The event, which praises the volcanic island of Cyclades, for its sports, culture, unique architecture, and history, will be held for the 6th consecutive year on October 2-4, 2020. Santorini Experience will attract professional and amateur athletes for another year and promote sports and Santorini as a destination, with respect to the environment and the island’s traditional architecture. This year’s races will adopt an eco-friendly approach, with a strategy that involves plastic-free and environmentally friendly initiatives.

On Saturday, October 3, 2020, participants will have the opportunity to run on the Caldera, overlooking the enchanting images of the volcano and the background scenery of Imerovigli, Firostefani, and Oia. Specifically, the 10 km route is addressed to runners with experience in distances, while the 15 km route “Aristides Alafouzos” is ideal for those who love strength, endurance, and adrenaline. All routes start from the desalination plant in Oia, mainly including parts of soil, and finish in Oia. The breathtaking routes are designed by the former marathon runner, Greek classic route record holder, running trainer, and director of All About Running, Nikos Polias.

On Sunday, October 4, 2020, participants will have the opportunity to swim from the volcano to the old port of Fira, while having the imposing view of the island in front of them, in the 1.5 miles open water swimming race (2.4 km). The event will look after all athletes by adding the high-quality safety lifeguard buoy, giving them an extra motive to choose Santorini Experience. The swimming route will be held, as every year, with absolute safety in the captivating waters of Santorini, where the average water temperature in October, reaches 20-22 degrees Celsius. Lifeguard Patrol’s specialized lifeguards and lifeboats will contribute to the safety of the race for another year. Different categories will be formed depending on the final number of entries, while a separate category for those wearing wetsuits will be added. The race will be held under the technical direction of Greek national swimming coach with Olympic and World Championship distinctions, Nikos Gemelos, with the approval of the Hellenic Swimming Federation, according to FINA regulations.

The event that has already been distinguished in the past in Greece and abroad, with an international award at the Travel & Hospitality Awards, the Ermis Awards, and the Sports Marketing Awards, conquered for the first time a top position at the 2020 Tourism Awards. Specifically, the successful sports tourism event won the Gold Award in the category of Sea Tourism for implementing its innovative initiatives.

In the context of this year’s award, Santorini Mayor, Mr. Antonios Sigalas stated, among other things: “The award given to the event of Santorini Experience by the acclaimed Tourism Awards institution, is an exceptional honorary distinction for Santorini. Our Municipality implements a Complete Plan for the Management of Santorini’s Destination, having adopted the strategy of sustainable development with an emphasis on the protection of the natural and man-made environment, the emergence of our cultural wealth, innovation, and quality of infrastructure. Our recognition by a tourism excellence institution, such as the Tourism Awards, strengthens the brand of Santorini, reinforces the island’s position among the world’s top destinations, and motivates us to continue our actions in the field of quality tourism”.

Respectively, the President of the Municipal Sports Cultural Environmental Organization of Santorini (DAPPOS), Mr. Vassilios Alafouzos stressed: “This award belongs to all citizens of Santorini that have embraced the event. On our behalf, we will support any effort that fosters sports and promotes Greek tourism”. 

Register for the 15km “Aristides Alafouzos” and 10km running routes, as well as the 1.5 miles swimming route, and take advantage of the early bird prices with a 25% discount. The offer is valid until 31/7. The event, always prioritizing the participants themselves, offers a refund of their registration costs until August 31. 

Driven by this unprecedented situation, the top sports tourism event Santorini Experience is expected to support, this year more than ever, Santorini’s sports tourism during the month of October through a number of actions.

As every year, the event will be held, in accordance with the strict standards set by the Greek Ministry of Tourism, the General Secretariat of Sports and all relevant sports Federations. Santorini Experience will be planned and delivered based on the protocol of races, which will ensure public health and safety of all parties involved.

Besides, the safety and health of all participants remain its main priority.

For another year, Luanvi is the event’s official sports supplier. 
Boatmen Union Santorini is the event’s official supporter. 
Avance is the official rental partner. 
Santorini Experience is assisted by Lifeguard Patrol. 

Up to this point, this year’s event is supported with special offers and prices by the following hospitality sponsors: Athina Luxury Suites, Santo Maris Oia Luxury Suites & Spa, Canaves Oia, West East Suites, Andronis Arcadia, K&K Unique Holiday Homes, Sienna Resort, Marvarit Suites, Santo Houses, 270 Oia’s View, Fanouris Condo, Monolithia, Casa Iphigenia, La Mer Suites & Spa, Antinea Suites & Spa, Beach Boutique Hotel, Bloom Travel, Loizos Stylish Residencies, Iokasti Villa, Olive Cave Houses, Panorama Studios & Suites, Esperas Santorini and Mesana Stone House, while collaborations continue.

Tangopapas.com is the event’s travel partner.

Santorini Experience is co-organized by the Municipality of Santorini, Municipal Sports Cultural Environmental Organization of Santorini (DAPPOS), and Active Media Group.

