Thessaloniki. Credit: Tefvik Teker/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY 3.0
Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city and the capital of Macedonia, is both historic and avant-garde, and an ideal destination for a short city break.
The city has a lot to offer travelers in addition to its classic history and architecture.
Here are several reasons why you should consider exploring mesmerizing Thessaloniki this summer!
Experience Thessaloniki’s incredible nightlife
Thessaloniki has some of the best and biggest universities in the country, and thanks in part to its huge student population the city has some of the greatest nightlife in the Balkans.
Whether you want a cozy night out at a small bar along Nikis Boulevard, prefer barhopping on Valaoritou and Syngrou, or want to go dancing all night at Mylos Warehouse, Thessaloniki has something for everyone.
Stroll along the historic waterfront or take a boat ride on the Thermaic Gulf
The city’s stunning historic waterfront is perfect for evening strolls and daytime exploration.
Don’t forget to stop and admire Thessaloniki’s famous White Tower and grab some snacks from the street vendors.
The Tower is by far Thessaloniki’s most iconic monument. The ancient city, located in northern Greece, has a rich history stretching from antiquity to the modern era but is most noted for its importance during the Byzantine period.
Currently, the monument is home to a museum that lays out the history of Thessaloniki. Visitors can climb up the Tower’s winding stairs until they reach its fascinating exhibition space.
You can also climb aboard one of Thessaloniki’s floating bars and cruise the Gulf of Thermaikos while enjoying the company of your friends and loved ones.
Experience Thessaloniki’s incredible museums and culture
Thessaloniki has a reputation as a highly artistic city with plenty of events and institutions to exhibit art, history, and films to aficionados.
Definitely check out the Museum of Byzantine Culture and the Archaeological Museum, but don’t forget to visit the smaller museums, such as the Folk and Ethnographic Museum and the Teloglion Foundation of Art.
Throughout Greece, Thessaloniki is especially known for its sweets, such as the tsoureki from a shop named Terkenlis.
Local shops sell plenty of Eastern desserts, and the city is famous for its bougatsa—try some along with strong, local coffee in one of the many hip coffee shops around town.
Explore the alternative side of Thessaloniki
The neighbourhood of Ladadika has become very popular in recent years as a local hangout spot, though the area was originally home to commercial facilities.
The old spaces have been turned into trendy bars and restaurants where the city’s young people often hang out.
For another great hangout spot for the young, check out the area around Rotunda and Aristotelous Square.
You will find everything from thrift shops, gyro shops, and bars to tattoo studios here, as well as plenty of people hanging out late into the night.
Halkidiki is a strikingly beautiful peninsula in Northern Greece made up of three “legs”, all boasting many different attractions for travelers. Despite being one of Greece’s premier domestic tourist destinations, Halkidiki (or Chalkidiki) can be overlooked by international travelers.
Halkidiki is the perfect place to relax in the summertime, offering many opportunities for those who prefer to take their vacations in quieter, more natural surroundings.
Halkidiki is very popular among those who prefer camping holidays since it has many organized campgrounds which cater to budget-conscious travelers who enjoy their vacations immersed in nature.
Most campgrounds are placed on or adjoining one of the many beautiful beaches in the area, making them perfect for beach lovers.
Due to Halkidiki’s proximity to Greece’s second-largest city, Thessaloniki, it is a perfect getaway for those visiting Northern Greece. Halkidiki is located about 40 km (25 miles) from Thessaloniki—only a short car or bus ride away.
The custom of setting aside a day, April Fool’s Day, for playing harmless pranks upon one’s neighbor has been relatively common in the world historically.
There are three scenarios regarding the origins of April Fool’s Day.
Ancient Origins of April Fool’s Day
The day is similar to the Ancient Roman festival Hilaria observed on March 25. The festival was observed to honor the Greek goddess, Cybele. On Hilaria, the Romans indulged themselves with all kinds of games and amusements, most importantly masquerades, during which individuals could disguise themselves and pretend to be anyone they chose.
Another version says the tradition originated from the Celts. Since the Celts were mighty fishermen, the tradition of telling lies on April 1st is deeply linked to fishing.
The fishing season began on April 1st, but during that period there were not many fish. This, therefore, led the fishermen to lie about the amount of fish they caught. Throughout time, the tradition remained and expanded to other countries which adopted their own versions.
A third version regarding the origins of April Fool’s Day holds that 16th century France is the “mother” of the tradition. According to this particular version, until 1564, the French celebrated New Year’s on April 1st. However, in 1564, King Charles IX ordered that New Year’s be celebrated on January 1st.
The people of France were divided into two camps with one side opposing the change and continuing to celebrate the new year on April 1st and the other side being accepting of the change but continuing to exchange presents for the new year on April 1st as a joke.
April Fool’s Day traditions in Greece
With Greece being part of Europe, April Fool’s traditions were adopted throughout the country as well, though traditions were adapted to suit Greek tastes.
The basic idea was that Greeks started telling small, innocent lies on April 1st, thinking that whoever managed to trick the “victim,” would be lucky for the rest of the year.
