ATHENS
weekly
Weekly supplement by Insider Publications • www.insider-publications.com • No 119 • Friday, October 14, 2016
Don’t miss our latest issue celebrating the Good Life in Greece. Discover Insider’s pick of autumn-awesome islands plus all of our regular features on Art & Culture, Eating out, Diplomacy and City Life.
Bolshoi Ballet Live
Electricity Black and Light
5th Hip Hop Smile Festival
See the Bolshoi Ballet broadcast live from Moscow in a sumptuous performance, The Golden Age, at Athens Concert Hall, Sunday October 16 at 6pm, Vass. Sofias & Kokkali. Tickets €15 (€8 for students), available from www.megaron.gr
An electrifying moving spectacle as global dance company, eVolutionDanceTheater, performs its current show “Electricity”/Black & Light, October 24, at PassPort Kerameikos: featuring dance, acrobatics, visual effects and advanced technology. Tickets from €20-32, from viva.gr. Kerameikou 58 kai Marathonos, pass-port.com.gr.
Get the adrenalin pumping at this energetic dance symposium showcasing many faces of hip hop culture, October 28-30, with proceeds to Smile of the Child. Displays across various Athens venues including Technopolis, Six D.O.G.S, and PassPort Kerameikos. Visit smilefestival.gr for details.
TRAVEL
inescapable Pythagoras Cup (if you overfill it, it runs dry, teaching us all that “when you’re greedy, you lose everything”). Sunset at Hippys “Do” the sunset at Hippys, at Potami Beach in the north-west, an unmissable Samos institution. Trek through a scruffy field of sunflowers to reach a long sand and pebble beach. Random rock formations supply the drama; ambient Indian music and slouchy double divans, the Ibiza vibe. Settle in with a summer cocktail of Prosecco, Muscat and a single lazy swirl of orange peel.
GET THE BEST OUT OF SAMOS Samos Wine Museum Befriend the famous sweet muscat appellation in all its guises at this attractive stone wine museum on the Vathy waterfront. A tasting tour reveals the Samos Muscat’s surprisingly broad spectrum: from the dry dynamic whites Psiles Korfes and Golden Samena; to the sweeter labels popular in the UK like Samos Vin Douz and the Samos Anthemis (aged in French oak barrels for 5 years). Malagari, Vathi, +30 227.308.7511, www. Amanda Dardanis drops in on Samos – birthplace of Pythagoras and the Goddess samoswine.gr Hera - and finds an exceedingly beautiful and modest year-round pleaser. For a fairly small island just 43km across, Greece that cultivates orchids for export. Potami Waterfall Hike the Isle of Samos packs a big poetic leg- In winter months, you can watch flamin- Take Samos’ most memorable hiking trail acy. It is quoted in the scriptures. Hero- goes in the salt marshes of Psili Ammos, in the mountains behind Potami beach dotus and Aesop dwelled here for long forage for wild mushrooms, or pluck ripe where you’ll see Samos’ oldest church periods. Cleopatra and her lover made overhanging olives as you hike in tradi- (10th century Metamorphosis) and wade their doomed preparations for war against tional spring-fed mountain villages like through about 100 yards of chilly waters to reach the impressive Potami Waterfall. Tip: Rome. And in the modern age, Lord Byron Manolates. take some small change with you for a rest was stirred to write his paean to the famous sweet Samos Muscat wine. Accord- Year-round, you can visit honey and apple stop at the café midway along. ing to mythology, it was also here that Hera farms. Or tiny family-run wineries that surmarried her brother Zeus, (with a wedding vive on word of mouth. And unlike the aus- Open-air Cinema in Mitilinioi tere Cycladics, you always get the sense of Beloved by locals and tourists alike, experinight that lasted 300 years!). Modern Samos has lost this knack of mar- nature being exuberantly alive all around ence the Greek summer ritual of cinema keting itself. Although for many, this is the you. The kissos vines that envelop the met- under the stars at the family-run Cine Rex, island’s great draw. It possesses a quiet al road barriers all the way down the coast. where they give you free home-made honconfidence that comes with self-sufficien- The puddles of cranky goats that stream ey donuts (loukoumades). Located inland in elevated Mitilinioi village, among the cy. Since antiquity, Samos’ luxuriant moun- across the path as you drive. lemon trees and basil plants. Most movies tainous terrain and generous rainfall, has always granted it a working pulse outside Samos is an island perfectly formed for are in English. +30 227.305.1236. of tourism. exploration; where independent-minded folk return each year to plonk themselves Navagos at Tsamadou Beach The island supplies its own excellent ap- down at characterful guesthouses for at Settle in for the day at popular Navagos ples and apricots, almonds and onions, least a month to hike, eat terrific food, and Beach Bar, on exquisite Tsamadou, near honey and herbs. It’s the only place in visit Samos’ stunning tranche of beaches. Kokkari. Bright umbrellas and stripy loung-
Samos:
Not Just for Summer
UPCOMING EVENTS
Theatre West Side Story West Side Story, set to Bernstein and Sondheim’s masterful songs. English lyrics with Greek sub-titles. Tickets from €12-40. Bookings: 210.728.2367 or megaron.gr. Athens Concert Hall, Vass. Sophias & Kokkali, October 15-21.
