#>Thessaly</a></span>

[gemsofgreece]

Hello! Forgive the rather specific request, but do you have a brief recap of the wars Greece fought in modern days? By modern days I mean after guns were invented up to the XX century, excluded (I mean you don't have to mention me WW1 and WW2, as I guess they are already a given). I know for a long time Greece was under the Ottoman empire, so I take that as well

Greece hasn't really fought with others much except Turkey tho lol, the list below will give you a deeper understanding of all the Greco-turkish memes

Guns were used in what we'd call their recognisable form around 1300 AD. For the next 200 years, the Greek fights are still the Byzantine fights.

In the 14th Century, the Byzantine Empire tries to resurrect itself as a result of its utter destruction from the Crusaders. This leads to Byzantine civil wars between aspiring emperors who simultaneously try to regain lands. Meanwhile, the empire fights the Ottomans on numerous battles. Throw in this mix a Byzantine-Genoese War, which had to do with the repercussions of the Crusades.

In the 15th Century, it's all Byzantine Empire vs Ottomans. The empire falls and Greeks become a part of the Ottoman empire.

In the Ottoman-Venetian Wars which span three centuries (1463 - 1718), Greeks participate on the side of the Venetians every time.

During the 16th century, Greeks make several anti-Ottoman revolts, at Vonitsa, Epirus, Thessaly and Dionysius the Philosopher's revolt. They also participate in the Albanian revolt in Himara.

In the Russo-Turkish War (1768-1774), Greeks participate on the side of the Russians.

From 1778-1815, Greeks make several revolts with local success which leads to re-invasions from the Ottoman Turks and more fights.

1821-1832, Greek War of Independence.

Crimean War, 1853 - 1856. Russia VS Ottoman Empire, France and UK. Greeks participate on the side of the Russians.

Further Cretan, Macedonian, Thessalian and Epirote revolts against the Ottoman Empire, 1841 - 1898.

Macedonian Struggle, 1904 - 1908. Atypical war between Greece and Bulgaria over the still Ottoman-controlled region of Macedonia.

First Balkan War, 1912-1913. Greece, Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria VS Ottoman Empire.

Second Balkan War, 1913. Greece and Serbia VS Bulgaria.

WWI (1914-1918). Greece joins the Allies after a lot of drama.

Greeks participate in the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War (1918-1920).

Greco-Turkish War, 1919-1922.

WWII, 1939-1945. Greece is of course on the side of the Allies and fights the invasions of Italy, Germany and Bulgaria, for the most part simultaneously.

Greek Civil War, 1946 - 1949.

Korean War, 1950 - 1953. Greeks participate on the side of South Korea. Fun fact, they were the fifth largest UN power participating in the war.

Korean stamp.

Turkish Invasion of Cyprus, 1974. Much weaker and shorter assistance of Cyprus than one would expect, most likely because at the time Greece was governed by a dictatorship.

Now as a member of NATO and UN it is in several expenditions worldwide, missions, but it's basically peacemaking and humanitarian operations etc

[dragon-heisters]

Session 31, 1 Apr 2023: "This is some Tracy Emin type shit."

Suggested talking points: the price of the pathfinder rule book (ridiculous), hooray for the DM's sister - she found a copy at a local bookshop for an actually decent price! We’re all super excited for Pathfinder, which lets pretty much anyone have a familiar or animal companion, which can even be a severed head or severed hand. You don't want an angel though.

No Hazel or Pfenig tonight, so we must soldier on without them. We’ve found the vault, so we chuff off home for a long rest as we got battered by a Displacer beast last time. Nuri levels up both Hazel and Pfenig, and we’re off…

The party wake up at Trollskull Alley and descend the stairs; Nuri notices that Thessalie is absent. He asks around, but no-one seems to have seen her today. Lif says she has been acting strangely, talking to herself. Vervain is in the taproom, however, and has been chatting with Pfenig. He’s been filling them in on what they’ve missed.

Well, we didn't need Thessalie anyway. Or the Stone of Golorr, not any more. (That's definitely not going to come back to bite us.) We go back to the mill and go down the stairs; there is a large set of double doors with dwarfish runes carved into them. Nuri can read them given time, if no-one else speaks it…? No? Okay. He casts Comprehend Languages as a ritual. “The three keys, bring them forth!”

Ah fuck, we forgot the dwarf. Oh, no we didn’t, hurray!

We get the shaved dwarf to hold the beholder eyestalk and the dragon scale, and ask him to wait for us like he’s some sort of taxi. He agrees. Vervain shares their Eyes of Night ability, giving everyone 300 feet of darkvision.

The doors open to a huge chamber; twelve sets of double doors line the walls. Hazel gives the room a cursory glance for traps. “Looks fine to me.”

60 feet above us are bridges that span the columns in the centre of the room; they all look to be in pretty shitty condition. Engraved on the double doors are images of dwarves in heavy armour.

No traps on the floor. Nuri casts Detect Magic as a ritual and does a circuit of the room, approaching each set of doors in turn to see if there is any magic around or behind the doors. Aside from us and the items we carry, there is no sign of magic in the room.

He picks a set of doors at random. We go up to them and Hazel checks them for traps. 10. “Oooh! Average.”

No sign of traps on the doors. No keyhole, either. Hmm. Pfenig gives them a push; nothing happens. Vervain leans over him and pushes them open.

There is a staircase leading up, and next to it is a fresco of dwarves battling goblins. It is... oddly alluring... As we approach, everyone but Hazel makes WIS saves; ah fuck.

We all roll pretty good for once. Pfenig thinks the artwork is crass; Vervain has seen better. DM: "This is some Tracy Emin type shit." Nothing bad happens, yay!

As luck would have it, every other door in the room is false; we happened to hit on the right ones first time. Ha! (Nuri: "Told you the others only slowed us down.")

Joe copies and pastes us up the stairs, and we push our tank (Pfenig) up ahead. The hall we find ourselves in has high ceilings and more pillars. There are 3 archways on the left, and Vervain spots an area of damage to a mural about halfway down the wall. The mural is of dwarves doing... something. They go and have a closer look; the dwarves are in heavy armour and look as if they’re off to battle.

Nuri and his genasi eyes take a look. It looks to be a different artist than the fresco downstairs. He makes an Investigation check; worse than Vervain's. The crack in the mural looks deep and dark. He presses his nose up against it and gets hit in the face with a pseudopod - Initiative time!

Hazel retreats into shadow and shoots the thing, remembering from last time we fought black puddings that they’re hard to hide from. 20 damage!

DM, annoyed: “You sir, are a cad and a bounder.”

Pfenig next. The DM asks if he is going to heal the poor little pudding. He casts Shilfkgjldfhgklhjh instead, but is too far away to do much on this turn. He moves up and gets ready for the next round.

Nuri has a faceful of black pudding. “Not this again.” He Creates Bonfire underneath it, doing 11 damage and forcing a DC15 DEX save. It rolls a 6, which comes out the other side as a 3. Good to know…

Vervain Sacred Flames it. They could do Spiritual Weapon but they don’t want to use the spell slot if they don’t need to. "We’ve got Hazel, we’ll be fine."