In other parts, it is believed that the person who plays the trick will have bountiful crops. In addition, rain on April Fool’s Day in some parts of Greece is reminiscent of healing powers. Others claim that whoever digs on April 1st essentially digs their own grave.
Greeks relish playing pranks on this day. They believe that a successful joke brings the prankster well-being.
Pranks in Greece
Noteworthy was the Greek government’s prank in 1995 when the Greek Ministry of Culture announced the discovery of the tomb of revered philosophers during Athens Metro excavations.
Agence France-Presse believed the report and ran the story but was later forced to retract it.
In 2021, Greek Reporter fooled several journalists in Greece who were desperately searching for more information on Tom Hanks’ new Greek restaurant chain – the Souvlaki Hanx.
The first location will open in The Grove Shopping Center in Los Angeles, with immediate plans to open more restaurants across the U.S., Greek Reporter said at the time.
It added that some of the chain’s signature dishes would also include references to Hanks’ long and celebrated acting career on screen. These dishes would include: Private Ryan’s Gyro, Cast Away Fries with feta and oregano, and The Terminal — a gyro platter for two with a variety of Greek meats and sauces.
Turkey’s Prime Minister is facing a precarious situation with his majority in jeopardy following tightly contested municipal elections against opposition parties. Photo credit: Mikhail Klimentyev / CC BY 4.0
Turkey’s main opposition party has claimed huge election victories in the main cities of Istanbul and Ankara. The results are a significant blow for Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had hoped to regain control of the cities less than a year after he claimed a third term as President.
He led the campaign to win in Istanbul, where he grew up and became mayor. However, Ekrem Imamoglu, who first won the city in 2019, scored a second victory for the secular opposition CHP.
Erdogan had vowed for a new era in Turkey’s megacity of almost sixteen million people, but the incumbent mayor of Istanbul secured more than fifty percent of the vote, defeating the President’s AK Party candidate by more than eleven points and almost one million votes.
All international observers and analysts have had their eyes peeled on the election, and sure enough, it has overturned over a decade of uncontested majority for the current Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In the capital of Ankara, opposition Mayor Mansur Yavas was so far ahead of his rival at 60 percent that he declared victory when less than half the votes were in. Supporters blocked all the main roads in the city, waving flags and sounding their car horns.
Significantly, the CHP also seized control of Turkey’s fourth-largest city of Bursa, as well as Balikesir in the northwest, and retained control of Izmir, Adana, and the resort of Antalya.
President Erdogan, 70, acknowledged the election had not gone as he had hoped, but he told supporters in Ankara it would mark “not an end for us but rather a turning point.”
Ekrem İmamoğlu, who has been mayor of the city since 2019 and has been reconfirmed, has declared himself “very pleased” with the election results. In an official statement, he claimed the election brings the opposition to the forefront and shows that, through his past term in the capital, the party has “obtained the trust of our citizens and their belief in us.”
Today marks a pivotal moment not just for #Istanbul, but for #democracy itself. As we celebrate our victory, we send a resounding message to the world: the decline of democracy ends now. Istanbul stands as a beacon of hope, a testament to the resilience of democratic values in… pic.twitter.com/0CqJFu1LoF
— Ekrem İmamoğlu (International) (@imamoglu_int) April 1, 2024
Local elections in Turkey show a sway in public opinion
In the 2019 municipal elections, İmamoğlu won through a solid coalition made up of six main Turkish parties. That coalition fell apart after last year’s presidential election confirmed Erdogan’s position.
Now, this comes as a double victory for İmamoğlu to be winning the municipal election even while running with his party alone. For Erdogan’s AKP, high hopes of overturning the 2019 victory of the opposition in Istanbul have been crushed.
Tonight, #Istanbul has spoken clearly: our collective desire for #democracy shines brighter than ever, marking a pivotal step towards #unity and the end of polarization.
At a time when the world witnesses a retreat from democratic values, our city stands as a beacon of hope and… pic.twitter.com/Z2A9gnfTq6
— Ekrem İmamoğlu (International) (@imamoglu_int) March 31, 2024
The ruling party has been unable to shake off the post-pandemic economic crisis that caused rates of inflation to spike to 67 percent and interest rates to get as high as 50 percent despite Erdogan’s diplomatic and global efforts for influence.
An eventful and heartfelt municipal election in Turkey
This round of elections has been rife with anomalies. These include power cuts in some polling stations during the count, although those same polling stations did not deliver a win for the Prime Minister’s party.
Supporters of various parties have been involved in major clashes at the stations where police had to intervene, and Kurdish voters are currently protesting in support of their party leaders in the capital.
Hagia Sophia, the Byzantine cathedral which served as the seat of Eastern Christianity for nearly one thousand years, is now a mosque. Credit: Greek Reporter
Constantinople, originally founded as Byzantium by the ancient Greeks in 657 BCE, became the capital of the Byzantine Empire in 330 CE under the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great. In 1453, it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Mehmed II, and later renamed Istanbul
However, the name Istanbul was adopted from Greek. Specifically, “Istanbul” (Is-tan-bul) derives from the Greek phrase “is tin poli,” which means “to the city.”
