“There are many outdoor movie theaters around the world but none of them are as spectacular as Cine Thisio in Athens, situated at the foothill of Acropolis with an amazing view of Parthenon,” mentioned Christian Blauvelt, editor of BBC, in his tribute for the best cinemas in the world.

“Cine Thisio shows mostly new releases and is open only during summer time. However, you can also watch movies dated back to 1935,” he continues.

Cine Thisio, the oldest summer cinema of Athens, is one of the ten best cinemas in the world, according to BBC. On the same list are also included other cinemas, such as “The Music Box Theater” in Chicago, “The Castro Theatre” in San Francisco, “Cine Acapulco” in Cuba, “Cinematheque” in France, “Colosseum Kino” in Norway and “Raj Mandir” in India.

We should also bear in mind that in February of 2012, Cine Thisio was declared by CNN, as the best summer cinema in the world.

The region of Dialekto in Trikala, Greece, is very proud of one of their citizens. Stergios Ntintis was honored for running a successful business for 40 consecutive years in the city of Bad Neustadt an der Saale, Germany

Ntintis and his family left Greece, deciding to move to Germany 40 years ago, in search of a better life. He was very determined to work and succeed and that’s exactly what he did.

After moving to Germany, Ntintis opened a restaurant by the name of”Acropolis,” and soon after it became a favorite place to dine among Germans, who enjoy the traditional Greek cuisine. Ntintis and his family are loved, appreciated, and respected by the people of the region.

In fact a few days ago, the local authorities, the Municipal Authority and the Regional Government held a ceremony to honor the family for their long and successful presence in the city, which is located near Nuremberg.

For the first time, Greece will be participating in a large tourism exhibition in Turkey, called the East Mediterranean International Tourism and Travel Exhibition (EMITT). Greece will gather all its regional tourism sectors under one roof to organize extensive promotional activities.

Greece and Turkey are trying to leave their differences behind and both sides are taking initiatives towards this direction in an effort to get closer. Such an initiative includes the participation of Greece in a large regional tourism fair in Istanbul in 2014. Greece, for the first time, will attend this large tourism event, promoting Greek tourist destinations through this exhibition, said the director of the EMITT.

Hacer Aydin, director of EMITT, said that “ although regional representatives from Greece have always attended, Greece has never attended our exhibition as a national guest and no official agreement had been signed between the tourism ministries of Greece and Turkey. All of these regional representatives will gather under one roof in a huge area for the first time this year. This is very good for us.”

Aydin also added that Greek tourism professionals will be providing enhanced promotional activities at the fair.

The director also stated that Syria — EMITT’s main guest country back in 2009 — will not be sending any representatives this year due to the civil war in their country.

“On the contrary, Egypt will attend the EMITT despite the problems that the country is facing. They will be including extensive promotional activities too,” she noted.

The exhibition is now attracting tourism sectors from around the world. A couple of years back, the exhibition was featuring Eastern Europe and the Middle East, but now, it is also attracting countries from all over the world. Aydin explains: “This change was mainly caused by the rise in Turkish Airlines flights around the world, the increasing popularity of Turkish soap operas and the rising global awareness of Turkey as a spectacular tourism spot.”

The European Border Surveillance System (EUROSUR) becomes operational today, as CNA reports. The backbone of EUROSUR is formed by ‘national coordination centres’ via which all national authorities with a responsibility for border surveillance (e.g. border guard, police, coast guard, navy) are required to cooperate and to coordinate their activities.

Information on incidents occurring at the external land and sea borders, the status and position of patrols as well as analytical reports and intelligence are being shared via ‘national situational pictures’ among these national authorities.

EUROSUR is being established gradually, starting on December 2 with the 18 member states at the southern and eastern external borders including Cyprus, Greece, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Italy, Malta, Spain, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Schengen associated country Norway. The remaining 11 EU member states and Schengen associated countries will join the system from December 1, 2014 onwards.
(source: ANSA)

The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced its refusal to continue the operation of the Greek Orthodox School, Halki Seminary, until the Fethiye Mosque opens once more for the Muslim population. The Deputy Minister, Metin Kulunk, stated during a meeting of the Western Thrace Turks Solidarity Association that took place in Germany, that the school will undoubtedly remain closed until Greece fulfills the promise it gave in the Lausanne Treaty.

