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Austerity in Greece - Are we missing the human factor here...?

2/14/2012

1 Comment

 
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Picture: http://www.globalnews.ca
I know... it's been a little while since I last posted here.
Real-life matters took me away from the cyber-world for a while -I'm back though; back in my little world that until relatively recently I cherished as being among the safest places around.  
Things are a-changing...

While all kinds of polemic scenarios are constantly being played out in the artificial online world via a legion of war games, a more sinister, real life drama is unfolding before our very eyes. A drama that could potentially become the catalyst for far greater woes in our once-so-safe corner of the world.

Life in Greece is simmering, bubbling and erupting with increasing regularity. It is doing so with a growing ferocity that any time soon might well blow the lid off  the situation; a situation that more and more people appear to accept as a given: the prospect of large-scale violent eruptions which at present are lingering dangerously close to the surface of reality.

I'm talking about outright civil war - and I'm by far not the only one who contemplates the reality of this happening. No mincing words here: as many disgruntled people put it now: "with our backs against the wall we've got nothing else to lose, ... we cannot possibly begin to predict the fallout, but it won't be peaceful."

A fallout that is but a spark away from igniting into full-scale civil war - the Haves against the Have-nots; the People against the Leaders, current as well as generations of previous incumbents. The masses have had enough of being lied to, of their embezzling leaders, of the perpetual yo-yoing in an oligarchic political system dominated by the Papandreou, Karamanlis and Mitsotakis families where democracy translated into jobs in the public sectors for friends, contracts or convenient law amendments.  As my neighbour puts it rather philosophically: "We all know they steal from the country, they all did, no exceptions - but now they've taken it all and haven't left anything for the people!"  
And so, when you can no longer house or feed your family, you have indeed nothing to lose...

Soup-kitchens are popping up like mushrooms after a rainy night - a phenomenon virtually unheard of before this crisis hit Greece. Many among those who have lost their job have left the cities and returned to their ancestral villages, that is if they still have property there, the idea being that at least they can grow their own food in an effort to keep hunger from the door. They heat their houses with wood stoves - electricity or heating fuel being way beyond their financial means. And they know: people tend to have closer ties in the villages and will help one another more readily... one hopes!

Recent developments have now reached a point where the ordinary people are facing hardship beyond comprehension in what is supposed to be a modern, civilized and developed European country - fellow member state of the European Union. The collapse of the economic system has led to cuts, cuts and more cuts; taxes, taxes and more taxes. The boom Greece enjoyed only a few years ago during its build-up to the 2004 Olympics which was widely applauded by the very forces that today are behind the death knell the country is facing, is long forgotten, a distant memory - almost as if it never happened. Nowadays, all that remains of the pride of that Olympic moment, is shambles - empty buildings and constructions that are left to fall apart under the harsh summer sun. And then there are the debts. A veritable Olympus mountain of debts!

Let's not forget the darkest side of the coin, the sub-current ripples that don't really break the surface  into daylight yet - a subject that still carries an air of taboo: suicide.

Recent reports have revealed that suicide rates have simply exploded over the last couple of years - people are losing their businesses, their livelihood, they can't keep up the mortgage rates, can't pay bills, can no longer feed their family - they have either lost it all, or receive a minimum wage or unemployment benefits in a country that is now among the most expensive in Euroland and they see no other way out than to tie the final knot ...

 
In my book this borders on being criminal, it's as simple as that.

The suicides are a direct result of the stringent and irresponsible austerity measures that are being imposed on the country by the powers that be... or rather by those people in the powers that be who have the final word and in whose power it is to dish out these death sentences by remote control.

How easy is it to demand further cuts, more layoffs, higher taxes when you're thousands of miles away from the reality of the life that befalls the ordinary Greek citizens. Those imposing these terms have no idea just what harm they have caused and are still causing. The bail-out package that is supposed to save the country from bankruptcy comes at a steep price in monetary terms too: the moneys lent to Greece are lent at premium interest rates, and whereas protests from fellow European taxpayers who are asked to dig deep into their pocket to help out can be understood, I fail to see the logic behind the measures that are imposed and which are supposed to create an economically sound base when thousands of businesses are folding, and unemployment figures are at record highs! The concrete employment policies that our European leaders have been promising us for decades now are nowhere to be seen... Why? Because there aren't any; the so-called experts and know-it-alls haven't got a clue as to how to solve the pan-European problem of unemployment, while at the same time the many European schemes that saw the light of day over the last couple of decades just disintegrated into nothingness - many a total waste of good European taxpayer's money!

