tel: 211.210.6455 Tel: 212.104.4166 Four Seasons Lobby Apollonos 40, Vouliagmeni, Tel: 694.447.7383

Tholou 5, Plaka, history-museum.uoa.gr

GALLERIES Allouche Benias Kanari 1, Tel: 210.338.9111

Athens University History Museum

Tel: 210.643.9466 Megaron Mousikis Vas. Sofias Ave. & Kokkali,

Pallas Theatre Voukourestiou 5, Athens, Tel: 210.321.3100

Tel: 213.017.8000

Neofytou Douka 4, Athens, Tel: 210.722.8321, cycladic.gr Herakleidon Herakleidon 16, Thissio,

Agora Museum Located in the Stoa of Attalos, Athens. Tel: 210.321.0185

Apostolou Pavlou 37, Thissio

Athens Olympic Museum Located in the Stoa of Attalos, Athens. Tel: 210.321.0185

Ilias Lalaounis Jewellery Museum

Athens City Museum I.Paparigopoulou 5-7 Athens, Tel: 210.3231. 387

Tel: 210.341.8550

Syngrou 107-109, Athens,

Cycladic Art

Tel: 210.346.1981 Tel: 211.012.6486, herakleidon-art.gr

Karyatidon & Kallisperi 12, Makrygianni, Acropolis.

Tel: 210.922.7260, lalaounis.com

Michael Cacoyannis Foundation

Onassis Cultural Centre

Goulandris Foundation Museum of

MUSEUMS

Tel: 210.728.2333

Piraeus 206, Tavros,

hellenic-cosmos.gr

Jewish Museum Nikis 39, Plaka,Tel: 210.322.5582 jewishmuseum.gr

Atelier Spyros Vassiliou Webster 5A, Athens, Tel: 210.923.1502 spyrosvassiliou.org athens insider | 100 |

Kerameikos Museum Ermou 148, Monastiraki, Tel: 210.346.3552

Athens Beverly Hills

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Dr. Athanasiou is known for the Total Body Sculpting. This technique has the ability to emerge the best version of a body and make it a reality. At Athens Beverly Hills Medical Group all medical methods are technologically advanced so there are plenty of other services that you can find, such as Vaser 4D High Definition Liposuction. This is the most advanced and innovative method, started by the Hollywood stars. With this method, the accumulated fat is removed from parts of the body in a way that the muscularity is highlighted. The removed fat can be transferred to other parts of the body in order to achieve the right proportions.

Athens Beverly Hills Medical Group Vouliagmenis Avenue 96, Glyfada athens8insider Akadimias Str, Kolonaki | 101 |

www.athensinsider.com

If you arrange a meeting at ABH Medical Group, Dr. Athanasiou will be there to answer all of your questions about the plastic surgery you are interested in. He will guide you in the best possible way in order for you to make the best decision for your body.

Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology Pindarou 6, Athens Tel: 211.411.0044, kotsanas.com National Archaeological Museum Patission 44, Athens, Tel: 210.821.7724, namuseum.gr Numismatic Museum Panepistimiou 12, Athens, Tel: 210.363.5953, nma.gr The Acropolis Museum Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, Acropolis, Tel: 210.924.1043 theacropolismuseum.gr The National Art Gallery and Alexander Soutzos Museum Michalakopoulou 1 & Vas. Constantinou 1, Athens, Tel: 210.723.5857 Ziller- Loverdos Museum Mavromichali 6 Athens, Tel: 210.339.2147

Tel: 210 3616683 Zadig & Voltaire Voukourestiou 13 Tel: 210.364.0222 Zeus + Dione Voukourestiou 6, Tel: 210.323.0132 Liana Camba Boutique: Anagnostopoulou 26, Kolonaki Atelier: Laodikis 33, Glyfada Tel: 210.364.1027 Mahjong Boutique Kanari 14, Kolonki Tel: 210.362.2860

DEPT. STORES

Callista Crafts Voukourestiou 11 Tel : 210.364.7989 Occhio Papavassiliou - Glyfada Leof. Dimarchou Aggelou Metaxa 34, Glyfada, Tel: 210.894.8510 Occhio Papavassiliou – Athens Stadiou 5, Athina 105 62 Tel: 210.321.0042 Kokkoris Optics Pl. Esperidon 3, Glyfada Tel: 210.898.0850

Luisa World Skoufa 15, Tel: 210.363.5600 Louis Vuitton Voukourestiou St., Tel: 210.361.3938 Panaidis Eyewear Boutique Artemidos 2, Glyfada Tel : 210.892.0934 Milioni 12 & Iraklitou 2, Kolonaki