In fact, throughout the many centuries of its existence, Greeks had referred to Constantinople (Greek: Constantinoupoli) as simply “poli,” noting that the word “poli” is also included in the latter part of the name Constantinoupoli. When one was going to the poli, they would say “Is tin Poli”—a phrase which morphed into the modern term Istanbul.
The great city was called Constantinople by the entire wider world until the 20th century. Although the Ottomans had unofficially called it Istanbul for years, the official name change took place in 1930 after the establishment of the modern Turkish Republic.
Panoramic view of Constantinople, 1876. Source: Wikimedia commons/ Public domain
The history of Constantinople
First settled in the seventh century BC, the city developed into a thriving port thanks to its prime geographic location between Europe and Asia, as well as its natural harbor. In 330 AD, it became the site of Roman Emperor Constantine’s “New Rome,” soon becoming a wealthy city with magnificent Christian architecture.
Constantinople stood as the seat of the Byzantine Empire for the next 1,100 years, enjoying great prosperity interspersed with a series of deadly sieges over the years until it was conquered by Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire.
In 657 BC, the ruler Byzas from the Greek city of Megara founded a settlement on the western side of the Strait of Bosporus, which linked the Black Sea with the Mediterranean Sea. Byzantium (or Byzantion) was born, quickly developing into a thriving port city.
Walls of the Palace of Blachernae in Constantinople (todays Istanbul) built in 500. Credit: wikimedia commons / Adaconda
In 324 AD, Constantine became the sole emperor of Rome, and in 330 AD the city was established as Constantinople (the city of Constantine), also having other unofficial names such as the Queen of Cities, Istinpolin, Stamboul, and Istanbul.
Greek was its spoken language, and Christianity was its main religion.
Justinian I, the emperor who reigned from 527 to 565 AD, expanded Byzantium’s borders to encircle the Mediterranean Sea.
After the Great Schism of 1054, when the Christian Church split into Roman and Eastern divisions, Constantinople became the seat of the Eastern Orthodox Church, remaining so to this day even after Muslim Ottoman rule was imposed there.
The original splendor of Byzantium was tarnished forever in 1204, when the armies of the Fourth Crusade, instead of saving Jerusalem from Muslim rule, sacked the great Christian city instead, and its inhabitants lived several decades under Latin misrule between the lords of Venice and their allies.
In 1261, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos liberated the city, and after its restoration under the Palaiologos dynasty the Byzantine Empire recovered some of its glory—that is, until May 29, 1453, when after a 53-day siege, Constantinople fell into the hands of the Ottomans.
The Column of Constantine, built by Constantine I in 330 to commemorate the establishment of Constantinople as the new capital of the Roman Empire. Source: Wikipedia
For Greeks, Istanbul will always be Constantinople
Naturally, throughout history, Greeks never called Constantinople “Istanbul.” This is partly due to the horror they felt knowing that when Constantinople fell to the Ottomans on May 29, 1453, it meant the end of Byzantium, and subsequently, Hellenism in the East. The fall of Constantinople marked the beginning of nearly 400 years of Ottoman occupation.
18th century map of Constantinople. Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons/ Public Domain
It is also partly because Greeks naturally feel nostalgic for the splendor that was the Byzantine Empire, which also helped further the spread of Orthodoxy all the way through Russia and today’s Balkan lands.
Another big part of the Greeks’ refusal to accept the name “Istanbul” for their beloved Polis is that since the 1920s, the contemporary Turkish state has been hostile to Hellenism and Greece itself on numerous occasions.
Greeks can never forget the destruction of Smyrna in 1922, the burning of Constantinople’s Greek neighborhoods, the further persecution of Greeks in 1955, or the Turkish invasion and occupation of the northern part of Cyprus in 1974.
In much the same way that the vast majority of Greeks continue to refer to the Republic of North Macedonia as “Skopje,” Istanbul will always be Constantinople to them, and Hagia Sophia will always be Greek in their hearts.
The Tomb of Jesus Christ. Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem. Credit: flickr / Larry Koester CC BY 2.0
Jesus Christ was crucified approximately two thousand years ago, in the spring of 33 CE. There is a lot of focus on his burial and tomb in the Bible. The tomb, as has been thought for over a thousand years, is located at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Yet, is it supported by evidence? Can we say with any certainty that this traditional site really is the authentic tomb of Jesus?
What the Bible says about the authentic tomb of Jesus
By far the oldest and most valuable source of information about the authentic tomb of Jesus is the Bible. The gospel accounts, which record his death and burial, were all written before the end of the first century. This means that they come from just decades, at most, after Jesus’ death. From a historical perspective, that makes them incredibly valuable.
According to the gospel accounts, the Romans took Jesus outside the walls of Jerusalem to execute him. They did not take him far, however. He was apparently killed only just outside the city walls. This was close enough that the gospels record Jesus making reference to the fact that he would not be killed ‘outside Jerusalem.’
Jesus died at about three o’clock in the afternoon. After this, his followers prepared his body for burial. Evidently, they did not have much time to do this, since the following day was a Sabbath. Since the days began at sundown, this means that Jesus’ followers only had about three hours to prepare Jesus’ body for burial and then bury it. The Jews could not work nor travel on the Sabbath.