These policy-makers are directly responsible for the despair that has driven many people to opt out of a life they could no longer face and in my book that makes them responsible - they have blood on their hands. As far as I'm concerned they are guilty of  a form of manslaughter, even if it is indirect. However, no judge or jury will ever sentence them 'guilty as charged' - nor will anyone ever hint at their accountability. They'll get off scot-free.
A human catastrophy, the ramifications of which will linger on for decades to come - mark my words.

I'd like to share with you an article I found this morning which actually prompted me to write this blog post - those among you who know me, know also that I prefer to stay clear of politics.
I think however that the time has come to speak out, to add my voice to those who are trying to make sense of a situation that is rapidly getting out of hand...

We need leadership that offers real answers, answers that bring hope and more than anything: concrete proposals with regard to the future of the European industrial and business infrastructure. If we can't achieve that, I'm afraid our forefathers' dream of a prosperous, united and war-free Europe is doomed to fail.

So here is part of the missive that compelled me to speak up - perhaps you will gain some insight into what is affecting the human factor here in Greece...


+++
(By Paul Kidner - (the full article can be viewed here - just click)

I’ve stopped watching the news. Every day feels like Groundhog Day. We watch the same drama on our screens – crisis, default, the drachma, unemployment, downward spiral – and it is getting increasingly depressing to watch.

For those living outside Greece the footage of rioting in the streets is in complete contrast to the cultural imagery handed down since the 1970s. Older women dressed in black, men playing backgammon in cafes, black coffee, ouzo, delicious food and beautiful beaches.

And now? What have we to show for the 'fast-food tourism' which developed from our cultural brand? Very little apart from vast debts and an all-pervading sense of gloom.

To give an indication of how it affects our daily lives, to keep bills down people have taken to switching off their central heating. One friend told me her family even uses a quick blast of a hair-dryer to keep warm.

They can’t afford expensive diesel-powered heating systems any more. It also begs the question of why we even use diesel in a land of wind, sun and rich geothermal energy sources?

 But we do, the state-owned electricity grid still uses lignite – known to be one of the most inefficient fuels. And that is indicative of what little change takes place here. Things never change – except for the worse.

Since the austerity measures kicked in one business is closing after the other. Unemployment jumped from 11% last year to a current level of 21% and rising.

Among my immediate circle, I know of three people who have lost their jobs, and another who has remained unpaid over the past eight months. He’s finding it difficult to make ends meet and moved to a smaller flat with his girlfriend to cut down on costs.
 
Now one of the three has found a job but that involves taking a severe pay cut. 'I’m back to where I was in the 1990s,' he says. One friend who owned a printing business is now working as a security guard for €600 (£500) per month.

Many are thinking of emigrating.

On top of this there are the tax bills, one after the other. I had to pay 600 euro (£500) - the basic monthly salary in Greece - for a 'solidarity tax' a couple of months ago. At first the government said it was a one-off payment but there are fears it will be demanded again.

I earned a respectable salary last year but left in order to start my own business which still isn't profitable. But I still had to pay this tax.

After that there came a 'special tax' for anyone who owns property – it is worked out according to the area in which you live and how large your property is.

I own a small flat, so I 'only' had to spend a further €500 (£419). But -  like many others - I found it hard to pay my mortgage as well as paying this new bill.
 
And it adds to a sense of unfairness that I have to pay an additional, brand-new tax on top of other property taxes I’ve already paid. The way it was implemented shows the government knew how unpopular it would be. So the property tax was taken through your electricity bill.

Anyone who didn’t pay would have their electricity cut off. What one side of the fence calls austerity, another calls extortion.

The middle-class feel they are constantly the ones who have to front the bills. We are the easy target, the people who can’t hide from the tax system. The rich move their money to off-shore accounts, while small businesses don’t issue bills making it impossible for the taxman to track their earnings.

A friend recently moved to a flat which needed work doing to it. But neither the painter, the electrician nor the plumber would issue a written bill.

So we get hit each and every time.

Taxes erode the middle class, while leaving systemic failures untouched. On top of that, despite many political scandals, no one with large pockets or ‘good connections’ has ever been punished. The sense of injustice infuriates the public.
The problem is that there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Greeks feel that there are little prospects and no plans for growth. And there is little to choose from the political parties.

If the EU was really concerned about Greek debt, why are we not talking about cutting our defence spending? Greeks believe this is because EU countries benefit from lucrative defence contracts.

