THE GREEK AUSTRALIAN The oldest circulating Greek newspaper outside Greece email: VEMA [email protected] JANUARY 2004 Tel. (02) 9559 7022 Fax: (02) 9559 7033

In this issue... Our Primate’s View THE BENEVOLENCE OF TIME PAGE 5/23 - 6/24 ATHENS OLYMPICS

Historical Publication JUST AROUND for the 2004 Olympic Games THE CORNER PAGE 18/36 In bidding “farewell” to 2003, a critical year for the days during the Games, but also for many more years to come”, Athens Olympic and Paralympic Games, the govern- Kartalis said. ment expressed satisfaction as a series of major infra- The completion of the Olympic Equestrian Centre in structure projects and sport venues were completed. Markopoulo – 37 kilometres southeast of the Olympic Village – allowed for the smooth and much-needed transfer of the coun- “Our efforts and coordinated, systematic work has resulted in try’s only horse-race track from a scruffy track in the coastal a 100 percent completion of our 2003 projections, even exceed- Faliro district. ing 100 percent in some cases where we accelerated our activi- Ten pre-Olympic trial events were hosted from August ties,” said Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos, whose min- through December at their respective sport venues, including istry is responsible for overseeing several 2004-related projects the Olympic Rowing Centre, the Olympic Beach Volley Centre, and initiatives. the Sailing Centre, the Equestrian Centre, the Weightlifting Hall “Everything that we have set in motion towards the Olympic and the Olympic Complex in Goudi. and Paralympic Games is now visible. Athens, ancient Olympia Additionally, 10 Olympic sport centres were completed and the remaining Olympic cities of Thessaloniki, Patra, Irakleio along with a new hi-tech anti-doping control centre, which is and Volos are being transformed and visibly upgraded,” he already in operation. added. The International Broadcasting Centre was handed over to Latest jewel in On his part, Olympic Games general secretary Costas Kartal- ATHOC, while the Main Press Centre is approaching 98 percent is stressed that a significant number of key athletic and road pro- completion. crown of the jects were completed in 2003, including the Olympic Village, Finally, various Olympic Village buildings are 100 percent while major transportation projects, such as the Athens tram net- complete, while work on adjacent sites – medical facilities, Athens Concert Hall work and the suburban railway, advanced significantly. sports installations, a fire station, flood control infrastructure and “Every euro that is invested is well spent not only for the 17 surrounding greenspaces– is also advancing at a rapid pace. PAGE 2/20 Important changes for Greece in 2004

TRAVEL Discovering the magic in the heart of Greece PAGE 16/34 PAGE 4/22 JANUARY 2004 2/20 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA

DID YOU KNOW? The world's average school year is 200 days per year. In the US, it is 180 days; in Sweden 170 days, in Japan it is 243 days.

‘Debates and music’ New Conference Centre latest jewel in crown of the Athens Concert Hall A new state-of-the-art international con- ference centre at the Athens Megaron concert hall in the cultural heart of the Greek capital was inaugurated at a sparkling ceremony on December 1, 2003. European Commission President Romano Prodi was among honoured VIP guests attending the inauguration of this new 700,000 square metre conference centre, which will be fully operational by the end of 2004.

On February 7, 1964, Pan Am Yankee Prodi joined Belgian Prime Minister Guy Clipper flight 101 from London Verhofstadt and Greek Prime Minister Heathrow lands at New York's Kennedy Costas Simitis at the opening of the 1,750- Airport - and "Beatlemania" arrives. It seat, state-of-the-art Megaron conference was the first visit to the United States by centre, one of the largest and most modern in the Beatles, a British rock-and-roll quar- Europe. Once complete, the centre will tet that had just scored its first No. 1 encompass two large and five smaller con- U.S. hit six days before with "I Want to ference auditoria, a banqueting hall, a library Hold Your Hand." At Kennedy, the "Fab and exhibition areas, as well as restaurants, Four" - dressed in mod suits and sport- shops, cafes and underground parking for Athens Concert Hall ing their trademark pudding bowl hair- 750 cars. cuts - were greeted by 3,000 screaming The adjacent original Megaron Moussikis fans who caused a near riot when the Athens Concert Hall, which opened in 1991, boys stepped off their plane and onto is regarded as one of the most comprehen- American soil. sive cultural centres in Europe. Its superb acoustics are acclaimed by both the public and renowned performers of the music and 26 January art world. Now, additional conference facili- ties have been added to the multi-cultural 1950 - Republic of India born complex. “The completed Megaron Moussikis com- On January 26, 1950, the Indian constitution prises a pan-European achievement,” said takes effect, making the Republic of India Christos Lambrakis, president of the Adjacent Conference Centre the most populous democracy in the world. Megaron Moussikis Group, as he welcomed his guests and gave them a tour of the about what has made us Europeans today, Athens will be the first international event of 30 January impressive new facilities. “For its concep- we sense the legacy of Greek culture and such an importance to take place in the tion and realization there was a cooperation Greek civilization all around us. The princi- Europe of 25. And I am sure that it will be a 1948 - Gandhi assassinated between researchers, scientists and artists ples of public participation, the underlying success and make all us Europeans feel from many European countries, while its belief that the role of government is to fol- proud.” Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the political completion is owed to the priceless support low the will of the people, are not theories to “The inauguration of this international and spiritual leader of the Indian independence and co-financing from the European Union, be confined to textbooks. They should be the conference centre today, next to one of the movement, is assassinated in New Delhi by a and the fruitful combination of state and pri- watchwords for all of us in public life,” he most impressive concert halls in Europe, Hindu fanatic. vate initiative,” Lambrakis noted. said. demonstrates what Greece has achieved For his part, premier Costas Simitis said “But modern Greece, the Greece of today, over the last few years as part of the Union 2 February that the Athens Megaron centre “shows that is playing an equally important role in the and the euro. With the help of Community we can face the challenges of the new era”. history of European construction. In Europe, funding, Greece is changing and moving 1943 - Battle of Stalingrad ends we see today a Greece that is at the core of forward. This event today confirms that Prodi’s praise new developments. A Greece that is not Greece is looking into its European future On this day, the last German troops in afraid to step forward and fight for its with optimism and ambition,” Prodi con- the Soviet city of Stalingrad surrender to Prodi praised the majestic new Megaron European ideas.” cluded. the Red Army, ending one of the pivotal International Conference Centre, during an “The Greek Presidency demonstrated the For his part, Verhofstadt underscored: battles of World War II. event entitled The future of Europe and held capacity of a small country to steer the “The splendid Megaron Moussikis building in the grand Alexandra Trianti auditorium of Union through a crisis at a crucial moment is now complemented, so as to form some 13 February the new conference centre. of European integration. A moment during sort of ‘new Parthenon’: a perfect combina- “One can never come to Greece without which we were preparing both the enlarge- tion of theatre and agora, of debates and 1945 - Dresden devastated being aware of its significance as the cradle ment and our future Constitution .” music. A combination typical of Greece, of democracy,” Prodi said. “When we think “The forthcoming Olympic Games in typical of Athens”. On the evening of February 13, 1945, the most controversial episode in the Allied air war against Germany begins as hundreds of British bombers loaded with incendiaries and high- Your say... explosive bombs descend on Dresden, a his- toric city located in eastern Germany. Dresden We want to hear your views. Write to: was neither a war production city nor a major Your comments, industrial center, and before the massive air The Greek Australian Vema, raid of February 1945 it had not suffered PO Box M59, a major Allied attack. By February 15, the Marrickville South NSW 2204, city was a smoldering ruin and an or fax: (02) 9559 7033, unknown number of civilians - somewhere or e-mail: [email protected] between 35,000 and 135,000 - were dead. Letters may be edited for space or legal reasons. Letters must be signed and include a daytime telephone number for verification. Requests to withhold names can be hon- oured. Any views expressed in this col- umn are those of the author and not the Vema. JANUARY 2004 The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 3/21

DID YOU KNOW? Bolivia holds the highest turnover of gov- ernments. Since their independence from Spain in 1825, Bolivia has had almost 200 governments. Since 1945, Italy saw 57 Editorial governments and 22 Prime Ministers. When Mars eclipsed Sars 2004 – indeed an historic year. A year in which Australia, Greece and the United States Many readers would recall the story recounted by the great Father Paisios of blessed will each experience federal elections. A year in which the Orthodox and Roman memory. He was once visited by students loaded with books, saying “we have come, Catholic Churches will celebrate Easter on the same date. And of course, it is the year of Father, to discuss the Old Testament. Doesn’t God allow us to pursue knowledge?” To the Olympic Games. this the elder responded, “What kind of knowledge do you mean? The kind that is The period we have just entered also marks some astounding anniversaries for people acquired through rational thought alone?” When they responded in the affirmative, possessing a very long historical consciousness. We have the 950th anniversary of the Father Paisios said “That kind of knowledge can take you to the moon, but it cannot ele- parting of eastern and western Christendom since that fateful year of 1054. In shorthand, vate you to God. Brain power that takes man to the moon is good, although with a for- it is known as the Schism. Then we have the 800th anniversary of the sacking of tune paid in fuel and so forth, but better still are the spiritual powers that elevate us to Constantinople by the 4th Crusade in 1204, the brutality of which led Pope John Paul II God, our true destination - and with very little fuel. Just a dry biscuit or two!”. to offer an official apology during his recent visit to Greece. While ‘faith’ is sometimes presented as being opposed to ‘science’, the Church would To some, it would sound strange to quote anniversaries that involve time spans sever- maintain that the two need not be seen as enemies of one another. And top notch scien- al times longer than the age of modern Australia, while to others it may appear to be out- tists are often more prepared than their junior colleagues to concede that, way beyond right irrelevant. However, the passage of time must be evaluated by whether it in fact anything that the rational mind is able to grasp, there is mystery in the universe that they forms part of a ‘living memory’. If it does, then time adds significance to the historical study and seek to understand. Indeed it was Einstein who said that science without reli- events, rather than subtracting from them. If it does not, then we are left merely with an gion is lame, while religion without science is blind. Both faith (relying on revelation and academic set of dates that can be found only in textbooks, not in people’s hearts and the spirit) and science (relying on observation and matter) can and should be pointing minds. towards the one and same Truth. Be that as it may, the debate between the two continues, as could be seen on the No sooner had 2004 begun, and world media became saturated with news of US space Compass TV program just last Sunday (January 18). One of the panellists, noted broad- exploration and the projected budgets for its mission on Mars. For a brief period, atten- caster and author Phillip Adams, spoke on the side of the rationalists because, as he said, tion was partially diverted from war on Iraq to a planet that ironically bears the name of his prayer as a young child seemed to go unanswered. On the other side of the debate, the ancient god of war, Mars being the Roman equivalent of the Greek Ares. The diver- personal ‘spirituality’ was treated more kindly than ‘organised’ or ‘formal’ or ‘institu- sion, whether intentional or not, is not the issue. Of far greater concern are the literally tionalised’ religion. astronomical costs involved. We are either very naïve bystanders who cannot scientifi- cally understand the ‘returns’ that will flow from this multi-billion dollar investment, or Herein lies the challenge for modern disciples of Christ, not only in Australia but else we are not vocal enough in trying to divert those very funds to where they are need- throughout the world: to reach from the depths of a living tradition which carries with it ed. To where people are hurting, begging, dying. When diseases abound here on earth, it a living memory. In so doing, the 800th and 950th anniversaries will seem short in com- becomes harder to justify interest in another planet. And the purported aim of doing parison with the 2000 year old reservoir of wisdom. And Mars will have to wait for space research (namely to see how life may have started on earth, and whether life could another time. exist elsewhere) seems illogical when the value of life right here is diminished or simply Dimitri Kepreotes ignored in the process. [email protected]

