Tsitsipas will next face his biggest test when he meets world number one Carlos Alcaraz in the last eight. The Greek has lost all four meetings with Alcaraz.
“The clash we’ve been all waiting for,” Tsitsipas said in his post-match interview. “I think everyone was expecting it, weren’t they? And it’s here. It’s game on.”
Are you counting down the days until your European summer adventure?
If you’re heading to Greece anywhere between June to September 2023, The Greek Herald has the scoop on when and where some of your favourite artists will take the stage and perform.
Whether you’re a fan of Greek pop, laika, rembetika or even bouzoukia, this is your one-stop spot for everything you need to know.
Natasa Theodoridou:
Greek superstar Natasa Theodoridou is touring all over Greece this summer and you’re invited. Her ‘Hartis Tour’ will kick off from mid-June to mid-September, starting in Athens on Wednesday, June 14.
With classic hits including Den Thelo Tetious Filous, Den me Afora,Sou Vazw Diskola and Hartopolemos, Natasa will perform alongside Alcatrash.
Nikos Oikonomopoulos:
Nikos Oikonomopoulos.
One of Greece’s most well-known and loved singers is also going on tour. If you missed out on seeing Nikos Oikonomopoulos on his Australian tour, there’s no need to fear as you can catch him in Greece in various regions.
His tour will take place on Thursday, June 22 in Thessaloniki, Tuesday, June 27 in Patra, Thursday, June 29 in Athens and Thursday, June 7 in Ioannina with more dates TBA.
Konstantinos Argiros:
The Athina Mou, Ximeromata and Iliovasilema singer, Konstantinos Argiros, is performing his Elpida Tour this summer. Catch him perform on Saturday, June 24 in Rhodope, Komotini, Thursday, June 29 in Patra and Friday, July 7 in Ioannina.
Nikos Vertis:
Join Nikos Vertis as he kicks off his ’20 years in Live Concerts’ tour this June and July in Greece. The ‘An eisai ena asteri’ singer’s tour will take place from Monday, June 12 in Patra and then continue in other regions of Greece including Ioannina, Athens, Rhodes, Mykonos, Kavala, Alexandroupoli, Crete, Thessaloniki and more. Tickets are from 25 euro each.
See Giannis Ploutarchos take the stage this summer with a special tour like no other as he performs alongside his son Giorgos and his daughter Katerina. With tickets from 20 euro per person, they will be performing on Wednesday, June 7 in Patra, Friday, June 9 in Ioannina, Monday, June 12 in Athens, and Wednesday, July 12 in Alexandroupoli.
Giorgos Mazonakis:
Modern folk-pop and Greek pop singer Giorgos Mazonakis will be taking his Hello tour all over Greece starting in June. You’ll find him in Nikaia, then in Thessaloniki, Xanthi, Alexandroupoli, Ioannina, Larisa, Katerini, Patra, Kos, Rhodes, Crete, Volos and more. Tickets are from 15 euro.
Eleni Foureira:
Eleni Foureira.
Eleni Foureira is going on a Reborn Tour this summer and is taking Greek rapper FY with her, with special guests Trannos, Hawk and MC Daddy on selected shows. You can watch her perform classic hits like El Telephone, Fotia, To Aeraki and Caramela in Nikaia (Athens), Thessaloniki, Patra, Rhodes, Crete, Larisa and Ioannina. Tickets are from 17 euro.
Melisses:
One of Greece’s most successful and popular bands – Melisses (featuring Christos Mastoras, Costas Mavrogennis and Thanos Laitsas), is also going on tour. The ‘Giati’ and ‘Viktoria’ singers will be performing from the end of June until early September in Athens, Thessaloniki, Ancient Olympia, Chania, Halkidiki, Trikala and Ioannina. Tickets are from 20 euro.
Pyx Lax:
The 1990’s Greek rock band Pyx Lax’s Filippos Pliatsikas and Babis Stokas are going on tour this summer and you’re invited. They will kick off their tour in Patra in June, then to follow is Xanthi, Komotini, Alexandroupoli, Larisa, Thessaloniki, Kastoria, Katerini, Kavala, Lefkada, Ioannina, Moudania and Preveza.Tickets are from 13 euro.
Anna Vissi:
Anna Vissi.
If you’re into old school Greek music, Anna Vissi is the singer for you. She will be performing on Monday, July 10 in Thessaloniki and on Wednesday, July 12 in Athens. Tickets are 20 euro.
Dimitris Basis:
Greek singer andmusician Dimitris Basis will be joined by Mimi Plessas to perform on Wednesday, June 21 as part of the City Garden Festival in Galatsi, Attiki. The show will commence at 9 pm, with tickets from 12 euro.
Waterboom Festival 2023:
Waterboom Festival is one of Greece’s largest music festivals for Greek rap and trap. It combines live music, awards and a water fight where you can expect to get soaked.
