Located on the old road Nicosia-Limassol, between Skarinou and Kofinou, at about 25 km from Larnaca, Ktima Georgiadi is probably one of the best options in Cyprus for a night out with good friends or family. The well-known Greek Cypriot singer Stella Georgiadi and her brother Pieris have made their father's dream come true: the return to innocence, the return to their roots, the return to tradition far away from the bright lights of the city.
Ktima Georgiadi - my friend Andreas Morfitis on the dance floor.
Stella Georgiadi Live
My friend Andreas Morfitis who invited us to a great night out at Ktima Georgiadi.
My friends Stavros Rossos and Andreas Morfitis - alias "gerondas" - wise man.
Pieris and Stella have turned a traditional, old mansion into a Greek taverna where you can let off steam, eat, drink, dance and sing with Stella and her band. In the summer, you can enjoy the show under the stars and the orange trees where Stella and her siblings played when they were kids.
Stella Georgiadi and her daughter Eleftheria who had her b-day yesterday. Her gorgeous mum sang Happy Birthaday to Eleftheria.
Stella Georgiadi who did not hesitate to give up on a bright career as a singer in Athens and return to her roots.
My husband Alkis
Last night, Alkis and I had a great time there with good friends. After a long week at work, it was THE perfect night out. Stella will welcome you to her mansion with an old Greek song which she sings amongst her guests without music or micro. A big hand follows and then the show begins with Stella and her band. Prices are reasonable, yet the food needs to be improved.
Greece is one of the few countries in the world where folk dances are as alive today as they were in ancient times. Dance has always played an important role in the life of a Greek. It is an expression of human feelings and everyday life. The Greeks danced at religious festivals, ceremonies; they danced to ensure fertility; to prepare for war and to celebrate victories; they danced at weddings; to overcome depression and to cure physical illness. Almost every dance has a story to tell. Dance was regarded as one of the highest forms of art. Plato agreed with his mentor Socrates that every educated man should know how to dance gracefully by which he meant the manly exercises that kept the body strong and supple and ready to do its duty on the battlefield. The Pyrrhic, or weapon dance (a form of mock combat) taken from Crete and perfected in Sparta, was the ideal.
The dance, of all the arts, is the one that most influences the soul. Dancing is divine in its nature and is the gift of the gods. Plato
Traditional dance continues to be passed from generation to generation, which in turns maintains national identity. Folklore is the term used for traditional dance when performed out of its traditional social context. The principal characteristic of folklore dance is that it is not transmitted in a traditional manner but by a process involving dance teachers and gym instructors.
There are two distinct categories in the traditional Greek dance; the springing/leaping dance and the shuffle/dragging dance known as sirtos; the latter being the oldest form of dance. Most dances are circle dances, start with the right foot and move counter-clockwise. Each dancer is linked by a handkerchief or by holding hands, wrists or shoulders. In mixed dances, the man will lead the dance, which allows him in most regions to improvise or break away allowing him to express himself. Until recently, men and women rarely danced together although chains of men and women danced together at the same time, the women in the inner circle and the men in the outer circle. The order of dance varies from region to region. In general, the men are commonly at the beginning in descending order of age, followed by the women also ranked according to seniority. Sometimes the married men come before the bachelors and likewise for the women. The oldest inhabitant always leads the dance. In the islands the circle is usually formed of groups of families, the husband leads the wife who is followed by the eldest son, his wife and their children etc. Occasionally the local priest will lead the first dance symbolising a blessing. In olden times a man never held a woman’s hand but a kerchief. This also applied to married couples. In some regions a woman could not dance next to a man who was not family: therefore a child or an elderly would be placed in between. Most women's dances are slow, simple and dignified
