The New South Wales government has unveiled new freedoms for residents who are fully vaccinated from COVID-19 to begin from next Monday.
From the 13th of September:
Those who live outside the LGAs of concern, up to 5 fully vaccinated adults can engage in outdoor recreation in a person’s LGA or within 5km of home. Children under 12 will not be counted in this total.
Those who live in the LGAs of concern, a household with all adults vaccinated will be able to engage in outdoor recreation (including picnics) for up to 2 hours within the existing rules (outside of curfew hours and within 5km of home). This is in addition to the ability to engage in outdoor exercise.
People who live alone can gather with one other adult to participate in outdoor recreation within the same existing rules.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian also announced that the state’s daily 11:00 am COVID-19 press conferences will cease from Monday.
Instead, NSW Health staff will deliver video updates and politicians will “intermittently hold press conferences as required”.
It comes as NSW records 1,542 new cases – the highest daily tally for an Australian jurisdiction – and 9 deaths in the 24 hours to 8:00 pm yesterday.
Thousands flocked to watch the four-day World Rally motorsport championships kick off in Athens’ Syntagma Square on Thursday.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis launched the race at the foot of the Acropolis.
“We’re absolutely thrilled that the Acropolis Rally is back in Greece,” he said.
(Photo: Stathis Kokkorogiannis)
The World Rally Championship last occurred eight years ago.
“There’s a very big percentage of the population that is fascinated by motorsport. I don’t think we could have offered them a better gift than the return of the Acropolis.”
Director of the Australian Archaeological Institute at Athens (AAIA), Dr Stavros Paspalas, has always been passionate about classical archaeology, as well as the Greek world’s links with Lydia and the Achaemenid Empire.
This passion, he tells The Greek Herald, is attributable to his first ever field excavation trip to Torone in Halkidiki, Northern Greece. This excavation was directed by the founder of the AAIA, Professor Alexander Cambitoglou AO, who passed away at the age of 97 in 2019.
“I did my undergraduate arts degree at Sydney University and I enrolled in archaeology and then in my third year as a student, Professor Cambitoglou invited me to participate in the excavations he directed at a site in Greece in Halkidiki called Torone. So that was my first link with the Institute and its activities,” Dr Paspalas says.
“It was fantastic. It confirmed me in my belief that I wanted to be an archaeologist. I found it very fulfilling. I was working with people who were totally dedicated to their passion.”
Dr Paspalas went on to complete his Bachelors (Hons) and Masters (Hons) degrees at the University of Sydney and his doctorate from the University of Oxford. He even became involved with other field projects including the Zagora Archaeological Project, which he co-directs with Professor Margaret Miller and Associate Professor Lesley Beaumont from the University of Sydney.
Stavros Paspalas helping Professor Cambitoglou (who led the Australian excavations at Zagora in the 1960s and 70s) at Zagora in May 2012. Photo by Wayne Mullen. Source: AAIA.
During this time, Dr Paspalas’ ties with the AAIA also strengthened as he was appointed Deputy Director of the Institute in 1996, Acting Director in March 2016 and Director in 2020, after Professor Cambitoglou’s death.
The contribution of Professor Cambitoglou to the AAIA:
The AAIA is a research and education facility at the University of Sydney (USYD) focused on Greek and Mediterranean studies, with an emphasis on archaeological fieldwork. The Institute was founded in 1980 by Professor Cambitoglou.
Born in Thessaloniki in 1922, Professor Cambitoglou was the first person of Greek background to be appointed to a university professorship in Australia, as Professor of Classical Archaeology in 1963. He taught at USYD from 1961 to 1989 and was curator of the Nicholson Museum for 37 years from 1963 until 2000.
With these archaeological credentials and strong connection to Greece, it’s no surprise then that the Professor wanted to establish the AAIA.
Professor Alexander Cambitoglou AO was passionate about Greek archaeology. Here he is excavating in Zagora, Andros, 1971. Photo supplied.
“He established the first Australian archaeological expedition to Greece… but he knew that for Australia to have a real presence in the archaeological scene in Greece, it had to be set on a firmer footing and that did require an Institute,” Dr Paspalas explains.
“So in 1980 all his work came to fruition. He established the Institute and it was recognised by the Greek Ministry of Culture. He had a lot of help, of course, here in Australia, at the University of Sydney, at other universities, amongst the Greek community.