If you happen to be in Athens in June, the Mad VMA’s are a must. Think of all your favourite singers, of all sorts of genres, in one room, performing their best hits and receiving awards.
The event takes place on Monday, June 19 at the Tae Kwon Do Stadium in Athens. Tickets are from 7 euro each.
From 2024, Australian passport holders will need to apply for a European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) to visit Europe.
ETIAS is a visa waiver which will allows citizens of some countries, including Australian passport holders, to enter Europe and travel freely.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the ETIAS application process will require you to provide your date and place of birth, nationality, home address, parents’ first names, email address and phone number.
It will also ask for your passport details, level of education and current occupation, your travel plans and any criminal convictions, past travels to war or conflict zones and whether you have recently been required to leave any country.
ETIAS are valid for three years and can be applied for via the ETIAS website or mobile application.
The new visa will be introduced as a way to “reduce illegal immigration and beef up security against terrorism.”
Learning to count is not normally done using real herbs, but this is how one researcher from the University of South Australia learned about herbs and spices.
As a youngster, Dr Evangeline Mantzioris would watch and count to 20 as her mother used herbs and spices in her cooking.
“She would tell me the more that were in the dish the better it would be for us,” Dr Mantzioris tells The Greek Herald.
The herbs would come from her father’s garden and the youngster soon learned to recognise parsley, mint, rosemary, dill, oregano and bay leaves.
“And of course, there was the oregano that was bought as bushels,’’ she says.
“I would remember sitting down with Mum and rubbing the bushels to get all the oregano leaves off.”
Her father also developed his own spice mix that he adds to meat – a secret he won’t divulge to this day.
Benefits of a Mediterranean diet:
This exposure to herbs and spices from an early age has led her to becoming involved in a study researching their benefits when used in the Mediterranean diet and their link to improving fertility in couples wanting to have children.
While it has been found that the Mediterranean diet has benefits to cardio-vascular health, studies on the inclusion of herbs and spices are few.
“In Australia we know very little about the types of herbs and spices consumed and used in cooking,” Dr Mantzioris says.
“We have national dietary surveys in Australia that capture what foods and drinks we consume and how much of them we eat, but the surveys don’t capture how much herbs and spices we eat.
“This research is important because finding out more information about the use of herbs and spices in Australia will help nutritionists and other health professionals to provide more accurate information and advice about their use.
“The purpose of this research is to collect information on the herbs and spices consumed and used in cooking and food preparation in Australian households and to understand more about the reasons why these herbs and spices are chosen.”
Dr Evangeline Mantzioris
The study is being conducted by Monash University, the University of the Sunshine Coast and the University of South Australia.
Researchers have found there is an association between anti-inflammatory diets – such as the Mediterranean diet – and fertility, which they say will help couples hoping to start a family.
“Research shows inflammation can affect fertility for both men and women, affecting sperm quality, menstrual cycles, and implantation,” Dr Mantzioris says.
“So, in this study we wanted to see how a diet that reduces inflammation – such as the Mediterranean diet – might improve fertility outcomes and other health outcomes such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and arthritis.
“Modifying preconception nutrition is a non-invasive and potentially effective means for improving fertility outcomes.’’
The researchers found that an anti-inflammatory diet with omega-3 polyunsaturated or ‘healthy’ fats, flavonoids (such as leafy green vegetables), and a limited amount of red and processed meat – can improve fertility.
The study also investigated whether Australians adhere to the dietary principles of a Mediterranean Diet through their usual dietary intake.
If you want to partake in the research study, you can enter the online survey at: https://bit.ly/45EYs4w. This project has been approved by the University of South Australia’s Human Research Ethics Committee (Ethics Protocol: 205159).
South Australian 2022 Scientist of the Year, Professor Maria Makrides, has been appointed the next executive director of the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI).
According to The Advertiser, Professor Makrides will take over from the institute’s inaugural executive director Professor Steve Wesselingh later this year.
She has been the leader of the SAHMRI Women and Kids Theme for the past decade and the institute’s deputy director since 2018.
“I am deeply honoured by this appointment and feel a great sense of responsibility to steer South Australia’s sole independent health and medical research institute as we continue to innovate in pursuit of ways to improve health and wellbeing for everyone,” the Professor said.
Professor Maria Makrides.
Professor Makrides’ research includes breakthrough work showing omega-3 supplements can help prevent preterm birth in women with low levels of the fatty acids.
As a clinical nutritionist, she has earned distinctions including her election as a Fellow of both the Australian Academy of Science and the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Science.
Aristidis Tsoulakos was recently appointed as the Chairperson of the Monash Youth Committee (MYC).
In an interview with The Greek Herald, Aristidis said his aim as Chairperson is to prioritise and emphasise culturally varied and multi-faith actions, wholeheartedly embracing the diverse composition of the Monash region.
“It’s great to see such a diverse group of passionate people all determined to make a positive difference in the Monash community,” Aristidis said.
