With our Lockdown cholesterol fest under our belts (literally), the beckoning summer calls for quick, effective and inexpensive ways to shape up fast. You know the detox drill (more water and veg; less of everything else), but try allocating a few minutes in your week to the following exercises, add in some running too, and watch your sve...
Read moreIf not walls, then rooftops! Young grafitti artist S.F. takes his spray paint and imagination a few floors high and sends a message of hope and solidarity offering an insight into how the youth relate to this very surreal experience. Confinement. Viruses. Masks. Deaths. Gloves. Hand-washing. Operas off balconies. Empty streets...
Read moreAnthimos Ntagas reveals the everyday humour and magic that Athens hides, through his mind-bending compositions. He speaks to Sudha Nair-Iliades on the art of ‘capturing chance encounters between the city, its people and its street art.’ A day on the beach in the Pe...
Read more“Ask not what you can do for your country, ask what’s for lunch.” Orson Welles’ cheeky quote was the inspiration for Vassilenas restaurant, celebrating its centennial anniversary this year, as they decided to open their kitchens by cooking for the most vulnerable section of Athenian society, the homeless, during the quarantine period. ...
Read moreERT had us hooked with the 6 o’clock broadcast for daily updates, so it was only a question of time before they decided to go the Netflix way and offer us prime content for free. A savvy move by the state broadcaster to capitalise on its high ratings and captive audience to up its game. Just when you thought you’d run out of s...
Read moreGreece has been a powerful muse for countless scribes throughout the ages. Athens Insider rounds up 8 must-read contemporary tales that will help you get under Greece’s skin. Dinner with Persephone, Patricia Storace Dinner with Persephone is the product of Patricia Storace’s year spent living in Greece and provides a great ...
Read moreOlympia Panagiotopoulos’ poignant story will resonate with anyone who has left home on an immigrant’s journey, «a life caught between a memory and a dream». In Beneath the Fig Leaves, «the comforting sizzle of onion and garlic in hot oil, the fresh, clean scent of a newly picked lemon, the strong earthiness of thyme» infuses the cultural ...
Read moreWith the Olympics postponed, Wimbledon cancelled and every other sporting encounter put on hold, there’s nothing like a good sports movie that transcends the drama and excitement inherent in sports to get your juices flowing. When done right, sports movies offer more depth than the average game, illuminating not just the sport depicted, b...
Read moreWith most restaurants closed, celebrated Greek gastronomy chefs are taking to the kitchen to prepare meals for frontline medical workers. Elena Panayides reports on how these gourmet meals, served with a generous side portion of TLC (tender loving care) are reminders of our connectivity, even in isolation. [gallery link="file...
Read moreTenia Christopoulos reflects on how the pandemic has been a catalyst for positive change, and in that sense truly embodies the Easter spirit of renewal and rebirth. An old friend called me from southern California. She unnerved me. She complained about this period of isolation, whining about her lack of freedom, being home wit...
Read moreIrish journalist, writer and founder of the Corfu-based Durrell Society, Richard Pine on why lockdown isn't a hostile term anymore, even in traditionally anarchic Greece. There are two focal points in Greek life: the kafeneion or local bar, and the kitchen table. Both have been transformed by coronavirus. The kafeneion, the tr...
Read moreSherri Moshman-Paganos traces the history of the deadly plague that almost decimated Athens in the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides, who so clearly etched the horrors of the Black Death in the ‘History of the Peloponnesian War’ stated that ‘the perceived impact of the Athenian plague was such that people ceased fearing the law since they fel...
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