“But there’s no doubt he was the person who conceived it and saw it through to completion. I mean he wasn’t one of these people who was an ‘ivory tower’ academic… he very much valued rigorous and strenuous academic research, but he also knew that this had to have relevance to the wider world.”
This belief saw the AAIA become a major force in the growth of Australian participation in Greek archaeology and nowadays, it provides hundreds of research opportunities, scholarships and fellowships. It also offers practical assistance to Australian students and scholars to further their research and share it both nationally and internationally.
Professor Cambitoglou established the AAIA. Photo supplied.
‘We’re looking at expanding our footprint’:
This important work was boosted even further recently after the AAIA was bequeathed $6 million by the late Professor Cambitoglou. This extensive funding will ensure the Institute is able to continue producing up-to-date information and research about Greek archaeology for the Australian public.
“This bequest will allow the Institute to further increase its activities. It will allow it to make sure it is at the forefront of Australian – Greek relations, particularly on the academic field and… the dissemination of up-to-date information to the wider, interested public,” Dr Paspalas says.
“So its activities will undoubtedly benefit from this donation. It definitely sets it on a firmer economic footing.”
From there, Dr Paspalas says, the AAIA will also be able to focus on expanding its future reach to a broader audience.
Office of the AAIA. Photo: USYD.
“We are looking at extending our footprint, if I can say it that way, in Australia and making ourselves known to a far wider audience,” Dr Paspalas says.
“We also, in collaboration with archaeologists around the country, are alive and willing to look into the possibilities of establishing… new archaeological fieldwork projects in Greece for a number of reasons. They generate new information, that’s always good, but also very importantly, they allow in-situ education for Australian students which is paramount.
“So we will continue advancing on the educational front, the public engagement front, the research front and the publication front.”
From what Dr Paspalas says, it’s clear there’s a very bright future ahead for the AAIA.
Greek Australian Athina Pitta, daughter of Melbourne-born Yiannis Pittas, began playing tennis at a very young age and immediately fell in love with the sport.
Her talent, evident by the number of titles she won against kids of her age, led her to look at the sport from a more professional angle and join academies with qualified instructors who could help put her on the path to success.
At the age of 14, young Athina moved to Spain where she joined the Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy, completing a two-year training program with flying colours. She spoke to The Greek Herald about her experiences from Mallorca, her love for the sport, but also her years playing tennis in Melbourne.
TGH: When did you start playing tennis? What made you choose that sport?
My parents wanted both my brother and me to be involved with athletics from very early on. I tried many sports, but tennis was the one that ‘stuck’. It’s a great sport that pulled me in from the get-go. I was good at it, so I continued playing and a few years ago we decided that we wanted to look at it a little more seriously. I started playing when I was four (years-old) at the ‘Ifitos Stavroupolis’ academy in Thessaloniki.
Athina with Rafa Nadal (left) in Mallorca. Source: Supplied
TGH: You’ve already been able to distinguish yourself among your peers, which gave you the opportunity to train at the Rafa Nadal Academy
Yes, I spent two wonderful years at Nadal’s Academy in Mallorca. My former coach, Babis Anesiadis, was the one that helped me get in. He took me to the Rafa Nadal Tennis Center in Chalkidiki and the instructors there recommended that I send my CV to the Academy, which was eventually accepted.
TGH: And now that you’ve returned to Greece, you continue your training at the Phivos Michalopoulos academy in Larissa
I’d like to take the next step in my career and raise my level. Furthermore, unfortunately in Greece it’s very difficult for athletes to find sponsors who are willing to help, despite my family’s many efforts. In my case, I was lucky since Mr. Michalopoulos and his team really know how to prepare an athlete for the professional world of tennis. Which is why I chose that specific academy and I am very happy with my decision.
TGH:Who would you call role models for a 16-year-old athlete who is just starting their career in the world of tennis?
Stefanos (Tsitsipas) and Maria (Sakkari) are two very important role models for me. They’ve proven that if you try hard enough and work day and night, you can make your way into the worldwide rankings. Beyond that, I’d have to say that (Rafael) Nadal is also someone I can look up to. He gives everything he’s got even during training!
Young Athina has high aspirations for her career in tennis. Source: Supplied
TGH: Would you describe this as a ‘golden age’ for Greece in tennis?
