Laying in bed, thinking about getting up, listening to the rain and re-thinking, well maybe not. I put the radio on and decided to stay put for a while. The radio said; The Greek healthcare system is failing, some hospitals are running out of basic supplies, essential drugs are not always available, the pharmaceutical giant Roche has stopped delivering medications to some hospitals when they failed to settle bills on time. (Think on that if you have shares in Roche). The education system is falling apart, pensions have been slashed to a level where it is virtually impossible to live, unemployment has exceeded 22% which is a record high and still climbing. Unemployment in the 16-26 age group is even worse and has already topped 50%. Labour reforms demanded in the austerity package have reduced the minimum wage, (which was 750 euros per month), by 22%. For people under the age of 25 it was a 32% reduction..
In short………….the people of Greece are living in conditions more associated with developing countries than the cradle of civilization and the cultural home of the western world. The situation is way beyond the usual rhetoric of; it’s their own fault they are lazy’, ‘they should pay their taxes’, and ‘they all expected to retire at 50’ etc etc. Even if that were true, which personally I don’t believe it is, this is a tragedy. I wish there were something I could do apart from look on from a safe distance and feel horrified.
Greece has given us so much,
Where would western literature and philosophy be without the ancient Athenians Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, seekers of truth and wisdom.
What sort of towns and cities would we have without the architecture from Ancient Greece.
One of the forerunners of all interior design must be the wall paintings of The Queen's Megaron, Palace of Knossos, Crete, c. 1,700 - 1,300 B.C. Imagine what sort of people these must have been to create these beautiful interiors that long ago.
I came across a Contemporary Greek painter who seems to delight in bright vibrant, colours that make me think of the Greek Islands. She is a multi talented woman who not only paints but is also, philosopher, translator and lecturer. A woman who would have been at home as an ancient Athenian.
Vassiliki Koskiniotou
http://www.koskiniotou.com/
Vassiliki Koskiniotou was born on 1968 in Athens, Greece, where she lives and works. Works by her can be found in private and public collections in Greece and other countries in Europe, in Cyprus, Australia, the United States of America and Japan.
In 2006 she attained her Degree with Honors in Visual Arts at the Athens School of Fine Arts, Department of Visual Arts and Printing,
2002 was her Postgraduate Seminar in Philosophy of Art at the University of Athens
1990, Diploma with Honours in Translation, Institut Français d’ Athènes
1989, Degree in French Literature, the Athens School of Philosophy, University of Athens
1990 - 1999; Has translated a Dorling Kindersley "Eyewitness Art" series of books for the Greek publishing houses Delithanassis and Erevnites.
She has worked as a freelance bilingual translator (from French and English) and as a cultural editor for the newspapers "H Kathimerini" and "To Vima"
And you don’t need to be Greek to enjoy the essence of Greece.