Most Greeks would agree that the country needs fiscal re-structuring, that the tax system has to be automated to reduce graft, that bureaucracy needs to be minimised and a business-friendly environment needs to be introduced. One that doesn’t require two weeks of queues and umpteen civil servants to stamp one piece of paper.

But the current measures on offer are seen as simply harsh, unfair and unsustainable.

As people’s wealth is being eroded so is their silence. Greece is going to begin to roar and its creditors are not going to like the consequences that this instability will bring.
 
Our leaders and the EU also bear responsibility for this need to communicate to the Greek people how they plan on making things better, how they will create jobs, efficiency and clamp down on tax evasion.
 
There is a Greek proverb which says 'hope dies last' but if we are ever to survive this collective anguish we need to find a source of hope - and quickly.

++++++++

My sentiments exactly ...

Emm xx





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CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND ON WATER - OR MEET THE SOLARWAVE!

6/15/2011

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Some among you who have joined hands with me on FB (https://www.facebook.com/emmakayonline) will know that I spent last week down in the Athens suburb of Palio Faliro, the reason being that Son-No.-1 has moved there. 
What practically no-one knows though is that I had the delightful and enlightening experience of coming face to face with the future, or should I perhaps state more correctly, a rather futuristic Close Encounter of the Third Kind on water!
It all began rather harmlessly…

A long and tiring  600+km journey down and the physical work involved coupled with my no longer being a spring-chicken called for “time to take a break” as son-dear calls it, and so it was decided for me that we would all go to the Flisvos Marina in Faliro. I posted on my fb wall some pics of the marina, and more accurately of what “pleasure boats” lay moored there, but withheld on purpose what I would call my most impressive experience of that afternoon. An encounter that was worthy of a blog post…!

I like to believe that I am an environmentally conscious person, by far not perfect, but most definitely striving to do my best, being aware of the precarious state our Blue Planet Earth finds itself in.  We’re all guilty, some more guilty than others, for the current state of affairs here. I also firmly believe that we all have a collective duty to change things; we don’t own our planet, irrespective of the pieces of paper that may confirm us as being the owner of a plot of land or real estate. In my book I’d say that we should rather be called “care-takers” and as such carry the heavy burden of looking after what is a precious environment that should enable man to live a life in health and relative happiness for all future generations. I’m deeply saddened by the fact that man appears to be doing his utmost to destroy the very environment he needs to survive…

And so it was with sheer delight and most certainly with a high dose of wonder, that I found myself being rather puzzled when we came across a vessel which I had never even heard of, let alone seen. A vessel that somehow would fit better in a sci-fi setting than being tied up in a marina, right before my eyes.
The SolarWave…
Berthed alongside the quay of the marina, she lay in the shimmering waters of the harbour, and my first impression was something akin “Huh? That’s a weird boat,”(Heike, forgive me for calling her a “boat”… I realise she deserves much better!) “let’s take a closer look.”
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meet the SolarWave, Flisvos Marina, Faliro-GR (4June2011)
I’m an inquisitive person by nature, to the point that my curiosity regularly embarrasses members of my family, which doesn’t really bother me, to tell you the truth, and I decided to take a closer look. I could see a gent sitting on the rear deck, obviously doing some paperwork or so, a lady in a bright orange top who was cleaning the deck and a young dog, happily jumping on and off board… I’d never seen a vessel like this before and started to take photographs. The entire top part was covered in solar panels and upon closer inspection I detected a side panel that explained the finer details of the SolarWave. I was rather impressed, to tell you the truth, and when at some point I saw the Lady-of-the-Yacht (sounds better than Lady of the Manor, no…?) disembark and walk away with her dog toward the far end of the marina, I made up my mind to approach her upon her return. And I did exactly that… I simply stopped her and told her that if I didn’t speak to her now, I’d probably miss an opportunity of a lifetime and would regret it afterwards… She laughed and we sat down together on the high steps of the pier and started to chat. Heike, the Lady-of-the-Yacht then explained to me that their catamaran had been their home now for the best part of a year and that it was their intention to travel the world with it.  She and her partner Michael had come up with the idea of building a totally self-sufficient and green vessel after having spent some time in the Caribbean on a previous journey and different yacht, several years back, where they felt that something should be done about their producing all those terrible diesel fumes and causing so much pollution. Their dream came true through sheer hard work and vision, and the result is here for all to see: Meet the SolarWave…

