Travel Programs

Gastronomy

Gastronomy offers a great opportunity to get a first-hand experience of the culture and character accompanying a particular place, as a mirror of the society and its economic aspects. Interestingly enough, while information and even recepies from antiquity (the first cookbook ever was writen by Archestratos in 330 B.C.) and the byzantine era have reached our days, there had been an interval with no gastronomical dishes from the following period until the last years of the previous century, when Greek gastronomy experienced a sound transformation. After all, good food and drink as well as sharing with the loved-ones have always played an important part in Greek culture and a skilled cook is highly admired in every family and friend company.

The Greek cuisine is based on 4 pillars: the freshness of its ingredients, with most vegetables cultivated in natural ways due to the mild and sunny climate and most herds ranging free and grazing on a wide variety of wild greens, nuts, buds and herbs -often along with game birds and hares; the excellent olive oil, which accompanies almost every Greek dish; the moderate use of herbs and spices, often naturally grown in the countryside, such as oregano, basil, spearmint, mint, thyme, rosemary, cinnamon and allspice, and finally the simplicity of the recipies which allows for flexibility according to the ingredients’ seasonality -yet more complicated recipies are not absent as implies the popularity of moussaka and pastitsio.

Traditional Greek cuisine is a good example of the healthy Mediterranean Diet, with limited meat consumption, mainly in special occasions and almost always accompanied with plant-based foods, such as potatoes, garlic and onions, in baked dishes and stews. The main meat products derive from lamb, goat, pork, poultry and sometimes game. Besides, fish and seafood, such as octopus and oyster, are very popular in Greek dishes either grilled or combined with vegetables, beans and legumes, wild greens, rice and pasta.

Apart from the above, the traditional Greek sweets should be mentioned. The most common of them are the so-called phyllo-sweets, filled with several nuts or cream based on semolina and flavored with a simple but aromatic syrup of honey or sugar and the spoon-sweets, preserves of wither seasonal fresh fruits, still soft in their shells nuts or particular vegetables in a simple sugar syrup. As for the latter, their name derives from the tradition of serving them on a small plate and eating them with a tea-spoon. Moreover, there are other sweets related with certain celebratory events and periods, like melomakarona, a kind of bisquit with walnut and honey syrup at Christmas, or diples, doughnuts, lokums and marzipans. The most common ingredients on which most of the recipies are based are olive oil and honey.

From a more cultural point of view, it should be kept in mind that the Greek cuisine is by large shaped under the fasting traditions of the Greek Orthodox Church. Moreover, every area has its characteristics in recipies, techniques and particular ingredients; thus cuisine of Thrace and Macedonia is heavily influenced by Greek refugees from Constantinople and Asia Minor, the well-known savory pies of Epirus have to do with the nomadic life of its shepherds, the extensive use of pork, olives and olive oil in Peloponnese comes from the fact that these are its most important food products, the strong Italian influence on the Ionian islands is due to the long Venetian rule on the area and the classic Mediterranean cuisine of the Aegean Sea remains the base of all the above. Another common characteristic is that, typically, there are no particular courses, but a variety of appetizers and nibbles (mezedes) and main dishes is present on the table in the same time. Of course, wine and other spirits, especially ouzo and tsipouro, are a vital part of the eating culture. Feel free to learn more about traditional products of the Greek cuisine.

Based on the deep tradition and the wide variety, especially after 2004, well-known locally and abroad Greek chefs have been using new exotic ingredients and sophisticated styles and techniques -reaching even to molecular cuisine- and offering a brand new version of the Greek gastronomy open to experimentation. Yet, as is implied by the renweal of the traditional taverna and restaurant menus, another turn to the basic values -even by large renovated- of Greek cuisine is on its way!

Museum of Greek Gastronomy 

Greek Gastronomy Guide

Athinorama Alpha Guide

Eat Yourself Greek

OliveTomato

Diane Kochilas

 

Festivals

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  Theater of Epidaurus
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  Odeon of Herodes Atticus
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  Stavros Niarchos Foundation
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  Onassis Cultural Center
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  Kalamata International Dance Festival
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  Thessaloniki International Film Festival
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  Drama International Short Film Festival

Culture and Festivals

Every year, a number of local and international festivals take place in Greece, so take the chance to enjoy some during your stay here!

Athens-Epidaurus Festival

Maybe the most popular and culturally important in Greece and one of the oldest in Europe festival is the Athens-Epidaurus Festival, which hosts every year, since 1955, a variety of both local and international theter, music and dance performances. The festival takes place in summer and is divided in two parts; the first in Athens from the 1st of June to mid or late July and the second, every Saturday and Friday from mid or late July to the mid of August in the area of Ancient Epidaurus.

The performances of the first part are presented in the 2nd century A.D. Odeon of Herodes Atticus mainly – just under the Acropolis and the fully renovated industrial area of Peiraios 260 near the center of the city. Moreover, performances take place in several neighborhoods, open spaces and archaelogical sites of Athens and Peiraeus, incorporated in the Opening to the City concept.

The second-part performances of ancient Greek drama are held in the world-famous for its acoustics Ancient Teater of Epidaurus of the 4th century B.C. in the Asclepius Sanctuary and the more alternative versions of them in the Little Theater of Ancient Epidaurus, buit in honor of Dionysus in the 4th century B.C. too, in the area of Argolis. moreover, surtitles in English for international audience are offered during the performances in both theaters.