Fanourakis Patriarchou Ioakim 23, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.721.1762, Unique collection of animal and insect pins & earrings Folli Follie Tsakalof 6 & Solonos 25 Kolonaki, Tel: 210.323.0739 Greece's high-street export stocks watches and everyday bijoux

Golden Hall Kifissias 37A, Tel: 210.680.3450

Ilias Lalaounis Panepistimiou 6, Tel: 210.361.1371 Fabulous gold designs by famous Greek jeweller

High-end (and high-street) stores for anyone with a passion for fashion McArthurGlen Building Block E71, Yalou, 19004, Spata, Tel: 210.663.0830, 210.663.0840 Designer Outlet Shopping Centre with value-for-money promotions The Mall Athens Andrea Papandreou 35, Tel: 210.630.0000 Shops, cinemas and food

Apriati Pindarou 29, Tel: 210.360.7878 Smartly designed jewellery for the young Bulgari Voukourestiou 8, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.324.7118, Opulent designs in jewellery, watches & accessories

Van Cleef & Arpels Voukourestiou 1, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.331.0319 The jeweller of the international jetset Venetia Vildiridis Voukourestiou 11 and El. Venizelou 8, Tel: 210.363.5145, 210.321.9408 Original designer jewellery pieces and watches Zerteo Jewellery Kiprou 78, Glyfada Tel: 210.894.6682 Zolotas Panepistimiou 10, Tel: 210.360.1272 Designs inspired by the ancient Greece as well as contemporary collections by designers like Paloma Picasso

SOUVENIRS Georgios P. Voulis 35, Athina Tel: 210.331.2220

JEWELLERY Linea Piu Sekeri 6, Tel: 210.360.6125

Elena Votsi Xanthou 7, Tel: 210.360.0936 Conversation pieces in gold and stone

Attica Panepistimiou 9, Tel: 211.180.2600 Home to an array of luxury brands, designer shoes and cosmetics

FASHION Ancient Greek Sandals Kolokotroni 1, Athina Tel : 210.323.0938

Chopard Stadiou 2 & Vas. Georgiou, Tel: 210.325.0555 Legendary time pieces and jewellery

Kessaris Panepistimiou 7, Tel: 210.323.2919 Wide range of luxury brand timepieces Marathianakis Karagiorgi Servias 4 (Stoa Kalliga), Tel: 210.362.7118 & 210.322.2424 Old-world shop known for its original & elegant designs Marco Bicego Boutique Voukourestiou 20, Athina Tel: 210.363.6900 Nikos Koulis Filikis Eterias 15, Kolonaki Square, Athens Tel: +30.210.723.3783 Contemporary designer jewellery Omega Voukourestiou 2, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.322.7682 Elegant boutique showcasing the brand's timeless timepieces

Pentheroudakis Cartier Voukourestiou 19, Voukourestiou 7, Tel: 210.331.3600 Tel: 210.361.3187 Two floors of designs & timepieces by Timeless pieces inspired the prestigious Cartier maison by classical Greek design athens insider | 102 |

Anamnesia Athens International Airport Departure Terminal, Tel: 210.353.3104 anamnesia.gr Acropolis Museum Shop Dionysiou Areopagitou 15, Tel: 210.900.0911 theacropolismuseum.gr Benaki Museum Shop Koumbari & Vas. Sofias Tel: 210.367.1045, Four Seasons Lobby, Apollonos 40 Tel: 210.890.2000 benakishop.gr Museum of Cycladic Art Shop Neophytou Douka 4, Kolonaki Tel: 210.722.8321, cycladic.gr

Hondos Center Department Stores (near Four Seasons Hotel)

Agiou Konstantinou 2, Glyfada El. Venizelou 33, Nea Smyrni El. Venizelou Ave.108-110,Kallithea Bouboulinas 18, Piraeus Tsamadou 17-19, Piraeus In Central Athens

Ermou 39 Omonia Square 4 Merlin 6 Omirou 4 For more store addresses and online shopping, visit: hondoscenter.com