More info at: www.santorini-experience.com

Facebook Page

Instagram Page

Twitter Account

YouTube Channel

Official Hashtag: #SantoriniExperience

Photo Credit: Babis Giritziotis

---

XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor of Santorini Experience

---

One by one, municipalities in Greece are announcing the reopening of playgrounds, as the Hellenic Interior Ministry has granted them to reopen.

 

Playgrounds were closed for the public at the beginning of lockdown restriction measures. The circular issued by the Interior Ministry states that for the reopening of playgrounds, all playgrounds should "meet all safety requirements," "in full accordance with the existing health conditions per region and the observance of the outlined and enforced protection measures."

 

According to a statement, the Culture, Sports & Youth Organization of the City of Athens (OPANDA) will proceed with the reopening of all playgrounds in Athens. "OPANDA has taken all necessary measures to meet hygiene requirements and follow the operating rules of the premises, following the Joint Ministerial Decision and the instructions of the Health Scientific Committee," it is emphasized in the announcement. Playgrounds will be open from Monday to Sunday from 08:00 to 22:00.

 

Meanwhile, the Municipality of Athens continues to plan the reconstruction of 19 playgrounds, which will be delivered by the end of July–remodeled according to the latest safety standards, suitable and accessible to children with mobility difficulties.

Originally posted in Greek on ethnos.gr 

Translated by Codico Lab

The SNF Run returns, this year in virtual form!

This summer, get ready for a powerful comeback from the SNF Run. Adapting to virtually unprecedented times, the popular race is going virtual for the first time, inviting us to run wherever we are to support our local hospitals. We’ll keep our distance, but cover greater ones all over Greece, always together and always for a good cause!

To experience the Virtual SNF Run, pick a day between Monday, June 15, and Sunday, June 21 to run your own 5-km route, then upload your results. You decide where to run: in a park, on city streets, on your favorite beach, on the treadmill, in your garden, or on the stairs at home.

Like every year, this year’s race has a charitable mission. When registering, those who wish can choose to support their local hospital. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) will add double the amount contributed by runners, tripling the overall size of the donation.

Whether you run by yourself, with your family, or with your friends, take a selfie on your run and share it with the hashtag #SNFRun. 

On the evening of International Olympic Day, June 23, at 21:00 (GMT+3), the announcement of the Virtual SNF Run results will be streamed as part of the Summer Nostos Festival RetroFuture Edition in an event featuring your best snapshots from the race. The event will be presented by iMEdD Managing Director, SNF DIALOGUES Executive Director, and journalist Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou.

More information on how to register will be announced soon at SNFestival.org.

Stay tuned, stay connected.

Hundreds of Greeks danced and sang from inside their cars at a drive-in concert, the first concert since the ban of mass gatherings in Greece. The show took place in a football court at the seaside suburb of Glyfada on Tuesday night.

 

Cars were parked on designated spots to safeguard the health of the concertgoers who came to enjoy a free performance by famous Greek singer Natasa Theodoridou. The 300 car spaces were raffled in a lottery of more than 7,000 applications.

I have never done something like this before, it's a nice experience, a new experience,' affirmed a spectator.

'This is an example to all of us that nothing stops, we can do everything if we have patience and positive thoughts,' said the performer on stage.

Live concerts in Greece are expected to resume on July 15.

To read this article in full, please visit: reuters.com

FokiaNou Art Space is pleased to present “Interstitial Places”, a two-person exhibition by Jane Grover and Dimitra Maltabe. In order to allow for social distancing, the opening will take place over two evenings, the 11th and 12th of June, with the rooftop terrace open for added space. The two artists create photographic fictions, starting with the randomness of the world and imposing order, to paraphrase the photographer Stephan Shore. Jane Grover's photographs of walls and surfaces were taken on trips from as far afield as Mexico and as nearby as Anavyssos. She seeks accidental and serendipitous compositions that have been fashioned by entropic forces on manmade surfaces. Dimitra Maltabe juxtaposes and collages urban residential windows to evoke thoughts about architectural features that function both as openings and as boundaries or borders while hiding different worlds within.

Born in England, Jane Grover studied History of Art at Leeds University before moving to the United States in 1980. She worked in theater and set design all over the U.S. and was a member of the union United Scenic Artists Local 829 in New York City. In 2002 she moved to Taos, New Mexico, to concentrate on painting, where she was represented by a Sage Fine Art as well as two galleries in Colorado. She is happy to have made Greece her home for the past seven years.

Dimitra Maltabe is an Athens-based visual artist. She holds a degree in Painting and Stage Design from the Athens School of Fine Arts and a Master’s in Fine Arts from Kent Institute of Art and Design, University of Kent, Canterbury, U.K. Her work focuses on human and environmental interaction. She has shown her work in many solo and group shows in Greece and abroad, including the 6th Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art, “Imagined Homes”, as well as a 2018 residency at Kinono Tinos Art Gathering, and at artAmari Residency, Crete in 2016.

