Raining Pleasure in Kavala

16 Feb 2008 21:30 Jazz Rock Kavala
http://www.rainingpleasure.gr/

Raining Pleasure is a four-piece band that hails from Patra, the biggest town in southern Greece. Having recorded their first demo in the early nineties, Raining Pleasure quickly became the Greek indie scene's best-kept secret.

Their debut album 'Memory Comes Back' (1996) was released for the respected indie label Lazy Dog and received enthusiastic reviews upon release as did it's follow up, 'Nostalgia', released in late 1998.

In Spring 2001 Raining Pleasure were linked with EMI. The band recorded and released an ep 'Capricorn', before returning to the studio to prepare their third full length album, their first for a major.

In December 2001 Raining Pleasure's major label debut 'Flood' was released to critical acclaim. The album spawned three massive airplay hits in Greece, the biggest of which 'Fake' has become a pop and rock radio staple, after successfully being used in TV spots for Greece's leading telecommunications company. 'Fake' was followed by the hits 'Capricorn' and 'Only Through You'. "Fake" was also used to the soundtrack of the film "The Best of Times" directed by the famous Taiwanese director Tso-chi Chang. The film was nominated for the Golden Lion prize at the Venice Film Festival 2002.

The buzz surrounding the group is fantastic and has taken many by surprise. In Rock N Roll Magazine 2002 readers' poll the group was voted best Greek rock act of all time, a humbling vote of confidence for an act that has been around for just over 5 years.

Raining Pleasure have been one of the hottest tickets across Greece for three summers running, having shared festival stages with The Cure, The Pixies, The Dandy Warhols and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club among others and having sold out theatres across the country.

Their major label debut album, 'Flood', performed exceptionally well on the charts, spending 15 weeks on the international chart where it peaked at No.1 before chart regulations necessitated the album's move to the local repertoire chart where it peaked at No.5 (an astonishing and unprecedented feat for a Greek act performing in English). The album spent well over a year on the Top 40 Artist Album Charts and has been certified Gold.

2004: The group's album 'Forwards & Backwards', is introduced by the double A-side single 'World'/'Identical Twins'. On 'Identical Twins' esteemed vocalist Elly Paspala contributes a vocal track of rare beauty. Both songs became airplay hits.

In March the band's cover of ABBA's 'Dancing Queen' featured in the successful Greek film 'Hardcore', began climbing the airplay charts where it will remain for over six months. In September the group scores another hit with album track 'Love Me, Love Me, Love Me' which video clip directed by Marina Gioti won the best animation video clip award at the Animation Block Party Awards 2005 in New York.

Winter 2004: The band embarks on its first tour of Germany and enters the studio to record a new version of the classic album by Manos Hadjidakis and the New York Rock N Roll Ensemble, 'Reflections'.

'Reflections' is released to immediate critical acclaim. The album was introduced to media at a concert at St Paul's Anglican Church in Athens.

Their latest album 'Who's gonna tell Juliet?' is released in December 2007 in Greece on their new indie label Celesta Records. It is a unique and unusual alternative pop record, described as a fervent guitar driven pop gem with strong melodies, smart lyrics and compelling vocals.

http://www.myspace.com/rainingpleasure

16 Feb 2008 21:30 Jazz Rock Kavala

Filippos Pliatsikas in Kavala

The main composer,lyricist and lead singer of the group PYX LAX,the most successful group ever in Greece. After the band split in 2004,he released a personal album titled "Ti den emathe o theos"(What god didnt learn) in 2005 which reached gold sales. His discography begins in 1990 and has 12 platinum and 3 gold records to his credit. This success is reflected also to his concerts both in greece and abroad(Uk,Germany,Usa,Canada).His music is a mixture of rock and traditional greek music,but very often he includes classical forms to his songs. His lyrics with a clear poetic dispotition are sometimes inspired by love and other times have a strong social character that reflects various places of our planet. He has teamed up to his albums or his concerts with many artists,among REM,Gordon Gano,Eric Burdon,Sting,I Murvini,Loop Guru,Mark Almond,Steve Wynn and others. This album is a mixture of some of his older songs,famous in Greece(performed live by a rock band and a symphonic orchestra)and of new songs whose lyrics are in Greek or in English. The sound is more contemporary than ever.