Athens-Epidaurus Festival

Greek National Opera

The Greek National Opera, founded in 1939, offers a variety of operas, ballets, operettas, operas for children and music recitals, covering  a repertory from Claudio Monteverdi to modern composers from both Greece and abroad, often in co-production with operas from other countries. The performances -employing soloists, orchestra, ballet, choir and children choir- are held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (Main Stage – Stavros Niarchos Hall and Alternative Stage), the Olympia Theatre, the Athens Concert Hall as well as the Odeon of Herodes Atticus. The Greek National Opera is where Maria Callas took her first steps.

Greek National Opera

Onassis Cultural Center

The Onassis Foundation founded the Onassis Cultural Center in 2004, in an innovative building of great architectural value near the center of Athens and magnificent view of Acropolis, the Philopappos monument, Lycabettus and the Saronic gulf. A variety of events and actions, from theatre, dance, music, cinema and visual arts to digital and hybrid art and literature, exploring the boundaries between science, art and society, are hosted in the Onassis Cultural Center all year round.

Thessaloniki International Film Festival

In Thessaloniki, the first in the Balkans and the most important in the South Eastern Europe film festival is held every year (initially in November but now all year round) since 1960 (Week of Greek Cinema, then). The Thessaloniki International Film Festival, has been the presentation platform not only for the year’s Greek productions but also for new film makers from all over the world since 1992, including a Competition Section for directors’ first or second film. In addition, it has been known for presenting the most important and radical independent productions across the globe and its collaborations with several local, national, regional and international film institutions, cultural, educational and social organizations, as well as embassies and cultural agencies from other countries.

Thessaloniki International Film Festival

Drama International Short Film Festival

Every September a festival for short films from all over the world is hosted in Drama. 1500 short films, half of which are international premieres, are presented with priority given to those coming from countries with low capacity in film production. Along with the film festival and the competition, concerts, books presentations, Q& A with the film makers, art exhibitions, cinema and radio labs for visitors and professionals, conferences as well as parties are hosted.

Drama International Short Film Festival

Kalamata International Dance Festival

Kalamata, in the South Western of Greece, hosts the International Dance Center, founded in 1995, with great contribution in research, education, artistic activities and creativity. The main event organized by the Center is the International Dance Festival with its active presence in the Greek dance scene, where young Greek choreographers and companies made their first appearances. Moreover, they have been supported and commisioned with several works across a wide spectrum of modern dance and artistic experiments. Along with the dancing performances, seminars and talks for both students and professionals, publications and video dance productions are incorporated in the festival.

Kalamata International Dance Festival

 

Of course, the festivals mentioned above are not an exhaustive list as long as a great number of other festivals are held every year in a more local level; so get ready to discover them!

Apostle Paul

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  Apostle Paul
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  Thessaloniki
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  Kavala
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  Lydia Baptism
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  Veria Ruins
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  Phillipi
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  Ancient Corinth
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  Areios Pagos
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  Pnyx

Apostle Paul and his Journeys in Greece

Apostle Paul, also known as Saint Paul, was an apostle (not one of the twelve though) who taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the 1st century. As long as he is considered to have written thirteen of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament  and about half of the Acts of Apostles refer to his lige and work preaching and founding several churches across Asia Minor and Europe, he was one of the most important figures of the Christendom of the first era. Moreover, theology, worship and pastoral life of Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Churches are still based on his epistles to this day.

Paul carried out four journeys.

2nd Journey

During the second one, while in the southwest part of Asia Minor, Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia calling him for help. As a result, Paul, accompanied by Silas, Timothy and then on Luke, left for Macedonia to preach the gospel. Believers were increasing and their faith strengthened in the places visited. From Troas area, in Northwest Asia Minor, they traveled by ship to Samothrace and from there to Neapolis (modern city of Kavala) and Phillipi, where Paul casted a spirit of divination out of a servant girl, enraging her masters who turned the whole city against Paul and his companions and putting him and Silas into jail. Due to a miraculous earthquake, the gate of the jail fell apart, but Paul and Silas did not escape, leading their jailor to conversion.

Continuing their journey, they visited Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessaloniki and Berea, from where they were urged to leave. Despite their unpopularity in most cities, the churches founded strengthened gradually. Their next stop was in Athens; Paul approached and preached to the Jews and God-fearing Greeks in the local synagogue and Pnyx, where he was disregarded mainly because of the opposition imposed by Athenian philosophers on the ressurection of Christ issue. Then Paul tried to preach to Stoics and Epicureans on the Areios Pagos (Areopagus), where he was mocked once more and according to the tradition only Dionysius the Areopagite and Damaris were actually converted.

His next stop was in Corinth, where he met Aquila and Priscilla, an exile Jew couple with whom he lived and worked as a tentmaker for one and a half year. During that time, he wrote his two epistles to Thessalonians, visited the nearby village of Cenchreae, where he cut his hair after a vow taken. Then they left for Ephesus altogether.

3rd Journey

Paul’s next visit in Greece took place during his third journey, due to great stress put on the church of Corinth, with which was particularly close as is implied by his visits and epistles, in which he tried to resolve the conflict between the new religion and the Greek anthropocentric mindset as well as the Jewish and other Churches. As a result, he left his preaching work in Troas and headed for Philippi again, where he met Titus, and from there to Achaea and Corinth, where he stayed for 3 more months and wrote his epistle to the Romans, and from there he left for Jerusalem. Due to a plot revealed there, he was made to return to Macedonia and from there visit several places, among others Rhodes, before reaching at last Jerusalem

4th Journey

After several adventures, in Rome, Southern France and Spain, Paul visited Greece, mainly Macedonia and Crete during his fourth and last journey, before he resulted in prison in Rome where he was executed.

It should be kept in mind that Paul used to put people at their ease and to approach them with his message in a language and style to which they could relate and because of this method he had such a significant impact on theological and organizational and social issues.