Modern Greece

At the Hellenic-American Union, Professor Vlavinos spoke about modern Greece and the Greek acceptance in the European Union as well as the separation between church and state. We discussed Parliament, and I thought it was very interesting that the current president of the parliament is Anna Benaki-Psarouda, the first woman to hold the post. I can parallel this with the upcoming elections in the States, and the country being skeptical about a woman running for office. What we may think of as a more traditional country actually elected a woman to serve as President of Parliament. The Pariliament Buidling is located in Syntagma Square, right up the block from where we stayed. In Syntagma, as well as all around Greece there are many stray dogs which were released when Greece received its independence and stnad for a symbol of Greek freedom.





The Monument of the Unknown Soldier is guarded by the Evzones of the Presidential Guard, lies in front of the Parliament building. The monument started being constructed in 1929 and was inaugurated on March 25, 1932. One evening I took my camera up to the Parliament to get some photos and I lucked out as they were conducting changing of the guards!






My favorite part of staying in Athens was walking around Plaka and Monastiraki Square, taking in the sites, sounds and smells. Even though this area is swamped with tourists, visiting local restaurants and shops gave me a good idea of the local culture. It was interesting to me that restaurant owners would walk right up to you on the street and ask you to come eat at their place, that is so different than from the states!




One thing I found interesting when we went to visit the University is finding out that police are not allowed on school grounds unless sanctioned from the school. Because of this, students found assylum in the university and lived there for nearly a year protesting! Graffiti is found everywhere in Greece but I found it particularly interesting that it was on the walls inside the communications deptartment. Most of the graffiti in Greece is also intelligent and powerful, written with intent, unlike much of the graffiti here in America.