23 Feb 2008 20:00 Kavala(Nisi) Kavala

http://www.myspace.com/filippospliatsikas

Πανελλήνιο Συνέδριο Αστρονομίας στη Θάσο?

Πανελλήνιο Συνέδριο Αστρονομίας στη Θάσο

Πέμπτη, 13.09.07

Στα 50 χρόνια από την πρώτη διαστημική αποστολή του δορυφόρου "Sputnik"
είναι αφιερωμένο το 8ο Πανελλήνιο Συνέδριο Αστρονομίας, που διεξάγεται
από τις 13 μέχρι και το Σάββατο 15 Σεπτεμβρίου, στον Λιμένα της Θάσου,
υπό τη διοργάνωση της Ελληνικής Αστρονομικής Εταιρίας σε συνεργασία με
το Δημοκρίτειο Πανεπιστήμιο της Θράκης.

Στο συνέδριο συμμετέχουν 100 Έλληνες και ξένοι επιστήμονες ορισμένοι
μάλιστα από τους πιο αξιόλογους στο χώρο της Αστρονομίας, της
Αστροφυσικής και της Διαστημικής Φυσικής.

Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι η συνδιοργάνωση του 8ου Συνεδρίου από την
Ελληνική Αστρονομική Εταιρία και το Δημοκρίτειο Πανεπιστήμιο Θράκης, που
έχει σημαντικό έργο να παρουσιάσει σε σχετικά θέματα, έδωσε την ευκαιρία
στους οργανωτές να δώσουν φέτος ειδική έμφαση στη Διαστημική Έρευνα και
Τεχνολογία και να θέσουν ως τίτλο του Συνεδρίου: «50 Years of Space
Exploration».

Ο σκοπός των συνεδρίων της Ελληνικής Αστρονομικής Εταιρίας είναι να
δημιουργήσει ένα ευνοϊκό περιβάλλον διάδοσης των αποτελεσμάτων των
σύγχρονων θεωρητικών και πειραματικών σπουδών στην Αστρονομία, την
Αστροφυσική και την Διαστημική Φυσική και στην δημιουργία μιας πηγής
έμπνευσης για την νεότερη γενιά και στην κοινωνία γενικότερα.

Τη διοργάνωση υποστηρίζουν η Διευρυμένη Νομαρχιακή Αυτοδιοίκηση Δράμας -
Καβάλας - Ξάνθης, η Νομαρχιακή Αυτοδιοίκηση Καβάλας, ο Δήμος Θάσου και η
Περιφέρεια Ανατολικής Μακεδονίας και Θράκης.

*ΑΠΕ - ΜΠΕ*

Holiday in Bulgaria via Kavala in Greece

Passengers still stranded as tensions mount
By John Leonidou

SCORES of holidaymakers destined for Crete, have had their holidays cut short after not agreeing to an alternative flight when the Hellas Jet plane they were set to travel with broke down.

Meanwhile, in Greece, around 80 elderly couples were yesterday left stranded as Hellas Jet was unable to accommodate them with an alternative flight back to Cyprus.

The 140 passengers were initially set to depart on Wednesday with a Hellas Jet flight, but a technical problem left the plane grounded and the passengers stranded at the airport.

The passengers returned to the airport at 5am yesterday morning and were informed by airline officials that because the plane was still experiencing difficulties they would have to travel with a Ukrainian airline.

The majority of passengers refused, with some demanding a refund whilst other demanded that they be given another airline to travel with to Crete. The standoff meant the passengers were left a further seven hours at the departure lounge.