The pudding hits Nuri, rolling a 20 and dissolving his armour; joke’s on the DM because this happened last time and he never replaced his armour, so all it does it make his jacket look slightly cooler.

The pudding slops off toward Hazel, and Nuri gets an attack of opportunity - it hits for 6 slashing and 2 fire damage. The pudding splits into two puddings, and Vervain swears a lot.

(Pfenig arrives in person, he’s escaped from his party and come to join us!)

Hazel shoots and hits for 22 damage and gets the how de do dis one one of them. "It bursts and splashes on the floor and it’s gross." Hazel smiles unnervingly.

It’s Pfenig’s turn - he does Symbiotic Enti- no wait, he wants to save that. He runs up and hits it with his Shilsdkldfhjlhh, “Giving it a jolly good pasting. Have that, ya bastard.” It’s looking… grubby, like it’s losing its integrity.

Nuri’s turn and he casts Bonfire under it again. How de do dis! “It kind of… boils, and there’s a smell of burned farts.”

Nuri is looking a little worse for wear; Vervain does him a Cure Wounds at level 1; 8 HP back.

Vervain spots a door at the far end of the corridor; they get Hazel to check it for traps. She finds none. Vervain manages to push the door open. Behind it is treasure!

We did it, we won Dungeons and Dragons. Nuri starts calculating how much we can carry. The DM asks us if we’d like to go in and investigate the gold. Uh oh; looks like we haven’t won quite yet.

There are five urns; inside them we find the following:

Urn 1: 5 tourmaline worth 100 gp each & 200cp Urn 2: Ring of Warmth, 10 gold rings worth 25gp each, and 650 gp in coins Urn 3: 250gp Urn 4: 33 blue quartz worth 10gp each Urn 5: a 9 inch tall statue of a dwarf worth 250gp and weighing 10lbs.

Probably not even Lord Neverember knew about this room; we don’t think this is part of the hoard. We can just pocket this. We can fit some in our loot satchels, and Nuri’s lamp; we do that.

We have a look at the bridges; these are suspended over the room below and are in, quote, “Shit condition”. We send Pfenig across first and wait to see what happens to him. We think about sending him over with a rope but we only have 50 feet of it; we could tie two together but it’ll be long enough then that if he does fall he’ll still hit the ground. We decide to just tie the one rope around him, and Vervain holds the other end. He'll be on his own after the first 50 feet or so. Vervain casts Guidance on him and he edges his way across.

DM: “Stop right there and make a Dexterity check!” He rolls a 6, and even Guidance isn’t going to help that.

Pfenig as he plummets 60 feet to the ground: “And that’s how Pfenig dies.”

Vervain makes a STR save, a 15, and manages to save him. Phew! He takes a little bit of damage as he reaches the end of the rope, but not as much as if he'd hit the ground. Vervain drops him the last five feet and he comes back around and up the stairs.

We all heard a thunderous crash from the northern end of the room as this happened; sounds like one of the other bridges collapsed. Pfenig has a look on his way back up; it did.

How to cross the gaps? Vervain has a decent jump distance, and Pfenig can change into something that can jump. Vervain goes first and flings one end of their rope back for Hazel; the other two make it under their own steam.

We approach the adamantine door on the other end of the bridge. We get Hazel to check for traps; 23! Eyyyyyyy. She finds no traps. Vervain pushes it but nothing happens.

Pfenig makes an Arcana check to see if it’s magical; a 9. He thinks it probably is. Nuri or Pfenig can cast Detect Magic; Pfenig does, and sees a faint aura around the door. It’s transmutation magic. (If only we had a transmutation wizard.) We all look at each other, stumped.

Nuri: "I could set it on fire…?"

Vervain makes an Insight check; they think that if one of us was a dwarf the doors would open automatically. Oh - duh. They trudge back down the stairs to go and get the dwarf.

He’s drunk. The door opens for him anyway. Great! We are going to have to babysit this guy now though.

The chamber beyond is 20 feet high with frescoes of more dwarves and an anvil on a plinth in the centre of the room. Nuri investigates the fresco. “Shall I do my Wisdom Save now?” He's fine, nothing happens.

Pfenig spots some dwarven runes on the anvil. We push the dwarf forward.

“It says let the hammer fall and the anvil ring,” he slurs.

Who’s got a hammer?

Pfenig looks at the fresco. It’s of a blacksmith, and handily there is a removable hammer. Behind it are more runes.

“Oi, Thunderbuns!”

The dwarf shuffles over. “Let hearts be lifted and battles won.”

Pfenig lifts the hammer with his very small Strength score and brings it down “in a big wobbly arc” on the anvil.

CLANG!

DM: "Can you all hear it? You didn’t cover your ears or anything?"

Oh no…

We all get ten temp HP!

We call it there, so we can think about how we are going to get back over the bridge without using too many of our daily skills. Next session will probably be the last one, so let's make it good!

[sartorialadventure]

Mycenaean period Greece (late Bronze Age).

Mycenaean Greece (or the Mycenaean civilization) was the last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece, spanning the period from approximately 1750–1050 BC. It represents the first advanced and distinctively Greek civilization in mainland Greece with its palatial states, urban organization, works of art, and writing system. The most prominent site was Mycenae, in the Argolid, after which the culture of this era is named. Other centers of power that emerged included Pylos, Tiryns, Midea in the Peloponnese, Orchomenos, Thebes, Athens in Central Greece and Iolcos in Thessaly. Mycenaean and Mycenaean-influenced settlements also appeared in Epirus, Macedonia, on islands in the Aegean Sea, on the coast of Asia Minor, the Levant, Cyprus, and Italy.

1. Mycenaean period armor, Dendra panopy and Thebes panoply, from the Koryvantes Reenacting Group 2. Boar tusk helmet from Mycenae, and carved depictions of such helmets in ivory 3. Mycenaean gold earring, Late helladic II, ca. 13th century BCE 4. Mycenaean wealthy woman or priestess depicted as weaving in a palace (Actually, this work would have been done by slaves) Art by Serena Malyon. You can see the similarity between this outfit and earlier Minoan clothing. 5. Mycenaean warrior and panoply from late bronze age, ca. 1300-1200 BCE, from the Koryvantes Reenacting Group 6. Mycenaean gold octopus brooch

[cincinnatusvirtue]

Alexander III “The Great”, King of Macedon (356-323BC) Part 1: The lay of the land...

His name conjures up all kinds of images and associations and the details of his life which spanned just shy of 33 years are far too expansive to be condensed into one post, so we’ll divide it into a few parts with a summary focus on what brought him to historical attention, his military conquests and some of his lasting impacts on culture and history.  First a bit of personal and geopolitical background are necessary.