“I look forward to supporting the groups and intend to work towards establishing more multicultural and faith initiatives for the young people and the greater community of Monash so that they feel connected.”
Committees. Photo: monash.vic.gov.au
Aristidis will serve as Chairman of the MYC until April next year.
His team consists of 15 members aged between 15 and 25, and its aim is to establish links between the younger generation and the Monash Council, providing the youth with a platform to express themselves and contribute to the community.
Aristidis said the Committee is working on a number of initiatives including “a series of educational videos on the topics of financial literacy and gambling.”
Peter Andre was born to Greek-Cypriot parents in northwest London, the United Kingdom, before moving to Australia with his family when he was six years old.
The second youngest of five boys and one girl, Andre recalls they were the “only ethnic family” in the Gold Coast, where he grew up. His parents were devout Jehovah’s Witnesses and Andre spent much of his childhood either at church during the weekdays, or doorknocking on weekends.
Andre recalls being badly bullied and “beaten up” throughout his childhood, and found church was a “sanctuary” to escape.
“One of the things that kept me going as a Witness was that I knew the people I loved in the music industry were Witnesses,” Andre told The Australian.
“Michael Jackson’s family were all Witnesses. Even Prince became a very devout Witness towards the end. And I still feel quite protective about it.”
Peter Andre with his parents.
At 16 years old, Andre took part in Australia’s New Faces talent contest where he received his first record deal. From there, he fell into a whirlwind of nightclubs, photoshoots and groupies, though he said he’s never touched drugs as it “would have broken [his] parents’ hearts.”
These years led Andre to have a nervous breakdown at 25 years old, which saw him spend six years in and out of psychiatric units and therapy.
He’s had two marriages, one to ex-wife Katie Price which produced two children, and now Emily. They also share two children.
“She has made me be like I was when I was really young. I sort of went into this crazy life from my late teens to 40 and then all of a sudden she has brought out the simple part of me again,” Andre told The Australian.
Nowadays, Andre reflects strongly on his childhood and said it was “amazing” because “it actually instilled in us a lot of purity and a lot of good messages, and I am so grateful for what [my parents] taught me.”
Christina Koutra Dendrinou was born in Sydney, Australia and grew up in Greece until she had to return to Australia at 21-years-old due to a health condition.
Devastated to leave Greece and worried about her health, she visited Agios Dimitrios church in Longos, near Aigio, and prayed to the saint to keep her safe.
“I had to learn to live away from the country I grew up in and always loved. So I prayed to the Saint to help me with my health, but also to have him close to me, to be able to have a good life,” Dendrinou told Protothema.
Dendrinou overcame her health complications and, in 1997, was married in Melbourne, Victoria. She had two children with her husband but was always homesick.
Dendrinou’s wedding dress at St Dimitrios church.
This year, 26 years after her wedding, she returned to Greece alone and decided to bring her wedding dress with her and leave it in front of Agios Dimitrios’ icon at the same church she prayed at when she was 21 years old.
She wanted to dedicate her dress to the saint who helped her so many years ago.
Dendrinou’s wish is for any girl who is not able to buy her own wedding dress to request to wear her vintage dress.
Sydneysider Petah Mallios started clothing brand Plato The Label during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2021, with just a large bundle of cotton yarn and a small crochet hook.
An important catalyst for Mallios in starting the business was sustainability and ethical sourcing of clothing materials.
She is also largely influenced by her Greek culture, as well as “the sharp angles and asymmetry of ancient Grecian fashion and architecture.”
Plato The Label. Image via platothelabel.com.
Plato The Label handcrafts high quality crochet garments using ethically sourced cotton and wool.
“Being raised in the 2000s, I have grown up in a hyper-consumable society in which 84 percent of clothing ends up in landfills,” Mallios told Fashion Journal.
“By keeping sustainability at the core of my business, I hoped to create a local platform for like-minded individuals to support.”
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were married in 1988 and, this year, are celebrating their 35 year wedding anniversary.
How has their marriage stood the test of time in Hollywood? We find out.
Hanks converted to Rita’s faith, the Greek Orthodox Church, and had two sons Truman Theodore Hanks and Chester Hanks.
Since the beginning, the couple have been singing each other’s praises.
In 1989, Hanks won a Golden Globe for Best Actor and in his acceptance speech said: “I married a Greek babe. She was born right here in California, right here in Hollywood, but her folks are great, she’s marvellous, Rita Wilson — thank you, babe, for marrying me.”
Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson and My Big Fat Greek Wedding lead actor, Nia Vardalos (left), celebrating Greek Orthodox Easter.
The couple bought a home in Greece in 2004, on the island of Antiparos. In 2018, they bought a second home on the island of Patmos.
Nowadays, the pair are currently producing the highly anticipated film My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 to be released in September this year. They also produced the hit films My Big Fat Greek Wedding and My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2.