was out of earshot, the woman hurried- Letters to the Editor ly explained to me that she had found Talking out long ago that the only way to get him to the table while the meal was still hot, was to fool him. Point It’s amazing I managed to hear any of by Ann Coward this explanation as I was laughing so much. It wasn’t her distinction between Surviving the years: white lies and other sorts of lies that struck me as funny. It was the fact that it’s just not enough I had been prepared to believe her asser- tion, “I ALWAYS tell the truth,” when I had long ago decided that statements One day I was visiting a friend for a like this owed more to self-delusion chat over a cup of tea. She was from an than anything else. older generation, one that placed enor- But then, I am from a generation mous value on being able to take a per- where cynicism is considered almost son at their word, where business deals mandatory, where people in authority were closed with a handshake and are not to be trusted, where handshakes where people in authority were consid- only mean something if they’re backed ered worthy of respect; a generation rel- up by a written and signed agreement, atively free of cynicism. and where people who stay true to their Nikaia Olympic Weightlifting Hall While we were talking, she glanced word are viewed with suspicion. over to the clock on the wall and mut- It’s not surprising, then, that many tered something about preparing the people of my era view the passing of the Impressive Olympic venue evening meal “in an hour or so.” most senior generation with sadness. Dear Editor, We continued on with our conversa- Many of these elderly people possess a tion about childhood reminiscences, faith in their fellow man that is at the My wife and I just went to a Test Event for Inside, the venue looked very much like the about girlish pranks, and the swift pun- same time beautiful yet puzzling. This Weightlifting at the newly built venue at Nikaia Sydney Entertainment Centre or Convention ishments that inevitably followed, and faith is all the more fascinating when in the Olympic city of Athens (near Pireaus). It Centre: state-of-the-art with good finishings, how these helped shape her character as one considers what this particular gen- was very impressive. even including marble staircases! she grew into adulthood. I listened very eration has been through; the wars, We caught the train to Pireaus. There was a From a spectator’s point of view, it all ran carefully and respectfully as she low- famine, and separation from loved ones help desk at the station pointing to the free shut- very smoothly with the PA system, video walls, ered her voice, and said with all serious- through migration and death. It’s not tle buses for the event. There were plenty of new scoreboards etc. The toilets were spotless and ness that because of her upbringing she uncommon to discover that many bear free buses and traffic police had blocked off smoking was not permitted. In the end it could “never tells a lie.” scars from treacherous past business some roads from cars. We arrived at the not be faulted. partners, the wounds etched all the weightlifting centre high up on a hill - in a spec- On the way out, the staff thanked us. The “I ALWAYS tell the truth,” she said. deeper because, sadly, more often than tacular surrounding with huge landscaped areas buses were waiting in line, as were the not they were made by siblings. and night lights. trains...all went very well. Until the next Test At this stage her husband, who was Yet despite all these setbacks they There were strict security checks. We even Event - there are about 20 more coming up! tinkering with the car, popped his head have not only survived to an old age, had to take our shoes off for checking. Security around the corner and asked when din- but, in many cases, survived with their was taken very seriously, with X-ray equipment, PK ner would be ready. “In half an hour,” spirit and their faith intact, whether that scanners and so on. All venue staff were prop- Athens came the firm reply. Satisfied, the hus- faith be in God, or in those created in erly in uniform and accredited, as well as being (The above letter was received from a Greek Australian band returned to the garage. When he God’s image. pleasant and polite. while in Athens. Name and address withheld upon request). JANUARY 2004 4/22 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA

DID YOU KNOW? The chance of being born on Leap Day is about 684 out of a million, or 1 in 1461. Only 4,1 million have their birth- day on Leap Day. Athens Greece in 2004 throws party for Olympic year

Fireworks streaked over the 2,500-year- old Parthenon in New Year celebrations marking the final stage of preparations for the Athens Olympics. Thousands of Athenians of all ages JOHN PSAROPOULOS crowded into a central square in front of ing private enterprise, streamlining govern- For the first time in its modern history, parliament to join the street party featuring 2004 promises important changes for ment and raising incomes. Athens will have a public transport system a light show and performances from Greek Greece, not only political but also in Progress on these should not be expected that begins to make cars redundant, espe- and international artists, as well as a dance in 2004. The Olympics will take up most of cially in the centre of town, the northern troupe from Italy. terms of how the country will view itself. the government’s attention until August. A and the southern suburbs. Acrobats on stilts and roaming brass possible election looms in May 2005, if During the spring and early summer a bands added to the festive atmosphere. The country will be in the grip of elec- government and opposition do not agree on string of Olympic venues will be delivered “In less than eight months the Olympic tion fever until April or early May, when a new presidential candidate, and this will which ought to dazzle Greeks and foreign- games will return to Athens,” IOC president conservatives have a good chance of induce further caution. ers. Jacques Rogge said in an end-of-year mes- thrashing the socialists at the polling booth. There is a chance for negotiations on Even the time-sensitive construction of sage. They have been leading in opinion polls Cyprus before the May 1 deadline, when two enormous fishbones over the Olympic “There will be difficult days ahead ... (but) ever since the last election in 2000. A New the island formally enters the EU. Turkey’s stadium has a decent chance of completion the International Olympic Committee Democracy victory would end 11 years of foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, said earlier before opening ceremonies, but even embraces the progress of Olympic prepara- Pasok government. this year that he wanted to try and reach a incomplete these towering arcs will look tion with its complete trust. One of the most interesting aspects of the solution by then. But recent events have not impressive. “We would like to thank the Greek peo- election is how victory or loss will reform inspired hope. The only venue whose quality is in doubt ple, Athens 2004 organisers, the Greek gov- the two major parties. Two leaders-in-wait- Tayyip Erdogan’s government in Ankara, is the rowing centre on the battlefield of ernment and all those who volunteer their ing, in particular, have much to lose from for all its noises about change, has backed Marathon. Its construction was environ- help.” victory, since it is defeat that brings change. the continued presence of the inert Mr mentally and historically controversial. Rogge has kept constant watch over If the conservatives lose, the road will be Denktash despite his unpopularity with the After a stormy test event last summer, it has Athens’ troubled preparations, as Greek open for Dora Bakoyanni finally to oust EU, the US and much of his own popula- become athletically controversial as well. organisers in 2003 overcame major con- Kostas Karamanlis. tion. Barring any terrorist attacks, the Greeks struction and planning delays and struggled The two have never seen eye to eye, not The big event of the year, of course, is ought to derive enormous self-esteem from to stick to the IOC’s timetable. least of all because Ms Bakoyanni outper- the Olympics on August 13-29. Security hosting the world’s largest cultural event, In August, Athens is set to welcome some forms Mr Karamanlis in popularity. will be the major issue as Iraq remains and seeing their country televised globally. 17,000 athletes and team representatives, An opinion poll this month gave her the unstable, peace evades Israelis and Pales- On the European front, parliamentary 8,000 sporting officials, 3,000 judges and highest approval ratings of any Greek tinians and Osama Bin Laden’s capture elections and a European Union summit in referees, 20,000 journalists and more than 2 politician (63%), just a hair ahead of remains a matter of conjecture. June will resuscitate debate about the Euro- million visitors. George Papandreou. Like Salt Lake City’s, Athens’ Games pean constitution, which was left unelected With giant cranes against its skyline, It is likely that Ms Bakoyanni would hold will be characterised by heavy security, this month in Brussels. Athens is already undergoing a major the mayorship until Olympic closing cere- seen and unseen. By April, Europe should take a major facelift, creating walkways and cleaning up monies, but beyond that the job is palpably However Greeks will witness a revolu- step towards a common immigration policy downtown buildings and ancient monu- too small for her. tion in public transport, like that during the in the form of two directives; one on the ments. Much more is being written these days opening of the metro in 2000. Infrastructure communal asylum process and the other on “Athens is ready for the challenge ... the about the other leader-in-waiting, George construction has followed venue construc- the use of third countries as “Ellis Island” city will open its arms to the world again,” Papandreou. tion in an almost miraculous about-turn. areas where refugees and immigrants will a statement from the mayor’s office said. A sudden change in the saddle of the A 26-kilometre tram line, more than await their induction into the EU or their Olympic planners are also preparing to pro- socialist leadership before the election can 80% complete, is scheduled to open in return home. vide massive security at the August 13-29 be ruled out. It comes too late for Mr March and will link the centre of town to Last but not least, 2004 is the 800th Games, costing a record $US750 billion Papandreou to effect real change, and the Voula and Palio Phaliro. anniversary of the Fourth Crusade which ($A1 trillion). risk of defeat, cauterising his career, is A suburban light railway, chronically resulted in the sacking of Constantinople. At the New Year celebrations, more than great. behind schedule for years, is almost com- The catastrophe still rankles among 500 police officers, uniformed and plain- If the socialists lose, Mr Simitis will be pleted in the median of the Attiki Odos. By Greeks, and as late as 2001 the Pope issued clothed, were deployed around the central out. Mr Papandreou would probably win an June 2004 it will carry passengers from the Catholic church’s first ever official square among the thousands of revellers. easy victory bringing the prestige of the anywhere on the Metro-ISAP network to apology. Authorities plan to deploy about 50,000 founder’s name back to the party. the airport. In March, the Academy and the Univer- security personnel - including 16,000 sol- He would have to embark on a deep Steel frame stations are now going up sity of Athens are organising an interna- diers - during the Olympics. cleaning, beginning with ministers who along the way. Even rolling stock has been tional colloquium which is bound to attract “I am optimistic about the new year in served under his father to the recalcitrant procured - a source of worry until this sum- media attention. Greece. I cannot say the same for events rank and file which have done much to pre- mer because Hellenic shipyards, contracted Political uncertainties aside, 2004 is set overseas,” Greek President Costis vent Mr Simitis from implementing neces- to build it, had defaulted. to be a year of progress. It should bring Stephanopoulos said. sary social reforms. Finally the Metro itself will unveil seven Greece closer to the societies and “Our country, birthplace of the Olympics, His shadow cabinet would probably be new stations, five of them extending north- economies of the West. At least for one of hopes to return to the true values of sport young and technocratic. wards from Ethniki Amyna to Agia the two major political parties, it will bring and remind the world of the original Whichever party wins will have to Paraskevi and Doukissa tis Plakendias, renewal. And the Olympics will forever Olympic ideal. embark carefully on the great task of rais- where it will link with the suburban rail change the country’s lackadaisical image “The Olympics will be good for Greece ing standards in public services, stimulat network. abroad. (ATHENS NEWS) and help its future development.” JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 5/23 Our Primate’s View