Alexander was born in July of 356 BC in what is the city of Pella in the ancient Kingdom of Macedon in modern northern Greece.  His father was the then reigning King of Macedon, Philip II and his mother was one of Philip’s wives Olympias, a princess from another Greek kingdom, Epirus.  Ancient Greece was divided into city-states or polis or various small petty kingdoms without a unified rule in the 4th Century BC.  In centuries prior, Greece was dominated by two cities with two different systems of government and two different military traditions.  One was Athens, a direct democracy with an advanced and powerful navy and the other was the largely land based diarchy (two co-ruling kings) of Sparta, which was famed for its infantry and harsh military indoctrination with a reputation as an almost unbeatable force in the Classical Greek world.  Both played an important role in establishing Greek culture, philosophy, art, religion, military and government, all of which would contribute to modern Western Civilization.

Athens and Sparta were at times friendly but often rivals and most especially in the 5th Century BC with the invasion of Greece by the great superpower of the day in Eurasia, the Achaemenid Empire, better known as the Persian Empire from Iran.  The Persian Empire spanned from the Indus River valley in modern Pakistan and India across Central and Western Asia, the Middle East, Northern Africa and Southern Europe, it was multiethnic, multilingual, multireligious, cosmopolitan and very influential on governance.  It was centered in Iran, by the Persians, an Iranian people of the diverse Indo-Iranian ethnolinguistic group that overtook many others and expanded to become the predominant power of its age, probably in the entire world.  The Greek or Hellenic world was on Persia’s western fringe, it was a tributary portion, subject to the Persians but with a modicum of independence.  Persia’s provinces were divided into satrapies, ruled by royal governors called satraps.  Persia invaded Greece under Xerxes I, its Shah or King of Kings in 480 BC.  This united Greece and was famed for the stand of the Greek force, namely the 300 Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae, which though a Persian victory was costly in lives and time, delaying the Persians.  Eventually the Persians retreated due to rebellion back east and the force that remained was defeated by the Greeks, giving the Greeks breathing space to maintain their independence.  In the wake of this victory though Athens and Sparta and their various other Greek allies turned on each other forming rival camps in the Peloponnesian War which saw Sparta defeat Athens and become the most powerful faction in Greece.

Meanwhile to the north in the highlands, Macedon was remote and rustic for a Greek kingdom, it was viewed as a backwater by its southern neighbors and some did not consider it Greek at all.  Though they are believed to have spoke their own dialect of Greek, worshipped in the same polytheistic religion as Greece and shared certain other cultural traits with the southern Greeks. Nevertheless their proximity to the barbarian tribes of the Balkans, the Thracians, Dacians and Illyrians made them some what of a halfway point between “civilized” Greece and outright barbarians.  However, the ruling dynasty into which Alexander was born, the Argead claimed descent from the legendary hero Heracles or Hercules and from there Zeus, God of Thunder and supreme on the Greek Pantheon of Olympian Gods.  They were famed for their military tradition, including cavalry and their infantry.  It was really Alexander’s father Philip who introduced the innovations to Macedon’s military that Alexander would perfect in later battles.

Their reforms were a result of technology, regimented drilling and a doctrine of combined arms, something most Greek military traditions up to that point ignored.  Typical emphasis was on one branch of the military, in Athens it was naval warfare, in Sparta, a strong infantry and Thessaly a strong cavalry.  Macedon lacked naval power at the time but it sought to emphasize both strong cavalry and infantry tactics in combined usage, one supporting the other throughout the battle.  Philip adopted tactics from his enemies, including the light infantry tactics of the Thracians, the light cavalry of the nomadic horse archer Iranian Scythians including their flying wedge tactic.  Most famously, Philip helped innovate a new technological and tactical formation, the phalanx.

The phalanx was a formation of regiments of heavy infantry using long spears called the sarissa, typically 18-20 feet long in units numbering 256 men each armed with a speared pike that was light in construction but due its length could keep the enemy at bay.  Phalanxes were both defensive and offensive in nature.  Its long spears meant it could defend itself at greater range in melee, deflecting cavalry and infantry charges head on and by going on the offensive and marching in formation, the phalanx could deploy to hold or press open the enemy line by fixing it into place in such a way that a gap could open for the Macedonian cavalry to exploit with its flying wedge formation, typifying the use of combined arms.  

Macedonian troops were drilled constantly, almost as much as Spartans but in a much looser more flexible and adaptable doctrine, making them more well rounded than their Spartan counterparts.  Philip would conquer the famed city of Thebes as well as defeat several barbarian tribes and went onto conquer much of Greece and got Athens to make peace but he never took on Sparta, nor did Alexander.  Nevertheless, with Macedon now the dominant power over Greece, Philip was named Hegemon of the Hellenic League, making him in effect the ruler of a mostly unified Greece.  His goal was to next invade the Persian Empire which was on the decline but he was assassinated by his own bodyguard.

At age 20, Alexander took the throne of Macedon, becoming the king but his rule was in jeopardy,  Alexander, however was a learned young man, thanks to his father hiring the famed Aristotle to be Alexander’s childhood tutor.  This well rounded classical education combined history, geography, mathematics, biology, philosophy and literature, all things which Alexander came to appreciate and support, but his military training was all from his father and his father’s trusted generals, many of whom Alexander now inherited himself.

Alexander would have to prove himself and his kingdom worthy of his father’s legacy while at the same time forging his own name.  He defeated both Thracian tribes to the north in modern Bulgaria and other Greek states, which like his father named him Hegemon and in 334 BC when he crossed the Hellespont from Greece into Asia Minor (modern Turkey), his forces would embark on a ten year campaign that would change the world and one from which he would never return home...

[mvthologique]

THE OUREA

The Ourea were primordial deities in Greek mythology, children of Gaia alone. They represented the mountains of the world that was known to Greeks at the time. The ten Ourea were Aithna, Athos, Helikon, Kithairon, Nysos, Olympus I, Olympus II, Oreios, Parnes, and Tmolus. The individual mountains were rarely personified, with the exception of Tmolus that was both a king and a mountain. Each mountain had its own local mountain nymph, called oread.

AITHNA: was the goddess of the volcanic Mount Etna in Sicily, southern Italy. She was the mother by Zeus of the Palikoi (Palici), gods of geysers and hot-water springs.

The giant Typhoeus was buried beneath her bulk. His restless turnings were the cause of earthquakes and lava-flows.

ATHOS: was a mountain-god of Thrake (Thrace), north of Greece.

HELIKON: was a mountain-god of Boiotia in central Greece. His peak lay near the Boiotian border with Phokis and was famed for its shrine of the Mousai (Muses).

KITHAIRON: was a mountain-god of Boiotia in central Greece. His mountain spanned the borders of Boiotia, Megaris and Attika. He may have been identified with Nysos, foster-father of the god Dionysos.

NYSOS: was an old Seilen demi-god of Mount Nysa. He was entrusted by Zeus with the care of the infant god Dionysos who he raised with the help of the Nysiades. Mythical Mount Nysa was sometimes identified with Mount Kithairon (Cithaeron) in Boiotia. Its southern vales, known as the Nysaian fields, were the site of the abduction of Persephone in the Homeric Hymns. The mountain was also located on the island of Naxos, in Thrake (Thrace), and in distant Phoinikia (Phoenicia).