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.. A totally self-sufficient Green Catamaran! (foto emmakay)
As it says on a side panel on the vessel, the SolarWave is the first and only yacht to be COMPLETELY (and this is the most important word here) self-sufficient in its energy production (solar-panels and wind energy) to run the ENTIRE vessel. It is really what you could call a totally GREEN yacht, and this includes an on-board desalination facility to make its own fresh water from sea water! All onboard cook, wash, clean – in short, do everything a normal household does, all with totally free energy! Makes you wonder really why we can’t all do more to promote the alternative forms of energy that Mother Nature provides us with…  I am just thinking about the super-yachts that I saw in the same marina where the SolarWave lay berthed, some of which burn over 1000 litres of diesel fuel per day… It’s in no way my intention to attack anyone, but learning things like this, makes me wonder what we are doing on and more to the point "to" our planet… :-(

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having a laugh with Heike on the pier, Flisvos Marina
I hereby invite you to take a closer look at SolarWave and check out their FB page https://www.facebook.com/pages/SolarWave-Solarkatamaran-ohne-Brennstoffe-um-die-Welt/ as well as their site http://www.solarwave.at/autark-um-die-welt-2.html.

I count myself fortunate to have been able to see the first fully Green Catamaran with my own eyes and bump into Heike and have a little chat with her. I take my hat off to her and Michael for setting all the wheels in motion to make their dream come true. They both deserve my full respect. And perhaps, who knows, we might see each other again aboard their dream vessel one day and join them on an excursion into our beautiful Greek waters…

Needless to say that meeting and talking to Heike, and seeing their SolarWave made my day!


As a bonus, I’m also including a YouTube clip  made on board the vessel of the SolarWave negotiating the narrow Corinth Canal, just the day after I had met up with Heike!


Hope you enjoyed all that... I certainly did!
As always,
with sunny smiles,
Emm :))

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TA SARANDA PALIKARIA - or why all Greece celebrates on 25th March!

3/28/2011

11 Comments

 
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Flying the 'Galanolefki', the Greek Flag on Greece's 25th March National Day...(foto emmakay)
A couple of days ago, on Friday, 25th of March, one of the two Greek National Holidays – a day perhaps more of commemoration than celebration - hubs and I spent a wonderful and most educational day out.

We had decided to join all the Greek families who had come out dressed to the nines in their Sunday best to celebrate and watch the youths parade that was taking place in Asprovalta. On this day in early spring parades are held throughout the country, and we had briefly considered going to Serres or even to Thessaloniki to watch. Our eldest son had wondered whether we’d like to come and watch with him the parade on the beautiful new promenade along Thessaloniki’s seafront. We briefly toyed with the idea but then discarded it simply because neither of us is particularly fond of crowds or busy roads, and we knew from many years experience that on this day the cities as well as larger towns would be absolutely packed. We felt it would be more practical and convenient to stay in the local area; not too crowded, ample parking space and I would have a much better chance at composing a decent photographic account of what these celebrations all entailed.

In fact, talking photographs here, when we had a major power cut last Wednesday, two days before the actual Parade Day, we decided to  make it a day out and go to the WiFi cafe in Vrasna which neighbours Asprovalta, only to find that they too were the victim of “no electricity” (new pylons were being installed in the area!). What had started as a-day-gone-wrong actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise.  As we moved onto the beach road that leads into Vrasna, we saw dozens of youngsters and children milling around in groups on the road. I told hubs I thought they were actually there for the dress rehearsal of Friday’s Parade.... As it turned out, I was right.  And so, I’m probably one of the few people in Greece who has ever recorded the rehearsal of the parade...! Lucky us -what a fun-packed experience that was... as you can see from the pictures!



(just hover your cursor over the image below and click Play to start the picture stream)
Now back to 25th March:

We’d agreed to make it an entire day out in view of the fact that the weather gods were smiling upon us here and had been spoiling us with unadulterated sunshine for the last couple of days! The first really warm sunny days of the year! We’d called Kostas, our friendly baker, in advance and asked him whether he could prepare our vegan leek and spinach pies by 9:30am so that we could pick those up early and then have a picnic somewhere by the sea later during the early afternoon. That way neither of us would have to stand in the kitchen to cater for our lunch requirements – not that we mind doing so, but it was a holiday after all, and a little treat is always much appreciated!