We have always been accustomed to seeing which the notion of an active presence, i.e. the him, as it does for every other part of creation: time as an enemy, and indeed as a deadly one. immediate and therefore accountable pre- “You have set a boundary that they may We speak of ‘all-subduing time’, and almost sent, acquires special significance and not pass so that they might not again cover unreservedly mean ‘time that kills’. It is as if becomes an opportunity. This is precisely why the earth” the verb ‘sub-due’ is synonymous with ‘mur- we no longer speak of time (chronos) but of (Psalm 104:9) der’. kairos. Kairos is the name given to charismat- The sense of ‘limitation’ is the first hum- Yet, while this may possibly be the general ic time. And when we say that there is a ‘time bling experience. This unforeseeable experi- impression of the superficial secular person or for everything’, we mean that there is a distinct ence functions as an initial shock which brings the indifferent as a whole, this could not be ‘hour’ for everything. Moreover, in modern man ‘to himself’, literally. It then leads him the view of the person of faith, and in particu- Greek, hour (þñá) is related to the beautiful dialectically to a state of being ‘beside him- lar of the Christian. And since January is the (ùñáßï) since everything is beautiful in its self’ until developing, even if subconsciously beginning of the calendar year, it would not designated time, at times, into an intense ‘feeling of depen- be inappropriate to take this opportunity and Yet in order for one to discover these hid- dence’ (to use Schleiermacher’s term). see the basic difference between the secular den and highly beneficial aspects of time as For all this to occur in the human con- and the Christian understanding of time. ‘opportunities’, humility must precede as a science, time as ‘temporality’- that is, as a We can say from the outset that, while even central way of life. limited and consumable possibility- is not sim- the Christian is in danger of being led away by Following this as a parallel or rather as a ply a means to an end, nor merely the ‘plat- grievous thoughts about time and the instabil- correlative way of life, is repentance. Only form’ on which the drama of life and existence ity of worldly affairs at the beginning of the after a somewhat extensive analysis of both unfolds. Temporality is a substantially con- secular year (in January), this does not occur in central experiences of life, in their intricate and tributive factor, which gives a particular the slightest with the commencement of the mystical inter-relationship, will we be able to flavour to all that is conducted in time, and ecclesiastical year (in September). Of course, appreciate properly the value of temporality which would of course be entirely different if one could ask how many people, even from which is the benevolence of time. one were to experience them in an un-timely within the Church, realise that on the 1st Sep- It is of course superfluous to say that humil- manner. By Archbishop tember annually there is a festive commence- ity and repentance would be unknown and It is precisely these contradictory or at least Stylianos ment of the Ecclesiastical Year at the Ecu- unintelligible realities had the fall of Adam opposing- up until their final synthesis into of Australia menical Patriarchate in Phanar, which is con- not taken place in time. And perhaps it cannot ‘maturity’- forces of ‘sorrow’ on the one hand sidered the official Feast (with a special Patri- be said with certainty whether humility pre- and ecstatic extension on the other hand, archal Service in the Church, the signing of the cedes repentance in time, or repentance pre- which are epigrammatically expressed by the codex by the Patriarch and hierarchs, followed cedes humility. This however is not of special Psalmist when crying out to God ‘in sorrow by the relevant addresse and responses moral significance, since the result is always you have broadened me’ (Ps.4:1). between the Patriarch and the most senior hier- the same: purification. If we now see this beneficial ‘fluctuation’ of arch etc). The broader membership of the For the person of faith, it is amazing what human experience in time within the opti- Church in all Orthodox countries perhaps optimism the mercy of God allows or rather mistic nucleus which it forms, mystically and overlooks this festive ceremony and the Byzantine-Roman name of ‘Indictus’, which is applied to it. Even so, every faithful person knows from experience that, next to the bland and tyrannized time of daily struggle, there THE BENEVOLENCE mystically flows another time, which is serene and contrite, with an inviolate regularity and coherence in worshipful events of faith. Sanctified precisely within its structure and OF TIME functionality, it is dominated by the greater feasts of our Lord and the Mother of God inspires, which is of course invoked by repen- silently in the beginning, and late as an enthu- (Christmas, Easter, Ascension, Transfigura- tance and humility. We can therefore say that siastic confession of faith, then we compre- tion, Annunciation, Entrance into the Temple, the fall of Adam- which one could expect to be hend the articulation of the other vital verse of Dormition etc), yet ‘decorated’ by the memo- not simply a tragic retrogression on the jour- Psalms which describes the successive spiritu- ries of the angels and the countless hosts of ney towards perfection, but also ‘fatal’ frustra- al transformations in the life of the faithful. Saints, Martyrs, and Confessors who, by cov- tion even of worldly ‘prosperity’- can be eval- “I believed wherefore I have spoken ering the whole year, do not leave absolutely uated in hindsight as an astounding experience I have been greatly humbled” any day or hour of perishable time liturgically for the maturation of the human person, ‘uncovered’. In terms of the Church life of the something that only the wisdom and longsuf- With this new Psalmic verse we move into faithful person, the concept of the tabula rasa fering of God could ensure. the area of repentance, for which we must also (blank page) is completely unknown. More- Let us see, then, how the correlative expe- say what is needful, especially in terms of its over, the memory of not only one, but scores riences of humility and repentance, which relationship with faith and humility, a relation- of hundreds or thousands of known and lead to maturity and purification, function ship which is organic and deeply intrinsic. anonymous Saints can be honoured simultane- within the framework of time. b) Repentance. If the spiritual mind (nous) ously on the same day. In an attempt to see more deeply and learn and intellect is- in contrast to the logos- the Thus we see that the ‘blindness’ or ‘unfore- more fully how the two central and correlative deepest and the richest synthesis of the ethical seeable’ nature of impending time which experiences of humility and repentance func- and spiritual powers which characterize per- Scripture itself treats with extreme caution tion in the spiritual life of the faithful, we must sonhood, then it is clear that repentance (‘do not boast about tomorrow, for you do say that, while each is successively inter- (metanoia) does not signify a momentary or not know what a day may bring’), changed with the other, humility in fact pre- chance change in direction. Nor is it simply an (Prov.27:1) is for the Christian restricted to a cedes as a general rule. Let us therefore see attempt for improvement, but rather a com- minimum, or else completely annihilated by how this fundamental feeling of daily life is plete and responsible trans-formation in the the assurance that ‘the souls of the righteous brought about and dealt with by the person of human identity, no matter how ‘superhuman’ are in the hand of God, and no torment will God, in a vast and continuously changing this may sound. ever touch them’ (Wisdom of Solomon 3:1). world. If the turn-around brought about by the By using an image taken from nature we a) Humility. According to the dictionary purification of repentance were not so deep could say that, just as a black and cloudy sky references, the word ‘humble’ means some- and universal, it would be totally incompre- is repulsive, in contrast to the abundance of thing low, the opposite of ‘haughty’ and ‘arro- hensible for the repentant person to be willing brilliant light in starry skies, time which is not gant’. The first incentive for one to feel hum- to sacrifice his or her very life in order to wash illuminated by the memory of God and His ble (low) in relation to all visible and invisible away the previous blemish. A negative exam- Saints is equally repulsive and hostile. works of God is not so much the physical ple of this is the suicide of Judas who ‘repent- Consequently, time cannot simply mean a dimension and height, such as being smaller ed…and hanged himself’ (Mat.27:5) while the ‘neutral’ or ‘objective’ succession of that a mountain or shorter than a river. While positive examples include those who suffered moments but rather a mystical process. The possessing distinct spiritual and intellectual for their faith. After converting to another faith ‘investment’ which we have already men- powers which make him feel like ‘a small god’ at some stage they subsequently repented, tioned in terms of the memory of God and the among the rest of creation, man’s ‘smallness’ returned to their original faith and accepted to Saints shows forth simple ‘temporality’ as a and ‘lowliness’ arises from the feeling that he be killed as Confessors (the related accounts dynamic dimension of immeasurable escha- unceasingly and tragically experiences his of the New Martyrs during Ottoman rule are tological depth. Temporality is therefore no ‘limits’ i.e. the end of his capabilities, at every astounding). longer merely a limited and restricted dura- moment. Both in terms of ‘space’ and ‘time’, We can see, then, that the ‘time’ factor is tion, in contrast to the timeless boundlessness man senses that he cannot go beyond a certain of eternity. On the contrary, it is a period in point. The same verse of Psalms holds true for Cont. page 6/24 JANUARY 2004 6/24 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA

DID YOU KNOW? The words "electronic mail" might sound new but was introduced 30 years ago. Queen Elizabeth of Britain sent her first email in 1976.

remains low and George Karagiannakis, an tion such as the ‘Doing Business in Greece’ international business researcher for a large might be the platform. insurance group in Sydney, is searching for Hellenic answers. On the basis of Australia’s GDP HACCI in Athens in 2004 compared to the total EU, Australia and Greece should have a trade level of about A group of ex-HACCI members are work- $600m but it is just $200m. ing to form a HACCI in Athens. Longtime Business The two way trade between Canada and Athens resident and Sydney solicitor Alex Greece is CAN$250m or A$280m. Given Hillston heads a group with Anesti Kara- Canada’s GDP is 50% greater than Aus- georgi (ex-HACCI Queensland) and Nick By Con Berbatis tralia’s, it would put the level of trade with Geronimos ( ex-HACCI WA), to register a Greece on par. George Karagiannakis constitution, construct a website and organise It is evident that the Greek communities an office. Improving trade here have not been a catalyst for trade, and other business network groups, it lacks a They have established contact with Greece’s and business with Greece Australian businesses generally have not seen national structure to pursue strategic objec- government agencies ACCI ( Athens Cham- the potential of trade with Greece. tives. These objectives include working close- ber of Commerce and Industry, website The Hellenic Australian Chambers of Com- ly with the Department of Foreign Affairs and www.acci.gr) and ELKE (website www.elke. gr) and Austrade in Australia’s embassy in merce and Industry ( HACCIs) in NSW and Hellenic Business Council Trade and Austrade to identify markets, prod- Victoria were formed decades ago to improve ucts, investment and trade promotions. All Athens. By June 2004 they wish to create a trade with Greece. In Sydney Stefanos in Australia? these require committed resources as with liaison group for Hellenic business groups in Voudouris, Greece’s Commercial Consul, cir- professional business councils such as the Australia who are seeking trade, business and culates information and in June 2002 he coor- Karagiannakis says a national body could American Chamber of Commerce investment opportunities in Greece. In Athens dinated a 40-man trade delegation led by liaise with the state HACCI’s to help identify (AMCHAM) and the Spanish Chamber of they will facilitate contact with the appropri- Greece’s President Stephanopoulos to boost local business entrepreneurs with the potential Commerce. ate government agency. liaison between exporters in both countries. to participate, and with the Federal Govern- It is not enough to expect Mr Voudouris to Once trade or business partners or invest- ment to implement a comprehensive research undertake this task, because as Australian cit- ment targets have been found in Greece, they Trade statistics promotion program. izens only we can lobby the Government for can assist Australian groups with incentives While the Australian Hellenic community increased resources to assist in the research and legal or other professional guidance. But trade between Greece and Australia is well served with state-based HACCI’s and and other promotional activities. A publica-

The Greek Australian Vema Our Primate’s View Tel: (02) 9559 7022 Fax: (02) 9559 7033 THE BENEVOLENCE E-mail: [email protected] OF TIME