They were eventually taken by bus to the Hilton Hotel in Nicosia but returned to the airport at 5am on Thursday morning and were informed by airline officials that because the plane was still experiencing difficulties, they could still travel with the Ukrainian airline.

With their plane still grounded in its third day, the offer was again snubbed and by now tensions were mounting.

As of 11.50pm on Thursday night, it was announced that there would be no Hellas Jet flights. Yesterday’s departure monitors at the airports didn’t have any scheduled flight for Hellas Jet.

Meanwhile, 78 elderly couples who had flown with Hellas Jet for a holiday in Bulgaria via Kavala in Greece, have since Thursday been trying to get back to Cyprus.

Most of the passengers were still stranded at the airport in Greece.

Commenting on the saga yesterday, Commerce Ministry official Marios Droushiotis said that if the organiser was aware of alterations to flight schedules and did not notify the passengers, then the airline was to blame.

“In this case, legislation says that in instances where there are alterations to an organised trip and they know it, then they are obliged to notify their customers and give them the chance to exclude themselves from the changes or to propose them another change and to make them sign that they agree to that effect.”

Civil Aviation Transportation Operator Doros Theodorou added: “With regards to Hellas Jet, the details we got were that there was a technical problem to the aircraft and that it caused a delay. In these cases, European law offers protection to the passengers and, more specifically with regards to this incident, they are allowed compensation or a refund or an alternative flight.”

Theodorou went on to say that a passenger could refuse to fly with another aircraft, but could only then claim a refund if a complaint was made to the registrar at the Civil Aviation Department. The registrar would then examine complaint and see if the airline was at fault.

“If that is the case, then the passenger will be compensated,” he said.

http://www.cyprus-mail.com/news/main.php?id=34205&cat_id=1

Police nab migrant smugglers

Police nab migrant smugglers

A 52-year-old Piraeus resident believed to have been running a migrant-trafficking operation has been arrested after being caught transporting 10 Iraqis inland from the Turkish border, police said yesterday.

Border guards detained the 52-year-old, along with two suspected accomplices – a 32-year-old Syrian and a 28-year-old Iraqi – after stopping them for questioning on the Xanthi-Kavala national road early yesterday morning.

The three had allegedly picked up the Iraqi immigrants at some point on the Greek-Turkish border in two small trucks. Police seized the two trucks along with five mobile phones, believed to have been used by the suspects to coordinate their alleged migrant-trafficking activities.

The would-be migrants lacked any official documents, police said. It was unclear whether any money had changed hands for their transfer from Turkey to Greece.

The three suspects are due to face a Xanthi prosecutor on charges of people trafficking.

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100010_20/08/2007_86929

Constantine Tzirtziris (Kavala, Greece) will join the rest of the Sycamores

Indiana State track signs six new athletes

The Tribune-Star

With Indiana State track and field athletes preparing to return to campus this weekend, head men’s coach John McNichols has announced the signing of six new additions to his squad.

Cody Arnold (Bedford), Michael Disher (Indianapolis), Tykeen Fulton (Trenton, N.J.), Drake Sterling (LaPorte), Chauntez Tyus (Florissant, Mo.) and Constantine Tzirtziris (Kavala, Greece) will join the rest of the Sycamores’ returnees on the combined track and cross country squad as the new athletics season begins.

The Sycamores secured their third-straight Missouri Valley Conference cross country championship in 2006, then followed that up with second-place finishes in both the MVC indoor and outdoor track and field championships. However, several key contributors from those teams are now gone and McNichols believes his new recruits will help fill those holes well.

“Our goal every year when we recruit is to find the best possible athletes to fill in holes left by graduation,” said McNichols. “We had some significant losses including all-conference performers like Paladin Jordan, Corey Dowden and Jordan Fife. We think these new recruits will fill those spots well and that their futures will be bright in our program.”