About FokiaNou Art Space

FokiaNou Art Space is an artist-run project space in the intimacy of a small apartment in an old building in the center of Athens. The space encourages collaborative creative efforts between Greek and foreign artists, thereby promoting and supporting the local art community. The space hosts exhibitions, workshops, and projects under the direction of two artists, Mary Cox and Panagiotis Voulgaris.

Young Executives Shipping (YES) FORUM (Greece) in partnership with YoungShip Cyprus, YoungShip Turkey, YoungShip Panama, YoungShip Venezuela, YoungShip Singapore, YoungShip Texas, Young Professionals In Shipping Network Hong Kong, Young Shipping Professionals New York, Young Professionals In Shipping Network Shanghai & Beijing, Maritime SheEO India, Shipping Professionals Network London, It's All About Shipping UK will organize an online event on Friday 5th June 2020 16:00- 18:00 (Greek time).

Representatives of the above organizations will answer the audience's questions about the below topics:

- Presentation and best practices of each organization.
- Onboard and Ashore Career: Opportunities and Challenges in each country
- Tips to follow in your career path (soft skills, social media, CV tips, networking, etc)

Moderator of the discussion will be: Danae Bezantakou, Concept Founder – YES FORUM & CEO – NAVIGATOR SHIPPING CONSULTANTS

The e-dialogue will be live via FACEBOOK in this event page so that everyone can have access from different countries and ask questions live.

The discussion will take place in English.

The participation is free of charge. 

To register please click here. 

---

XpatAthens is proud to be a Media Sponsor Of YES FORUM

---

Greece is aiming to end the use of single-use plastics by July 2021, according to Kostis Hatzidakis, the Greek Minister of Environment and Energy. Single-use plastics include plastic bags, straws, coffee cups and stirrers, soda and water bottles, and most food packaging.

 

The Ministry has announced its partnership with the AC Laskaridis Charitable Foundation, entitled, "Greece, Free of Single-Use Plastics."

 

Angeliki Kosmopoulou of the AC Laskaridis Charitable Foundation noted that "Greece is taking a great leap forward" to ban single-use plastics and called for new regulating laws as well as a public awareness campaign.

 

"Every day, we use a million plastic coffee cups in Greece," Hatzidakis said. "This cannot continue, so we are moving ahead with this initiative, which the prime minister himself has strongly supported, and which must be done in tandem with citizens," the minister added during the event.


To read this article in full, plese visit: greekreporter.com

Although the measures for COVID-19 have eased, we are still very cautious. We avoid social contact and do not visit friends yet. That's because we adults can keep the necessary, safe distance, but children cannot. Last week we planned a "date" with one of my daughter's friends and her mom in the park. We would all walk together, two moms and two kids, keeping a safe distance between us.

 

We discussed with the children in advance and set the rules upfront about what is and what's not allowed. Of course, we had to remind them several times: "Don't get too close, come closer to me, don't touch this." It was going well until the children decided they wanted to hug, but that was out of the question. My daughter started to cry long and loud! That's certainly not what I would call a relaxing walk.

 

The same thing happened when she met her grandmother; she wanted to run into her arms. And I, the "bad" mom apparently, did not let her. My daughter could not understand why since we've been in the house for so long without meeting anyone and since the measures have started being less strict. "I'm heartbroken that I can't hug my grandmother," she told me and burst into tears. In our family, we have people belonging to the high-risk group, so we are more than careful.

 

Several worrying thoughts came to my mind: "Have we perhaps become hypochondriacs?" "Is it possible we are more afraid than we allow ourselves to feel?" "And how much has all this fear affected us?" I took my daughter in my arms and let her cry as much as she wanted. I wasn't talking to her; I was simply holding her in my arms. When she stopped, she wiped her tears and said: "I know, mom, that this coronavirus won't let us do what we want. Fortunately, I can at least see my grandmother even if it's from a distance."

 

Meanwhile, the Deputy Minister of Development & Investments Nikos Papathanassis stated that indoor seating is not allowed before the first half of June.

To read this article in full, please visit: amna.gr

Are you interested in youth exchange programs? Do you want to know more about exciting opportunities to meet and collaborate with peers from other countries in the EU?

Join the webinar ‘European Youth Mobilities explained: Get memorable experiences abroad’ on 28th May, 16.00-17.00, to learn more about Youth Mobilities, financed by Erasmus+ program.

The options are many – for choosing the right one, it depends on your areas of interest!

In the webinar, you will get information about:

• Topics/thematic areas of Youth Exchanges
• Typical activities in youth mobilities and learning outcomes
• What are the expenses covered for you to participate in the mobility
• Application process: How to write an engaging motivation letter
• Where to spot youth exchange opportunities
• How COVID-19 pandemic affects youth mobilities

Mobility projects for young people offer many opportunities to acquire competences and grow as an individual, through non-formal learning. Learn how to prepare yourself and get ready to participate in the near future!

Participation is free of charge.