Athens is currently the only European capital without an official mosque. This fact creates friction between the two countries seeing as Turkey is demanding the reopening of the mosque and saying that in return, the Greek Orthodox School in the Heybeliada Island that has been closed since 1971, will finally operate again. Furthermore, the Minister noted that while Greece is refusing to reopen the mosque, Istanbul hosts churches, synagogues, and mosques that are built side by side and co-exist with no problems.

The Muslim population of Greece, both native and migrant is complaining because of the country’s refusal to let them build new mosques or even rebuild the old ones that exist from the Ottoman era, while also refusing them the right to elect their own religious representative in the Greek government.

The British auction house Bonhams seems to be withstanding the pressure and holding onto its market share, despite the crisis.

The first Greek sale in the London auction managed to find buyers for 71 percent of the lots. Turnover came to 2.4 million euros, up from 1.9 million at last spring’s auction of Greek art.

The top lot of the auction was  a “young Greek soldier” by Yiannis Tsarouchis (1910-1989). This piece shows the artistic identity of the great Greek painter. It was sold at 183,000 euros — four times the amount it was originally estimated at.

The second art work was “City on a hill” by Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas (1906-1994). The Greek painter highlighted the usage of geometric forms and juxtapositions of Greek landscape — from his mature artistic period in the ’60s. This piece was auctioned for 175,800 euros.

The third best seller was the piece “Ulysses Brings Iphigenia, the Daughter of Agamemnon, to the High Priest Kalhas for Her to Be Sacrificed to the God Apollo” by Theofilos Hadjimichail (1867-1934). It consists of a leading artistic sample of the favorite subject of a Greek painter who fused iconographic and linguistic symbols, in a uniform and living Greek myth. This piece was purchased for 161,000 euros.

Another piece by Tsarouchis, his marvelous “Erotokritos,” was the big surprise of the Greek Sale, as it sold for eight times its original estimate, at 121,080 euros.

The top five list is completed with the masterpiece “The Boat” by Nikos Hadjikiriakos-Ghika (1906-1994) which belonged to the collection of the prominent art critic and Ghika’s close friend E. Teriade (Stratis Eleftheriadis). The final price reached 118, 200 euros.

Meanwhile, the head of Art Expertise, Terpsichore Angelopoulos was pleased with the final results and trends as she discerned a possible recovery of the art market.

During November, the French auction house Piasa, also held a Greek art auction in two installments. The first auction held on November 18, was a sale of furniture and sculpture by Philolaos (1923-2010), which fetched a total of 570,000 euros (including commission). On November 26, the second one was the Greek Sale which had a total turnover of 117,000 euros. Piasa refers to the majority of buyers who are mainly French and not Greeks.

“My aunt was 120 years old when she died in Turkey and she was really happy every time she heard the region’s songs on the radio. She used to stop praying every time that the radio was playing a song, and would mourn her birth place while listening. After the song was finished, she returned to her prayers.” Hussein Solmez’s aunt was forced to leave from a small village of Almopia, called Foustani due to the treaty of Lausanne when she was 22 years old.

Ninety years later, her nephew along with 182 other compatriots drove up from Sariyer, a municipality of Istanbul, to Foustani, in search of their ancestors’ origins and to meet the main characters of the refugee stories that they used to hear of.

A plane tree, was the first thing that welcomed the four buses filled with Turkish visitors. Many of them rushed to take a picture next to that plane tree which is something of a trademark for the village, alongside the local valley.

Some of the Turkish visitors carried an improvised map of the village as a guide, using it to locate the places where their ancestors were born, grew up and lived.

One of the people in search of their origins is Sakir Ozan. Sakir was able to locate the home where his ancestors lived while others were not that lucky. “I found the home where my ancestors were born and lived,”  he said with excitement.

The initial surprise of the locals was followed by a warm welcome to the Turkish visitors. In fact, they tried to speak some Turkish that they have learned by watching Turkish soap-operas.

A 77 year-old-local, Mr.  Vasillis said farewell to the unexpected visitors by stating that “they are good people. We do not have any differences with them. The politicians made us fight with each other.”