Arnold and Sterling are transfers from Vincennes University and bring top-10 National Junior College Athletic Association championship finishes with them. Arnold placed seventh in the hammer throw in the 2007 indoor meet and also placed seventh at the outdoor championships in the weight throw. Sterling placed ninth in the 600-meter run at the 2007 NJCAA indoor meet and sixth in the decathlon with 5,707 points at the outdoor championships.

“Cody should really help us in the throws,” McNichols said. ”As for Drake, he’s really an all-around athlete so we’re not exactly sure how we are going to use him yet. But, he’s a talent and could help us in several events.”

A three-time state qualifier in cross country and in track, Disher should contribute immediately in the distance events for the Sycamores. The Southport High School graduate placed sixth in the state in cross county in 2004 and 2005 and followed that with a 19th place finish in his senior season in 2006.

“Michael had a good high career and will have an opportunity to help out immediately,” said McNichols. ”As he develops, he should fill the void left by Fife nicely and help us down the line.”

Fulton, a Trenton Central High School product, brings a distinguished resumé with him in the hurdles. He was the 2007 NJSIAA Group Four outdoor state champion in the 110 and 400 meter hurdles and added a third-place finish in the 200-meter dash.

“We think we got one of the best hurdlers in the nation in Tykeen,” said McNichols. ”One of our assistant coaches, Geoff Wayton, and his brother, who is a high school coach in New Jersey, discovered Tykeen and we owe a lot to them. ISU has a distinguished tradition in the hurdles and he has all the tools to help further that legacy.”

Tyus, a McCluer High School product, will try to contribute in the horizontal jumps. He placed fifth in the state championships in the triple jump in 2007 and fourth in that same event in 2006. Tzirtziris, who hails from Greece, rounds out the class and will contribute in the sprints.

“Our program is fortunate to have a top horizontal jumper like Tyus to fill the holes we lost by Jordan and Corey Dowden,” said McNichols. “He should be able to contribute immediately and we look forward to seeing what he can do.

“Usually, we don’t recruit international athletes but Constantine really peaked our interest,” McNichols continued. ”One of our faculty members overseas alerted us to him and we were impressed. He could be a good complement to our 800-meter runners and could also help in the relays.”

The Sycamores’ 2007-08 combined season officially kicks off with the annual Sycamore Pride Intrasquad and Alumni cross country meet Aug. 25 at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course. The event will begin at 10 a.m. at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center, with current and former ISU runners participating in the event.

http://www.tribstar.com/collegesports/local_story_229230926.html

Born in Kavala, Greece, Papadopoulos came to the United States at age 19 on a scholarship to attend Wofford..

Wofford graduate, longtime college trustee dies at age 76

Published August 10, 2007

C.N. "Gus" Papadopoulos, a 1954 Wofford College graduate and longtime member of the school's board of trustees, died on Aug. 2, the school said Wednesday. He was 76.

Papadopoulos spent the last 54 years of his life based in the Houston area, where he was an anesthesiologist before entering the real-estate business.

He was active in the Wofford community, and served on the Wofford board of trustees from 1979 until 1991, and then again from 1993 to 2005. During his lifetime, he donated more than $1 million to the school, establishing the Neofytos Papadopoulos Memorial Scholarship Fund, which aids students from Greece, and helping fund the construction of the Neofytos Papadopoulos Building on campus, both named for his father.

"Gus was a transformative figure in the history of the college," Wofford President Benjamin B. Dunlap said in a statement.

Born in Kavala, Greece, Papadopoulos came to the United States at age 19 on a scholarship to attend Wofford, from which he graduated in three years. He enrolled at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and received his degree in 1958. While working as an anesthesiologist for 15 years, he also became a successful real-estate developer, a business he pursued full time starting in 1974.

He was the mayor of Hunter's Creek Village, Texas, from 1977 to 1983, and was chairman of the board of the First Bank of Houston from 1981 until 1996.

He was at his vacation home in the Cayman Islands when he died unexpectedly, the college reported.

Services will be held Saturday at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Houston. Honorary pallbearers include Dunlap and Roger Milliken.

http://www.goupstate.com/article/20070810/NEWS/708100313/-1/BUSINESS

KAVALA IN DALLAS !!!