OLYMPUS I: A mountain in Thessalia (Thessaly) (northern Greece) and its god. Olympos was the home of the gods.

OLYMPUS II: was a mountain-god of Anatolia in Phrygia (modern Turkey). He was an inventor of the flute and the father of flute-playing Satyroi (Satyrs). The Phrygian Mount Olympos should not be confused with the Thessalian mountain of the same name which was the home of the Olympian gods.

OREIOS: was a mountain - god of central Greece - probably Mount Othrys or Oita in Malis or else the Pindus mountain range. He was the father of Oxylos "Mountain-Forests" and the Hamadryas "Joined-with-Tree".

PARNES: A mountain between Boiotia (Boeotia) and Attika (Attica) (central Greece) and its god.

TMOLOS: was a mountain-god of Lydia in Anatolia (modern Turkey). He was appointed as judge of a musical contest between the god Apollon and Marsyas or Pan.

[pastelpomwrites]

Rules: tag nine people you want to get to know better

Thanks for the tag @margaretcroftwrites !!

Relationship Status: single but I did talk to a guy that seemingly doesn’t exist last week and... I’d be down

Favorite Color: purple, red, or blue 

Top Three Favorite Ships: I rlly haven’t “shipped” in a long while (my fangirl days are behind me) but my big three were Kagehina, Mchanzo, and Napollya

 Lipstick or Chapstick: chapstick bc my lips are always chapped

Last Song: Siren by Kailee Morgue

Last Movie: Monty Python + the Holy Grail bc they put it on netflix! And nobody told me!!!

Last Book: The last book I read all the way through was a conjuring of light by V.E. schwab but I’ve partially read and then dropped like a dozen books since then, the most recent being the diviners by libba bray (which I swear I’ll finish! I just have the attention span of a goldfish)

Currently Reading: the thessaly trilogy by jo walton (I’ve already read this through but it’s seriously one of my favorite book series pls read it)

Fanfiction: I haven’t read fanfic since my fangirl days so idk but back in the day I read a sherlock fanfiction where sherlock just had cat ears and a tail for like. no discernible reason. nobody else in the fanfic did it was just him. he used bobby pins to stick the ears down so nobody would find out and like... be weirded out I guess

Tagging whoever wants to do it! Just @ me in it so I can see it I wanna meet y’all

[rock-n-roll-curly-blonde]

Tell me about Greece :)

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, historically also known as Hellas, is a country in Southern Europ, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2016. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki.Greece is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Situated on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia (just as I have previously said, they arent Macedonians) and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast.Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km in length, featuring a large number of islands, of which 227 are inhabited. Eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres. The country consists of nine geographic regions: Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean IslandsThrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands.Greece is considered the cradle of Western civilization, being the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, the Olympic Games, Western literature, historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western drama. From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as polis, which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Philip of Macedon united most of the Greek mainland in the fourth century BC, with his son Alexander the Great rapidly conquering much of the ancient world, spreading Greek culture and science from the eastern Mediterranean to the Indus River. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming an integral part of the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine Empire, wherein the Greek language and culture were dominant.

Okay so these things answer to both this and another question I had received.

Anon, please come and talk to me I’d love to

And I would like to thank wikipedia cause if I was to write all these it would take me ages

[release-info]

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic (Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία), also known as Hellas (Greek: Ελλάς), is a country located in Southern and Southeast Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2016. Athens is the nation’s capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki. Hellenic Republic Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Ellinikí Dimokratía (Greek) Flag of Greece Flag } Coat of arms Motto: «Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος» Elefthería í Thánatos “Freedom or Death” Anthem: «Ύμνος εις την Ελευθερίαν» Ýmnos eis tin Eleftherían “Hymn to Liberty” Location of Greece (dark green) – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the European Union (green) – [Legend] Location of Greece (dark green) – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the European Union (green) – [Legend] Capital and largest city Athens 37°58′N 23°43′E Official language and national language GreGreece is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Situated on the southern tip of the Balkan Peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km (8,498 mi) in length, featuring a large number of islands, of which 227 are inhabited. Eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres (9,573 ft). The country consists of nine geographic regions: Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands (including the Dodecanese and Cyclades), Thrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands. Greece is considered the cradle of Western civilisation, being the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, Western literature, historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, Western drama and notably the Olympic Games. From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as poleis (singular polis), which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Philip of Macedon united most of the Greek mainland in the fourth century BC, with his son Alexander the Great rapidly conquering much of the ancient world, from the eastern Mediterranean to India. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming an integral part of the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine Empire, in which Greek language and culture were dominant. Rooted in the first century A.D., the Greek Orthodox Church helped shape modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox World. Falling under Ottoman dominion in the mid-15th century, the modern nation state of Greece emerged in 1830 following a war of independence. Greece’s rich historical legacy is reflected by its 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The sovereign state of Greece is a unitary parliamentary republic and developed country with an advanced high-income economy, a high quality of life, and a very high standard of living. A founding member of the United Nations, Greece was the tenth member to join the European Communities (precursor to the European Union) and has been part of the Eurozone since 2001. It is also a member of numerous other international institutions, including the Council of Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF). Greece’s unique cultural heritage, large tourism industry, prominent shipping sector and geostrategic importance[a] classify it as a middle power. It is the largest economy in the Balkans, where it is an important regional inves http://bit.ly/2QSkjiX

[theinsidiousdice]

A Visitor's Guide to [Name Redacted]

Unlike Take Five, Another Winter takes place almost entirely within the bounds of one unnamed town, meaning that I ended up building this town a lot more thoroughly than most of the locations in Take Five. I want to get everything I've got down in one place as a reference!

The town can be roughly divided into five areas: the north, south, east, and west sides, and then the center. The center is home to the town hall and other administration-related buildings like the treasury; generally, the only people here are those with some role in governance. Very little of the story takes place here.

The town is bordered to the north by the majestic and creatively-named Lake Cerulea. Butting up against the lake is the Meionic Branch Library, an offshoot of the main Meionic Library housed at the Church in Vezretti. As of the beginning of Another Winter, exactly two people work there: the ancient and crabby head librarian runs the show, at least on the surface, and assistant Kalina Paige-Essery, a descendant of legendary scholar Octavius Esry and one of our heroines, does most of the gruntwork.

The library sits at the northern terminus of Roc's Eye Road, the longest avenue in town - it stretches from Lake Cerulea and the library to the town hall, spanning a full half of the town. Further south from the library, Roc's Eye Road intersects with Remembrance Lane, on which we find the smithy and the Melodia Museum of Art. Another of our heroines, Pascale Brady, is the local blacksmith and took over the smithy after the death of her boss. Pascale's best and only friend in town, Rayley Triggs, has a studio behind the art museum; the director of the museum, Thessaly Melodia, provides room and board for Rayley in exchange for a gallery in the museum itself devoted to Rayley's art. Also on Remembrance Lane is a guardhouse, an outpost for the city guard. Pascale is very familiar with two of the guards stationed there, Sergeant Beatriz Garcia and Corporal Razurra Trezza. The captain of the guard, Captain Nowell Venn, also does regular shifts there.