For sure! The accomplishments of both Stefanos and Maria have put us on the map of tennis worldwide and the great thing about this is that there are many athletes coming up behind them. Nowadays there are more kids who want to play tennis (in Greece) compared to even a few years ago. Additionally, the facilities are slowly becoming better and are beginning to reach the standards that can be found abroad. The one thing missing from Greece, to complete the package of this ‘golden era’ as you described it, is a professional tournament. There are efforts being made in this regard, like the Futures series held by the Lyttos Beach in Crete, yet in my opinion we require one or two grand competitions so that we can become a key player of the world tennis scene.
TGH: Besides Greece, you have some family in Australia as well.
Yes. My grandfather, Nikos Pittas who was originally from Sindos in Thessaloniki and my grandmother, Athena Telli who was from Kos island, lived in Australia for many years. That’s where my father Yiannis was born and I still have a lot of family there.
In fact, I was there back in 2017 and I trained at the Kooyong Academy with Glen Busby as my coach, where I participated in a couple of tournaments, winning the first and finishing in the runner-up position in the other. I really enjoy the atmosphere of Australia and there are people there who have helped me a lot!
Athina says her main goal right now is to climb the ranks of the junior divisions and eventually have the opportunity to play in a Grand Slam. But, looking further ahead into the future, she wants to have a spot within the professional tours and make a living out of doing what she loves best.
The Australia Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has issued a correction on an article they published on April 16 this year regarding His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia.
On 16 April 2021, the ABC published an article about the conduct of the Greek Orthodox Church in Australian in connection with its aged care facilities.
The ABC wishes to clarify that this story was not intended to suggest that Archbishop Makarios of Australia had personally funnelled money from St Basils to the Greek Orthodox Church, or that he had personally spent money intended for aged care on his own lifestyle.
Further, the story was not intended to suggest that Archbishop Makarios had through any action on his part negligently caused the deaths of the 45 residents at the St Basils aged care home in Melbourne. Any such interpretation of the article is incorrect.
To the extent any readers understood the story in this way, the ABC apologises to Archbishop Makarios for any hurt or offence experienced. This was never the ABC’s intention.
Composer Mikis Theodorakis was buried in Chania, Crete on Thursday.
Theodorakis’ family was joined by political leaders and thousands of fans.
They awaited overnight for his body to be ferried to the island, where the municipal band led the way as his hearse drove to Chania cathedral.
Onlookers sang songs holding flowers and olive branches as Theodorakis’ casket was carried from a chapel to the cemetery near Chania.
Chania, Crete island, Greece, Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021. (AP)
Greek musician Dimitris Basis sang the 1960 composition ‘Μάνα μου και Παναγιά’ (‘My Mother and Holy Mary’) before his casket was lowered.
Greece’s prime minister and opposition party leaders also traveled to Theodorakis’ ancestral home in Galatas to attend the main funeral service.
“We bid farewell to a great ecumenical Greek who served the values of freedom, justice, and unity of his countrymen,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.
“It is a fitting farewell to quietly sing his songs today, to honor the memory of this great and unique composer.”
Chania, Crete island, Greece, Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021. (AP)
Theodorakis died last Thursday aged 96 in Athens. His body lay in state in a chapel of the Athens Cathedral for three days.
He was integral to the Greek political and musical scene for decades, known internationally for his political activism and prolific music career, which included the score for the 1964 film ‘Zorba the Greek’.
Sydney Olympic Football Club has today announced that another five players have re-committed to be back in Blue for the 2022 season.
Thomas Whiteside, Fabio Ferreira, Marley Peterson, Chan Deng and Simun Milicevic will all call Belmore home in 2022.
They join defenders, Michael Glassock and Ben van Meurs, midfielders, William Angel, Brendan Cholakian, Darcy Burgess and Daniel Dias, goalkeepers, Nicholas Sorras and Christopher Parsons, and attacking players, Adam Parkhouse and Oliver Puflett.
The daughter of prominent Australian painter Carl Plate, Cassi Plate, will host an online lecture next week.
The event is entitled after her new biography on the friendship between ‘sacred monster’ Costas Taktsis and her father Carl.
The book, ‘Monster & Colossus: Letters between Greek writer Costas Taktsis & Australian artist Carl Plate & their families in cosmopolitan post-war Sydney’, was released in July.
Read more about their lives, who Dr. Plate is, and how to attend the event below:
Dr. Cassi Plate will present an online lecture entitled Monster & Colossus: Letters between Greek writer Costas Taktsis & Australian artist Carl Plate & their families in cosmopolitan post-war Sydney, on Thursday 16 September at 7.00 pm, as a part of the Greek History and Culture Seminars, offered by the Greek Community of Melbourne.
