What about going to a Hammam in Athens? You will combine elements from classical antiquity, the Ottoman past and a modern city. Since it was under Ottoman occupation between 1458 and 1833, it also had public baths called hammams. When you come to Athens today, you can visit the Bath of the Winds or experience spa services at one of the modern hammams of the city.
March 25th: A Greek National Celebration and Independence Day. Greece has lived through major historical events and the country was involved in many wars: Persian wars, the wars of Alexander the Great, etc. In modern Greek history, from 1821 till of today, two major wars Greece was involved in, were the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire and the 2nd World War. Every year, Greeks remember these historical events with the celebration of two national anniversaries on October 28th and March 25th.
Listen to the Greek text, improve your listening skills, while learning more about Saffron.
Saffron is a delicious spice coming from the Krokos (crocus) flower, is growing in Greece and known since ancient times! Saffron is being used in many different ways: for its flavor in the kitchen, for its color in cosmetics and paint, for its healing properties in the pharmaceutical sector. Cleopatra saw the value of using saffron in cosmetics, in the Old Testament, it was mentioned because of its essence and Aeschylus described it as a way to dye fabric.
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It may be that nowadays the electric car makes quite the impression and is funded by big industrial firms, but in Greece, it was already constructed for the first time 45 years ago! During the summer months, many Omilo students have the opportunity to admire the first Greek electric car, which was built in Syros island.
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“Énan moussaká, parakaló” This is how Omilo students attending Greek courses in Greece order one of their favorite Greek dishes. When you visit Greece, you will definitely enjoy Greek cuisine and Greek food culture. Moussakas is the symbol of Greek cuisine, a dish you can find in most taverns in any season. Learn its history and try to cook a delicious moussaka, following our recipe.
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Technology changes non-stop, for good or for bad, but we try to focus on the good 🙂
Audio and Podcasts really help to learn Greek, so we also do our share, to keep you happy!
For your info, during the past “corona-year”, we have worked on various audio files and audiobooks, which are available online, and….we will start with Podcasting from next month 🙂 We here give you a small overview of the Omilo-materials, related to AUDIO. The perfect Greek language materials to keep you motivated, while improving your Greek and learning new things about Greece.
Greek Herbs And Spices are natural products, and have been used since Ancient times in Greece. The variety of herbs and spices in the Greek countryside gave the Ancient Greeks the ingredients to flavor their food, as well as the possibility to cure people. This reflected in the famous quote of Hippocrates (c. 460 – c. 370 BC), physician and the father of medicine: “Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food”.
Watching TV can be a relaxing as well as fun way to practise your listening skills and learn new vocabulary. This is why we would like to introduce you to a popular Greek comedy series called Στο Παρά 5 (Sto Para Pente; =at five minutes to… which in Greek also means “in the nick of time”). The series tells the story of five complete strangers who witness the death of a former minister in the elevator of a luxurious hotel and they soon find themselves tangled in a huge mystery, which they are now expected to solve!
Who could imagine in March 2020, that the whole world would go to “lockdown” due to the Corona Covid-19 virus, and when traveling many times a “quarantine” is requested? All this belonged to history, most of us thought… or the younger generation probably never heard of the word “quarantine” before. S0 let’s see how the quarantine was organized on the Greek island of Syros, in the previous century.
Since 2005, during the summer months, Omilo is organizing its Greek Language and Culture courses on the island of Syros. The Omilo students usually fly to Athens or Mykonos, and from there travel by boat to Hermoupolis, the harbor of Syros island, and the capital of all Cycladic islands.
When you are about to arrive and face the harbor, you have a magnificent view over the hills of Hermoupolis and Ano Syros. When you look to the left, on the southern extremity of the port, you also see a stone building, which once was the island’s quarantine, the “Lazaretto”. Nowadays, the building is beautifully lit at night, so it is easy to spot.
In the following video you will see teacher Konstantinos and three other Omilo members picnicking in the background. This video is taken in the Singrou Park of Maroussi (Nord Athens), at 600 meters from the Omilo school and was made for the Omilo Quiz about Greece. Konstantinos asks two questions. He also explains more about the “sarrakosti” traditions.
Listen to the video to practice your Greek listening skills. You can read the Greek text also below the video, as well as the English translation.
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