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useful info

EMBASSIES ALBANIA Vekiareli 7, Filothei, Tel: 210.687.6200 ALGERIA Vas. Constantinou 14, Athens Tel: 210.756.4191-2 ARGENTINA Vas. Sophias 59, Athens Tel: 210.724.4158 ARMENIA K. Palaiologou 95, Chalandri, Tel: 210.683.1130, 210.683.1145 AUSTRALIA Hatziyianni Mexi 5, Athens Tel: 210.870.4000 AUSTRIA Vas. Sofias Av. 4, Athens, Tel: 210.725.7270 AZERBAIJAN Marathonodromon 13, Psychiko, Tel: 210.363.2721 BANGLADESH Marathonodromon 119, Palaio Psychiko, Tel: 210.672.0250 BELGIUM Sekeri 3, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.360.0314 BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Karneadou 25-29 Athens, Tel: 210.641.0788 BRAZIL Vassilis Sofias 23, Athens Tel: 210.721.3039 BULGARIA Stratigou Kallari 33A, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.8105 CANADA Eth. Antistaseos 48, Halandri, Tel: 210.727.3400 CHILE Rigilis 12, Athens, Tel: 210.729.2647 CHINA Leof. Dimokratias 10-12, P. Psychico Tel: 210.672.3282 CROATIA Tzavella 4, N. Psychico, Tel: 210.677.7033 CUBA Sofokleous 5, Filothei, Tel: 210.685.5550 CYPRUS Xenofontos 2A, Athens, Tel: 210.373.4800 CZECH REPUBLIC G. Seferi 6, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.671.3755 DENMARK Mourouzi 10, Athens, Tel: 210.725.6440 EGYPT Vas. Sofias 3, Syntagma, Tel: 210.361.8612 ESTONIA Messoghion 2-4, Ampelokipoi,

Tel: 210.747.5660 FINLAND Hatziyianni Mexi 5, Athens, Tel: 210.725.5860 FRANCE Vas. Sofias 7, Syntagma, Tel: 210.339.1000 FYROM Papadiamanti 15, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.9585 GEORGIA Ag. Dimitriou 24, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.2186 GERMANY Karaoli & Dimitriou 3, Athens, Tel: 210.728.5111 HUNGARY Vasileos Konstantinou Ave. 38, Pangrati, Tel: 210.725.6800 INDIA Kleanthous 3, Mets, Tel: 210.721.6481 INDONESIA Marathonodromon 99, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.2345 IRAN Stratigou Kallari 16, Patisia, Tel: 210.674.1436 IRAQ Mazaraki 4, Psychico, Tel: 210.677.8276 IRELAND Vas. Konstantinou 7, Mets, Tel: 210.723.2405 ISRAEL Marathonodromon 1, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.670.5500 ITALY Sekeri 2, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.361.7260 JAPAN Ethnikis Antistaseos 46, Halandri, Tel: 210.670.9900 JORDAN Papadiamanti 21, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.4161 KAZAKHSTAN Imittou 122, Papagou, Tel: 210.654.7765 KOREA Messoghion 2-4, Athens, Tel: 210.698.4080 KUWAIT Marathonodromon 27, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.3593 LEBANON Paritsi 2, Neo Psichiko, Tel: 210.675.5873 LIBYA Vyronos 13, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.2120 LITHUANIA Vas. Konstantinou 38, Athens, Tel: 210.729.4356 LATVIA Vas. Konstantinou 38, Athens Tel. 210.729.4483

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LUXEMBOURG Vas. Sofias 23A & Neofitou Vamva 2, Syntagma, Tel: 210.725.6400 MALTA V. Sofias 96, Athens, Tel: 210.778.5138 MEXICO Filikis Etaireias Sq. 14, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.729.4780 MOLDAVIA Georgiou Bacu 20, Filothei, Tel: 210.699.0660 MOROCCO Marathonodromon 115, & Kondylaki 2, Psychico, Tel: 210.674.4210 NETHERLANDS Vas. Konstantinou 5-7, Kalimarmaro, Tel: 210.725.4900 NIGERIA Streit 17, Filothei, Tel: 210.802.1188 NORWAY Hatziyianni Mexi 5, Athens, Tel: 210.724.6173 PAKISTAN Vekiareli 15, Filothei, Tel: 210.729.0122 PALESTINE Giassemion 13, P. Psychico, Tel.: 210.672.6061-3 PANAMA Praxitelous 192 & II Merarchias, Piraeus, Tel: 210.428.6441 PERU Semitelou 2, Athens, Tel: 210.779.2761 PHILIPPINES Antheon 26, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.672.1837 POLAND Chrysanthemon 22, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.679.7700 PORTUGAL Vas. Sofias 23, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.729.0096 / 210.723.6784 QATAR Perikleous 2 & Kifissias Av. 212, N. Psychico, Tel: 210.725.5031 ROMANIA Emm. Benaki 7, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.672.8875 RUSSIA Nikiforos Lytra 28, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.672.5235 SAUDI ARABIA Palaiologhou 2 & Agias Annis, Halandri, Tel: 210.671.6911 SERBIA Vas. Sophias 106, Athens, Tel: 210.777.4344 SINGAPORE Leof. Kifissias 10-12 Marousi, Tel: 210.684.5072 SLOVAK REPUBLIC G. Seferi 4, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.677.1980

EMERGENCIES EMERGENCY NUMBERS Ambulance Tel: 166 Doctors SOS Tel: 1016 They will issue an invoice to claim reimbursement from your insurer.