Cont. from page 5/23 above. However, the time afforded by this present life is never sufficient to fulfil it. While for God, even more necessary and decisive in the case of who is unchanging, time does not exist, for man repentance. To feel humbled, only several sec- the water-clock of time presses on relentlessly: onds of painful experience are sufficient. Yet, in ‘As for mortals, their days are like grass; they order to ‘mature’ to the point of taking a radical flourish like a flower of the field’ (Psalm decision to change, which is repentance, one 103:15). The less time that remains, therefore, the would need more experiences, deeper more precious it is considered by the faithful to be. thought and, normally, tears. All of these of course If the saying ‘time is money’ is true for the busi- do not come about instantaneously, but require nessman, then ‘time is salvation’ is true for the instead a certain amount of time. person of faith. We could perhaps say that, while humility, is Precisely because the person of God feels that imposed on the faithful mainly due to external ‘the days are consumed in vanity’ (Psalm 78:33), (more or less unpredictable) reasons, repentance he or she is almost stricken with panic. And this comes as a result of an internal process, which is sacred panic is to be found nowhere more obvi- why it is more of a free and temperate personal ously than in the language of worship. choice. A classic example is a hymn referring to the However, it is self-evident that this comparison Vir- does not apply in the case of self-humiliation, as gin Mother as a great and unashamed protection in for example in the phenomenon of the ‘fool for which characteristic exclamations addressed to Christ’ according to which the faithful person her (‘help in time… make haste…be swift…’) humiliates himself voluntarily in order to avoid give us the measure of vigilance so that time may ‘the praise of men’ and to attract further the mercy not be ‘consumed in vanity’. of God. Indeed in that case, we could say that self- In closing, it could be said that just as ‘vigils’ humiliation and ‘self-reproach’ in ascetic life and ‘fasting’ for the monk are more than just the even surpasses repentance. For, while repentance reduction of sleep and food for ascetic reasons (in can remain an inner change in ethos which cannot order that that which is ‘saved” can be used for the be easily noticed by one’s neighbour, self-humili- sake of others), so it is that the overall vigilance of ation is by definition the humiliation of one’s per- the faithful to not waste time in vanity has a dou- son in front of fellow human beings, precisely so ble purpose. as to achieve a deeper more sincere purification. The utilisation of time seeks not only the indi- No matter how productive the daily experience vidual benefit of the soul, but also the ‘fulfilment of humility and repentance may be – with the of the commandments’ which, as is known, are blessing of God and the intercessions of His Saints for the fulfilment of the will of God and service – in terms of their internal mutual influence upon towards fellow human beings. For, it is only each other, the person of faith never feels suffi- through these two priorities that we serve the inter- ciently pure or renewed. est of our personal salvation in the safest possible The verse ‘your youth shall be renewed like way. We thereby not only feel the threat of the the eagles’ (Psalm 103:5) is always and simulta- passage of time; we also feel the comfort of neously a timely challenge and promise from the benevolence of time. JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 7/25

DID YOU KNOW? To save costs, the body of Shakespeare's friend and fel- low dramatist, Ben Jonson, was buried standing up in Westminister Facts & Stats Abbey, London in 1637. Series of scares heightens Europe's fears of terror attacks Europe's fears of a terror attack during the It quoted the opposition Conservative party's request of US authorities, who said they had one of his sources - informed by a Sardinian end-of-year holiday period deepened as spokesman on homeland security, Patrick intercepted electronic communication be- businessman - that an attack on the Vatican Britain warned a plot may be in its final stages Mercer, as saying two would-be suicide pilots tween Al-Qaeda members suggesting those was planned for Christmas night." in Saudi Arabia, Italy revealed the Vatican were arrested before they could carry out the planes were to be used for attacks. According to La Repubblica, the attack was could be targeted, and Cyprus arrested five attack. Although careful screening of the stranded to be made with either a "plane or a missile". It Pakistanis acting suspiciously at an airport. The official Saudi news agency SPA quoted passengers yielded nothing suspicious, said that "a group of Muslims... an Islamic The anxiety added to concerns already creat- a Saudi security official as saying the report according to French officials, the fact that the religious sect" was behind the plan. ed by the French government's decision to was "not true". flights were scrapped spoke loudly of the La Stampa, another paper, said the intelli- cancel Air France flights between Paris and British Airways suspended flights to Saudi shared anxiety between Europe and the United gence security services had given little cre- Los Angeles over Christmas after US officials Arabia in mid-August after receiving a threat States that a spectacular attack was in the off- dence to the information, although security claimed they had intelligence that Al-Qaeda about air travel in the country, but resumed ing. measures were stepped up. operatives planned to use them in a September them in September. Italy's press gave headlines to a revelation In Cyprus, meanwhile, authorities said five 11-style attack. Britain has been on its own heightened state by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi that the Pakistanis had been arrested after loitering The developments came as security forces in of alert against a terrorist attack since the Vatican may have been the target of a Christ- around the island's airport of Paphos. the United States and Europe were on height- weekend before the November 20 suicide mas Day attack plot. The five, who had all entered the country as ened alert for any suspicious activity, particu- bomb attacks on the British consulate and The newspaper Libero quoted Berlusconi as students, faced charges of conspiracy to com- larly involving aircraft and airports. HSBC bank in the Turkish metropolis Istan- saying he had spent most of Christmas Eve mit a crime relating to terrorist acts and The British foreign office, on its website, bul. tackling "specific and verified" information of appeared in court, police said. issued a travel advisory warning that "terror- Also, the British government said it was a plot to fly hijacked planes or fire a missile State radio quoted Assistant Police Chief ists are planning further attacks in Saudi Ara- deploying an unspecified number of armed into the Vatican. Soteris Charalambous as saying the suspects bia, and that these could be in the final stages sky marshalls on British passenger planes "in However, Berlusconi's office denied that the had allegedly lied to airport staff by telling of preparation". response to the present heightened state of prime minister had given a formal interview to them they were waiting for a friend arriving on The announcement followed a report in alert in the USA". the paper, which said the remarks were made a flight from Birmingham, England. Britain's Mail on Sunday newspaper saying The increased vigilance followed the deci- at a Christmas Eve meeting with journalists. But Charalambous said a police check on the Islamic extremists had plotted to run small sion by France's government to cancel Air Corriere della Sera said the information suspects' story found neither the passenger nor planes into a British passenger aircraft in the France flights between Paris and Los Angeles came from a report written by a junior officer the flight existed. Saudi capital, Riyadh. on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at the in the Sardinian police "who had learned from AFP

Mad cow case hasn't dented Shake-up of child custody appetite for beef system recommended US authorities were racing to track down also stressed that President George W. Bush A major shake-up of Australia's child custody system has been recommended by a federal recalled meat linked to a cow infected with continues to show a healthy appetite for beef. parliamentary committee.The committee called for a radical reshaping of the family law sys- mad cow disease, as fast food operators across Following tests, US officials confirmed the tem and major changes to the way child maintenance payments are administered. the United States insisted that the scare had not country's first mad cow case late last month The unanimous report by the House of Representatives Family and Community Affairs dented Americans' hunger for beef burgers. from an affected Holstein dairy cow in the Committee comes after a six-month inquiry into child custody arrangements following fam- As investigators scrambled to locate recalled north-west state of Washington. ily breakdown.The committee has recommended two new stages before separation and cus- beef sold across eight western states, McDon- Officials were unable to detail how much of tody issues reach the Family Court.It said this would make the system less legalistic and more ald's Corp - the world's biggest fast food chain the recalled meat had been found, and it child-focused. - said that as of December 27 its domestic sales appears possible some of the recalled meat has had been unaffected by the scare. already been eaten by unsuspecting con- Wary of public fears, the White House has sumers. AFP Only 6 pc of Australians think 2004 will be less troubled A special Morgan poll has found only 6 per be more trouble-filled than this year, and the cent of Australians and New Zealanders same proportion (47 per cent) expecting this expect the new year to be more peaceful than year to be as troubled as last year. last year. On the domestic front, a much larger pro- Just under half of the Australians surveyed portion - 68 per cent - of Australians surveyed (45 per cent) said this year would be a more said they expected the new year to be better troubled one than this year, with much interna- than this one, with 59 per cent of New Zealan- tional discord, while a slightly larger group (49 ders surveyed feeling that way. per cent) expected this year to be as bad as this The survey was based on telephone inter- year. views with 626 Australians this month and The poll also showed 47 per cent of New 968 New Zealanders last month. Zealanders surveyed also expected this year to AAP Hospitals to change patient strategies for mentally ill Staff at a NSW hospital are changing the "The coroner has already reported and we way they deal with mental health patients have implemented a number of changes ... at after revelations two patients died needlessly the hospital," Mr Iemma told Sydney radio because of inadequate care, according to the 2GB. NSW government. One of those changes required medical staff The two patients died and another suffered to report to the police commissioner any brain damage as a result of sub-standard care mentally ill patients with access to firearms. at St George Hospital in Sydney's south, "We are changing our guidelines and our according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. practices to tighten them up to ensure greater One patient, who was mentally ill, was dis- safety for people who do have contact with charged by a junior doctor and shot himself mental health patients," he said. (02) and his wife when he got home. Mr Iemma said the NSW coroner was yet NSW Health Minister Morris Iemma said to report on the other death at the hospital and as a result of a recent report on mental health any changes recommended would be imple- and suicide a number of changes were being mented. implemented at the hospital. AAP JANUARY 2004 8/26 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA Windows to Orthodoxy The Three Hierarchs (January 30) St. Basil the Great all Christendom. While director of this mighty church, Grego- ry took part in a synod held in Constantinople in 381AD to set- St. Basil the Great was born in Caesarea in Cappadocia in tle the differences among the prelates of the Church. Known as 330 AD. He came from a very holy family. His paternal grand- the Second Ecumenical Synod, it resolved the issues and voted mother was St. Macrina the Elder, his elder sister was St. Mac- to accept Gregory as patriarch of Constantinople. It further rina the Younger, and St. Gregory of Nyssa was his brother. added its official support to the Nicene doctrine which was Also, one of his other brothers (there were 10 children total) championed at the First Synod in Nicaea. was a bishop. For as long as he held the post of spiritual leader of Ortho- He received a very good education, aiming for a career as a doxy the gallant Gregory served with honour and dignity. rhetorician, as his father was. After becoming a Christian, St. Moreover, he was the instrument of God in unifying the Basil toured the eremitical (hermit-like) establishments of Church into a cohesive unit that could withstand any internal or monasticism in Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia, and decided to external pressure. He grew weary of the personal attacks that follow such a way of life. Many people flocked to him as a spir- are the occupational hazard of a patriarch and after a moving itual father, and he wrote the rules of monasticism which most farewell address, he retired to live out his days in meditation, Orthodox monks follow to this day. St. Basil wrote He reposed writing, and prayer. He died 25 January 388 AD. in the Lord in 379 AD. St. Basil was a prolific writer. He wrote quite a bit about the St. John Chrysostom Holy Spirit and its relationship in the Holy Trinity. Called Chrysostom, or “Golden-mouth”, by reason of the St Gregory the Theologian surpassing eloquence of his preaching, St. John is honored— together with St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory of Nazianzus The fabric of Christendom was woven into its strength and as one of the Church’s three Great Hierarchs and Ecumenical beauty of character by the threads of men such as St. Gregory Teachers; he is certainly the most renowned.. the Theologian, who became one of the four great doctors of friend Basil was made bishop of Caesaria. In the process, he The Saint was born at Antioch c. 347 of a noble family, and the Church during the 4th century AD, along with Saints Basil himself was made bishop of the relatively unimportant town of raised by his pious mother Anthusa, widowed when John was the Great, John Chrysostom and Athanasios the Great. He is Sasima, a post he never sought and in which he never served, still very young. After completing his studies in Athens, where further remembered as one of the three so-called Cappadocian preferring to remain with his father in Nazianzos. He took over he impressed his teachers with his oratorical gifts, he returned Fathers, an honour he shares with Sts Basil and Gregory of the church of Nazianzos after the death of his father in 374. to Antioch and was baptized (it still being a common practice Nyssa. He is also recognised as the champion of Orthodoxy With the loss of his father, he had a longing to return to asceti- to wait until adulthood). He respected his mother’s request and against the heretical doctrine of Arianism. cism in some retreat, there to meditate, pray, and interpret the deferred becoming a monk until after she died, in 374. He then The son of a bishop for whom he was named, Gregory was Scriptures. He was allowed to go to the seclusion of Seleucia in joined a local community of ascetics in the desert South of born in Arianzos in Cappadocia, Asia Minor, in 329 AD. He Isauria, where his tenure as an eremite was short-lived. Antioch, withdrawing after four years to live in a cave. But the was educated in Caesaria and then in Athens, where he met After the death of the Arian Emperor Valens, followed conditions to which he subjected himself so undermined his Basil with whom he became close friends linked in a common closely by the death of Gregory’s friend Basil, Gregory was health that he was compelled to return to civilization. Ordained resolve to serve Christ. At the suggestion of Basil, the two called to Constantinople. He was to head the reorganisation of to the priesthood in 386, he was appointed a regular preacher friends became monastics at a retreat in Pontos, where each the Orthodox Church which had been torn asunder by the and won such a devoted following that when, in 397, Emperor embarked on a spiritual journey that was to lead them both to heresy of Arianism from within and by the harassment of Arcadius wished to elevate him to the patriarchal throne of greatness. It was with some degree of reluctance, however, that pagans without. In the course of this holy work, he achieved Constantinople, he sent soldiers to take the Saint by stealth, Gregory left the monastery to be ordained into the priesthood distinction as an orator, traditionalist, and a crusader that earned fearing a riot of the people. to serve as an assistant to his father, the bishop of Nazianzos. him the title of “Theologian” despite the opposition of Maxi- In his elevated dignity as patriarch, St. John did not change The son’s brilliance as a preacher outshone his father’s. mos the Cynic, who had been set up against him by the bishop his austere manner of life. His spare household budget enabled When barely thirty years old, he won acclaim throughout the of Alexandria. him to support several hospitals and give alms liberally, to region as a mighty warrior in the fight against paganism and When the Orthodox Emperor Theodosios came to power in which he also exhorted his flock. He sent missionaries, spe- heresy. 380 AD, Gregory assumed the direction of the magnificent cially prepared with language study, to the Celts, the Scythians It was largely through the influence of Gregory that his Church of Aghia Sophia, the most prestigious house of God in and the Persians. And he continued his labors in writing com- mentaries on the Scriptures. On three occasions his cell-atten- dant Proclus observed an old man, looking like St. Paul, speak- ing to St. John as he was thus engaged. But his principal occu- pation as patriarch was as a moralist. On becoming patriarch he addressed the Emperor with his uestions & nswers characteristic frankness: “May thy piety know that I shall not Q A fear, when the need ariseth, to speak instruction and reproofs for the good of thy Soul, just as the prophet Nathan was not In the Orthodox Faith, which takes prece- Orthodox Church is Saint John Chrysostom whose writ- afraid to denounce the transgressions of King David.” The dence, Holy Tradition or Holy Scripture? ings carry great authority. Imperial City was infected with worldliness; both among the Q Yet, there is hardly anything which St John Chrysos- clergy and at court moral laxity and a penchant for luxury pre- tom has written which is not a commentary on Scripture vailed. Chrysostom was a popular preacher, drawing great Both Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition are wit- or based on his life-long study of the Bible. Perhaps it is crowds to church, but he constantly had to remind his listeners nesses to the revelation of God. There are some in time for us Orthodox and the rest of the Christian world that they were there not for entertainment but for their soul’s A the Orthodox Church who include Scripture with- to realize that this kind of question is really a false one amendment. in the idea of Holy Tradition, understanding the which clouds the truth rather than clarifies. Among those who resented the Saint’s flaming admonitions meaning of Holy Tradition to be all that has been revealed Both the Scriptures and Holy Tradition are part of the and Corrective measures (he deposed many bishops guilty of to us by God, whether written in the Bible or not. Others same fabric of the holy self-disclosure of God to human- simony) was the self-indulgent Empress Eudoxia, who took the keep a clear separation between the two. Tradition was the ity. Saint’s frequent denunciations of the corrupting influence of originally unwritten revelation of God, and Scripture is wealth as a personal affront. Abetted by the envious Patriarch understood as the written revelation of God. *** of Alexandria, Theophilus, she succeeded in having the Saint The fact is that the two are inseparable. For example, it deposed. No sooner bad he departed to his place of exile than is Holy Tradition which determines the canon of the New From the Orthodox Church: 455 Questions and Answers, an earthquake so frightened the superstitious Empress that she Testament (that is, Tradition determines what books actual- by Stanley S. Harakas, published by Light and Life. had him recalled. However, scarcely two months had passed ly make up the New Testament). before she again took offense and fenced the Saint’s banish- They are in a relationship of “check and balance” since If you have any questions about the Orthodox faith ment. At her express instructions, the Soldiers conducting the Holy Tradition and Scripture do not contradict each other. which you would like answered in the VEMA, send Saint into exile made the arduous journey altogether unbear- Rather, they support each other, providing the means to them to able, forcing him to ride on an unbroken ass and denying him understand each properly. adequate food and protection from the elements. That is why we say that Scripture can only be properly VEMA - Q. & A. Physically spent, the saint had a comforting vision of the understood by the Church which has produced it, and why P.O. Box M59 Marrickville South Apostles Peter and John, informing him of his approaching Holy Tradition is in great measure a commentary on Scrip- departure from this world. A few days later they reached NSW 2204 Comana, near the Black Sea. It was the feast of the Exaltation ture. Perhaps I can illustrate this practically for you by this or email them to: example. of the Cross and the Saint was allowed to liturgize. He finished One of the greatest voices of Holy Tradition in the [email protected] the service and, having blessed the people, lay down in eternal repose. His parting words were, “Glory to God for all things.” JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 9/27 JOHN MANGOS PROUDLY PRESENTS