Therefore, it is evident that Jesus’ tomb is most likely reasonably close to his site of execution. In fact, we could plausibly conclude that they were right next to each other, although according to Biblical evidence, this is uncertain.
Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional location of the tomb of Jesus. Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC-BY-SA 4.0
The traditional location of Jesus’ tomb
So, how does the traditional location of Jesus’ tomb tie in with these facts? Does it contradict them, or is it consistent with the evidence? The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is located within the walls of present-day Jerusalem. However, evidence indicates that it was outside the walls of the first-century city. Thus, it would be consistent with Jesus being executed and buried in that area.
Archaeology has also provided information which may support the idea that this was the authentic tomb of Jesus Christ. Excavations in the 1960s have revealed that first-century inhabitants of Jerusalem used this site as a burial ground. The Bible tells us that Joseph of Arimathea buried Jesus in a tomb that he had originally intended to use as his own family’s tomb.
With this fact in mind, it makes perfect sense that the tomb of Jesus would be in a location that the inhabitants of the city were already using as a burial ground.
How did this tradition of Jesus’ tomb begin?
So far, we can see that the traditional location is broadly consistent with the historical account found in the Bible. However, it is definitely worth looking at how the tradition surrounding this location evolved.
This belief goes back to the fourth century, which was the time of Emperor Constantine. That emperor sent his mother to search for the execution site and tomb of Jesus along with the help of two prominent bishops. The site that they identified was then occupied by a temple of Venus. They decided that this was the location of Jesus’ tomb on the basis of crosses they found in the area.
Specifically, they found three crosses. As the story goes, they brought each one in turn to a woman who was passing away. Upon touching the third one, the woman recovered. On this basis, they concluded that this was the true cross, the instrument of Jesus’ execution. Therefore, they concluded that this was where the Romans had executed him.
Constantine ordered that the temple be replaced by a church. Underneath, the builders found a rock-cut tomb. Naturally, Constantine’s mother and the bishops helping her identified this as the authentic tomb of Jesus Christ.
Is this really the authentic tomb of Jesus?
As we can see, the basis for this tradition is not particularly strong. It is not the result of a tradition that supposedly goes back to the first century but was first recorded in the fourth century. Rather, this tradition emerged as the result of a conscious effort to try to locate Jesus’ tomb.
Thus, we are fully aware of the logic that went into identifying this location. The logic in question is that some crosses were found on the site, one of which allegedly healed someone’s grave sickness.
This is not a strong basis on which to construct a historical conclusion. In terms of actual evidence, what this does show is that there is evidence that executions occurred here. If the Romans had one specific spot in which they always took people to be executed during their rule of Judea, then this would be significant. As it is, though, there is no evidence of this.
In summary, the traditional location of Jesus’ tomb, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, is consistent with the broad facts provided by the Bible regarding Jesus’ death and burial. Therefore, it could be his authentic tomb. Nonetheless, there is no definitive evidence that this really is the right location. The accounts in the Bible are simply not specific enough to allow us to form any definitive conclusions.
Known as The Regent, Spartan general Pausanias lived a life that encapsulated the harsh realities of the Ancient Greek city-state. A nephew of the great Leonidas, he ended up being killed by his own people for allegedly betraying Sparta.
He was born to his high-ranking father, Cleombrotus, and mother, Theano, and reigned from 479 to 478 BC; he died in ignominy in 477 BC.
Succeeding his father, Cleombrotus, who, in turn, succeeded King Leonidas I, Pausanias was born into a family of great prestige in the military society of Sparta.
In 479 BC, as a leader of the Hellenic League’s combined land forces, Pausanias won a pivotal victory in the Battle of Plataea, which ended the Second Persian invasion of Greece.
Almost all of what is known about his life is thanks to the historian Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, as well as Diodorus’ Bibliotheca historica and a smattering of other classical sources.
As a son of the regent Cleombrotus and a nephew of the warrior king, Leonidas I, whose epic stand against the invading Persians went down in history at the Battle of Thermopylae, Pausanias was a scion of the Spartan royal house of the Agiads.
Pausanias, the great general of Sparta, led a life full of turmoil. His death as a traitor was grim. Credit: Ward—The Illustrated history of the world/Public Domain
After Leonidas’ heroic death, while the king’s son, Pleistarchus, was still a minor, Pausanias served as regent of Sparta. He was also the father of Pleistoanax, who later became king of Sparta in his own right. Pausanias’ other sons were Cleomenes and Nasteria.
Pausanias was a leader of the Hellenic League, which had been created to resist the Persian invasion. He led the Greeks to victory over the Persians and Persian allies led by Mardonius at the Battle of Plataea in Boeotia,in 479 BC, the final land battle of the second Persian invasion of Greece.
A print of Pausanias from the 18th century. Public Domain
Pausanias was at the head of forces from the city-states of Sparta, Athens, Corinth, and Megara while the forces fighting for the Persian Empire of Xerxes I were allied with Boeotians, Thessalians, and Macedonians in this decisive battle.