The “trip of nostalgia” at the Greek villages of Pella was organized by the Sariyer Municipality of Istanbul. The reason behind the municipality’s initiative was the completion of 90 years since the treaty of Lausanne was signed.

The Turkish travelers visited the city of Eddesa, as well as the city of Aridaia. Next station of the trip was the village Konstadia of Aridaia.

For the first time in the last 50 years the Greek population of Istanbul is rising as they are no longer leaving their city but staying, as Independent Balkan News Agency reports.

Influenced by the economic crisis plaguing Greece, Greeks are leaving their homes and moving to Istanbul; a city with 15 million population that has experienced rapid economic growth lately.

Many of them are opening their own businesses or work for companies in an attempt to escape the scourge of unemployment and recession in Greece.

Meanwhile, dozens of students are studying at Turkish universities. Some learn the Turkish language while others attend English-speaking courses in private universities.

Rough estimates indicate 800 to 1,000 Greeks have already moved to Istanbul, raising the Greek community population that had fallen to 2,500 recently from 150,000 in 1923.

This incoming flow gives hope to the Ecumenical Patriarchate that has for many years observed the Greek population of Istanbul drop rapidly. Greek presence in Istanbul and economic relations have boosted also airline traffic between Greece and Turkey.
Eight return flights are scheduled daily on the Athens-Istanbul route by Turkish Airlines and Aegean Airlines.

Meanwhile, 38 Greeks are currently employed by Turkish Airlines as Greek pilots left their jobs in Greece and now work for companies in the neighboring country.

There are also flights from Thessaloniki to Istanbul, two times a day as well as daily bus routes from Athens to Istanbul.

(source: Balkan News Agency)

After spending a summer in Greece, Finnish director, Taavi Vartia, who is known for his work in cinema, theater and television, fell in love with our country. He was rather impressed by the landscape of the Greek islands and abundant sunlight which is why he chose to shoot his next film in Greece.

“It was my dream. The climate here is very different from Finland. I wanted to live a thrilling adventure in Greece,” said Vartia, who after five years was able to find the necessary funding for his new movie entitled “Adventure in Greece.”

It is a high budget feature film (the cost of the production is estimated at 1,280,000 euros ) which will be shot entirely in the Greek island of Kos, with a Greek and Finnish cast and crew.

The script was edited by the director himself, while some of the leading actors are: Orfeas Avgoustidis, Ioanna Triandafyllidis, Natalia Dragoumi, Giannis Zouganelis, Laura Malmivaara and Ville Myllyrinne.

Shooting is expected to start in April 2014, in the island of Kos and will last three months. Some scenes will also take place on the island of Nisyros.

“Adventure in Greece” is a story of three boys who spend their summer holiday in Kos with their parents. It is a coming-of-age story that will capture the attention of all audiences. The film’s premier is scheduled for December 2014, in Finland and will be distributed worldwide.

According to the Russian News and Information Agency RIA Novosti, the Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigou declared that his country wants to repair the ships of its National Navy in Greek Shipyards.

The Russian newspapers and news agencies support that the Russian Minister Mr. Sergei Shoigou, told Greek Minister of National Defense Dimitris Avramopoulos that Moscow wants to reinforce the presence of its navy in Greece.  There was also talk of the ship repairs in Greek shipyards.

The question is, will the Greek Shipyard still exist by the time this positive thought becomes a reality?

The problem that the Hellenic Shipyards S.A in Skaramagas near Athens has, is Germany. Despite the ownership changes, Germany has never stopped having a say in the company’s future.

According to the newspaper “Hurriyet,” 32 Syrian refugees were found on a deserted beach in the southern province of Antalya.

The group of refugees, including six women and a baby, were gathered on the Greek island of Rhodes. They were gathered on a beach near the Antalya’s Kaş district and were waiting for men who were to transport them to Greece by boat. After hours passed and nobody showed up, the refugees finally asked for the help of gendarmerie officers in the early morning.

When the authorities found them, they were exhausted, hungry, and cold. According to official sources, the refugees will be transferred to the nearest refugee camp.

Authorities have launched an investigation on human trafficking networks that operate in the area, and organize the transport of immigrants to Europe via Turkey.

