A grandfather's story

My first picture..

..with my new digital camera
:) I have to say, I'm quite excited.

The picture shows the only thing that is hanging from my room's walls.
No pictures, no posters, except of this painting.
It is my beloved grandfather's painting. He painted for me in 2002.
Now he has passed away, it has been almost 2,5 years.
Life has gone on so (cruely) regularly..

My grandfather grew up in Athens.
When he married with my grandmother (Nikolia, from which I inheritted the name) and had my mother, they left for Brazil. They stayed there for 12 years.
When they got back my grandparents had a small coffehouse near the Akropolis.
Funny thing is that when grandpa got a pention, he became a communist. :)
He was disappointed with the wellfare-state. He had been working all his life and his pention was less than 500 euros.

I like telling this story :)
His feagure was like the grandpa in the movie "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory".

Greece is on fire..

photo from skai.gr

As the media say there are more than 105 fires right now in Greece.

I can see one of them from my house balcony in Athens.
The only forest left in Athens is turning to ashes.

Some updates

It has been a long time for a post. This is one of the few nights I got at home. I usually end up returning after 12' (00.00), tired and sleepy.

It's the exam period here in Greece, but also the it's over 40C.

My university doesn't have airconditioning, so I had to sit two exams dripping from sweat.

When I got back home, the only thing I could do was just sleep :)

Also, blogger got a Greek version, which is kind of hard to ajust.

Plus I'm stuck with listening to "Beirut", the new band with the 20-year-old, "great voice and also cute looking" singer.

As soon as I have some free time from exams, I'm planning to create a greek blog. :)

this tree reminds me of the tree in Big Fish

wandering in the streets of Sweden a couple of weeks ago I met Tin-Tin..

I just read from BBC Spielberg's tention 'to make Tintin movie'.

I was just "looking" for a post.
I guess I'm wearing out..
Such a shame.. no post for such a long time..
I think I'm going undercover, though..
to write about the unspoken..
So, maybe you'll meet me with a new nickname in a different blog..
Time will show..

(Is this fairwell?)

Blogger unfortunately, could not upload my photo.

From my trip to Sweden.. (a business trip ;)

I think the fact that a professor of mine has a blog is a reason to blog.. :)

It is not really common in Greece to use technology in the univeristy..

I was really excited to see that.

For Prof. Yiannis Skarpelo's blog here
There is also a 2nd one he has, just for the specific lesson.

Haven't been around (the blogging-sphere) for a long time..

Back to school..

I'm really happy to find this site.
Really good electronic music (from greek producers).

By the way schools opened...
(I returned in Athens on 1/2. My school opened on 13/4.
Quite a pity for all this time lost.)

Charlie Chaplin Speaks - The Great Dictator

I saw this movie today.. Is there anyone who can say these words nowadays??

Among other things: "Soldiers don't fight for slavery, but for freedom".

And imagine that this movie was released in 1940. Not much has changed from then on.

A bitter-sweet feeling is left. Chaplin's words are correct, but no one seems to have cared..

April fools day

Reminding me of Nabokov and his Lolita

Well well.. it's the first day of the month and already this is the 4th post I've done.
Excuse me, but I've been working hard and blogging was the last thing on my mind :)
Today, except of some shopping I stayed home. It was a feeling that I hadn't done for more than a month.. Although it was a Saturday and there was a tempting concert (Konstantinos Vita)..
I have also started reading 1984, during my travel to work. Since I need 1,5 hours to go and 1,5 to return, almost 3h makes you read :)

Good night dear cyber-friends,
hope you are doing well.

stabbed fan.. not fun anymore

I've been hearing what the international and foreign channels have reporterd on the incident of the Olympiakos and Panathinaikos fans. Well it wasn't exactly like that.. It was even worse. The hooligans (not fans) of the two teams had agreed to meet in Peania district on a main road from the match with Turkey. They had started beating each other that night in the stadium and then had arranged a "date" to meet last Thursday

The Olympiakos fans started from the voleyball match, but not the Panathinaikos as well. The incident was not inside the voleyball stadium, but many kilometres away (almost 1 hour away)The result:A 25-year-old man was stabbed to death

Easter in Greece..

Family pictures




Sunday morning..


Delicious..


Time to go back

(this was last year)..

Looking upwards

Kythnos.. or anywhere in the Cyclades islands

It seems I haven't been blogging for a while and I can't find any ideas. Everything is being said and nothing is analyzed enough. The only thing now I can do, when returning after 10 o'clock back home, is plan holidays for this summer. I just wish I had the money in my hands to book them as well...

Anyway..
I'm waiting for the school to open. I'm completely dissapointed with all this situation. Professors have stopped their strikes, but I don't believe much will change. The whole situation is just ridiculous. Even if the school opens now, I don't believe that there is going to be lectures. Everything has lost track, is uncoordinated. And imagine that I'm supposed to graduate this year...

Euro-patheticness

From the last day in Istanbul :)

I just emptied my cameras memory.

Believe it or not I haven't been at home much for the past 3 weeks.

This is the 1st night I came earlier than 9 o'clock..

Nevertheless, if you check my visitors they are approximately 51 per day..

People are googling "Yassou Maria", "Eurovision" bla..bla..bla..

They even linked my blog somewhere in the Sozluk (turkish e-encyclopedia)

So.. you see Europe unites us.. After 50 years we are watching Eurovision Song Contest.

(WE ARE EVENLY PATHETIC)

Have a lovely evening all you Eurovision fans..

From Ydra

Nature is so perfect that there is no need for Photoshop

I don't know if I'll be blogging anymore. I got a job (!!) and I'm not into blogging so much anymore. I'm sorry to say this.

I don't know yet.. We will see.

By the way, here is a great site for Athens and the architectural styles one can find.

Eurovision vs. Guantanamo

I posted a week ago the video clips of the songs that would be participating in the Greek finals for the Eurovision contest. In one day 191 people visited this blog 90% of which where seeking something that had to do with the contest.. Meanwhile, the day I posted an essay I had done for Guantanamo the number of the visitors didn't exceed those of 50.

Isn't it disappointing?

Of course one couldn't say that the guys with the orange uniforms are glamorous and attractive, as Sarbel is.

So, if you'd prefer something light check this out
but if you want something "hard" visit this

It's your choice.

By the way.. If you are in Greece. Don't switch on the TV set for more than a week. The only "serious" discussion is either for Eurovision (although there is no Vision) or concerning a brigadier general of the Greek army wearing a red thong and looking for boy through the internet. AAAhhh.. isn't this country so glamorous and sexy?