Travel even further down Roc's Eye Road and you find Barberry Junction, the intersection of Roc's Eye and Barberry Walk. Marking the junction are a weekly farmer's market and the Dozing Dragon Inn, run by the enigmatic Mr. Sullivan. Our third and final heroine, the exiled princess Diseridi "Dizzy" Maraja, is staying at the Dozing Dragon while she tries to find a job.

Barberry Walk winds back north a bit, passing the boarding house that Kalina stays in, eventually ending at Ever Green Hill and the Church of Tzarth. On the backside of the hill is Mademoiselle Maddie Grimm, local seer (ask about her buy-one-get-one-free deal on finding out who will eventually hurt you!).

Finally, near where Roc's Eye Road ends is the Lucky Pepper. Located at the end of a dark alley in a sketchy neighborhood, the Lucky Pepper nevertheless has some of the best food in town, thanks to the chef and proprietor, Pepper Fortune.

As you may guess, with all of our heroines based there, quite a lot of the story takes place in and around the north side of town!

Let's move on, though, to the east side of town, collectively known as Eastwind Heights. I don't get into this part of town much, but there is a flower shop run by Cadenza Chora and her wife, a butcher shop run by Michael "Fingers" McRoberts, and another guardhouse.

On the south side, past the town hall, is where the industrial center of town is located. If you need to buy or sell something, that's where you go first. The south side boasts a slaughterhouse and a paper mill, so it often is not the best smelling place in the world. There's also the Sage Glassworks, run by Viridian Sage and his daughter, Saffron Sage; it's the place to go if, for example, a window has broken and you need a new pane of glass. You can also find here Terreste's Hired Help, owned by Monday Terreste, and Lumiere's Art Supply, owned by Snowbelle Lumiere.

Also located in the industrial sector is the Bailiwick-Haverly building, known colloquially as the BH. Originally a combination tavern-slash-fortune-telling-shop, it quickly spiraled out of control during construction and now is nothing more than a place for kids to explore.

Past the industrial sector is Zturi, a neighborhood populated mostly by sirens; the name 'Zturi' just means 'home' in the old siren tongue. Cazrin, a siren well-known in certain circles for being the person to see if you wanted information, is occasionally found in Zturi, though they're also fond of the rooftop of the BH. There's a guardhouse in Zturi, mostly staffed by sirens, and Captain Venn mostly leaves them to their own devices.

Finally, we come to the west side of town, situated entirely on Autumn Hill. This area is almost entirely high-end housing, shops, and restaurants, where the upper class of the town live. At the crest of Autumn Hill, visible from almost anywhere in town, is the mansion of Millennia Turner, local rich eccentric and art maven. Further down the hill is the Church of Optrian, led by the cleric Iris Omyn, almost never seen without her pet ammon Ammet. The guardhouse on Autumn Hill doesn't see much action aside from rich people calling the guards on what would otherwise not be considered threats. The captain of the night guard, Captain Eudora Innay, is stationed here.

So that pretty much covers everything I've got so far! I'll be expanding on this in the future, of course, but this is already a pretty solid foundation.

[tinalus-blog]

Autumn in Thessaly – 10 fairytale-like destinations you love

Autumn in Greece is incomparable; no doubt about that! The palette of colours begins to change with yellow, red and orange hues decorating the length and breadth of the country. The deciduous trees create this inspiring backdrop, upon which the first raindrops fall and where the first hint of a crisp north wind signal the change of season in the sweetest way possible.

, it is time for you to take us to 10 fairytale-like autumnal destinations in Thessaly!

Discovergreece.com has chosen 10 that you presented in your comments on the Coca Cola 3E video Autumn in Thessaly”!

Today we “lose ourselves” with you along picturesque footpaths and through tiny villages with a fairy-tale aura tucked between mountain slopes…

  Just 18km away from the city of Trikala, Pili presides over the landscape, a town with a long history and rich cultural heritage.

  Pelion

Almost hidden in dense vegetation, it is an essential chapter in Thessaly’s book of autumnal wonders!

  A gorgeous town between Trikala and Karditsa, very near Lake Plastira, Elati and Pertouli with the famed ski centre Kalampaka and Meteora!

  A traditional gem of a village with a unique autumnal ambience! Ideal for a one-day excursion if you happen to be in the city of Trikala.

  We couldn’t possibly find a more representative caption than the one by Vaggelis! “The balcony of Kissavos”.

  Dating back to the end of the Byzantine era, another destination for an unforgettable expedition to the heart of autumn!

  Agios Georgios Nilias – Ano Gatzea. Hop on Moutzouris, the lovely little steam train of Pelion, and stop in Ano Gatzea for a cup of coffee and a visit to the Olive & Oil Museum. A wonderful ride!!

  Perhaps one of the hottest options for an autumnal expedition! With a plethora of activities and charming guesthouses, this lakeside destination gives you plenty to do, after which you can just sit back and admire its marvellous scenery.

  If you visit Volos or Pelion, grab the chance to see Trikeri, a traditional village by the sea with stone-built houses rising majestically on the mountainside.

  The magnificent photo, along with his comment, tells us all we want to know about Panayiotis’ love for his village. Why not post a favourite photo too?

  _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What more proof do you need that Thessaly hides hundreds of autumnal destinations of incomparable natural beauty? Which Thessaly destination for autumn would you recommend? Give us your answer in a comment below.

Do you follow us on Facebook and Instagram ? LIKE us on our social media and travel with us to every fantastic corner of our country! Use so we can see Greece through your camera lens every season of the year!

The post Autumn in Thessaly – 10 fairytale-like destinations you love appeared first on Discover Greece Blog.

[gemsofgreece]

Greek History 101

This is the fourth and final part of the Greek History 101 masterpost. Here the recent modern history of the Greek nation is explained as simply and shortly as possible - and honestly it was quite a feat. With these four posts, you can safely have spherical knowledge about Greek history. I hope these posts will be useful for Greeks of diaspora who wish to learn more about their nation’s background, for every aspiring history nerd out there, for all confused or curious people and of course for all Greeks who need to refresh their memory of the events.

The last part left us in the formation of the independent Greek state after a series of events of major significance that is known as the Greek Revolution, that includes the Greek Independence War against the Ottoman Empire. In this final post, we will see how Greece’s history ever since its independence has been consistently dramatic. However, it will become clear that the events in the first half of that time span found Greece in the commemorated, honoured or simply winning side, sometimes by luck and sometimes by competence, whereas the accumulated tragic events of the first half inevitably led to a national social disorientation and struggle in the second half, from which Greeks are still trying to figure out how to escape. But let’s see the actual facts.

Please note that this is a Greek history post from a Greek blog. I used the English Wikipedia as my main source for as much easily accessible impartiality as possible, but in historical events where choosing a side seems inescapable, I am obviously taking Greece’s side.

