On this coming Sunday, March 29, at 03:00 in Greece (01:00 in the UK), clocks go forward one hour. The bad news is we will lose an hour of sleep, but the good news is the evening daylight will extend by an hour. British Summer Time was first established by the ‘Summer Time Act of […]

March 25 each year is Greek Independence Day, a national holiday celebrated annually to commemorate the start of the War of Greek Independence in 1821. This year, the 25th falls on Wednesday. In celebration of Greek Independence Day, towns and villages throughout Greece hold a school flag parade, during which schoolchildren march, some in traditional […]

One of the most endearing and ancient Greek traditions and explicitly a way of life is ‘philoxenia’, which to this day sets Greece apart as a very special country to visit. Philoxenia is the value of hospitality, literally meaning ‘friend to a stranger’. There is much more to philoxenia than mere hospitality. Over the millennia […]

In recent years, the Greek islands have seen an ever-increasing number of ‘all-inclusive holidays’ being offered by the major tour operators. Whilst I understand the attraction of this format of holiday for some, such as families with young children, or those on a tight budget, they are sadly having a detrimental and irreversible effect on […]

As holiday companies endeavour to repatriate their customers caught up in the Middle East conflict, they are also cancelling March departures to Dubai, Qatar, Egypt (including Nile cruises) and Jordan, with summer flights dependent on the future situation in the Middle East. Concerning cruise companies such as MSC Cruises, Celestyal and TUI, they are also […]

The first signs of spring are in the air in Greece, and Greeks will soon prepare to welcome the new season by celebrating an ancient annual custom. The tradition of ‘Martis’ requires that everyone, regardless of age or gender, wear bracelets of red and white thread, called a ‘Kroki’, from March 1 until the last […]