Some historians believe him to have used both strategic and tactical skills in delaying the engagement until the point where Spartan arms and discipline could have maximum impact.
The historian Herodotus declared that “Pausanias, the son of Cleombrotus and grandson of Anaxandridas, won the most glorious victory of any known to us” as a result of his actions there.
After the victories at Plataea and the Battle of Mycale, the Spartans lost interest in liberating the Greek cities of Asia Minor until it became clear that Athens would dominate the League in Sparta’s absence. Sparta then sent Pausanias back to command the Greek military.
Fortunes turn for General Pausanias of Sparta
In 478 BC, the brilliant general was accused of conspiring with the Persians and was recalled to Sparta. One allegation against him was that after capturing Cyprus and Byzantium, he had released some of the prisoners of war who were friends and relatives of the king of Persia.
In his defense, Pausanias argued that the prisoners had simply escaped.
Another allegation was that Pausanias sent a letter via Gongylos of Eretria to Xerxes. The historian Diodorus has general Artabazos I of Phrygia acting as a mediator in this scenario.
The letter ostensibly said that Pausanias wished to help Xerxes and bring Sparta, with the rest of Greece, under Persian control. In return, he wished to marry Xerxes’ daughter, Amytis.
After Xerxes purportedly replied, agreeing to his plans, Pausanias started to adopt Persian customs and dress like a Persian aristocrat, according to the charges made at the time.
Spartan General Pausanias: A traitor—or just unpopular?
According to Thucydides and Plutarch, Athenians and many Hellenic League allies were displeased with Pausanias because of his arrogance and high-handedness. Whether or not the charges brought against him were solely because of his haughty attitude is impossible to determine.
In any event, in 477 BC, the Spartans recalled Pausanias once again, ostensibly for his services. He went to Kolonai in the Troad before returning to Sparta.
Upon arrival in Sparta, the ephors imprisoned—but later released—Pausanias. Initially, nobody had enough evidence to convict Pausanias of disloyalty, even though some helots reported that Pausanias had offered them their freedom if they joined in revolt against the state.
Later on, one of the messengers Pausanias used to communicate with Persians provided written evidence—a letter stating Pausanias’ intentions—to Spartan ephors.
Diodorus adds further detail to Thucydides’ account of the fateful encounter. After the ephors were loath to believe the letter provided by the messenger, the messenger then offered to produce Pausanias’ acknowledgement in person.
“Unworthy of being a Spartan, you are not my son”
In the letter, Pausanias—or whomever actually wrote it—asked the Persians to kill the messenger. The messenger and the ephors went to the Temple of Poseidon at Tainaron at the tip of the Mani peninsula. The Ephors concealed themselves in a tent at the shrine, and the messenger waited for Pausanias.
When the general arrived, the messenger confronted him, asking why the letter ordered the killing of whomever delivered the letter. Pausanias apologized and, recognizing that he had made a mistake, asked the messenger for forgiveness. Pausanias then offered gifts to the messenger as a sop. The Ephors overheard the conversation, which they understood to be a damning one, from their nearby tent.
In his defense, Herodotus notes that Athenians were hostile to Pausanias and wished him removed from Greek command. Athenians were similarly hostile to Pausanias’ Athenian counterpart Themistocles, publicly ostracizing this other great general as a threat to democracy there.
A. R. Burn speculates that Spartans were becoming concerned with Pausanias’ innovatory views on freeing the Helots, a slave class who were subjugated by the Spartans.
According to the historians Thucydides, Diodorus, and Polyaenus, pursued by the ephors and realizing all was lost—regardless of whether he was truly guilty—Pausanias took refuge in the temple of Athena “of the Brazen House” (Χαλκίοικος, Chalkioikos), located in the acropolis of Sparta.
His mother, Theano, immediately went to the temple and laid a brick at the door, declaring: “Unworthy to be a Spartan, you are not my son.”
Following his mother’s Spartan example, the citizens of the city-state blocked the doorway of the temple with bricks, thereby forcing Pausanias to die of starvation.
After his body was turned over to relatives for burial, however, the divinity, through the Oracle of Delphi showed displeasure at the violation of the sanctity of suppliants in her place of worship.
The oracle said that Athena demanded the return of the suppliant. Unable to carry out the injunction of the goddess, the Spartans then erected two bronze statues of Pausanias at the temple of Athena as an appeasement.
In conclusion, it will never be known if Pausanias did in fact betray the city-state of Sparta to Xerxes. If he did indeed betray Sparta, was it because he faced such opposition from his own people that he gave up trying to work within the system?
In any event, his death was a perfect representation of the almost unimaginable harshness of military discipline in the Ancient Greek city-state.
Local elections are underway in Turkey, with the main opposition party currently leading in major cities Istanbul and Ankara. Credit: Turkish Presinency
Turkey’s main opposition party is closing in on victory in the major cities of Istanbul and Ankara, in important local elections that are a test for President Erdogan.
Istanbul’s opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who gained control of the city in 2019, said that he was “very happy” so far. Erdogan had made it his goal, one year after securing a thif term as president, to win back the city where he grew up and became mayor.