Costas Taktsis (Κώστας Ταχτσής), arguably the most important post-war Greek writer, referred to himself as a Sacred Monster. He called his life-long friend, Sydney artist Carl Plate, a committed internationalist and key figure in the post-war Australian modern art movement, the Colossus of Woronora. After Taktsis was banished from Australia, the friendship of these inveterate travellers – the writer and the artist – was kept alive through decades of correspondence.
Dr. Cassi Plate will talk about the poet and writer’s experience of Australia during the post-war wave of immigration. For Taktsis, Australia was a place of innocence, a new stage on which to reinvent himself, and the form of the Greek novel. On the contrary, Carl Plate (1909-1977) saw Australia as a prison from which he sought to escape, but a prison that enabled him to keep painting. Claimed as the first modern Greek novel, The Third Wedding, written largely in Australia, was dedicated to Carl and Jocelyn Plate.
Dr. Cassi Plate is a curator, writer, and former ABC broadcaster (Triple J, Radio National). She has taught and researched at UTS, the University of Newcastle, and the University of Western Sydney. Her previous book ‘Restless Spirits’ was the pilot for a ‘Thesis to Book’ initiative of the University of Sydney and publisher PanMacmillan. Her latest book Monster & Colossus was published by Australian Scholarly Publishing in 2020.
You don’t need an account to watch the live broadcast with any of the above services. However, if you want to participate in the Q&A at the end of the seminar you’ll need an account with the equivalent service in order to post your question in the comments/chat.
Darwin has a very special place in Georgia Politis’ heart. The 27-year-old photographer was born and raised in the capital city of the Northern Territory, she is heavily involved with the Greek Orthodox Community of Northern Australia (GOCNA), and it’s where her passion for photography began from a very young age.
“I became addicted… to making progress [through photos] and realising how important it was, especially to my community because we didn’t really have someone to be at the events often and capture people when I was younger,” Georgia, who also works at Charles Darwin University, tells The Greek Herald.
Georgia Politis. Photo supplied.
“That was my dream – to be one of those people for them and give them a voice through photography.”
From this passion grew the Darwin DiverCity Series where Georgia will photograph people from multicultural communities across Darwin, including the Greek, Indigenous, Indian and Zimbabwean communities. Her three-part series will also feature multicultural first responders and other frontline workers.
Fotini Gerakios.
Aviana McElwee.
“Darwin’s really different. We’re not segregated up here, we’re quite mixed in… and I’m trying to remind people about that because obviously, as the years go by, people might go to their groups and start forgetting how diverse Darwin is,” Georgia explains.
“Certain cultures might have amazing backstories of where their clothes came from or their traditions and it’s just about reminding them about that.”
Panayiotis Kyriacou OAM.
Kim Mowaey.
For Georgia, the one person who has been her favourite to photograph so far is her own grandmother, Sevasti Famelos. Georgia says Sevasti and her late grandfather, George Famelos, inspired the Darwin DiverCity Series.
“They’ve gone through so much in life and they’ve taught us so much. My grandfather, who I’m named after, gave me my first job when I was young and taught me the very first basics of business, which is why I’ve got a business today,” she says.
“My family [also] lost a lot of their photos in Cyclone Tracy so my grandmother tells me the stories through her words and as a kid, I could always try and imagine what it was like… but she didn’t have anything to show because they lost them. So, you know, they learnt to appreciate the value of photographs.”
Graham McMahon.
Georgia’s yiayia, Sevasti Famelos.
It’s for this reason, Georgia hopes the Darwin DiverCity Series will bring some joy to other cultures who want to share their stories as well.
“The purpose of the project is pretty much, in simple words, to never forget where you came from and how you got here and to appreciate it,” Georgia concludes.
“The elderly are not always going to be there and I think it’s time we start saying thanks to them.”
Anastasia Kastellorizios.
Mihalis and Nektarios Kazouris.
Nikitas Kardoulias: Surviving Darwin’s Cyclone Tracy and life in Central Africa:
Nikitas Kardoulias, and his wife, Helen, also featured in Georgia Politis’ Darwin DiverCity Series and the minute I saw their photographs, I instantly knew I needed to share their story.
Nikitas was born in 1951 on the Greek island of Kalymnos. He lived on the island with his mother as his father had migrated to Darwin in the Northern Territory and was working as a painter to support the family. But in 1965, at the tender age of 14, Nikitas joined his father in Darwin, quickly learnt English at night school and then began to work with him as well.