Conviction
The CIU re-investigates a case that Wallace personally prosecuted with alarming results. Tuesday at 23.00 on OTE Cinema 4HD.
Undercover
ers sprawl across an expanse of gentlysloping lawn, overlooking a CaribbeanDream bay – and all are completely free of charge! Tip: Tsamadou is former hippy HQ and locals call it “50 Shades of Blue”, thanks to the nudist strip still going strong on the beach’s right side.
Desperate for his family’s safety Nick tricks handler Carter into a confession which he hopes will reopen the Antwi case. Sunday at 23.00 on OTE Cinema 4HD. Watch OTE CINEMA 4HD on OTE TV
CINEMA THIS WEEK
Inferno
When Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) wakes up in an Italian hospital with amnesia, he teams up with Dr. Sienna Brooks, and together they must race across Europe to foil a deadly global plot.
The Neon Demon
When aspiring model Jesse moves to Los Angeles, her youth and vitality are devoured by a group of beauty-obsessed women. With Elle Fanning and Christina Hendricks.
ART & CULTURE
Familly
The Land of Dinosaurs Walk among prehistoric giants at this new interactive and educational exhibit to transport you back 65 million years with the largest animals that ever walked the planet. Ellinikos Kosmos, Pireos 254, tel. 212.254.0000, tickets € 6.
Archeology Digested To gain a sense of Samos’ rich cultural backstory, visit the Archeological Museum of Samos (hosting the 5.35m-tall “Kouros of Samos” and Greece’s best preserved Kouros statue); the Archeological Museum of Pythagorio (notable exhibits include a Venus statue and tombstone of Lucius); and the Heraion of Samos: the coastal ruins of Romantic Dining at Kokkari Hera’s once mighty temple with its Sacred This coveted tourist resort, about 10km Way and lone surviving Ionic column; once from Vathy, is Samos’ Little Venice. Eat at host to fertility rites and prestigious sportstylish Italian Giro del Sole in pole posi- ing tournaments for the ancient world. tion. Tip: Keep walking past the long pebbly beach to access the prettier harbour Taverna at the End of the World quarters on the western-side. It’s where Challenge yourself with a two-mile mostly Kokkari’s best charms are on display. uphill quest from pretty Limnionas Beach, on the island’s south-west, to reach reMountain Life mote local landmark “Taverna at the End Explore Samos’ beautiful trio of working of the World”. It’s well worth a visit as alpine villages in the north – Ambelos, much for the ravishing setting, as for its ecStavrinides and Manolates. They’re full centric host Andreas Kotsos. of fetching ceramics and jewellery workshops, authentic tavernas, divine hiking * This is an extract of a longer article which first trails with abundant springs – and the appeared in The Times
TV THIS WEEK
Opera New York Met Live: Don Giovanni See Mozart’s profound masterpiece, Don Giovanni, in a live broadcast from New York’s Metropolitan Opera, October 22, at the Athens Concert Hall, Vas. Sofias & Kokkali, tel: 210.728.2333, tickets €25 from megaron.gr
ART & CULTURE
The House that Paddy Built
Insider reports on some thrilling news for those who’ve been following with interest the fate of the Mani estate of the late British war hero and author Sir Patrick “Paddy” Leigh Fermor – often celebrated as the finest travel writer of his generation.