Before relaying the account of the day, I’d like to give you some background information on what 25th March is all about.
PictureBishop Germanos of old Patras blessing the Greek banner
We knew that the day’s celebrations centred on Greece finally standing up against the 400 year yoke of Ottoman rule they had been brutally subjected to. A dark period in Hellenic history during which thousands and thousands of Greek men, women and children had been killed and tortured for acts as simple as teaching their children about  Greek ways, language, culture and history.  At the same time it was also an era during which the Greek Orthodox Church proved itself as a saviour to many in that it helped retain many people’s sense of identity by setting up what became known as “hidden schools”, the “cripha scholeia”. These surely were some of the darkest years in the history of Greece.

The uprising that ensued after the Forty Brave “Palikaria” took on the Turkish settlement in Tripolis lasted for eight years, until 1829, when the then Sultan, Mahmud the Second, who was facing Russian troops at the gates of Constantinople, could do little more than accept the Greek independence. This Independence was sealed by the Treaty of Adrianople.

I had in fact prepared a paper with some information, but while browsing online to see if I could find a more “narrated” story I came across the following article, written by John Kass, which featured in the online version of the Chicago Tribune. After reading it, I thought there was no way I could have explained things as well as he did and that’s why I’m sharing it here with you:

In John’s words:
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The old song, one of my favorites, doesn't have to tell you it was cold in the mountains of Greece in early spring, when those 40 brave young men, the 40 Palikaria from Levadia, were walking.

Levadia is a small town in central Greece, not far from the Oracle of Delphi. The 40 Palikaria had a march of several days ahead of them.

It was a death march, of sorts. They were walking south to the Ottoman Turks' fortress stronghold of Tripolis, which is near my own family's village of Rizes.


(Note: these are translated lines from the much-loved Greek folklore song Ta Saranda Palikaria, 40 Brave Youths)

            They met an old man. An old man on the road.
            Bless you 'yero'! Bless you old man!
            He answered them, 'Welcome, my young braves!
            Where are you going? Brave youths, where do you go?'
            We go to trample on great Tripolitsa! Come with us!

Picturethe traditional foustanella
They had long knives in their belts and long guns on their shoulders. They had long hair, and mustaches. In the formal depictions of their march, in the paintings, they are often dressed in the fancy white kilts, the foustanella. Each kilt has 400 pleats. And each pleat represents a year of Greek slavery and occupation under the Turkish Ottoman Empire.

It was March 25, 1821.

...
And today, March 25, is Greek Independence Day.

If you know someone who is Greek or of Greek descent, someone with strong ties to the old country you might ask about the song of the 40 Palikaria from Levadia. Phonetically, you'd call it "Saranda Palikaria" (Sah-RAN-da Pa-lee-KAR-ia), The 40 Brave Youths. And when you ask about the Saranda Palikaria, watch for their reaction.

Greek Independence Day isn't a day of great profit for the beer companies. The politicians pay homage to it — they want those campaign checks coming — but it isn't a major holiday in America. You won't feel as if you've sinned if you don't wear blue.

There are a few versions of "Saranda Palikaria." It is a song of pride, a song that hints at pain to come. I'm sorry I can't sing it for you, but I can tell you that it is a song of clarinets, a mountain song best sung by harsh, guttural male voices, voices with smoke in them. And when we dance it in a circle, we dance it with our backs straight.

There's a story behind the song that's not usually shared by immigrants and the children of immigrants in a new land.

At the time of the 40 Palikaria, there were atrocities on all sides. As I write this, I want you to know that I feel no animosity toward the Turkish people of today. But either you tell a story or you don't, and today is March 25, the day that this story should be told.

The fight back then was between neighbors, although one neighbor was dominant, the powerful Muslim neighbor holding his hand out to the subservient Christian for the hand to be kissed.

PictureSiege of Constantinople, by Jean Chartier
                    (note: image from Wikipedia added by emmakay)

It began in 1453 with the fall of Constantinople, when the Turkish sultan rode his horse into the great church of Christendom, Agia Sophia. He rode his horse right up onto the altar, to demonstrate how things would be from then on.

The relationship stretched four centuries, with generations upon generations of human beings becoming used to each other's rhythms and rituals and holidays and feasts. And then they took out the knives.

Then, like now, March is still a cold month in Greece and the mountain rivers were swollen. The roads were wet as the brave youths walked south into the Peloponnesus.

In every village on March 25, there was much activity. The Greek Orthodox churches would have just completed the morning liturgies celebrating the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary, the day upon which she is told by the angels of the child she will bear.

The sultan let the Greeks pray in their churches, but the Ottomans didn't let the Greeks go to school. The sultan knew that the best way to control them was to keep them illiterate. So the Greeks went to school at night, sneaking along mountain paths to find school in mountain caves, to be taught by the priests to read and write.