In 1818, a roving band of actors was performing in towns throughout the Austrian Alps. On December 23 they arrived at Oberndorf, a village near Salzburg where they were to perform the story of Christ's birth in the small Church of St. Nicholas. Unfortunately, the St. Nicholas' church organ wasn't working and would not be repaired before Christmas. (Note: some versions of the story point to mice as the problem; others say rust was the culprit) Because the church organ was out of commission, the actors presented their Christmas drama in a private home. Even so, that Christmas presentation put assistant pastor Josef Mohr in a meditative mood. Instead of walking straight to his house that night, Mohr took a longer way home. The longer path took him up over a hill overlooking the village. From that hilltop, Mohr looked down on the peaceful snow-covered village. Reveling in majestic silence of the wintry night, Mohr gazed down at the glowing scene. His thoughts about the Christmas play suddenly made him remember a poem he had written a couple of years before. It was a poem about the night when angels announced the birth of the long-awaited Messiah to shepherds on a hillside. Mohr decided those words would make a good carol for his congregation the following evening at their Christmas eve service. However, he didn't have any music to which that poem could be sung. So, the next day Mohr went to see the church organist, Franz Xaver Gruber. Gruber only had a few hours to come up with a melody which could be sung with a guitar. However, by that evening, Gruber had managed to compose a musical setting for the poem. It no longer mattered that their church organ was broken. They now had a Christmas carol they could sing without it. On Christmas Eve, the little Oberndorf congregation heard Gruber and Mohr sing their new composition to the accompaniment of Gruber's guitar. Weeks later, well-known organ builder Karl Mauracher arrived to fix the St. Nicholas church organ. When he finished, Mauracher stepped back to let Gruber test the instrument. When Gruber sat down, his fingers began playing the simple melody he had written for Mohr's Christmas poem. Deeply impressed, Mauracher took the music and words of "Silent Night" back to his own Alpine village, Kapfing. There, two well-known families of singers -- the Rainers and the Strassers -- heard it. Captivated by "Silent Night," both groups put the new song into their Christmas season repertoire.
Let's sing along with Neil Diamond!
Should you wish to watch this video and sing along, please click pause on my electronic ipod!
Music is an integral part of myself. I can't live without it. Classical music makes me relax after a hard day at work but I also enjoy listening to Rachmaninov and Mozart on the beach. My ipod is filled with their music. I like American oldies and Greek music, of course. . Here are a few of my favourite songs.
Love on the Rocks by Neil Diamond because to love is to receive a glimpse of heaven. And because Neil Diamond is divine!!!
Jonathan Livingston - the Seagull by Neil Diamond because I fell in love with the movie and the music.
...because I'm romantic and I love Haroula....
because Yiannis Parios is our very own Neil Diamond - Matia Mple (Blue Eyes)
Of course the list is endless. I could go on and on telling you about my favourite songs. I also love Tom Jones, Andy Williams, Michel Sardou, Joe Dassin, Al Bano, Beyonce, The Beatles and Rachmaninov!
In recent years, the amount of advertising on television seems to have increased dramatically. As a result, many people feel that their enjoyment of the programmes has been spoilt due to the constant interruptions by commercials. They also believe that advertising on TV should be banned or, at least, reduced in quantity.
Although I seldom watch TV mainly due to lack of time, I completely disagree with this suggestion. In the first place, let us not forget that TV channels rely on the income from commercials to pay for the programmes, otherwise they'd go out of business or would have to depend on government subsidies - like our national channel CyBC (Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation) . Almost invariably, this leads to political control over news and current affairs - not to mention the poor quality of most programmes. Secondly, advertisements increase our knowledge of different products and this enables us to make better choices as consumers or even learn about new products. Well, that's how I found out about Vanish .! Finally, tv commercials encourage competition amongst manufacturers who each try to produce the best quality products at the cheapest prices. Consumers would have to pay a great deal more if advertising didn't create mass markets for products.
What's more , some TV commercials can be fun to watch and others can raise awareness on various human issues such as the Coca Cola Commercial 2011.
Do you watch TV commercials? Do you think TV channels should cut down on them?
All work and no play may make Jack a dull boy but it certainly doesn't make me a dull girl! I've often shared my thoughts about my work and how much I enjoy working with children even though they are occasionally trying my patience! It's that time of year again when work is more important than leisure as school exams are round the corner. The IGCSE Reading and Writing exam was last Thursday, the Listening test is next Friday followed by final exams at my school, FCE on June 4 and Pitman for Young Learners in mid June- enough to keep me busy at work for the next four weeks or so.
However, in my busy weekly schedule I have made room for some time online - mostly at the weekend - and some time spent outdoors on Sundays. I sometimes wish I lived in a small village where I could enjoy nature and the great outdoors every single day of the week. What relaxes me most after a long day at work is spending some time listening to Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No2. I could listen to that hours on end.without getting bored.