MARINELLA•GEORGE DALARAS TOGETHER IN CONCERT Australian Tour 2004

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Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia Parish & Community of Belmore & Districts All Saints Grammar School A Greek Orthodox Co-Educational School

Year 12 Class of 2003

4th row (l to r): Antonis Andrianopoulos, Arthur Dabassis, Marios Kiortis, Steven Soulios, George Hampouris, George Carydis, Peter Kyvetos, Elliot Caras, Michael Belogiannis 3rd row (l to r): Con Orfanos, Dimitri Kappos, Matthew Svinos, Mario Falas, Eric Kitas, John Milatos, Stellios Adamou, Steven Volonakis, Anthony Saragiannidis, Anthony Houvardas 2nd row (l to r): Sophia Papailiadis, Venessa Valakas, Lizetta Giannaros, Maria Kaskoutas, Cassandra Kaloudis, Di- ann Melas, Christina Belogiannis, Antonia Karavias, Asilia Karagiannis Front row (l to r): Maria Petridis, Christina Theodosiou, Penny Kondelidis, Timothy Zographakis, Efrosini Paleolo- gos, John Kolovos, Yana Kepreotis, Elizabeth Sofatzis, Bridget Spinks, Nomiki Tsoutsa

“Towers” Senior School Campus Junior School Campus 31 Forsyth Street 54 Hampden Road SOUTH BELMORE NSW 2192 LAKEMBA NSW 2195

Tel: (02) 9718 7715 Tel: (02) 9740 5938 Fax: (02) 9718 7392 Fax: (02) 97406735 JANUARY 2004 The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 11/29

All Saints Grammar 2003 Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding achievements in their HSC and UAI results:

Elizabeth Sofatzis Bridget Spinks George Hampouris 97.9 UAI 96.7 UAI 91.1 UAI 91 English Advanced 90 English Advanced 90 Mathematics 93 Modern History 91 Geography 95 Classical Greek 92 Modern History 93 Classical Greek

Efrosini Paleologos Antonia Karavias Antonis Andrianopoulos 90.5 UAI 90.5 UAI 90.0 UAI 91 Modern Greek 94 Mathematics 96 Ancient History E4 Modern Greek Ext Band 5 Awards to: Ancient History Business Studies Chemistry Design & Technology English Advanced English Extension Antonia Karavias Nomiki Tsoutsa Elizabeth Sofatzis John Kolovos Antonis Andrianopoulos Elizabeth Sofatzis Venessa Valakas Antonis Andrianopoulos Yana Kepreotis Efrosini Paleologos Bridget Spinks John Kolovos Antonia Karavias I.P.T. Antonia Karavias John Kolovos Classical Greek John Kolovos Elliot Caras Yana Kepreotis George Hampouris Diann Melas Diann Melas George Hampouris Efrosini Paleologos Steven Soulios

Modern Greek Modern Greek Extension Legal Studies Mathematics Mathematics Extension History Extension George Hampouris George Hampouris Antonia Karavias Elizabeth Sofatzis George Hampouris Yana Kepreotis Sophia Papailiadis Maria Petridis Antonis Andrianopoulos Bridget Spinks Elizabeth Sofatzis Antonis Andrianopoulos Steven Soulios Diann Melas Efrosini Paleologos Antonia Karavias Steven Soulios Marios Kiourtis Bridget Spinks Maria Petridis Efrosini Paleologos Marios Kiourtis On behalf of the Parish Boards of Trustees, Directors and Governors, All Saints Grammar would like to congratulate its 2003 Year 12 students on their achievements in completing their secondary studies and offer them our best wishes in their future endeavours. We also extend our best wishes and congratulations to the Year 12 students that attended our sister schools of St Spyridon and St Euphemia Colleges.

May you be successful in whatever field you choose to follow. Limited vacancies exist for 2004. Email: [email protected] For Enrolment enquiries and an Information Pack, contact the School by email, telephone or fax. JANUARY 2004 12/30 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA

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JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 13/31