The Greek mother is a rare species. Love knows no boundaries for her. The homemade packages, filled with delicacies and hidden in Greek students’ suitcases are famous around the world. Nowadays, Greeks increasingly go to study abroad so it seems that this phenomenon has been revived along with the traditional motherly over-protection.

The documentary “Food for love” by Mariana Economou that was presented on Wednesday in Cinedoc of the French Institute analyzes the relationship between Greek mothers and their children. The documentary follows three mothers from Greece, while they’re preparing packages for their children. The Greek Mother is a rare species but it’s not extinct. “That is what drove me to make this documentary,” said the director. “When I first saw my friends secretly sending packages to their children I was intrigued, I wanted to dig deeper.”

The documentary was broadcasted last August on the Franco-German channel Arte and was well-received with high ratings. The foreign audience commented that this phenomenon is “both very funny and weird.” The director explains that “foreigners can’t understand how Greek mothers can still treat their children this way, even at their age. In the documentary I tried to psychoanalyze the mothers.”

She continues, “Clearly there are some issues. But I tried not to judge them because emotions have so many levels. It would be easy to just make a movie and say that all this is oppressive, authoritarian and that it destroys children. That is certainly true but there are also other things to consider.”

Even though Greek lawmakers have passed the 2014 budget which shows a primary surplus, the partners and lenders don’t seem to be convinced of the data presented. In fact, they believe that the numbers shown are phony and don’t really exist.

Yesterday’s article in Allgemeine Zeitung says: “Brussels announced that according to the European Commission, the financial gap of the 2014 budget is unknown at this point, therefore changes in the budget must be made in order for troika to facilitate complete negotiations during the next round in January.

The writer of the German article reported that “The budget surplus is a result of auditing tricks,” he then explains the skepticism of Europeans, regarding the achievements of the Greek government and continues: “it does not include the several billion that the state owes to suppliers. At the same time, structural reforms are not implemented. Creditors know this, but tolerate it because in light of the Euro elections, Greece’s success must at all costs be recorded. However, without a new haircut the crisis will not end.”

An article in the newspaper Taz makes it obvious that they are on the same wavelength after naming an article: “Creative Accounting.” This article makes reference to the budget stating: “Greece is changing its tactics, but the goal remains the same. Greece wants to avoid the new requirements for austerity measures. The only thing that changes is the argumentation. Greeks no longer appear as victims of a failed austerity policy, but as a model. With this in mind: Whoever presents a balanced budget does not need to make any reforms. The budget surplus is therefore converted into a weapon. Theoretically, at least Greece could freeze the repayment of old debts. It could deal with the rage of Europe, because it no longer depends on appropriations in order for the state to operate.”

According to the German magazine “Focus,” Greece has a negotiation advantage over its creditors this time. In the related article, Robert Halver, an analyst of Baader Bank, estimates that “the next loan installment to Greece will surely be approved by the creditors.”

The article, which is published in Focus’s web edition, under the title “No mood for disputes with Europe towards the new reforms,” mentions the confidence with which the Greek government faces its lenders.

“The Greeks are aware of their advantageous position this time” the article continues with reference to the tension between Troika and Athens during the recent negotiations: “Troika’s officials, who are monitoring the progress of the Greek economy, have left Athens in disappointment as the Greek Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, does not want to adopt the necessary reforms.” At that point it was underlined that we have seen troika depart from Athens many times, each time Greek officials backed down to Troika’s demands, as the fear of a potential default of the Greek economy was imminent.

However, this time, the situation is different.

As the threat of a possible Greek default is currently out of sight, troika cannot put Greece under the same pressure.  Mr. Halver notes that “Greece has an advantage over its creditors during the current negotiations.”

According to Focus, the advantage that the Greek officials gained, is a result of the reforms that have been applied. These reforms seem to be fruitful despite troika’s criticism. The fact that Greece’s economy is back on track can be reassured firstly by the flattering comments that OECD made and secondly by the fact that Moody’s Investors Service recently upgraded the Greek Economy. Another positive fact is the 17 million tourists that visited Greece last summer. Last but not least, Focus pinpoints the fact that the country’s budget achieved primary surplus, a major accomplishment for Greece.