Apart from Rachmaninoff, I also relax listening to Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel:
When you are weary feeling small
When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all
I'm on your side. When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Have you ever heard this song? It's been one of my favourites since I was 16! Working long hours doesn't always allow me to indulge in leisure activities, yet it is not work that kills but worry. Working hard won't kill you but worrying too much is bad for the health! Well, at least, I only worry a little.
Easter is the greatest celebration of the year for the Greek Orthodox Church . It is the symbol of human rebirth and the promise of life after death. It is the ultimate message of love and forgiveness, it is the time when God and sinners reconcile and spread the love Jesus Christ taught the world with His death and glorious Resurrection.
A few days before Easter, housewives do the spring cleaning so that everything looks new and shiny for Easter. The Holy Week begins on Monday following Saturday of Lazarus and Palm Sunday. On Palm Sunday , olive branches are taken to church and left there for forty days. The sanctified olive branch is then taken home. The olive leaves are placed in a special pot called “kapnistiri” and are used for incense burning. The smoke from the olive leaves is believed to remove all evil and jealousy in the family.
Easter 2006 at Saint Raphael's Church
On Holy Thursday, eggs are dyed red, ready to be cracked soon after Resurrection on Easter Day’s early morning hours. The icons in our churches are covered with black cloth as a sign of mourning for Our Lord who went to the cross and died in order to take away our sins. The power of death and the reality of evil ruled the world on that dreadful Thursday. Yet, Jesus Christ’s death marks the beginning of the victory of life over death. The solemn service consists of The Twelve Gospel Readings – narratives from the four Gospels relating the events of the Holy Passion and Jesus’ last instructions to His disciples. After the fifth gospel, the crucifix is adorned with a flower wreath and carried in procession. Earlier in the morning, the Holy Communion is taken. It consists of a few drops of red wine mixed with some breadcrumbs symbolizing the blood and the body of Jesus Christ.
Good Friday is baking day. The Greek homes are filled with the delightful scents of mastic, mahaleb and cinnamon while flaounes, tsourekia and koulouria (sesame bread) are being baked. However, Good Friday is also a day of mourning, fasting and prayer. In the evening, at church, we observe the liturgy of Epitaphios - a shroud depicting Christ’s sacred body is carried in procession and placed in a flowered bier that represents Christ’s tomb. With both sorrow and joy, during this solemn and profoundly touching ceremony, we sing along with the priests and choir “I Zoe En Tafo” :
"In a tomb they lay Thee O Christ the life. By Thy Death Thou has cast down the might of death and become the font of life for all the world"
On Holy Saturday morning, we observe the “First Resurrection”, that’s when the news is brought that Christ is no longer in His grave. At about 9:00 in the morning, the church bell rings joyfully, the church doors are banged and the black cloth covering the icons falls. But the grand liturgy of Resurrection is held at midnight. Everyone goes to church with a candle. At about midnight, the lights go off and the priest solemnly proclaims “Here is the Holy Light” which is actually brought from Jerusalem to the Orthodox world. Then we all light our candles and greet each other with “Christos Anesti” (= Christ Has Risen) to which the other replies “Alithos Anesti” (He Has Risen Indeed). Then off we go home for a midnight supper consisting of magiritsa (Greek Easter Soup) and flaounes, tsourekia and koulouria.
Magiritsa
Easter Sunday is a day of feast, dancing and singing. Lambs are roasted on a spit and a sumptuous Easter lunch is prepared which usually lasts till late afternoon. Families gather together or go on picnics, both children and adults engage in red-egg-crack competitions. The winner is the one whose egg is left uncracked! Easter Day also reminds us that we should forget and forgive allowing the Holy Light to shine on.
Roasted lamb on a spit
Do you celebrate Easter in your country? Have you got any special customs and traditions?
March 25 is a landmark in the history of the Greek Nation. The Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire leading to freedom and independence started on March 25 1821. All over Greece and Cyprus, the day is celebrated with parades and tributes to our illustrious ancestors and the great heroes of 1821 whose self-denial opened up the road to Independence: Georgios Karaiskakis , Theodoros Kolokotronis, Athanasios Diakos, Laskarina Bouboulina, Lord Byron and many others told the world that freedom can only be gained through sacrifice and patriotism.