Brian Eno’s Voyage of Sound
Get swept away in a profound musical journey with Brian Eno’s latest ambient installation, The Ship, which explores two very-Millennial conditions: Hubris and Paranoia Britain’s guru of ambient music Brian between these emotional states of huEno has brought his latest bold concep- bris and paranoia, Eno merges three of tual installation to Athens. the main aspects of his work: music, inSince leaving Roxy Music, Eno has built stallations and song-writing. Eno designs an enraptured global following for his off- the installation to work with the specific kilter oeuvre that uncouples songs from conditions of the exhibition space – in rhythm and standard verse-chorus struc- this case, the state-of-the-art Onassis tures, creating instead slowly unspooling Cultural Center - and is constantly develand profound musical experiences. Eno oping it, creating a meditative and prois simultaneously musician, composer, vocative experience for the listener. visual artist and singer. The Ship installation will remain on disThe Ship, which has appeared previously play at the cultural center’s Exhibition in London and Copenhagen, explores our Hall from noon to 9 p.m. daily until Octovery-Millennial conditions of hubris and ber 23. Entrance is free. paranoia. Taking his conceptual starting point from the sinking of the Titanic, the First World Onassis Cultural Center, 107-109 SynWar and humanity’s constant oscillation grou, tel 210.900.5800, www.sgt.gr This page was produced, in its entirety, by Insider Publications and the INYT-Kathimerini does not bear any responsibility for its contents. Reproduction in whole or in part, by any means whatsoever, is forbidden except with the express written permission of the publisher. Although Insider Publications has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, the publisher cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions it may contain.
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Nearly 5 years after his death in 2011 (at the age of 96), the magnificent seven-bedroom property that Leigh Fermor shared with wife Joan at Kardamyli, in the southern Peloponnese, is open for scheduled visits during October, upon arrangement with the Benaki Museum. Cherished for his exuberant and descriptive prose, Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor’s most praised works were A Time of Gifts and Between the Woods and the Water: part of his trilogy about his year-long walk across Europe from Rotterdam to Istanbul in 1934, aged 18. Universally known as “Paddy”, Leigh Fermor was one of the most charismatic and adventurous personalities of the last century. As a member of the British mission, he played a prominent role in the Cretan resistance during the Second World War. A great admirer and lover of Greece, (his obituaries noted the large busty tattoo of a two-tailed Greek mermaid riding high on his left shoulder), he and his wife-of-50-years Joan chose to live at their Kardamyli residence for the rest of their lives. Leigh Fermor – who was awarded the DSO for one of the most daring feats of the Second World War, kidnapping the commander of the German garrison in Crete in April 1944 – had no children. He bequeathed the house to the Benaki
Museum, along with some 7,000 books. Set on 2 acres of sprawling gardens dotted with olive groves, the Leigh Fermor estate - designed and built in the mid60s by the architect Nikos Hadjimichalis in close collaboration with the Leigh Fermors - was once described as a “book in itself”. Leigh Fermor’s dream was that the property would serve as a creative retreat for other writers whom might visit for several months - and that it would also operate as a hub for educational activities and notable figures from the intellectual and artistic worlds from both Greece and abroad. The Benaki Museum acquired full own-
ership of the property after the donor’s death, in the autumn of 2011. Now, thanks to a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation to fully cover the necessary repair and restoration works to the Kardamyli property, Paddy’s beautiful seafront home has finally opened its doors to the public for scheduled tours of the property, focusing on the donors, the history of the house and its use by the Benaki Museum. The scheduled visits will take place every Thursday at 17.00 and every Saturday at 11.00. To book, phone Myrto Kaouki at the Benaki on 210.367.1090 (Monday-Thursday 10-4pm) or email plfproject@benaki.gr.