Greek Orthodox Easter celebrations begin many days before the Easter weekend with Carnival season and other traditions. One really sweet custom is that of Kyra Sarakosti, or Lady Lent, which marks the beginning of Great Lent, 40 days of fasting prior to Easter. It counts the weeks from Clean Monday…
Whilst out in Cyprus this year I was invited to the Charilaou Brothers warehouse in Nicosia to see the Olivolio Botanics Cosmetics range. The haircare and skincare products are made up of mostly natural ingredients including olive oil, argan oil, and all that good stuff.
As many of you may know, I have had a life-long love affair with the olive. It features heavily in my diet and often makes an appearance in my beauty regime. So when I came across Greek skincare company Olivolio, I was very excited to be given the opportunity to sample…
The Greek culture is steeped in rich historical traditions and events. The Orthodox faith has strict regulations and rules detailing how traditions should be celebrated, although now of course many historical rules have been bent (and some completely broken) to accommodate the needs and wants of modern society.
Last year I was at the Wimbledon Village Fair when my nose sniffed out a stall serving Greek dips and savoury pastries. Naturally I had to investigate and found that the stall was run by two lovely ladies who had set up their own business Vasso’s Kouzina (previously Yiayia’s Kouzina)…
Whether we like it or not, we live in a digital age where gadgets, gizmos and social media are at the forefront of our professional and personal lives. Apps are now seen as the fastest, most productive way of selling a service or product. Despite all the negativity surrounding how much…
This weekend is Greek Easter. The Greek Orthodox Easter dates tend to differ from Western Easters and are based on the Julian calendar rather than the Gregorian calendar. Greek Easter is always after the Jewish holiday of Passover and must be on the first Sunday after the first full moon…
A few weeks before my father met my mother, his aunt read the future in his coffee cup. She told him that she saw the shape of an aeroplane and a heart, which she inferred meant that he would meet a foreigner and fall in love. My father had scoffed at…
As you all know, the Greek olive (sometimes Spanish if supplies are low!) makes up a huge part of my life, featuring heavily in both my dietary and beauty regime. So I was very excited to be given the opportunity to test/taste and review a number of delicious delicacies straight from an olive farm…
For Greek people (men in particular), one of the main forms of entertainment (aside from eating, staring, gossiping and…eating some more…) is the game TAVLI. ‘Tavli’ means ‘board’ and is basically the Greek version of backgammon…with a lot more shouting. The game is generally played for fun, but sometimes also…
With the cold nights drawing in, it is important to keep those nasty bugs at bay, and what better way to do so than with a herbal tea made by Yiayia.