The Byzantine Empire fell to the Turks in 1453 and the Greeks remained under the Ottoman rule for nearly 400 years. During this time their language, their religion and their sense of identity became stronger than ever before. On March 25, 1821, the bishop Germanos of Patras raised the Greek flag at the Monastery of Agia Lavra in Peloponnese and the Greek revolution started against the Turks. Shouting out "Freedom or Death", the people of Greece, faithful to their heroic heritage, fought the War of Independence for 9 years until a small part of modern Greece was finally liberated and declared an independent nation. The struggle for the liberation of all the lands inhabited by Greeks continued. In 1864, the Ionian islands were added to Greece; in 1881 parts of Epirus and Thessaly. Crete, the islands of the Eastern Aegean and Macedonia were added in 1913 and Western Thrace in 1919. After World War II the Dodecanese islands were also returned to Greece.
The banner says: "Return to Ammohostos", now under Turkish occupation. In my heart of hearts, I know that one day we'll go back.
The Greek Revolution is interpreted by many Europeans as a battle between the ideals of the ancient Greeks against the ruthless Turks who had been occupying and suppressing the descendents of Pericles, Socrates and Plato. Many, including the British poet Lord Byron volunteered to fight in order to support the greek cause for freedom. Lord Byron spent the last year of his life in Greece, where he had fully invested himself in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire.
In Larnaca, just like in every single town or city of the Republic of Cyprus, 25 March was celebrated with a grand parade of the younger generation determined to preserve our heroic heritage.
Hope you enjoy the video - just a glimpse of the parade in Larnaca.
Imagine you could drive your car using only your thoughts. German researchers have just made that possible -- and they have the video to prove it.
Following his recent interview on the Robots Podcast about autonomous vehicles, Raúl Rojas, an AI professor at the Freie Universität Berlin, and his team have demonstrated how a driver can use a brain interface to steer a vehicle. Here's what the researchers say about the project, which they call the BrainDriver:
After testing iPhone, iPad and an eye-tracking device as possible user interfaces to maneuver our research car, named "MadeInGermany," we now also use Brain Power. The "BrainDriver" application is of course a demonstration and not roadworthy yet, but in the long run human-machine interfaces like this could bear huge potential in combination with autonomous driving.
To record brain activity, the researchers use an Emotiv "neuroheadset," an electroencephalography, or EEG, sensor by San Francisco-based company Emotiv, which design it for gaming. After a few rounds of "mental training," the driver learns to move virtual objects only by thinking. Each action corresponds to a different brain activity pattern, and the BrainDriver software associates the patterns to specific commands -- turn left, turn right, accelerate etc. The researchers then feed these commands to the drive-by-wire system of the vehicle, a modified Volkswagen Passat Variant 3c. Now the driver's thoughts can control the engine, brakes, and steering.
To road test their brain-controlled car, the Germans headed out to the former airport in Berlin Tempelhof. The video below shows a driver thought-controlling the car, Yoda-style. "Don't try this at home," the narration says, only half-jokingly.
I am an incurably romantic person who believes that love is very important and deserves to be celebrated on a special day. Valentine's Day is an excuse to splurge a fancy dinner, eat chocolate to your heart's content and ....buy lingerie! It is also an occasion to say "I love you." I know that actions speak louder than words, but these three magical words can do wonders when spoken! Some of you hate the commercial side of Valentine's Day. But most of you celebrate Christmas or your birthday even though these days also have a materialistic side - organise parties, give and receive presents. We all expect presents at Christmas and on our birthday, so, why not expect presents on Valentine's Day? Not necessarily expensive presents. Valentine's Day is a also a great reminder that love should be celebrated every single day of the year because true love is timeless.
I'll love you and leave you with my most favourite love song - "Love on the Rocks" by Neil Diamond.
Love on the rocks Aint no surprise Just Pour me a drink And I'll tell you some lies Got nothing to lose So you just sing the blues all the time
Gave you my heart Gave you my soul You left me alone here With nothing to hold Yesterday's gone Now all I want is a smile
First, they say they want you They haven't really need you Suddenly you find you're out there Walking in the storm And When they know they have you Then they really have you Nothing you can do or say You've got to leave, just get away We all know the song
You need what you need You can say what you want Not much you can do When the feeling is gone Maybe blue skies above But it's cool when your love's on the rocks
First, they say they want you They haven't really need you Suddenly you find you're out there Walking in the storm And When they know they have you Then they really have you Nothing you can do or say Youve got to leave, just get away We all know the song
Love on the rocks Aint no big surprise Jsut Pour me a drink And I'll tell you more lies Yesterday's gone And now all I want is a smile
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