DID YOU KNOW? The pleasant feeling of eating chocolate is caused by a chemical called anadamide, a neurotransmitter which also is produced naturally in the brain. Remembering For the Greece’s Occupation bibliophiles... “When we got to St George we saw the Greece by Italy and Germany in 1940- “I’ll never forget the day my father took Guardian Angels Children’s Prayer Book: German jeep full of many mouth-watering 1945. leave from the army and came to see us. As An introduction to the Divine Liturgy delicacies but we didn’t dare approach. A We read in the book’s Acknowledge- he was making his way to our house, I was and prayers for young children. German was guarding them and wouldn’t ments, “The interviews with the women walking home from school. We were prac- By Fr. T. Lozynsky, let anyone near. revealed that their stories were important tically walking side by side but we didn’t illustrated by Yaroslava Surmach Mills. As soon as I saw him I got scared and and profound and it was evident that these recognise one another. crouched in a corner and looked on from a are priceless accounts warranted being Suddenly, I heard a neighbour call him Pricey, this little book is well designed to appeal to, and distance. Ten-year-old Parascos couldn’t recorded for future generations, in Greek by name and welcome him with so much to survive handling by, small children. The bright blue resist the temptation. He was very hungry. and English.” joy and emotion, saying she would break and gold cover feels like vinyl, the pages are thick and He slowly went up to the jeep and “Memory is something sacred,” writes the news to Efrosini, my mother. Immedi- glossy and the binding is stitched and glued. An ideal stretched out his skeletal hand to take a the Archbishop in the book’s Foreword. ately, I realised it was my father. ‘Are you book to give to a child, it contains illustrations from the can. He continues, “I have no doubt that we my father?’ I asked. I can’t describe what Divine Liturgy and many icons. For pre-schoolers to As soon as the heartless German saw shall all read these ‘memories’ that are happened next. With tears in his eyes he pre-teenager. him, he didn’t waste any time and without now recorded, with approximately the grabbed me in his arms, he hugged and even warning him, took out his large same attentiveness that Christians once kissed me, calling me by my pet name, ‘My Available: Light & Life Publishing Company (U.S.A.) revolver and shot him in front of my eyes.” read the lives of the Saints, when they still flower, my flower’.” www.light-n-life.com This is an excerpt from the recently pub- valued spiritual edification more than the Proceeds from the sale of the 270 page lished book, “Remembering Greece’s ‘sights’ and ‘spectacles’ of this passing book will go to the Greek Orthodox Arch- Jewish Music: Its Historical Development Occupation” by the Greek Orthodox world.” diocese of Australia’s St Andrew’s Theo- By Abraham Z. Idelsohn Ladies Group. In this oral history the women tell their logical College and the Voice of Ortho- (Dover Publications) The women of the Greek Orthodox stories of poverty, hunger, fear, pain and doxy Radio Program. Ladies Group interviewed more than thir- suffering. They also relive heroic and In order to fully understand the roots of Byzantine ty of their members who lived during cherished moments of courage, tender- To order a copy of the book, phone 0410 chant and its Western counterpart, Gregorian chant, World War II and the occupation of ness, solidarity, hope and faith. 348423. knowledge of the music of Jewish synagogues is invaluable. The author is regarded as “the father of Jewish music research”, drawing on his experience and Disneyland fetes 500 millionth guest - an Australian knowledge as a Jewish cantor and Western musicolo- gist. Heavy reading, suitable for music scholars of early It was third time very, very lucky for * Lunch and dinner at top restaurants. Mouse and presented with a giant golden sacred music. Australian Bill Trow when he returned to Bill, with wife Anne-Marie and five- key inscribed "500,000,000." Disneyland Resort with his wife and year-old Aspen, was on his third visit to Bill then was asked to change the offi- Modern Greek: 170 Contemporary recipes daughter. Disneyland. cial attendance sign at Disneyland park from the Mediterranean Bill, from Wentworth Falls, NSW, was "I was dumbstruck," said Bill, who at train station to 500 million. By Andy Harris (Hodder) greeted personally by Mickey Mouse and home works for a child protective agency. The Disneyland Resort opened on July told he was the California theme park's "I can't believe this has happened." 17, 1955, and six weeks later greeted its The author’s 3rd book on Greece, each recipe is pre- 500 millionth visitor. As the family passed through the turn- one millionth guest. ceded by a snippet of information on accompaniment He won: stiles of the Anaheim park, buzzers California Adventure opened on Feb- suggestions, any cultural or religious significance of the * A lifetime pass to Disneyland and the sounded, music played and clouds of ruary 8, 2001. dish, or regional variations in the ingredients. The pho- adjacent California Adventure park. confetti flew through the air. Said Disneyland: "Enough people tographs (by William Meppem) are sufficient reason on * A stay in the presidential suite at Dis- "They were filming everybody as they have entered the two Disney parks in their own to encourage anyone who enjoys their tucker ney's Grand Californian Hotel. walked through the gates so we thought Anaheim to circle the earth more than to purchase this book. * A commemorative jacket. there was a security check," Bill said. eight times." * A VIP guided tour of the resort. Instead, he was greeted by Mickey AAP Constantinople 1453: The End of Byzantium By David Nicolle Research raises cancer concerns over deodorants (Opsrey Publishing, no. 78 in the Campaign series)

Chemicals found in underarm deodor- of the study, said in a statement. may be adding to a rising incidence of Osprey books are familiar to people interested in war- ants have been detected in the tumours of "It would therefore seem especially pru- breast cancer, charities stress that no evi- fare, war machines, uniforms, battle strategies, etc. and breast cancer sufferers, British scientists dent to consider whether parabens should dence exists to support any link. are to be found in hobby model-making stores as well said recently. continue to be used in such a wide variety "Breast cancer is a complex disease and as in bookshops. Written at the end of the 20th century, Researchers at the University of Read- of cosmetics applied to the breast area," we do not yet understand all its causes," this book has not fully escaped concessions to political ing found traces of the chemicals called she added. said Delyth Morgan, Chief Executive of correctness. However, it is neither written as a pro- parabens in tissue samples, proving that But Dr Philip Harvey, European editor breast cancer charity Breakthrough. Byzantine nor pro-Ottoman book, but aims to dissect the preservatives can accumulate inside of the Journal of Applied Toxicology, "There has been a lot of discussion sur- the battle strategies of the leaders, Emperor Constan- the body, although a direct link with breast which published the research, stressed the rounding a link between anti-perspirants tine XI Palaiologos (whose line of command was less cancer has not been proven. need for more investigation. and the disease but there is still no scien- clearcut than his enemy’s) and Sultan Mehmet II. As "Their detection in human breast "Further work is required to examine tific evidence of a causal link," she added. usual with Osprey books, the text is easy to read and is tumours is of concern since parabens have any association between oestrogenic, and Breast cancer is the most common cancer accompanied by numerous illustrations and pho- been shown to mimic the action of the other, chemicals in underarm cosmetics in women worldwide, with one in nine tographs. female hormone oestrogen, and oestrogen and breast cancer," he said. UK women likely to develop the disease can drive the growth of human breast Despite previous suggestions that chem- at some time in their life. A.C. tumours," Dr Philippa Darbre, lead author icals in deodorants and anti-perspirants Reuters Robust interest in 2004 volunteerism from Australia Almost 4,000 Australians have applied as interviews”, the article said. volunteers for the Athens Olympics, accord- “Athens organisers of the Games from ing to an Australian daily. Almost 4,000 August 13-29 have received 3,920 applica- Australian volunteers are attempting to recap- tions from Australians – 54 per cent of them ture the spirit of the Sydney Olympics by from women”, the daily added. applying for the Athens Games, according to The report stressed that organisers have a report published on January 4 in Perth’s received 130,000 applications from volun- “Sunday Times”. teers – 65 per cent residents of Greece and a “At least 100 people, many of whom further 10 per cent from non-residents of worked at the Sydney Olympics and Para- Greek descent. lympics, have visited Athens already for ANA JANUARY 2004 14/32 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA Towards Athens 2004 Athens Olympics just around the corner

By Glenn Cullen will still do well. ing guidelines, essentially making athletes In a study of relevant world championship obtain their best results when it matters most The 2004 Athens Olympics will either and qualifying events Australia won 47 in order to make it to Athens. be another great Australian success medals in 2002 and 49 in 2003. While Coates said appeals over Olympic story or the start of an Antipodean Three sports are expected to make up selections were inevitable because of what sporting slide. around half Australia’s medals in Athens - was at stake, AA was entitled to make swimming, cycling and rowing. changes. It all depends on who you talk to. Coates described swimming’s recent con- “It’s my understanding the lawyers have Coming after the “best-ever” Games in troversies - with high performance director looked at it and they (AA) had the power to Sydney and following the 2003 Rugby Greg Hodge standing down because of stalk- do what they have done,” he said. World Cup, Athens was always going to be a ing allegations and women’s coach Scott While things have tightened up for athlet- bit of a slow burn in Australia. Volkers possibly facing indecent dealings ics there has been a bit of extra love for a But the spot fire became a conflagration charges next year - as “a great pity for the number of prospective gold medal sports. early in December when Australian Sports sport” less than a year out from the Games. Australian rowers, triathletes, sailors and Commission chief Mark Peters declared But he expected it to have little impact on road cyclists will all be housed closer to their Australia was facing its biggest crisis in 30 results in Athens with a repeat of the 18- respective event sites in Athens after the years based on obesity levels of schoolchild- medal haul achieved in Sydney not out of the AOC said the schedules would make life too ren and the difficulty of getting them to play question. difficult for those athletes to stay in the main sport. Athletics is a different story. village. According to Peters the short term impact Cathy Freeman has retired, while Jai Tauri- Athens’ $US600 million ($A814.33 mil- on Australia at the Olympics would be a Australian Olympic Committee president ma and Tatiana Grigorieva have slipped off lion) security arrangements may have decline from the 58 medals achieved in Syd- John Coates the pace, meaning there’s likely to be little received a blast from the likes of the Wash- return from the three Sydney 2000 medal- ington Post, but Coates was happy with ney to a tally in the “low 40s or even high tries in the gold and the overall medal tally,” 30s”. lists. arrangements, despite some “misunderstand- Coates said. Couple this with Athletics Australia’s (AA) ings” about Australia’s plans. He said the long term effect from our “This year and last year we were clearly “shrinking talent pool” could mean a return annual loss this year of $1.3 million and A potential row loomed when in August fifth in terms of benchmark events.” there’s a feeling - world champion 400m hur- Coates said Australia would use its own to the bad old days of the Montreal Games in While the incident will undoubtedly be 1976 where Australia failed to win a gold dler Jana Pittman being the notable exception security force because of the “peculiar spread recalled as a spat (and not the first) between - that more lean times lie ahead. of venues in Athens”. medal. two of this country’s highest profile sporting Australian Olympic Committee president “It is a sport where we really are suffering Athens organisers bristled at the sugges- leaders, it may also ultimately be regarded as more than others,” Coates said. tion but Coates said it had been misinterpret- John Coates was quick to retort, claiming the moment that kickstarted local interest in Peters was drawing a long bow to link obesi- “We have some people coming through ed that Australia had wanted to bring a bevy the August 2004 event. particularly in the field events but Australian of armed re-enforcements. ty with the success of elite athletes, and that It is accepted that there’ll be a decline in Australia was on track to be a top five nation athletics would prefer to be going into these Instead he said it was an un-armed group medals from Sydney - history has shown Games with some stronger recent perfor- of 14 security staff and three police officers. at Athens. hosting a Games invariably boosts perfor- “The target is to finish in the top five coun- mances.” mances - but the indications are Australia AA has already tweaked its initial qualify- AAP US troops in Athens security drill US and Greek troops plan to stage joint exercises in Greece from March as part of security preparations for the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

But Greek Defence Minister Yannos Papandoniou said while NATO and NATO member states will be on high alert during the Games, only Greek troops will be deployed in the country. “NATO... will be ready to intervene if a crisis erupts. NATO and NATO members will be on a high state of alert”, while not actually being physically on Greek soil, he told reporters. The government has repeatedly had to allay fears among Greeks, sensitive to out- side interference in domestic issues, that for- eign security forces would be allowed to operate in the country during the August 13- 29 Games. The US-Greek exercises are designed to help security forces tackle potential threats during the Games, including nuclear and chemical attacks, as organisers put final chemical exercise was planned for early that it did not necessarily mean foreign as in the case of responding to a potential touches on the biggest security blueprint the February. troops would be present during the Games nuclear or chemical attack. As far as troops Olympics have ever seen, Public Order All operations would abide by Greek themselves. and manpower are concerned, there are Minister George Floridis said. laws The United States has said it wants to use enough Greek forces to cover the demand.” “In March there will be a common exer- and the country’s constitution, which forbids its own security guards to protect American Greece is spending a record 650 million cise of US and Greek troops. This exercise foreign forces operating in Greece unless sports teams. The Greek parliament has not euros ($A1.08 billion) to protect the world’s is being designed and details will be the Parliament authorises it, he said. made a decision on the matter. largest sporting event, mobilising 45,000 announced at a later stage,” he told “This exercise with the Americans in A senior police official told Reuters: “At personnel - three times the number used at reporters. Greece helps us to have the best possible the moment there is a need for foreign assis- the last summer Olympics in Sydney in Floridis said a nuclear, biological and planning and preparation,” he said, adding tance in matters of intelligence and experts, 2000.. JANUARY 2004 The Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 15/33