Supporters of the opposition celebrated as Imamoglu closed in on victory, and with 80 percent of the vote counted in Istanbul, he was almost 10 points ahead of his rival from Erdogan’s AK Party.
Turkey's main opposition party managed to defeat the ruling alliance, delivering the biggest election defeat of Erdogan's career. Despite an uneven playing field, gov't candidates have lost even in conservative strongholds. This is CHP's best results since the 1977 elections. pic.twitter.com/fn4AhIoyMP
In Turkey’s capital Ankara, Imamoglu’s colleague in the secular opposition CHP, Mansur Yavas, was miles ahead of his rival, which led him to declare victory when fewer than half the votes were in.
President Erdogan had led his party’s election campaign in Istanbul, promising a new era in Turkey’s largest city. The result is understood to be a huge blow to the man who has led Turkey for the past 21 years.
Local elections began in Turkey earlier today with the vote a strong indication of President Erdogan’s popularity, deciding who gains control of Istanbul and capital Ankara, both of which he lost in 2019.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tried to recover control of important urban areas he lost to the opposition five years ago.
Voting stations opened today (Sunday, March 31) at 7am local time in eastern Turkey, with voting in other regions having begun at 8am and ending at 5pm.
The vote is a representation of Erdogan’s popularity and will ultimately determine who gets to control the economic center of Istanbul and the capital Ankara, both of which the president lost in 2019.
As Turkish citizens are voting today in Turkey's local elections, eyes are on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who aims to regain control of Istanbul from rival and mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the opposition party (CHP), who took control back in 2019.
The 70-year-old Turkish politician set his aim to take back Istanbul, a city housing 16 million people, where he was born and raised, and where he began his career in politics as mayor in 1994.
“Winning major cities is more of a deal for the opposition, but also it means access to foreign funds, having transnational links with both economic actors and political actors,” Evren Balta, professor of political science at Turkey’s Ozyegin University, told Al Jazeera. “If you are governing a major global city, it means you have visibility in the international scene.”
Background on Turkey’s Local Elections
It is probable that a strong showing for Erdogan’s Islamic-leaning Justice and Development Party, or the AK Party, would concretize his goal to bring in a new constitution – one that would represent his conservative values and permit him to rule beyond 2028, when his current term ends, analysts say.
For the opposition, largely divided and demoralized after a loss in last year’s presidential and parliamentary elections, holding onto Istanbul and Ankara would be a huge boost and help remobilize supporters.
Around 61 million people, including more than a million first-time voters, are eligible to cast ballots for all metropolitan municipalities, town and district mayorships, as well as neighborhood administrations.
During Sunday’s local elections, clashes between two groups in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority southeast left one dead and 12 people wounded, a local official told AFP.
The incident that occurred in Agaclidere village, 30km (18 miles) from the city of Diyarbakir, turned violent and included guns, the official said. One bullet reportedly hit the car of a local journalist.
Turnout for elections is typically high in Turkey, however this time the vote arrives against the backdrop of the stark cost of living crisis. Observers have stated that disillusioned opposition advocates may choose to remain home, full of doubt in its ability to change the situation.
And here the riders arrived, as expected. Kyrgyz people dressed in national costumes living in Van (Western Armenia) came to vote in the municipal #elections in #Turkey… pic.twitter.com/k78UJ1BPGc
On the other hand, it was thought that governing party supporters might also opt not go to to the polls in protest against the economic downturn that has left many struggling to pay for food, utilities and rent.
Around 594,000 security personnel will be on duty across the country to ensure the vote goes smoothly, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya told Al Jazeera.
Polls were pointing to a close race between Istanbul’s incumbent mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, of the main opposition, pro-secular Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and the AK Party’s candidate Murat Kurum, a former urbanisation and environment minister.
Ptolemy’s manuscript on an instrument called Meteoroscope
The effort to decipher this ancient Ptolemy manuscript was the culmination of over 200 years of work from numerous different researchers.
This was because someone literally wrote on top of it. In addition, as the Jerusalem Post reports, someone tried to “clean” the parchment to make Ptolemy’s original writing clearer by applying a reagent to several pages. This not only didn’t make the original writing clearer, but it ended up covering the parchment with dark brown stains that made reading it even more difficult.
Finally, after 200 years, modern methods deciphered the manuscript which contains information regarding a scientific instrument known as a Meteoroscope.
This was a tool used by astronomers in antiquity to study stars and distances. In particular, Ptolemey’s Meteoroscope could be used for a number of applications. These included telling time by predicting the equinox or solstice and ascertaining one’s latitude and the location of a planet.
Armillary Sphere at the San Jacinto Battle Field in La Porte, Texas. Credit: Jim Evans , CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikipedia
What hadn’t survived was detailed information about what the Meteoroscope looked like and how it worked, other than the fact that it involved nine rings. However, that mystery might finally be solved.
According to the translated text, the Meteoroscope’s nine rings had the following names and functions:
Ring bearing a suspension or “bearer”: A fixed ring that was seemingly used to hang it from something
Hektemoros or “six-parter”: A ring fixed perpendicular to the bearer, intersecting it twice and equal in size
“Horizon”: This ring is fixed at the cardinal points to the bearer and the six-parter
“Meridian”: this is located inside the bearer and kept in place by flanges, but its orientation can be adjusted according to latitude
“Revolver: This is inside the meridian ring and pivots on the points representing celestial poles.
