Over 270 people from Sydney’s Cretan community gathered at the Mytilenian House in Canterbury on Saturday, November 5 for a dinner dance to commemorate the 156th anniversary of the Arkadi Monastery holocaust.
The dance was organised by the Cretan Association of Sydney & New South Wales to honour the over 1,000 Cretan men, women and children who were massacred by the Ottomans in Arkadi, Crete in 1866.
On the night, there were plenty of youth dressed proudly in traditional Cretan costumes, along with their families and a number of special guests including Archbishop Makarios of Australia; the Consul General of Greece in Sydney, Ioannis Mallikourtis; and the President of the Cretan Association, Emmanuel Vitetzakis; among many others.
Mr Vitetzakis gave a speech on the night describing the history of the Arkadi Monastery holocaust, before thanking the Cretan youth in attendance for keeping the “Cretan spirit alive.”
“To all our kids, you make us proud. You may not realise the pride you instil in all of us when we watch you dance. The passion you show when you are out there is the reason why we continue to work hard behind the scenes to keep the Cretan spirit alive,” Mr Vitetzakis said.
Next to speak was Archbishop Makarios, who not only stressed how proud he is to be Cretan, but also recited Cretan ‘mantinades’ to the crowd.
The Consul General also spoke on the night. He shared a personal experience of how his dad brought the Arkadi holocaust to his attention and emphasised the importance of “knowing one’s history so we know our destination.”
“The Cretans are always present in battles… and you should be very proud of that,” Mr Mallikourtis said.
After these speeches, Mr Vitetzakis presented small gifts to Archbishop Makarios, the Consul General, and the three Cretan musicians present on the night.
Giannis Tsourdalakis (lyra and vocals) and Giorgos Psarakis (lute and vocals) arrived from Crete to perform live music at the dinner dance. They were accompanied by local Sydney talent, Manoli Karageorgiou (lute).
The 2022 Megalonisos Award was also presented on the night to former President of the Cretan Association, George Tsiganakis.
At the conclusion of these official proceedings, the Cretan Association’s junior, intermediate and senior dancing groups performed to loud applause from family and friends.
The night ended with people mingling and everyone on the dance floor dancing to traditional Cretan music.
*All photos copyright The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