HEALTH Smoking: The choice is yours

causes coronary artery disease, strokes and cir- because they have their own guilt about smok- smoker’? Do you light cigarettes without NEWS culatory problems, and can increase your risk ing and this helps them feel better! Others will thinking about it? WITH DR. THEO PENKLIS of cancer, particularly lung cancer. Did you make fun of your efforts for similar reasons! If this occurs, you have a well-practised know that smoking can also cause cancer of Sometimes you may need to avoid these peo- habit! But don’t worry, with hard work you too the throat, mouth, stomach, pancreas and kid- ple for the first few weeks, but alternatively can give up smoking! Keep a diary, writing ney? On the positive side, your risk of devel- you can challenge them to join you! It’s good down every cigarette you smoke over a 24 So, the New Year has arrived and you have oping lung cancer decreases greatly when you to stop smoking with a friend! Some people hour period. This is a good way to begin made that New Year’s resolution to STOP stop smoking! will be very supportive and most will respect breaking your old habit. smoking! Well! It’s not too late... it’s not Smoking can reduce fertility in both men you in the long run when you achieve your In your diary record: easy but it can be done. So reconsider... you and women. Smoking when pregnant is a goal. 1. the time each cigarette is smoked need to be motivated. Now, it’s time! Time great concern. It can cause miscarriage and the So, you don’t really have the willpower! Of 2. your mood at the time to Quit Smoking!!! baby is likely to be born premature or be course you do! Willpower is the will to change 3. the situation you are in underweight. and a measure of the strength of your desire 4. a possible substitute for each cigarette , for and confidence to stop smoking! example, a piece of fruit, a walk, a glass of Smoking: The choice Weigh up the pros When you start to quit, you will get irritable water. is yours and feel sick as the withdrawal symptoms If you are on the telephone and need to do and cons begin in your body as the nicotine starts to dis- something with your hands, doodle on a pad It’s your choice whether to keep smoking or appear. But, all the nicotine will have left your with a pencil. Think about what you can do So, now you know there are good and not- not. Deciding what to do involves weighing up body within three to four days and it takes ten instead of smoking! so-good things about smoking. It’s time for both sides of the matter. You need to consider to twelve days for your body to adjust. Using It is not easy to give up smoking. It requires you to weigh up in your own mind your feel- the good and the not-so-good aspects of smok- nicotine replacements, (such as tablets, patch- hard work. Set your ‘Quit Date’. Prepare ings smoking, and in the process list every- ing to make an informed decision. es, lozenges or gum) increasing your exercise, before you quit! Make small changes in your thing you like about smoking and then every- eating fresh fruit and vegetables and drinking smoking habit. Reduce the number of ciga- thing you dislike about smoking. Spend time plenty of water, can help during this difficult rettes you smoke each day. Smoke only half of The good things considering which side is more important to time. Your body will adjust and this period of each cigarette. Start your first cigarette later in about smoking you in the long term. readjustment is brief. the morning. Each time you feel like a ciga- We all know that you smoke because you Think of the advantages of stopping smok- rette, delay having it. find it enjoyable and you find it relaxing. It Time to quit ing! You will feel like a new person, free of Start making small changes to your smoking goes well with a drink. It peps you up! It helps addiction. You will smell and feel better! The pattern today. After weighing up the pros and cons, you you keep your weight down! It calms your worry of smoking will be off your shoulders! The decision is yours to talk to your doctor may come to the decision to ‘quit’, but you nerves when you’re under pressure or have today! Most doctors are keen to help their may have concerns about quitting. deadlines to meet. Smoking keeps you awake patients stop smoking. I know you are concerned that you have Become a non-smoker when you feel sleepy. tried to quit before and failed. Smoking stops the boredom. It simply gives Well, most people have to attempt to quit Now that you have considered the good and you something to do to pass the time, for The Greek Australian several times before they reach their non- bad things about smoking and understand the example, while you wait for a train or bus. You smoking goal. Treat each setback as a learning advantages of being a non-smoker, your VEMA know smoking helps you think! When you’re experience. Show your friends that you can do options really are clear. There is no argument! trying to figure out a problem or complete a it! It’s time to stop smoking! Your doctor can job, a cigarette can help you get over this hur- For your advertisements I know you’re concerned that you’re moti- help you do it! Talk to your doctor today! To dle. Smoking boosts your confidence. It gives please contact one of our sales vated, but when you are with your friends, and get started, you need a plan! Your doctor will you something to do with your hands when representatives they smoke, they will make you feel like a cig- discuss your nicotine dependence and discuss you might feel a bit socially awkward! on arette as well. Be ready for your friends reac- your smoking pattern and habit. (02) 9559 7022 tions. Think about your smoking! When, where Fax: (02) 9559 7033 The not-so-good things Some will try to undermine your efforts and why you smoke? Are you an ‘automatic E-mail: [email protected] about smoking

You know the not-so-good things about smoking. You know that regular smokers are hooked on their habit! Nicotine is the drug in tobacco that causes the addiction! If you smoke in the first half hour of waking up, your addiction to nicotine may be strong. Smokers often have cravings for a cigarette which increases during stress. Not only do you smoke for pleasure, but you smoke to relieve the cravings; that is you smoke to relieve the unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. Smoking can easily become quite a habit, particularly if it is strongly linked with daily activities such as drinking coffee or alcohol or using the tele- phone. You know smoking reduces your fitness. You can feel breathless when climbing stairs or you are more likely to have chest pain (angina) because of the lower oxygen level. Your breathing may also be affected by the damage to your lungs from the tar in cigarette smoke. You know smoking ages your skin. Smokers develop deep and shallow lines on the cheeks and lower jaw and the face develops gauntness and a yellow colour. You know smoking smells unpleasant. It can also reduce your sense of taste and ability to enjoy food. Smoking can affect other people, often your relatives and friends are not happy about your smoking. Children, asthmatics and allergy sufferers can be badly affected by small amounts of smoke. You know smoking harms your health. It JANUARY 2004 16/34 TO BHMA The Greek Australian VEMA

DID YOU KNOW? Optical fibre was invented in 1966 by two British scientists called Charles Kao and George Hockham working for the British com- Travel pany Standard Telecommunications. Discovering the magic in the heart of Greece Delphi changes under Ottoman rule. From the Hill of monasteries, with their wooden galleries and Profitis Elias one has a marvelous view of the cornice rooftops, crown the summits of these valley below studded with big and small vil- formidable pinnacles. Precariously hanging lages, the river cutting patterns among them. over the sinister abysses, with the Pindus range The churches of Agios Demetrios and Agii at their back and the vast plain, woods, gorges Anargyri complete the Byzantine flavor of the and picturesque villages below, these unworld- town. ly hermitages compose one of the most breath- taking sites on earth. Kalambaka Volos

Episkopi Bridge near Karpenisi Mt Parnassos maple trees). Located in the green prefecture of Fokida, The clear atmosphere, the dry healthy climate, Delphi is the site of the famous Oracle of the plane trees, fir and chestnut forests make Apollo on the slopes of Mt. Parnassos. The Karpenissi an ideal place for winter and sum- magnificent landscape chosen by the ancient mer holidays. Among the town’s most charac- Greeks for their sanctuary, framed by the teristic features are the workshops that pro- Phaedriades rocks (the twin “Shining Rocks” duce handmade brass bells for animals. that tower above the Oracle) with the Gulf of Kalambaka The tinkling of the bells being tested is a pic- Itea gleaming in the background, is truly The Forest of Pelion turesque, melodious welcome. When eating at unique. a Karpenissi taverna, try the feta cheese roast- The sanctuary of Athena, the ruins of the The small town of Kalambaka, at the plain ed in wax paper and the local sausages, and temple of Apollo, the Gymnasium, the Stadi- of Thessaly, is an important stop on the way to Volos is the capital and economic center of before you leave buy some goat butter and um, the ancient theatre, a 4th century BC con- Meteora. It is built at the foot of the majestic the Magnissia prefecture in Thessaly. Thanks cheese, chestnuts and walnuts. struction, and the Castalia Fountain are just gray rocks, at the point where Pinios River to its privileged position at the foot of Mt. You’ll also be impressed by the lovely hand- some of the wonders to admire amidst Del- flows down from the Pindus range. In Kalam- Pelion on the Pagasitic gulf, it is a good base woven fabrics made on traditional looms and phi’s majestic atmosphere. baka one should not miss the cathedral church for enjoying the sea, wooded slopes and green the skillfully carved wooden objects on sale in Don’t miss the museum, which houses the of the Dormition of the Virgin built on a low valleys that surround it. As for the derivation shops. important finds excavated at the site. Among hill. of the word “Volos”, which according to a The church of Agia Triada, the Gorgianades the most impressive are the famous bronze The way from Trikala to Kalambaka is Byzantine historian of the 14th century was and the site of Kefalovrisso are among the statue of the Charioteer, the gold and ivory through small side-roads lead to many villages called “Golos”, there are several theories. The places in the vicinity that are recommended to heads of Apollo and Artemis and the Roman and old monasteries. Best known among these most widely accepted is that it represents a visit. copy of the “Navel of the World”. is Vytouma Monastery, on a picturesque land- corruption of the Mycenaean lolkos. A usual stop for people heading to Delphi is scape near Peristera village at the foot of Mt. Founded in mid 19th century, modern Volos, Nafpaktos Arahova, a mountain town little touched by Koziakas. with 71.000 inhabitants, is a cheerful, lively modern development. At an altitude of 940 town, soundly laid out with pleasant broad meters, its quaint houses are built up the slopes streets. The waterfront is an ideal spot for a of Mt. Parnassos. This is a good place to buy stroll. A modern coastal avenue bustling with hand-woven fabrics, “flokates” (rugs) and col- life, it is lined with pastry shops, cafes and ored shoulder bags, and you shouldn’t miss restaurants. trying the local specialties in one of the town’s From the suburb of Ano Volos, built up the many tavernas. slopes of Pelion, the Pagasitic gulf and the town below take on another dimension. Volos Trikala harbor is particularly active. It is the main export center of Thessaly and the scene of much commercial and passenger traffic bound for the Sporades, the great ports of the Nafpaktos Mediterranean, Syria and other Middle East- ern cities. The third largest town in the Etoloakarnania Karpenissi prefecture, Nafpaktos is famous for the battle that took place off its shores in 1571. The capital of the Evritania prefecture, This market town with its attractive Venet- Karpenissi is located at the foothills of Mt. ian Castle and circular walled harbor will Timfristos, at an altitude of 960 meters. It most delight even the most demanding visitors. probably owes its name to the maple trees that The well preserved citadel, with its series of The Asklepieion at Trikala abounded in the area in the 12th century ramparts winding up to the top of the hill, is (Carpen = maple tree, Carpenis = land of one of the most beautiful in Greece. Meteora Located at the fertile plain of Thessaly in central Greece, modern Trikala is the Homer- ic Trikki. According to tradition Trikki was the Meteora The Impressionists Printing daughter of Pinios. It was also believed that On the western edge of the plain of Thes- Printing & Publishers Trikala was the birthplace of Aesculapius, saly, where Pinios River emerges from the which explains the existence of the oldest deep canyons of the Pindus range, one comes A I M We offer complete print services E T sanctuary to the physician-god, the ruins of upon a unique phenomenon of nature. 24 W O Specialising in which are southwest of the town. This was a gigantic, perpendicular rocks, on which about Artwork & Design kind of medical center, from which the wor- 600 years ago Byzantine monks chose to wor- Stationery & Invitations ship of Aesculapius gradually spread. ship God and built Meteora, their monastic 4 Colour brochures Crowned by its Byzantine castle (The community. ip Fortress), at the top of a wooded hill, built on How the monasteries were built on the top Flyers & Posters the site of the ancient Acropolis, the pic- of these virtually inaccessible rocks is a sub- Menu & Menu Covers turesque city of Trikala lies on St. Nicholas ject of fascination for pilgrims and visitors Booklets Heights, by Litheos river, and is divided into alike. Docket/Invoice books P L E 117100 two by an old aqueduct. These gray stalagmites etched by time into E A S Dicutting & embossing The castle, which is not far from the temple a variety of shapes, rising towards the sky, of Aesculapius, was built in Byzantine times appear as nature’s gift to the pious that have on Hellenistic ruins, and underwent many opted for solitude and a life of worship. The JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 17/35