Parts:

Ancient History: Prehistoric and Ancient Greece (7000 - 146 BC)

Post-Ancient and Medieval History: Roman, Byzantine Greece and Latin states (146 BC - 1453 AD)

Early Modern History: Ottoman rule and the Greek Revolution (1453 - 1831)

Recent Modern History: Kingdom of Greece and the Hellenic Republic (1832 - now)

III. Recent Modern History: Kingdom of Greece and the Hellenic Republic (1832 - now)

Kingdom of Greece (1832 - 1924)

Britain, France and Russia support the newly independent Greek state and offer to young Bavarian prince Otto the throne of Greece. Greeks rise against Otto many times. After decades of reign, he is eventually exiled.

The second king is Danish prince George I. He’s pro-British and as an act of gratitude, the British cede the colonised Ionian Islands to Greece.

After the Russian - Turkish war in which Greeks side with the Russians, Thessaly and parts of Epirus are ceded to Greece in 1881.

Despite the great contributions of reformist PM Charilaos Trikoupis, Greece remains a war-struck indebted country and declares public insolvency in 1893.

Despite that, Athens revives the Olympic Games in 1896.

In 1897, Greeks declare war on the Ottoman Turks in order to liberate Crete island. Greeks lose some territory along their northern borders but Crete becomes an autonomous state.

By the 1890s, the Greek revolts against the Ottoman Empire are centered in Macedonia. There, Greeks compete with both Turks and Bulgarians as they all claim these lands. All three engage in armed propagandas that harm the enthnically mixed population of the region in what is known as the Macedonian Struggle.

The Goudi Coup in 1909 has as a result the arrival of politician Eleftherios Venizelos, an unprecedented mind who will initiate a major reform program as well as a liberal constitution. He will dominate Greek politics for more than 25 years. Venizelos declares the unification of Crete with Greece.

In 1912, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro form the Balkan League and declare war on the Ottoman Empire. The First Balkan War will find Greece victorious, liberating a large part of Macedonia and Epirus. However, after the war no country is satisfied with its acquisitions and Macedonia is parted among them.

In 1913, Bulgaria attacks Greece and Serbia, beginning the Second Balkan War, but it’s beaten back. The Treaty of Bucharest left Greece with southern Epirus, the southern-half of Macedonia, Crete and the Aegean islands, except for the Dodecanese, which had been occupied by Italy in 1911. These gains nearly double Greece's area and population.

In 1914, when World War I starts, the Allied Powers ask Greece’s help in the Dardanelles in exchange for Cyprus. Pro-German King Constantine I bets on the Central Powers’ victory and remains neutral. E. Venizelos is a fierce supporter of the Allies. Constantine loses rapidly influence over the northern part of the country and French even bombard Athens as punishment for his neutrality. Constantine is exiled and Venizelos essentially governs undisturbed. Greece joins the Allies under Venizelos. The war ends and Greece secures not Cyprus after all, but all of Thrace and a big part of Asia Minor where the Greek element was prevalent, including the coastal cities like Smyrna (Izmir in modern Turkey) with the Treaty of Sevres (1920). This is the largest Modern Greece has ever been.

A movement under Turkish ethnarch Kemal Atatürk arises in Turkey, aiming to fight off the Greek army. The opponents of Venizelos who are now in power and want to steal some of his glory push the fatigued Greek army farther inside the vast arid lands of Anatolia. Greeks ask the return of Constantine I, whom Italy and France hate and thus switch their support to Kemal. In August 1922, the Turkish Army shatters the Greek front and takes Smyrna. The incident is known as the Great Fire of Smyrna or Minor Asian Catastrophe, in which the Turkish Army entered the city and started fires and atrocities.  Estimated deaths of Greek and Armenian civilians reach up to 100,000.

The Greek Army evacuates Anatolia, Eastern Thrace and the islands Imbros and Tenedos. An exchange of population is agreed, and half a million Muslims emigrate from Greece to Turkey while 1,5 million Christians emigrate from Turkey to Greece. The catastrophe leaves Greece in destitution and Constantine is abdicated again.

Colonels Stylianos Gonatas and Nikolaos Plastiras start a witch-hunt against any remaining royalist supporters and, on 25 March 1924, the Second Hellenic Republic is proclaimed.

Second Hellenic Republic - World War II (1924 - 1944)

After a clash in the borders, Greece shortly invades Bulgaria in 1925 and Bulgaria turns to the League of Nations. Greece is charged to compensate Bulgaria financially. Italy occupies Corfu island but is not similarly punished, to Greece’s frustration.

After a heavily rigged plebiscite the monarchy is restored in 1935.

A totalitarian dictatorship is established by Ioannis Metaxas on 4 August 1936 with King George II’s blessings. About 15,000 leftists are jailed, exiled in remote Aegean islands and tortured. Minorities are persecuted under Metaxas’ rule, except for the Jews. Despite the malpractices, executions were never instituted.

In the dawn of October 28th 1940, Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini sends an ultimatum to Greece. Metaxas rejects it and fascist Italian forces invade Greece through the mountains of Italian-occupied Albania only three hours later. The defense of the Greek Army proves fierce and the Italians are forced to retreat. The Greek Army takes about 1/4 of Albania. The Italian counterattack fails. The Greek victory is the first victory of the Allies against the Axis Powers in WW2.

In April 1941, Adolf Hitler, who was planning to confront the Soviet Army, changes his plans and sends the German Army to aid Italy against Greece. Winston Churchill sends aid to Greece but the Greek and British troops get overwhelmed. By summer Greece eventually falls and is occupied by Germany, Italy and Bulgaria simultaneously.

The first acts of resistance occur in April already: when the Nazis order the Flag Guard, Evzone Konstantinos Koukidis to retire the Greek flag, he wraps himself in it and throws himself off the plateau of the Acropolis to his death. A few days later, the Athenian youngsters Manolis Glezos and Apostolos Santas climb by night on the Acropolis and tear down the Reichskriegsflagge without getting caught.

Italy promises the region of Chameria (Thesprotia and Preveza) to Albania, thus urging most of Cham Albanians to join Axis against the Greeks. Atrocities are committed by both sides. After the war, the Pursuit of Nazi Collaborators Court in Greece condemns 2,000 Cham Albanians to death in absentia. 10,000 - 30,000 Cham Albanians are expelled to Albania and Turkey (1944-1945).

Germany turns against Italy and takes its occupied lands. Meanwhile, Bulgaria is determined to keep Thrace and east Macedonia by either expelling or killing the Greek population there. It also bans the Greek language entirely and empowers local Slav-speaking minorities. However, Bulgaria will retreat when the Soviet Union will declare war on it in September 1944. With the interference of the UK, 90,000 Bulgarian settlers and locals evacuate Thrace and Macedonia.

Some Albanian and Slav-speaking populations also fought by the side of EAM (Greek Resistance Army) against the Axis Powers.

The Greek Resistance Army consists of the Communist EAM/ELAS, the Republican EDES and the Socialist EKKA departments. The popularity of EAM causes infighting and the interference of Britain who claims Greece “must not become Communist at any cost”.

On 20 August 1944, the Red Army invades Romania, defeats the German Army and destroys the Ploesti oil fields that were the most important source of oil for the Germans. Hitler orders the withdrawal of the weakened German Army from Greece.

