Mental Dessert
Mental Dessert A Few Moments of Reflection
Written by Harriette Condes-Zervakis
From the moment the first news of the Greek Revolution appeared in the American press – …May 18, 1821 – American public opinion was decidedly on the side of the fighting Greeks.(p.23)
On 7 May 1832, a treaty was signed in London establishing the Greek kingdom. (p.193)
Following another successful revolution in 1862, Greece saw the expulsion of the incompetent King Otho (Othon). (p.194)
Although throughout its history, Corfu has been subjected to the rule of foreign powers, notably it is the only part of Greece never to have been conquered by the Turks. (p.37)
On the island of Symi, the Greek Orthodox monastery dedicated to Archangel Michael includes the tallest baroque bell tower in the world. (pp. 41-42)
The Cretan town of Ierapetra is the most southerly town in Europe. At Ierapetra, is a faded house with crumbling stucco and bare-wood shutters. Here, Napoleon lodged with a local family on his way home to France following his successful Battle of the Pyramids campaign in Egypt in 1798. (pp. 43-44)
On Rhodes, one can visit Anthony Quinn Bay. Actor Quinn bought the land surrounding the bay after falling in love with the spot when he was there filming the Guns of Navarone. There is now some controversy surrounding the ownership of the land. (pp.81-82)
The architects who designed New York’s Statue of Liberty were strongly influenced by the idea of what they believed the Colossus of Rhodes looked like. It is referenced by the Emma Lazarus poem The New Colossus, which is inscribed on the plaque inside the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. (p.149)
One of the oldest wine-producing nations in history, there is evidence of vines growing in Greece going back more than 6000 years. During the time of the Roman Empire, wines from Crete were exported throughout Europe and North Africa. (p. 241)
From Richard Clark, The Greek Islands – A Notebook (2011)
The following anecdote was shared by His Eminence Chrysostomos, Archbishop of the Holy Metropolis of Kitiou – Larnaca Cyprus, during a recent meeting with representatives of the Chicago Council of Justice for Cyprus.
My Adventure with Renovating in Greece – Element Studio Part 3
Written by Harriette Condes-Zervakis
Each condominium building in Greece typically has a building manager who oversees the collection of association fees and the necessary upkeep of the building and grounds. In advance, we had notified the building manager or diaheiristria, Mrs. M., of the upcoming renovation and Marios from Element Studio had procured the required permits.
Herodotus: A Few Moments of Reflection
Written by Harriette Condes-Zervakis
If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation,
he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it.
If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it.
It is better to be envied than pitied.
Haste in every business brings failures.
Great deeds are usually wrought at great risk.
This is the bitterest pain among men, to have much knowledge but no power.
Herodotus
“Father of History”
485-425 B.C.
Born in Halicarnassus
From Familiar Quotations (1980)
My Adventure with Renovating in Greece – Element Studio
Written by Harriette Condes-Zervakis
Part I. As the only person in the family with any amount of time available in 2010, I was elected to supervise the renovation of three rooms in a home in Greece.
The Poseidonion Grand Hotel wins Boutique Hotel Awards
Written by Diane Adam
London—The winners and runners-up of the 2012 Boutique Hotel Awards were announced Nov. 1, at a glittering ceremony held in the iconic Hempel Hotel in London, UK.
Athens was to endure the worst scenes of starvation seen in occupied Europe outside the concentration camps. (p.22)
“The Germans have been living off the country,” wrote an informant…”They brought no food for the troops with them and no soldiers’ messes…” (p.23)