Ipirou 1, Athens.

Duty Pharmacies Tel:1434 Also check newspapers for listings.

Emergency Hospitals Tel: 1434 Fire Brigade Tel: 199 Forest Fire Tel: 191 Poison Hotline Tel: 210.779.3777

Police Tel: 100 Tourist Police Tel: 171 Coast Guard Tel: 108 Air Police Tel: 210.964.2000 ROAD ASSISTANCE ELPA Tel: 10400 Emergency Service Tel: 104 Express Service Tel: 154 Hellas Service Tel: 1057 Interamerican Tel: 1158 HEALTH PAEDIATRIC HOSPITALS EUROCLINIC PAEDON Lemessou 39-41 & Aharnon 209, Kato Patissia, Tel: 210.869.1900 PAEDON AGIA SOFIA HOSPITAL Mikras Asias & Thivon, Goudi, Tel: 210.746.7000 PAEDON AGLAIA KYRIAKOU HOSPITAL Livadias 3 & Thivon, Goudi, Tel: 210.772.6000 & 1535 PRIVATE HOSPITALS CENTRAL CLINIC OF ATHENS Asklipiou St. 31, Athens, Emergency number 1169 or Tel: 210.367.4000, centralclinic.gr EUROCLINIC Diagnostic, surgical and treatment centre. Athanasiadou 9, Athens, (near Mavili Sq.), Tel: 210.641.6600 EURODENTICA Specialized dental care Patision 150, Athens, Tel: 210.866.3367-8 Alamanas 3, Maroussi, Athens, Tel: 210.619.5760-1, El. Venizelou 162, Kallithea, Athens, Tel: 210.956.5365 YGEIA Kifissias & E. Stavrou 4, Maroussi, Tel: 210.686.7000, ygeia.gr IATRIKO KENTRO (ATHENS MEDICAL CENTER) Areos 36, P. Faliro, Tel: 210.989.2100-20 Distomou 5-7, Maroussi, Tel: 210.619.8100 METROPOLITAN HOSPITAL Ethnarou Makariou 9 & El. Venizelou, N. Faliro, Tel: 210.480.9000 metropolitan-hospital.gr IASO Kifissias 37-39, Maroussi, Tel: 210.618.4000 MITERA Kifissias & E. Stavrou 6, Maroussi, Tel: 210.686.9000

PUBLIC HOSPITALS ASKLEPIEION HOSPITAL Vas. Pavlou 1, Voula, Tel: 210.895.8301-4 EVANGELISMOS Ypsilantou 45-47, Kolonaki, Tel: 210.720.1000 KAT HOSPITAL Nikis 2, Kifissia, Tel: 210.628.0000 Specialized trauma unit.

TZANNEIO Afentouli & Tzani, Pireaus, Tel: 210.451.9411-9 ENGLISH MEDIA NEWSPAPERS & MAGAZINES Athens Insider, the quarterly magazine for Greece in English The International New York Times carries the English version of Kathimerini RADIO Athens International Radio 104,4 Good Morning Athens at 10am, English programs at 11am, music programs on weekdays at 9pm, weekends at 1pm.

Peiraios 100, Athens, Tel: 210.341.1610 SCHOOLS GREEK LANGUAGE The Athens Center 48 Archimidous Street, Mets, Athens 11636 Tel: 210.701.5242 CELT Athens 77 Academias Street, 106 78 Athens, Tel: 210.330.1455 Greek House Dragoumi 7, 145 61 Kifissia, Tel: 210.808.5186 Hellenic American Union 22 Massalias str., 106 80 Athens, Tel: 210.368.0900 Omilo Greek Language And Culture Panagi Tsaldari 13 (4th floor), 15122 Maroussi, Tel: 210.612.2706 SITES Acropolis is open daily and entrance, includes archaeological sites. Tel: 210.321.0219 Ancient Agora was the heart of ancient Athens - the focus of political, commercial, administrative and social life for centuries. Byzantine Churches. many churches dating from the 11th and 12th centuries are found around the city. Noteworthy examples include: Agios Eleftherios, next to the cathedral on Mitropoleos Street; Kapnikarea, halfway down Ermou Street from Syntagma; Agi Apostoli, Agora area south of Stoa of Attalos; and Agia Triada (Russian

athens insider | 105 |

Orthodox church) on Filellinon Street.