Two neighboring cities in central Italy claim to be the mythological place cited by Homer where Odysseus fell in love with Circe. One is the  island of Ponza and the other, the Mount Circeo.

Italian hotel keepers and restaurateurs are exploiting the myth of his love affair with Circe, aiming to boost tourism and increase their revenues.

There are just 3,500 Ponza residents, but during the summer their number reaches 100,000.  The same goes for Circeo, where there are 9,000 locals joined by about 90,000 tourists each year.

In both cities there are streets, shops, hotels and restaurants that have been named after the two mythological lovers. Visitors will see a popular bar named Maga Circe, the cinema Ulysses (Odysseus), the hilltop Circe’s Peak boasting the ruins of an ancient temple, the Circe Promenade and a luxury hotel named Maga Circe.

According to the locals in Ponza, Odysseus was sailing north from Sicily, so the first land he reached, was Ponza Island and not mainland Circeo. The residents of Circeo claim that Homer talked of an island and that in ancient times, Circeo was surrounded by the sea on one side and by  lakes on the other.

Ever since The Odyssey first appeared, historians have questioned the existence of Homer and they have moved his birthplace at least 10 times. According to other sources, Circe’s island was somewhere in the Black Sea, in the current Georgia. Many cities and locations claim themselves to be the real places of Odysseus’s wanderings, for political, economical and ethnic reasons.

However, the truth is hard to define and geography isn’t important. Odysseus’s journey is symbolic. Homer describes a journey to the boundaries of the known world, where the hero defeats the unknown.

Greece was the third favorite destination worldwide for Russian tourists this year. Nearly 1.1 million Russians visited Greece during the first nine months of 2013.

According to official data, the Russian Federal Agency for Tourism, Rosturizm, announced the number of outbound travelers for the first nine months of 2013. The country that was ranked first was Turkey with 2.7 million visitors. The second most popular destination in the period January – September was Egypt with 1.4 million visitors and an increase of 17% compared to previous years. Egypt was followed by Greece who had 1.1 million visitors and an increase of 69%. The countries following were Spain (887,100 visitors with a 29% increase), China (787,200 visitors with a 20% decrease), Finland (787,100 visitors with 102% increase), Thailand (683,000 visitors with 23% increase), Germany (638,100 visitors with 20% increase) and Italy (605,500 visitors with 31% increase).

A total of 42,583,312 Russian tourists traveled abroad in the first nine months of 2013. There appears to be a 14% increase compared to the previous year. It is estimated that during the first nine months of 2013, 14.8 million dollars were spent on travels.

During the same period, Russia was visited by 23.9 million tourists; an increase of 10% compared to the same 9-month period of 2012.

After taking the estimations of the Greek debt under consideration and the fact that Greek citizens are reeling in austerity measures for more than four years, the British newspaper “The Guardian” brings the Drachma scenario back to life.

A possible “Grexit” from the euro zone is imminent, according to today’s article in “The Guardian.” Although the British newspaper acknowledges that there is indeed an obvious improvement in the Greek economy, it estimates that the huge debt and the unbearable austerity measures might leave the Greek officials with no other solution but to return to the Drachma.

The newspaper mentions that “these concerns are related to the long-term course of the Greek debt, as the existing program obliges Greece to have a primary surplus at 4 percent of GDP until 2030, something that means further economic recession.

However, since Greek citizens cannot afford more austerity measures, they may push the Greek government toward the Drachma direction.”

Despite that, The Guardian says a possible Grexit is imminent, the article underlined that this is not going to happen soon.

Swiss travel retailer Dufry said it was buying the 49 percent stake in Hellenic Duty Free it does not already own from Greek rival Folli Follie for 328 million euros ($452 million), a vote of confidence in the austerity-hit economy.

As reported, Dufry completed the acqusition of 51% of Hellenic Duty Free, Greece’s leading travel retailer, on 22 April.

Dufry said that the transaction will enable it to achieve additional synergies by further streamlining logistics and purchasing. The company will also refurbish and expand retail space in key Greek airports, including Athens, Thessaloniki, Rhodes and Crete.