“Zodiac”: Equal in size to the revolver, it’s fixed to it at right angles at specific points.
“Astrolabe“: Located inside the revolver and zodiac rings, it pivots on the points representing ecliptic poles.
“Upright”: Located inside the astrolabe and pivoting on the points of the revolver representing celestial poles. It can represent any arbitrary meridian.
“All-tilter”: Located inside the upright and pivoting on the points representing where the abritrary meridian intersects with the equator, it can represent any horizon and set in any plane.
Essentially, the completed Meteoroscope would look like a large series of rings located inside each other, tilting around as needed.
The tool’s construction and usage were detailed in the manuscript, which seems to imply that the treatise was meant to help practitioners use it and to help teachers demonstrate how some conclusions are reached.
Ptolemy propounded the geocentric theory
Ptolemy, was one of the most influential Greek astronomers and geographers of his time. He propounded the geocentric theory in a form that prevailed for 1400 years. His work has generated more discussion and argument than any other.
Born in Roman-era Alexandria in Egypt, Ptolemy wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance to later Byzantine, Islamic, and Western European science.
The first is the astronomical treatise now known as the Almagest, although it was originally entitled the Mathēmatikē Syntaxis or Mathematical Treatise, and later known as The Greatest Treatise.
The second is Geography, which is a thorough discussion on maps and the geographic knowledge of the Greco-Roman world.
The third is the astrological treatise in which he attempted to adapt horoscopic astrology to the Aristotelian natural philosophy of his day.
The Akathist Hymn is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
The Akathist Hymn, which is chanted on the first five successive Fridays of Lent in the Eastern Orthodox Church, is a profound devotional poem dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
Devotional hymns to the Theotokos are as ancient as the first Christian church. The Byzantine Empire from its very inception in Constantinople during the fourth century closely allied itself to the Virgin Mary and always sought Her protection and intercessions.
The Akathist Hymn, which in its present form is the work of many different ecclesiastical hymnographers, existed even before it was formally accepted by the Church in 626 AD.
The Kontakion “To the Invincible Champion… we ascribe the victory” was added at that time.
Akathist Hymn got its name because of a miracle
It came to be known as “The Akathist Hymn” because of the following miracle, which was attributed to the intercession of the Theotokos.
The Emperor of Byzantium Heracleios was starting out on an expedition to fight an incursion of the Persians on their own lands when there suddenly appeared barbaric hordes, consisting mostly of Avars, outside the walls of Constantinople.
The siege lasted several months, and it was apparent that the outnumbered troops of the Queen City were becoming desperate. However, as history records, the faith of its people made the impossible, possible.
The Venerable Patriarch Sergius, accompanied by clergy and the Byzantine official Vonos, marched unceasingly along the great walls of Constantinople, holding an icon of the Theotokos, which bolstered the faith of the defenders of freedom when they saw it. And the hoped-for miracle came soon after.
Suddenly, as the chronicler narrates, a great storm with huge tidal waves destroyed most of the enemy fleet, and a full retreat from Constantinople ensued quickly thereafter.
Seeing this miracle take place before them, the faithful of Constantinople spontaneously ran to the Church of the Theotokos at Vlachernae on the Golden Horn.
With the Patriarch Sergius officiating, they prayed all night, singing praises to the Virgin Mary—without even sitting down. Hence the title of the Hymn “Akathistos,” which means “not seated” in Greek.
Icon of the Akathist of the Theotokos. Fresco detail, 1644. Church of the Deposition of the Robe of the Mother of God, The Kremlin, Moscow. Source: Wikipedia
Honored by other Christians
Although the Akathist is a strictly Orthodox service which originated from a historical event involving Byzantium, it has been highly honored by other Christian denominations.
The deeply emotional poem has been metrically translated by outstanding poets in English, Latin, German, Russian, Rumanian, Arabic, French, Italian, Spanish, and other languages.
The great appeal of the Akathist Hymn is due to the lyric quality of the composition, as well as the simplicity of the plot: the happy mystery of the Incarnation of the Logos of God.
This is the theme of a recent presentation on the study of “The Bible as Literature,” by scholar Emmy Karavellas, at Indiana State University.
Karavellas says that it relates to man’s absolute need to glorify and praise what is sacred, and especially the Incarnation of the Lord through the Virgin Mary.
This tendency of mankind to incarnate the supernatural and “immaterialize” what is material gives people a sense of deliverance, which we all seek and yearn for in our lives.
Year after year, people crowd the Orthodox churches on Friday evenings to listen to this wonderful service which has the power to bring human beings closer to their Creator and whose music, rhyme, and meter instill in them a spiritual euphoria.
The iconic hymn has also been sung by popular Greek singer Glykeria.
Truffles have great nutritional value. Credit: Meteora Museum
The truffle in ancient Greece was called “Hydnon.” Philosophers, historians, and travelers have praised the rare mushroom with the high nutritional value, aphrodisiac properties, and delicate taste.