Control was manifested in other ways. If a Greek woman was groped or worse by a Turkish soldier, her relatives had no choice but to thank him for the compliment or be still.

Another way to keep control was to take the firstborn son of each Greek family and raise it in the sultan's army. These firstborn Greeks were enrolled in the sultan's elite special forces, the Janissaries, and they were used to hammer their own people.

Picture
(note: Image from Wikigallery added by emmakay)

But after 400 years, that control was finally breaking.

As the 40 Palikaria were walking on the road, the people of the land were in prayer, but they were also reaching for their knives.

            Come with us old man!
            Brave youths, I'm too old.
            But take my youngest son.
            He'll take my place.
            He can run like a rabbit.
            He can soar like a partridge.



These weren't merely abstract or mythic figures in paintings and song. For many of us, they were our great-great-grandfathers, our blood.

And today is the day we remember and honor them.


(John Kass) (Chicago Tribune – online version)

There are many versions of the traditional song “Saranda Palikaria” (Forty brave young men) – the forty valiant young men who on 25 March 1821 so bravely set out from Levadia to capture Tripolis; here’s is a version I’ve chosen to share because the clip tells the story not only in lyrics but also in pictures...  Sit back and soak up this bit of truly Greek history...
This then was some background to the country's national festivities today.

And thus it came that on this glorious sunny 25th of March 2011 hubs and I were standing among all those people who’d come to watch their own children, or friends’ children, march along the beach road in Asprovalta, joined by  anyone with name or rank within the hierarchy of local officialdom and church representatives to commemorate together one of the two most special days of Greek national celebrations.

Standing there, soaking it all in through the eye of the lens, I can only add that it was quite a moving experience to see those happy, smiling faces of the children, many of whom were dressed in traditional costumes, and their proud parents beaming and clapping as their offspring paraded past them. 
PictureBakaliaros me skordalia ... (photo downloaded)

Less than an hour after the first people started showing up on the empty beach road, the show was over... and calm and normality returned. The local tavernas and cafes would be full with people happily chatting and rejoicing in the good weather - it had been a good parade, and it was now time to enjoy one another's company  and dig into some tasty traditional 25th of March food: fried cod with garlic mashed potatoes - locally known as Bakaliaros Skordalia...
Allas!... not for us... we had our vegan pies to look forward to...

Reflecting back on Friday, I can truly say that it had been a day when the Greek flags were being waved with pride throughout the country, and before signing off for today, one last bit of information: Did you know that the Greek flag, the "Galanolefki" has in fact not changed since that uprise against Ottoman rule in 1821? We for one didn’t know. The colour of the flag is cerulean blue with white stripes and a white cross in the upper left hand corner, roughly covering a quarter of its size. The cross represents the role of the Greek Orthodox Church in the formation of the Hellenic Nation. The blue and white stripes are a link to the sea - the relentless waves of the Aegean - with white standing for peace and honesty as well as the white colour of the foam on the waves in the sea, while the blue symbolizes vigilance, truth and loyalty, perseverance and justice, and the deep blue of the Greek sea. Legend has it that Aphrodite, the mythological goddess of beauty emerged from those waves. The nine stripes of the flag symbolize the 9 syllables of the phrase "Freedom or Death" - "Eleutheria H Thanatos" (E-lef-the-ri-a   i   Tha-na-tos). This was the motto used during the years of the Hellenic Revolution against the Ottoman Empire.


Bottom line,  that is what 25 March is all about – the struggle of a nation to retain its most prized possession: its Freedom and national identity.

I think the pictures hereafter will tell you more about our day than I could possibly add with mere words...

Enjoy and perhaps reflect on the fact that history more often than not has gruesome tales to remind us of what we are today... in theory they should serve as a lesson!

Xronia polla, Ellada! May your gods be kind to you...

From me, as always

With smiles,

Emm xx

(just hover your cursor over the image below and click Play to start the picture stream)

11 Comments

    Author

    Greetings,
    I'm Emma, better known as Emm among those who know me well enough. I am a Daughter of Mother Earth, and in my little family we are all blessed with what I call "The Globetrotter Gene". We have spent more than three decades roaming the planet until a few years ago we decided to set up camp in the Balkans, and since then we call home where we put our feet under a table in either Greece or her northern neighbour, Bulgaria. 
    I welcome you to Emma's Blog - it was created with a view to sharing happenings and thoughts related to our journey through life. I thank you for stopping by and hope you are enjoying the ride ... Feel free to share the experience!...
    Emm

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