The aftermath of the war: 80% of the Greek industry, 90% of the infrastracture and 25% of natural resources and forests are destroyed. 1,000,000 Greeks are left homeless. Greece loses 10% of its overall population from executions and starvation and the 6/7 of its Jewish population. The Nazis exterminated the entire male populations of several Greek towns.

Civil War - The Military Junta - The Turkish Invasion in Cyprus (1943 - 1974)

The Greek Civil War was fought between the Hellenic Army (supported by the UK and the USA which directly initiated the war) and the EAM / ELAS, the military branch of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) (supported by Bulgaria, Albania, Yugoslavia, and covertly by the Soviet Union) from 1946 to 1949.

The immediate prelude to the civil war took place in Athens, on December 3, 1944. After an order to disarm, leftists resigned from the government and called for resistance. A riot (the Dekemvriana, December events) erupted; and Greek government gendarmes along with British forces standing in the background, opened fire on a pro-EAM rally, killing 28 demonstrators and injuring dozens. The battle that followed lasted 33 days and resulted in the defeat of the EAM. The subsequent signing of the Treaty of Varkiza spelled the end of the left-wing organization. 

The war erupted in 1946, when former EAM partisans, who had found shelter in their hideouts, re-organized ELAS. The government forces eventually won, largely due to increased American aid and the side-effects of the Tito–Stalin split of 1948. The final victory of the western-allied government forces led to Greece's membership in NATO (1952). 

The Civil War overall costed more than 180,000 casualties from both sides and civilians. The Civil War left Greece in ruins and in even greater economic distress. Additionally, it divided the Greek people for ensuing decades, with both sides vilifying their opponents. Thousands languished in prison for many years or were exiled on Gyaros and Makronisos islands. Many others sought refuge in communist countries or emigrated far away. The civil war left Greece with a strongly anti-communist security arrangement, which would lead to the establishment of the Greek military junta of 1967–1974.

The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a far-right authoritarian military dictatorship which was characterised by restrictions on civil liberties, and the imprisonment, torture, and exile of political opponents. 

Constantine II, the last King of Greece, half-heartedly favoured the coup, wishing to weaken the strength of the leftist parties. The coup was led by General Stylianos Pattakos and Colonel George Papadopoulos in 21 April 1967. The relations of the King and the dictators were turbulent resulting in the King attempting a counter-coup. Constantine was almost arrested but managed to flee the country. 

The entire left wing of the Greek political spectrum, including the long outlawed Communist Party of Greece, opposed the junta from the start. Many new militant groups formed in 1968, both in exile and in Greece, to promote democratic rule and raise awareness globally.

The first critical blow to the Military Junta was the Polytechnic Uprising of Athens. The students at the National Technical University of Athens organised a demonstration that grew progressively larger and more effective. The political momentum was on the side of the students. Sensing this, the junta panicked and reacted violently. In 17 November 1973 Papadopoulos sent the army to suppress the student strike at the Athens Polytechnic. Shortly after 3:00 am, an AMX 30 tank crashed through the rail gate of the Athens Polytechnic. An estimated 24 students were killed. The November 17th is commemorated annually, second only to the National Days of the Greek Independence and the Greek Resistance to the Axis Powers. 

The second and final blow was due to the Regime’s support to a coup d'état on the island of Cyprus on July 1974 in order to overthrow Archbishop Makarios III, the Cypriot president, so that the power would pass to pro-Unification-with-Greece politicians, as Makarios was accused of not being as enthusiastic about it once he had accumulated all power. Turkey replied to this intervention by invading Cyprus and occupying the northern part of the island, after heavy fighting with the Cypriot and Greek ELDYK Forces. Turks had about 3,000 casualties while Greek Cypriots and Greeks had about 5,000. 200,000 Greek Cypriots were displaced and many of their houses were taken by Turkish settlers. 

The outcome is that 36% of the island is still occupied to this day, managed by a state that is only recognized by Turkey globally. Greek -Turkish relations remain very strained over this matter and the UN has been making several fruitless attempts to bring the three countries into an agreement over the Cypriot Problem. Furthermore, the events caused intense anger and disappointment of the Greek Cypriots towards the Greeks, as they accuse them of being - albeit unintentionally - the culprits and because then when the military need arose, their help was not enough to take control of the situation. 

Third Hellenic Republic (1974 -)

The junta collapsed immediately after the fiasco in Cyprus but its ideological collapse was already triggered by the 1973 Athens Polytechnic uprising. What followed immediately afterwards was the definitive abolition of monarchy in the 1974 referendum culminating in the democratic transformation of the country. 

The Third Hellenic Republic has been characterised by the development of social freedoms, the European orientation of Greece and the political dominance of the parties ND and PASOK. On the negative side the period has included high corruption, deterioration of certain economic indexes such as public debt, and nepotism, mostly in the political scene and the state offices.

In 1981 Greece becomes the tenth member of the EU.

The decade of the 1990s saw the standard of living among Greeks significantly increase, a trend which reached its zenith around the time of the Olympic Games of 2004 in Athens.

Following the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, use of the name "Macedonia" was disputed between Greece and the then-Republic of Macedonia. International organizations provisionally referenced the Republic of Macedonia as "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (abbreviated as "FYROM"). The dispute arose from the ambiguity in nomenclature between the former Yugoslav state, the adjacent Greek region of Macedonia, and the ancient kingdom of Macedon. Citing historical and irredentist concerns, Greece opposed the use of the name "Macedonia" by FYROM without a geographical qualifier like "Northern" or "Upper".  As approximately 2 million ethnic Greeks identify as Macedonians who view themselves as being unrelated to their northern neighbours of an equal overall population, Greece further objected to the use of the term "Macedonian" for the neighboring country's largest ethnic group and its language. FYROM was accused of appropriating symbols and figures that are historically considered part of Greek culture, such as the Vergina Sun and Alexander the Great, and of promoting the irredentist concept of a United Macedonia, which involves territorial claims on Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, and Serbia. 

In 1996 a major Greek-Turkish crisis over the Imia/Kardak islands arose. In the aftermath of the Imia crisis, the dispute was also widened, as Turkey began to lay parallel claims to a larger number of other islets in the Aegean. The EU backed the Greek side on the Imia dispute, and warned Turkey to refrain from any kind of threat or action directed against the sovereignty of Greece.

In January 2002 Greece adopts the Euro as its currency, abandoning the Greek drachma. 

In 2009, the Greek debt crisis broke out, an event that brought about great changes on both a social and political level. On 2 May 2010, the Eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund agreed on a €110 billion loan for Greece, conditional on the implementation of harsh austerity measures. There were widespread fears that a Greek default on its debt would have global repercussions, endangering the economies of many other countries in the European Union, threatening the stability of the euro, and possibly plunging the world into another recession. In April 2014, Greece returned to the global bond market.

