Thousands Attend Antipodes Greek Festival Weekend In Melbourne

The Antipodes Festival once again returned to Melbourne on the weekend of February 25-26, celebrating the vibrant Greek community of the city through food, live music, entertainment and dance.

Held in the city’s historical Greek Precinct Quarter on Lonsdale Street, the Festival kicked off 10 am on Saturday and concluded 10 pm on Sunday, local time.

Thousands of Greek-Australians and other visitors were able to browse over 80 community and market stalls – all with a Greek theme, selling food, products or services – over the weekend.

Activities, entertainment and fun competitions

Carnival rides, cooking demonstrations, kids’ activities, roving entertainment and three feature stages were also available for guests, offering over 70 hours of Greek music, dance and entertainment, according to the organisers.

Visitors also joined fun eating competitions: Baklavomania, where contestants ate as many pieces of baklava as they could in a short time, and the Procal yoghurt-eating competition, where contestants had to fish out strawberries from a bowl of yoghurt using only their mouth.

The famed “Zorba ‘Til You Drop” competition, on the other hand, was a test of endurance and stamina to see who can dance to ‘Zorba the Greek’ for the longest and win a free ticket to Greece.

Greek Singer Alkistis Protopsalti at Melbourne’s Antipodes Festival

On Saturday, thousands of visitors attended a concert by the acclaimed Greek singer Alkistis Protopsalti.

“It was a sensational night, when our Greek heart beat loud in Melbourne!” the artist posted on her Facebook Fan Page besides a short video of her performance.

Upon her arrival to Melbourne earlier this week, Protopsalti had visited the Greek Language School of the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne at Bentleigh Campus.