Churches are open to the public on Sundays and holidays, also usually for daily prayers 7am-1pm and 4-6:30pm. Dress soberly when visiting. Technopolis (Gazi) a 19th century gas factory turned major cultural centre for performing arts and installation works. Pireos 100 & Ermou, Gazi. Tel: 210.346.1589.

Hadrian’s Arch a Roman arch that marked the boundary of ancient Athens and the new city. Located at the corner of Vas. Olgas and Amalias Avenues. Lykavittos Hill is the highest point in Athens. Take the teleferique from the top of Ploutarchou St. Odeon of Herod Atticus built in 161 AD, this is where the Athens Festival takes place.

Accessible for €1.50 and open daily from 8:30am. Panathenian Stadium Kalimarmaro was the site of the first modern Olympics in 1896. Located at Vassileos Konstantinou and Agras, across from the National Garden.

Pnyx Hill here, for the first time in history, every citizen could vote, giving Pnyx the name the birthplace of democracy.

Close by is the beautiful Old Observatory. Presidential Palace formerly the Royal Palace, this building is used by the President of Greece to host dignitaries. Irodou Attikou Street. Stoa of Attalos shopping arcade built in the 2nd century BC and totally reconstructed in the 1950s. Tues-Sun 8:30am3pm. Admission to the Agora and museum €3.50. Adrianou 24.

Tel: 210.321.0185 Syntagma (Constitution Square) is the heart of the city and the best spot for new visitors to orient themselves.

The Evzones, dressed in traditional uniforms, guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in front of the Parliament. The changing-of-theguard ceremony takes place every hour. Temple of Olympian Zeus once the largest temple in ancient Greece, its ruins lie just behind Hadrian’s Arch. Mon-Sun 8am7:30pm. €2.00. Vas. Olgas and Amalias Avenues, Tel: 210.922.6330.

Theatre of Dionysus built in 500 BC is where the plays of Aristophanes, Euripides, Aeschylus and Sophocles were first performed.

Tower of Winds the octagonal tower, representing the eight winds, was built in the 1st century BC by the Syrian astronomer Andronicus.

Mon-Sun 8am-7pm. Just east of the Ancient Agora. Tel: 210.324.5220.

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SLOVENIA Kifissias Av. 280 & Dimokratias 1, N. Psychico, Tel: 210.672.0090-091 SOUTH AFRICA Kifissias 60, Maroussi, Tel: 210.610.6645 SPAIN Dionysiou Areopagitou 21, Plaka, Tel: 210.921.3123 SWEDEN Vas. Konstantinou 7, Athens, Tel: 210.726.6100 SWITZERLAND Iasiou 2, Evaggelismos, Tel: 210.723.0364-6 TAIWAN Marathonodromon 57, Psychico, Tel: 210.677.5122 Representative office THAILAND Marathorodromon 25 & Kyprou, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.9065 TUNISIA Antheon 2, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.671.7590 TURKEY Vas. Georgiou B’ 11, Athens, Tel: 210.726.3000 UKRAINE Stephanou Delta 4, Filothei, Tel: 210.680.0230 UAE Kifissias Av. 290 & N. Paritsi 2, Tel: .210.677.0220 UK Ploutarchou 1, Athens, Tel: 210.727.2600 USA Vas. Sofias 91, Athens, Tel: 210.721.2951 URUGUAY Menandrou 1, Kifissia, Tel: 210.361.3549 VATICAN Mavili 2, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.674.3598 VENEZUELA Marathonodromon 19, P. Psychico, Tel: 210.672.9169 VIETNAM Yakinthon 50,Psychico, Tel. 210.612.8733, 210.675.3080

Kaleidoscope

BEHIND THE SEAMS A peek under the 400-pleated fustanellas and elaborate uniforms worn by the elite Evzones, a real labour of love, embroidered and hand-crafted by the 10-member tailoring department of the Presidential Palace. A photo essay on a unique tailoring tradition by Angelos Giotopoulos. Often the most-photographed subjects of tourists, the 6 foot-tall Evzones (the well-belted, literally) who form part of the Presidential Guard (Proedriki Froura), are as much a symbol of Athens as its other historic landmarks are. Garrisoned in the George Tzavellas Barracks on Herodes Atticus St, it takes upto half-an-hour for an Evzone to don his uniform (with some much-needed assistance). As much as the Evzones lend these uniforms their glamour (after all, only the tallest and most goodlooking get selected!) evoking a deep sense of national pride among Greeks and of pomp and splendour among visitors, it is to the unsung tailoring heroes and seamstresses who have kept alive the rich heritage of fine hand-sewing that this article is dedicated to. athens insider | 106 |

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