The Treaty of Prespa is an agreement reached in 2018 between Greece and the Republic of North Macedonia. The agreement provides that the Former Yugoslavic Republic of Macedonia takes the name of Republic of North Macedonia  for all purposes. The deal includes recognition of the Macedonian language in the United Nations, noting that it is within the group of South Slavic languages, and that the citizenship of the country will be called Macedonian / citizen of the Republic of North Macedonia. Also, there is an explicit clarification that the citizens of the country are not related to the ancient Hellenic civilization that previously inhabited the northern regions of Greece. The domestic communities of both countries reacted negatively to the agreement. 

In March 2020, the Greek-Turkish refugee crisis broke out. Turkey, hosting the biggest number of refugees in the world, announced it opened its gates, intending to put pressure on the EU to help with its mingling in the Syrian War. Greece took effective yet very harsh measures to prevent the rapid influx of refugees, receiving criticism outside and praise inside the EU. What was conveniently ignored is that Turkey opened only the gates to the Greek border in Thrace and no other of its many borders, resulting in dozens of thousands of immigrants crowding the Greek border in a couple of days, people that were reportedly misinformed that EU was now accepting immigrants and urged by Turkish authorities to confront the Greek army. Another thing conveniently ignored was that them thousands entering the most debted EU country certainly meant terrible living conditions and zero chance of further migration to other European countries as they all keep their borders sealed and expect Greece to single-handedly prevent the influx for the sake of literally all of them. And another thing conveniently ignored is the Greek coastguard rescuing immigrants from drowning in the Aegean Sea pushed through by Turkish smugglers for years, resulting in thousands of immigrants crowding the eastern Greek islands, living in very bad conditions, as Greece has announced plain and square that it has no more the means to sustain their numbers to the deaf ears of literally everyone else. 

I wish I could end this on a happier note but then the Coronavirus pandemic happened and now things are even shittier in Greece just like everywhere else. Let’s look forward to the future with the new year that is coming. 

End of Part IV.

Part I

Part II

Part III

[calorieworkouts]

Are Fit People Happier?

Love it or despise it, making routine exercise a practice is known to advertise ideal health and wellness Minimum amount of exercise for reduced death as well as expanded life span: a potential mate research. Wen CP, Wai JP, Tsai MK, Yang YC, Cheng TY, Lee MC, Chan HT, Tsao CK, Tsai SP, Wu X. Institute of Populace Scientific research, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Taiwan. Lancet. 2011 Oct 1, 378( 9798):1244 -53. . While lots of individuals grimace at the thought of sweat, spandex, as well as sit-ups, exercise may be a prescription for more than simply keeping the medical professional away. Some study suggests there's a web link between bodily health and fitness and happiness. Yet the concern continues to be: Can we exercise ourselves pleased?

A Prescription for Happiness - Why It Matters

Picture by Jess Ivy

Happiness is a pretty subjective idea. Yet researchers think joy relates to genetics and a range of environmental elements like earnings, marriage standing, religious beliefs, as well as education and learning. And also one substantial predictor of individual joy is bodily wellness. The ability to ward off sickness as well as condition, maintain a hormonal balance, and also manage anxiety all add to self-satisfaction. That's one factor individuals who exercise could be happier compared to the rest people - workout promotes the production of disease-fighting proteins understood as antibodies, which destroy unwanted invaders like germs and also infections Voluntary bodily activity prevents stress-induced behavioral depression and also anti-KLH antibody reductions. Moraska, A., Fleshner, M. University of Colorado at Rock, Department of Kinesiology and also Applied Physiology, Stone, CO. American Journal of Physiology 2001,281( 2): R484-9. The effect of preseason training on mucosal resistance in male basketball gamers. Azarbayjani, M., Nikbakht, H., Rasaee, M.J. Department of Athletics, Science as well as Study Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. The Journal of Sports Medication and Fitness 2011,51( 4):701 -7. . So folks who stay literally energetic are normally better furnished to battle illness as well as tension, an essential component of happiness.

During workout, the brain additionally launches endorphins, chemicals known to generate feelings of euphoria, typically related to a 'runner's high.' Endorphins trigger the release of sex hormonal agents, such as norepinephrine, which improve mood and create a feeling of wellness Effects of workout as well as physical task on anxiety. Dinas PC, Koutedakis Y, Flouris AD. Division of Sporting activity and Workout Science, College of Thessaly, TEFAA Karies, Trikala 42100, Greece. Ir J Med Sci. 2011 Jun, 180( 2):319 -25. Endorphins: the basis of pleasure? C H Hawkes. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1992 April, 55( 4): 247-250. . Exercise could also increase joy levels by aiding to reduce stress. When we exercise, our bodies burn the tension hormonal agent cortisol. Way too much anxiety, and high cortisol levels, can enhance feelings of uneasiness and anxiousness while lowering inspiration and immune function.

It's unclear that a specific quantity of workout could assure happiness, or also a short-term high. Some researchers say simply Thirty Minutes of moderate-intensity workout can help in reducing depression and anger. Sadly, also physical fitness fans aren't guaranteed trouble-free living.

Sweaty and Smiling - The Answer/Debate

Exercise could contribute to happiness, yet it's not the only cause of a grinning face. While bodily activity is among the aspects that have the largest impact on our feeling of wellness, it's additionally crucial to have a feeling of belonging and also function, financial safety and security, and favorable social interactions.

Plus it's possible that pleased individuals have the tendency to exercise even more compared to others which exercising does not necessarily make them happy. In the instance of anxiety, it's additionally vague whether bodily inactivity creates negative sensations or the other way around Testing origin in the organization between normal workout as well as symptoms of stress and anxiety and also anxiety. De Moor MH, Boomsma DI, Stubbe JH, Willemsen G, de Geus EJ. Division of Biological Psychology, VU College Amsterdam, van der Boechorststraat 1, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008 Aug, 65( 8):897 -905. . Clinically depressed individuals frequently drop into a cycle where they avoid exercise, after that really feel blue, and afterwards really don't intend to exercise, as well as it could be hard to find motivation to burst out of that cycle.

There are also certain circumstances when workout can add to sadness, like when it comes to workout addiction. In feedback to exercise the body releases chemicals that stimulate the mind's benefit facility, as well as individuals can start to crave the enjoyable feeling related to the chemicals. Some athletes to proceed to exercise regardless of injury, fatigue, or also the risk of a heart attack Potential damaging cardio impacts from extreme endurance exercise. O'Keefe JH, Patil HR, Lavie CJ, Magalski A, Vogel RA, McCullough PA. Mid America Heart Institute of St Luke's Medical facility of Kansas City, MO, UNITED STATE. Mayo Clin Proc. 2012 Jun, 87( 6):587 -95. .

Whether joy is amongst the several benefits of workout, it's probably worth taking a jog around the block or a spin on the bike. If absolutely nothing else, the adjustment of landscapes could be simply the state of mind boost we need.

The Takeaway

Working out normally maintains us healthy and balanced, minimizes anxiety, and also even gives a temporary high. Yet bear in mind exercise isn't really a cure-all for more severe concerns like depression.

This article has read and also accepted by Greatist Experts Jen Cassetty and Sherry Pagoto.

Do you discover exercising gives you a mood boost? Let us know in the remarks below.