Plutarch, Pliny, Cicero, Dioscorides, Theophrastus, Galen, and Athenaeus often mentioned the hydnon (plural hydna) in their writings.
Recent historiographical sources indicate the Babylonians, and, subsequently, the Sumerians were the first to enjoy the earthy delicacy. We can infer that the discovery of truffle and its use on the table dates to the year 3,000 BC.
The first written mention of truffles is made by Theophrastus in the 4th century BC. He wrote about truffles grown in Ilia, Thrace, Mytilene, Samos, and other places across ancient Greece.
Ancient Greek philosophers pondered on the origins of this delicate fungus that grows underground. Mythology has Zeus launching one of his powerful thunderbolts down to earth. The heat of the thunderbolt, along with the natural moisture in the ground, led to the production of the subterranean fungus near an oak tree.
In classical times, Plutarch, Cicero, and Dioscorides, in trying to interpret the inexplicable presence of truffles underground specifically found on the roots of trees, considered them to be the result of lightning falling on the earth.
Latin scholar Pliny the Elder (23-79 AD) in his book HistorieNaturalis described the tuber, as truffles were called at the time, as a miraculous product of nature that sprouted and grew without roots. Athenaeus (170-223 AD) in his book Deipnosophists, considered the first cookery book, devotes several pages to truffles.
Ancient Athenians appreciated the truffle to the point of granting honorary citizenship on a certain Cherippo for having invented new and tasty recipes based on the underground ingredient.
Greek philosopher Porphyry (234-305 AD) called truffles “the children of the gods” and Cicero (106-43 BC)”daughters of the earth.” Nero valued them as “food of the gods.”
What exactly are truffles?
Growing underground, truffles are mushrooms ,and, like all fungi, they do not have basic vegetative organs such as roots, stem, and seeds in the botanical sense of the term, as is the case with phanerogamous – spermatophytes.
Dioskouridis and Theophrastus, as botanists, gave the description of truffles with wonderful precision and brevity. “The hydno is a round root without leaves, without a stem, yellowish, which is uprooted in the spring. It is edible and can be eaten raw or cooked,” Dioskouridis wrote.
According to Theophrastus, “The hydno has neither stem, nor branch, nor twig, nor leaf, nor flower, nor fruit, nor skin or heart wood or fibers or vessels.” The origin of the fungus remained unexplained for quite a long time, and botanists faced many difficulties until they determined the true nature of these mushrooms.
The apparent absence of any kind of reproductive organ has been the main obstacle to explaining their manner of reproduction and gives the impression that truffles are randomly created on earth. The spores of mushrooms, in general, in contrast to the seeds of flowering plants, are microscopic and invisible to the naked eye, and the world was almost oblivious to their existence before the microscope was discovered.
Truffles, like all other mushrooms, multiply with spores, which are produced in special ascomorphic reproductive organs and are almost always dispersed on the earth by natural factors, such as wind and water. One cannot help but admire the perspicacity of our ancestors, who, despite the level of scientific research of that time, correctly supported the origin of truffles from seeds.
Truffles are macroscopically distinguished by the coloring and morphology of their skin, which is smooth or rough, and white, tan, or black in color.
Truffle hunting in Meteora. Credit: Efi Pantazi / Greek Reporter
Truffle hunting in Meteora
Today, truffles are found in many gourmet tables across Greece. Truffle hunting has become a game with delicious culinary rewards. It is also a profit-making enterprise that finds new fans every year.
The Natural History Museum of Meteora and the Mushroom Museum organize the Truffle hunting in Meteora every year. In the beautiful forests of the area, at a very short distance from Kalambaka, visitors can enjoy a unique truffle hunt.
The area of Meteora is ideal for truffle hunting. It has wild truffles, and accessibility is quite easy, as a bus coach may conveniently make its way there. Visitors may partake in truffle hunting either in combination with visiting monasteries and other attractions or as an independent activity.
Truffle hunting in Meteora. Credit: Efi Pantazi / Greek Reporter
There is a trained truffle hunter with his truffle dogs, and the search begins immediately in each corner of the forest. Visitors enjoy following the dogs that never stop searching. The animals find the truffles and hunters take them to the chefs. The rest belongs to the chefs who start cooking the famous truffle pasta.
Chefs tell the secret of how to make pasta with truffles and offer hunters different kinds of wild mushrooms for tasting. Bottles of wine are opened and hunters enjoy a great meal of new flavors.
Truffle hunting in Meteora. Credit: Efi Pantazi / Greek Reporter
The Mushroom Museum
What follows is the visit to the Mushroom Museum. It is a tour of various types of mushrooms focusing on the nutritional and therapeutic value of each fungus. Finally, visitors may choose from seventy traditional kinds of mushroom and truffle products.
The whole program takes about three hours and is available at all hours of the day. Visitors may join either in groups of up to fifty people or private groups of up to ten. School groups may attend at a reduced price.
The hunting season runs from March until the end of October. Off season visits can be arranged after negotiation.
For further information, those interested in learning more may consult the website or get in touch through email or by phone as detailed below.