Dufry CEO Julián Díaz said: “This announcement could not have been a better milestone to complete the year of 2013, which was full of important achievements for the Group.
“The acquisition of the remaining 49% of Hellenic Duty Free allows us to achieve further synergies on the operational level and generates financing savings of approximately CHF10 million (US$11.27 million) per annum. With Folli Follie Group joining as a long-term shareholder of Dufry, we further strengthen our core shareholder base.”

Folli Follie intends to join the group of shareholders led by Travel Retail Investments SCA. The Board of Directors of Dufry has also agreed to nominate George Koutsolioutsos for election to the Board at the 2014 Annual General Meeting.
(source: moodiereport)

The Turkish newspaper “Hürriyet” has made a thorough report about Greeks that decide to invest in Turkey. Despite Greece’s economic recession, there are many investors who cash their money in restaurants or cafés in Istanbul.

The investors are Greeks but with origins from Asia Minor. The majority of them say that their transition to Istanbul was easy as they did not face any difficulties.

Rena Lialiou, who owns a boutique café in Istanbul named Kalimera Cihangir, along with Penelope Zacherakou, stated in Hürriyet Daily News that “everything, compared to Greece, is much more organized.” Lialiou has origins from Istanbul and Izmir from her mother’s side. She also said that she loves Istanbul as the locals made her feel at home and the only problem that she faces is the language but she manages to cope with it.

Another Greek who runs a restaurant in Istanbul is Dimitris Pantonis. He opened the restaurant in the prestigious Bosphorus neighborhood of Bebek only 15 days ago. He said to the newspaper that “as Istanbul and Athens look much alike, my previous experience in Athens will help me adopt better and faster. At the moment we are enjoying our time here in Istanbul.” He added that Turkey and Istanbul in particular with its fast economic growth, is a nice way out from Greece’s current situation.

On December 6, in the central neighborhood of Cihangir, another new Greek restaurant-café called Athina, was opened by Georgia Kotsari. Georgia Kotsari has roots from Turkey’s Black sea region. She stated in Hürriyet Daily News that “opening a Greek restaurant in Istanbul was a dream that came true for me and my husband.” She continued: “There are many Greek restaurants here in Istanbul but they are Greek only by name. Our restaurant has real Greek cuisine.” The only difficulty that she and her husband encountered was when it came to buying a house. “Being Greeks we faced some difficulties in buying a house, so we rented one” she explained.

Ferit Sahenk is one of the richest businessmen in Turkey. His group, after winning a competition, now owns 15% of Asteras Vouliagmenis in Athens. Ferit Sahenk was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1964. He is the president of the Dogus Holding Company and his fortune is estimated to be 6-8 billion dollars. In 2008, Sahenk earned the 573^rd place in the Forbes World’s Billionaires List.

His group consists of more than 150 companies and about 30,000 employees.

After graduating from Boston College in 1989, where he studied Marketing and Human Resource Management, Sahenk returned to Istanbul and started training at the Dogus Garanti Bank (his father’s group at that time). About eight years later, Sahenk started the national Turkish channel, NTV.  In order to find financial resources for this effort, he sold a part of the Garanti Bank.

The Dogus Group operates in the fields of media, tourism, economy and construction. Dogus Holding has a great development under Sahenk’s lead. The group’s revenue reaches 5.7 billion dollars.

Ferit Sahenk is a pioneer. In order to extend his training, he participated in the “Owner/President Management Program” of Harvard University. After his father’s death in 2001, Sahenk took over Dogus Holding. At that time, he was 37 years old.

Sahenk has taken ​​some major steps forward for the company which include:

-In 2004, Sahenk gave control of a part of the Garanti bank, selling almost a quarter of the third Turkish largest bank to General Electric for 1.6 billion dollars. This was a huge step for the further liberalization of the banking sector in the country which was facing major problems after the 2001 financial crisis .

- He owns over 10 automotive industries in the Turkish car market. Some of them are the Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, Bentley,  Lamborghini, Bugatti, Seat, Skoda and Scania.

- In the tourism sector, Sahenk owns five-star hotels, two of which are the Grand Hyatt and Park Hyatt in Istanbul.

He is married to an American woman by the name of Diana since 1989. Together, they have a daughter, Daphne.