A crossover hit

Diners flock to Oak Cliff eatery for meals with an international flair

12:00 AM CDT on Friday, May 11, 2007

By BILL ADDISON / The Dallas Morning News
billaddison@dallasnews.com

Opening a modestly ambitious neighborhood restaurant is always a nerve-jangling gamble. Who really knows which idiosyncratic traits will spark the loyalty of a local audience: An intriguing cuisine not served anywhere else in the community? A particularly hospitable chef or waitstaff? Convenience or affordability? Uniquely inebriating cocktails?

Whatever the alchemy might be that entices the folks of Oak Cliff, Kavala Mediterranean Grill has it. Though it's about a mile up the street from Oak Cliff's epicurean epicenter, the Bishop Arts District, customers congest Kavala's limited parking lot nightly. Upon entering the restaurant, one feels that particular crackle of energy generated by a place experiencing an early, and perhaps unexpected, rush of success.

Much of Kavala's charisma can be attributed to its chef-owner, Kelly Hightower. Mr. Hightower, who was executive chef at nearby Hattie's before venturing out on his own, grew up in the area and remains a resident. The man obviously knows his 'hood.

The restaurant's building has that certain boxy je ne sais quoi that indicates a fast-food past. Indeed, it once housed a Dairy Queen. Though the space has been through a few incarnations since its days of dispensing Blizzards, Mr. Hightower spent several months renovating.

He darkened the walls, which were previously a shade of white he describes as "YMCA bathroom." He also added a curving banquette by the door (useful, since there can be a wait for a table) and installed a handsome slate counter near the restaurant's brick oven. It all feels comfortably retro-chic.

Of course, the liberating pleasure of being a chef-owner is that one has the latitude to freely futz with the cuisine. And Mr. Hightower certainly likes to play with his menu.

Greek is the basic culinary premise here, though there's plenty of Italian, Spanish and even North African crossover action. That includes the usuals, such as hummus and mussels with white wine and tomatoes, but also larkish offerings such as breaded, pan-fried chicken livers brazenly seasoned with potently smoky bacon and onions.

The menu has commendable breadth in terms of price and creative initiative. Mr. Hightower spent time in the kitchens of a Ziziki's outpost and learned how to craft a swarthy lamb gyro, which he serves over pita with tzatziki (thick, spiced yogurt) and lemon-oregano potatoes. For $12.50, it's an optimal choice for an affordable weekday dinner. Ditto an oven-roasted half-chicken scented with rosemary lemon butter and served nestled against a fluffy panzanella salad for $14.95.

But you can also venture into pricier, more sophisticated terrain with entrees like the Greek Island stew, a tomato-glossed montage that includes generous, gently cooked hunks of monkfish and octopus along with clams and mussels. The stew is perfumed with the dreamy duet of saffron and fennel that so sensually conjures Europe's warmer climes.

And a pan-fried halloumi cheese starter earns props as one of the more ingenious starters I've recently encountered. In a Grecian twist on the omnipresent Caprese salad, lumps of the browned, dense cheese are poised atop ripe tomato slices and accented with dill, rather than basil. Each element melds brilliantly.

The pizzas that emerge from the restaurant's brick oven have an interesting textural predicament. The consistency of the baked dough falls somewhere between thin and thick, with its outer edges slightly puffy. It seems to better support lighter ingredients, like the verdant combination of spinach, olives, feta and Greek peppers. More robust toppings, like hunks of Italian sausage and roasted red peppers, seemed too cumbersome for the midweight crust.

All this variety inspires Mr. Hightower to keep aspects of his menu in a near constant state of flux, which can be both maddening and laudable. I'm not sure if it's culinary restlessness or merely getting a feel for his customer's tastes, but some beautiful dishes have disappeared needlessly. A cured duck salad, in particular, with its slawlike trio of julienned green apples, celery hearts and carrots in pomegranate vinaigrette, was masterful. Bring it back, please.