“Life was difficult when he came. He was a small kid. Australia wasn’t like it is now where it has all these amenities. At first, he would live in the homes of strangers with his dad, he would wash his own clothes… Darwin was like a village. It’s not like how it is now after 40 years,” Helen Kardoulias tells The Greek Herald.
‘We will rebuild’:
It was during this time that Nikitas and his family also lived through Cyclone Tracy, which was a tropical cyclone that hit and devastated Darwin from December 24 – 26, 1974. Nikitas tells The Greek Herald it was one Christmas he will never forget.
Nikitas Kardoulias.
“We didn’t expect the cyclone to be so big but as the days passed, things were getting worse. I was with my mum and dad at the time in our house… which was very close to the ocean, maybe 100 metres, and the wind was very strong,” Nikitas says.
“At around 1am to 1.30am, our roof had completely blown away. I took my mother and father and we left to find a safer place to stay because it was dangerous. When I was driving, marinas were flying, wood was flying, rocks were flying, everything. We couldn’t even see.”
Eventually, Nikitas and his family reached a police station, where other people had also gathered, and stayed there until the morning after the cyclone had passed over Darwin.
“When I returned home, there was only the floor left and one standing wall. It was difficult [to see] but I had my parents with me and I didn’t want to show them I was scared. I told them, ‘Don’t be upset, we will rebuild it’.”
The family moved to Sydney for a while and stayed with some cousins before they returned to Darwin and started rebuilding their home.
Years later, Nikitas visited Kalymnos and married Helen. The couple returned to Australia after they married and had a daughter but eventually went back to Kalymnos and lived there for about ten years. Nikitas was ‘boomeranging’ between Greece and Australia at the time, as he was working to support the family.
The Kardoulias family.
Helen and Nikitas Kardoulias.
“He was leaving and returning for the best of the children so maybe they would stay in their homeland. Australia is great, but every father wants their children to grow up in their homeland, to learn the language, culture and traditions.”
Living in the Congo during the dictatorship:
In the end, the Kardoulias family couldn’t stay in Kalymnos long term, but they still had an exciting stint overseas. In fact, Nikitas and Helen, along with their daughter and son, also lived in the Congo in Central Africa for a short time.
Helen says they opened a supermarket there for a few years, but life was difficult as they had to live under the Mobutu dictatorship.
“At some stage, people revolted against the government and they started to damage shops, they lit fires… we were impacted,” Helen explains.
Helen and Nikitas with a photo of their wedding day.
“All the women and children had to leave so my brother, to save us, sent us away and we left the Congo at night-time, and we went to South Africa where it was quieter… Nikitas, my brother and my uncle stayed behind to see whether they could salvage any of our belongings.
“I was eight months pregnant at the time… It was difficult because we left and we didn’t know what would happen to the men.”
The women ended up staying in South Africa for a month before they, along with the men, returned to Kalymnos. After giving birth to another son and indulging in the Greek village life for a little bit longer, the family made their final journey back to Australia in 1993.
Helen says it was the right time to return and now they’re retired and happily reflecting on their incredible life.
“We’ve been together for 43 years now. We’re happy and fruitful. Two of our children are married, we have six grandchildren… so we are looking after our grandchildren now,” Helen concludes with a smile.
Michael Constantine, the Emmy-winning actor from the 1970s sitcom Room 222 who later portrayed the Windex-spritzing father of Nia Vardalos’ character in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, has died. He was 94.
Constantine died on August 31 in his home in his native Reading, Pennsylvania, his family announced. He had been ill for some time, they said.
The son of Greek immigrants, Constantine is warmly remembered for his turn as Gus Portokalos, the husband of Lainie Kazan’s Maria Portokalos, in the unlikely box-office smash My Big Fat Greek Wedding and its 2016 sequel.
Michael Constantine, the dad to our cast-family, a gift to the written word, and always a friend. Acting with him came with a rush of love and fun. I will treasure this man who brought Gus to life. He gave us so much laughter and deserves a rest now. We love you Michael. 🇬🇷 pic.twitter.com/PV0sIBtaUX
The first installment, made for $5 million and released in 2002, grossed nearly $370 million worldwide.
On Wednesday, Vardalos paid tribute to the man who played her boisterous Greek father on Twitter, writing:
“Michael Constantine, the dad to our cast-family, a gift to the written word, and always a friend. Acting with him came with a rush of love and fun. I will treasure this man who brought Gus to life. He gave us so much laughter and deserves a rest now. We love you Michael.”