And yet, other dishes have deservedly hit the road in a flash. A "pot roasted" rack of lamb, faintly fragrant with Moroccan spices, turned out to be a plate of muddled mush – and it cost $27. No hard feelings to see that misstep vamoose.

The pizza with the sausage and roasted peppers also vanished. It leads me to think that Mr. Hightower, more often than not, has a sense of which of his creations do and do not work. That's a mighty valuable quality in a chef.

Aside from a couple of food gaffes, the restaurant's only mild shortcomings seem to be in its sweet but green staff. Every server I encountered knew very little about the food and seemed flummoxed by questions.

Sure, it's early in the game, but those unseasoned staffers had better learn fast. As the good word spreads about this place, Kavala's loyal locals will soon be vying with the foodies from across the river for a space in its diminutive dining room.

Kavala

Mediterranean Grill {star}{star}{star} (very good)

Food {star}{star}{star}

Service {star}{star}

Atmosphere {star}{star}{star}

Price: $$-$$$ (appetizers $4.95 to $12.95, entrees $12.95 to $26, desserts $7)

Address: 1417 W. Davis St.

Phone: 214-942-8100

Hours: Lunch Tuesday-Friday 11 a.m.

to 2 p.m., dinner Tuesday-Saturday 5 to

10 p.m., Sunday brunch 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Credit cards: All major

Wheelchair accessible: Yes

Smoking area: No

Alcohol: Full bar

 

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/stories/DN-kavala_0411gui.ART.State.Edition1.435a31f.html

 

 

Kavala on the International news

Drug crackdown

Police arrested 28 suspects in Thessaloniki in April on drug-related charges as part of a crackdown on narcotics trafficking, authorities said. Police confiscated more than 4 kilos of heroin and a further 4 kilos of cannabis during the month-long operation. Three more suspects were arrested in Serres, northern Greece, yesterday accused of selling cocaine and heroin. The suspects are believed to have supplied their network of dealers by hiding the narcotics at advertising billboards along the Thessaloniki-Kavala national highway.

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100021_08/05/2007_83224

Kavala panoramic photos 25 March 2007 & a bug i found

INTERNATIONAL PRESS: Students paid for diplomas & question on FYROM decision endangering flight safety

Students paid for diplomas

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100010_09/02/2007_79913

Up to 5,000 students obtained diplomas from private technical high schools (TEEs) and used those qualifications to apply for public sector jobs even though they had not met graduation criteria and, in some cases, had never attended classes, sources told Kathimerini yesterday.

Public sector inspectors found that seven private schools in Larissa, three in Kavala, two in Trikala, two in Arta and one in Athens had accepted up to 20,000 euros in tuition fees from each student to give them diplomas that they allegedly should not have been awarded.

Three of the schools in Larissa have already been shut down but the other institutions are being investigated by authorities.

Sources said that the suspect diplomas have been used to apply for jobs at hospitals and nursery schools.

Private and state-run TEEs were set up a few years ago to provide students with an alternative source for vocational training.

                                                                                   -------------------------

Parliamentary acts
02:04 pm - Saturday
European Parliament: question on FYROM decision endangering flight safety

Strasbourg, France - By Georgios Karatzaferis (IND/DEM)
(WAPA) - "Written question E-0050/07
by Georgios Karatzaferis (IND/DEM)
to the Council
http://www.avionews.com/index.php?corpo=see_news_home.php&news_id=73804&pagina_chiamante=index.php

Subject: FYROM decision endangering flight safety

The government in Skopje recently decided - in breach of the interim agreement with Greece - to rename that city's airport 'Alexander the Great', after the great Greek military commander and civiliser.

The Greek Civil Aviation Service and the Hellenic Air Force, however, registered the airport of Chrysoupoli (Kavala) under that name with the ICAO (and with all other international organisations) 15 years ago. The result of this situation is that enormous risks have now been created which endanger flight safety owing to the fact that two neighbouring FIR will be using the same name for two airports in close proximity.

How has the Council responded to make FYROM (which aspires to EU accession) understand that its decision endangers the safety of thousands of passengers?".

(Avionews)

(006) 070209140410-73804 (World Aeronautical Press Agency - 2007-02-09 02:04 pm)

Jewish in Kavala

From : http://www.greeknewsonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6179

 

Today we remember dearly the sacrifice of the 155 of our Jewish compatriots that lost their lives in the Nazi death camps. And at the same time we celebrate the spirit of humanism and solidarity shown by the people of Volos, who saved some 750 Jewish people, or more than 83% of the Israelite Community of our home town.

Greeks are a people that through their long history have suffered a long period of slavery and persecution. More than 1,5 million Greeks of the Asia Minor and Pontus were the victims of one of the worst genocides of our century. A genocide not recognized by Turkey, same as they do with the Armenian Genocide.

When we expect from others to recognize this injustices done to our people, we have to be equally sensitive to the pains and suffering of our brothers and sisters that have suffered, just because their different religion, or ethnicity, or race.

They say, a good deed is always repaid, one way or another. In August 1922, when the flames set by the Turks were burning the beautiful City of Smyrna in Asia Minor and its Greek population were dying by the thousands, there was a tobacco manufacturer, named Herman Spirer. His parents were Swiss Jews. Besides Smyrna, he also had business in Volos, Drama, Kavala and Salonica. Spirer hosted hundreds of Greeks in his factory, raised the Swiss flag for protection and paid for the ships that carried them to safety. Some of those refugees landed in Volos and even worked in Spirer?s tobacco factory.

I don?t think people of Volos ever forgot this gesture of humanity and kindness. Maybe this is the reason why our hometown is an example of tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Maybe this is the reason even the German consul in Volos at the time, Helmut Scheffel, told Metropolitan Ioakeim that the danger for the Jews of Volos was imminent. Metropolitan Iakeim and Mayor Saratsis helped them, as well as the municipal clerk Zissis Mantidis and the police Chief, Ilias Agdiniotis. The partisans of the National Liberation Front, EAM, coordinated a huge evacuating operation and in only one night all nine hundred people left town. My father, a 16year old partisan at the time, was telling me of some of his Jewish comrades. And of course it was thanks to the leadership of the Israelite Community of Volos who didn?t trust the German lies and left.

That?s why the majority of the Jewish Community of Volos survived.

Asher Matathias, our speaker, and his parents were some of these survivors. He is a caveman, because he was born in a cave of Mount Pelion, in December 3 1943. He immigrated with his parents to America, in 1956, where he ?s got an excellent education; he is a professor at the St Johns University and we are proud to have him and his lovely Voliotissa wife and my neighbor in Volos, Anna, as members of our association. And we all together contribute in sending to every one in the world this strong message of tolerance, brotherhood and understanding.

Forged degrees

Greek students caught with forged degrees

Jan. 28, 2007 at 6:24PM

http://www.washtimes.com/upi/20070128-051610-3123r.htm

The Greek Education Ministry has caught 310 students trying to gain recognition of forged degrees from foreign universities.
      The false certificates were discovered before they were officially recognized, as a result of improved regulations by the National Academic Recognition and Information Center, the Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported.
      DOATAP President Georgios Leontaris said it remained unclear whether those universities named had any knowledge or involvement in the forged documents.
      "The involvement of universities has not been proven," he said. "We are obliged to re-examine the issue of their legality and, of course, we need to cooperate with the countries' authorities to find out who is responsible for the fraud."
      Most of the schools involved are in Russia, Albania, Romania and Bulgaria.
      With Greece exporting more tertiary students than another other country, DOATAP was given the responsibility of assessing and officially recognizing the manner in which degrees are obtained.

 

Kavala in northern Greece

The port of Kavala in northern Greece on the afternoon of Sept 22 2006.