DID YOU KNOW? Watermelons are 97% water, lettuce 97%, tomatoes 95%, carrots 90%, and Food & Wine bread 30%. With a grain of salt

By Imogen Coward level of paranoia; ‘Should I eat this food? I’ve panicking, throwing out the honey and to eat, is illegal. Not surprisingly the Aus- heard... it will make me fat... it is bad for my gloomily contemplating the possibility that tralian Quarantine and Inspection Service It seems that never before has informa- heart...it is potentially carcinogenic...it may be irreparable damage has been done to your (AQIS) has been instructed to test the import- tion been so freely and easily accessible linked to such and such disease...’ the list goes health it might be useful to conduct a little ed prawns and honey for nitrofurans and any nor as abundant in Australia as it is on. Result? Stress levels rise every time we research of your own. food products found to contain them cannot be today. With the click of button we can look at food and good food is reduced from According to the U.S. Food and Drug sold in Australia. search the internet for information on being enjoyable and nourishing to a guilty Administration (FDA) nitrofuran antibiotics While this sort of research might seem like pleasure. are known to be potentially genotoxic to bac- overkill (it’s only a bit of food!) acquiring everything from where to buy that elu- More significantly, contrary to popular belief teria. That is, they have the capacity to cause information is never boring and certainly sive brand of coffee to consumer level the fact that a report has been published or damage and alterations to genes, DNA and never useless, especially when opinions are food recalls or the environmental broadcast and has entered into public discus- chromosomes. As such they may be regarded divided on a topic. impact of intensive seafood farming. sion is no guarantee that the it is entirely valid as potentially carcinogenic, though for which Just to make it easier to keep up to speed with Even without actively searching cur- or worth following. A little bit of investigating species and following what exposure to the the latest news and food facts FSANZ offers a rent affairs programmes, news bul- on our part as consumers can help bring drug is not revealed. very useful information service via email. It letins, newspapers, magazines, adver- reports into perspective and provide solid rea- Food Standards Australia New Zealand covers everything from nutrition to food tising campaigns and marketing blurbs sons for accepting or rejecting any claims (FSANZ) however, in response to the Today recalls (you choose what topics you’re inter- constantly bombard us with the latest about food. Tonight claims, has stated that although resid- ested in hearing about), it’s free and anyone and supposedly greatest pieces of infor- An example (to pick one from the multitude) ual levels of the nitrofuran furazolidone had can subscribe - click on ‘information service’ mation on the quality of our food and is the recent Australia-wide scare over prawns been found in some imported prawns and at http://www.foodstandards.gov.au and fol- and honey. If you didn’t actually see Channel honey they were still safe to eat. Based on the low the prompts to subscribe. the health benefits and risks associated Seven’s Today Tonight programme (broadcast highest levels found FSANZ commented that Regardless of where stories regarding food- with eating it. on 25 November, 2003) you’ve probably people could consume 1.8kg of contaminated stuffs come from (media, academia ...) before already heard something about it from a friend prawns and 35kg of contaminated honey every checking them out and satisfying ourselves Occasionally we’re treated to a bit of good or relative. If you missed out altogether you day for life and suffer no ill effect from the that they’re worth following any claims and news about food, such as the recent revelation can access a transcript of the report at nitrofurans. Mind you, that amount of prawns advice about food are probably best taken that wine may actually be good for you (in http://www.todaytonight.com.au//stories/ and honey alone would have a pretty devastat- ‘with a grain of salt’. moderate amounts of course). More often 802223.html ing effect on anyone’s health. though, indeed virtually on a daily basis we’re In short, Today Tonight claimed that some Nitrofuran antibiotics are still prescribed by Some useful web-sites for food related issues: presented with a negative outlook - don’t drink imported prawns and honey may have con- doctors to treat some forms of infection in http://www.foodstandards.gov.au (FSANZ), this, it’s potentially carcinogenic, don’t eat tained dangerous antibiotic compounds called humans. According to FSANZ since there is http://www.cfsan.fda.gov (U.S. FDA) that, it contains cholesterol and a million more nitrofurans, veterinary drugs that are currently no residue limit for them in the Food Stan- http://www.efsa.eu.int (European Food Safety don’ts. By and large food is no longer simply banned for use in food-producing animals in dards Code food containing them, while safe Authority). a source of nourishment and enjoyment. Australia. Nitrofurans, Today Tonight report- Instead it has been presented as THE scientif- ed, were potentially cancer causing. Heeding ic key to longevity. the warning, many consumers attempted to While the human brain is adept at storing return their honey to the grocery stores vowing every piece of information it encounters, to to eat local produce in future. simply swallow every report we’re spoon-fed While it’s often best to eat local produce any- Wine Review about our food (all puns intended) is not nec- way (it’s usually fresher, better quality and By Imogen Coward essarily a good idea. To do so invites a certain you’re supporting Australian farmers), before Kay’s Amery Vineyards cherries. A hint of acidity gives this wine a McLaren Vale Merlot, 2000 refreshing edge. Serve at room temperature. Recipes Cost: under $30 One of Australia’s PSEFTOKEFTEDES (greens) are often used instead of tomatoes. smaller wineries Follow instructions above, using 1-1/2 cups the 2000 merlot is SANTORINI boiled, well-drained, chopped spinach, or the third they’ve History of Food any other greens. produced. This By Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat, What’s needed: wine is full bodied translated by Anthea Bell 1 1/4 c peeled, chopped plum tomato PSARI PLAKI with a deep red (Blackwell) 1/2 c finely chopped scallions colour and berry- 1garlic clove finely chopped STO FOURNO ish aromas. The 1 tb freshly chopped parsley (BAKED FISH) flavour of ripe 1/2 ts oregano cherries with a hint 1/4 ts cinnamon What’s needed: of sourness and 1 t fresh mint (heaping measure) 3 pounds fish cut up (or whole) wood is balanced Salt Salt & pepper to taste by subtle tannins Freshly ground black pepper 1lemon and clean, crisp 1c all-purpose flour 1 1/3 cups oil acidity. Served at room temperature, it is a 1t double-acting baking powder 1 1/2 pounds onions good accompaniment to fine, flavoursome Olive oil for frying 1/2 cup parsley chopped red meat dishes. 1 head of garlic chopped In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, scal- 1/2 cup white wine Cost: under $30 lions, garlic, herbs, and spices. Add flour and 1 1/2 pounds tomatoes, peeled strained or baking powder and mix together so that all 1 tablespoon tomato paste + 2 c. water ingredients are well blended and have the Pizzini Sangiovese, 2002 consistency of a thick batter (about as thick Clean and wash fish; season with salt & as pancake batter). pepper, squeeze the juice of the lemon over Produced in the In a large heavy skillet, heat enough olive it, and let it stand for 1 hour. Clean onions- King Valley this red Presented as a reference book on the history oil for frying. Taking a heaping tablespoon at slice thinly; rinse with cold water. Pour 1/2 of wine has a vibrant of food from collecting honey to the rela- a time, drop butter into hot oil and fry until the oil into a pan. garnet colour and a tionship between coffee and politics, it also golden brown and crisp. Spread onions in bottom; sprinkle with pleasant bouquet of contains extensive chapters on the history of Remove at once with a slotted spoon and half the parsley and half the garlic. spice and berry grapes and wine making. Useful, interesting drain on paper towels. Serve hot. Lay fish on this and sprinkle with fruits. Soft tannins and well written, this book is sure to be liked remaining parsley and garlic; pour the and a hint of sweet- by anyone with an interest in food, wine or Yield: about 3 dozen remaining oil over all, then the wine and ness combine with history in general. tomatoes (or diluted paste). Bake in preheat- flavours of blood NOTE: In other islands, spinach or 'horta' ed 350 F. oven for 30 min. plums and sour Cost: around $50 JANUARY 2004 18/36 TO BHMA Greek Australian VEMA Towards Athens 2004

Olympic Games website refurbished Special historical publication Since December 19, 2003, the new and completely refurbished ATHENS 2004 Olympic Games Website has gone online (www.athens2004.gr). for the 2004 Olympic Games For the first time in the four years of throughout the website, and the A special publication for the 2004 Olympic Sports”. its existence and for the first time in the "Olympic Firsts" feature area, where Games was launched last month at the ATHENS THOMAS GIANNAKIS: “The whole book is history of the Olympic Games the offi- users can be informed about all the fas- 2004 Conference Centre. The publication origi- flawless and complete. It is a rich historical thesis cial Olympic and Paralympic Games cinating facts that have taken place for nates from the Press and Media Office of ATHENS on sport. The authors provide historical data objec- website follows the look and feel of the the first time in the preparations for the 2004 Organising Committee and its editors are tively, and analyse them with sobriety, as befits a ATHENS 2004 Games. ATHENS 2004 Olympic and Para- journalists Petros Linardos, Zisis Karavas and Yan- piece of academic work. They venture on interest- In this new website the breakdown of lympic Games. nis Tzoustas. It is entitled ‘The Olympic Sports, ing judgments and comparisons, and explore fields information is utilised to achieve even Other points worth mentioning are the and Great Figures of the Games – from Ancient as they appear in an international perspective. The greater functionality and ease of use in availability of all website information in Olympia to ATHENS 2004”. bibliography is authentic and specialized without page browsing. three languages (Greek, English, This useful 300-page book is richly illustrated being excessive”. The use of special "Index Pages" has French), the hourly updates, the com- and contains a unique combination of descriptions IOANNIS THEODORAKOPOULOS: “What I been adopted, where the main informa- prehensive Athens city guide and the of sporting celebrities, rules and regulations, picto- liked most about this book is that it offers compar- tion of each section is presented in a special area dedicated to young audi- rial material, and the history of developments in all isons through the ages. It tells us what the Olympic comprehensive and cohesive way. ences. twenty-eight Olympic Sports. There are also statis- Games were like 2500 years ago, what they were Internal "advertising" is also heavily All the above are supported by a state tics and anecdotes from the years of the first mod- like at the beginning and after, in what conditions used to promote areas of the website of the art technical infrastructure which ern Olympic Games, about key people and events the athletes competed and in what environment the with relative content. Important infor- assures the continuous functionality of in its revival in 1896. Games took place. Then we come to today, where mation is as always only two clicks the official website. Before and during Dozens of representatives from the worlds of we can with hindsight compare the pros and cons. away. Promotional areas are also used to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, journalism, sport and culture were present at the Congratulations to our colleagues and sports edi- inform users of various facts of general the official ATHENS 2004 website is launch, which was also attended by ATHENS 2004 tors”. interest, for example the "Interesting going to be the most up to date and Press & Media General Manager Serafim Kotrot- GIORGOS MAVROTAS: “The book has been facts" feature area that can be seen accurate source of information. sos; Greek Press Association President Ioannis with me for only a very short time. I received it yes- Theodorakopoulos; Professor Thomas Giannakis, terday and I promised to look at it before coming Phevos and Athena turned up at Athens Airport Professor of History and Sport at the Athens here today. I was intending to browse through it for Department of Physical Education and Sports Sci- ten minutes. But the ten minutes turned into two to wish A Merry Christmas ence; and Giorgos Mavrotas, for many years for- hours, because I kept on discovering things and I merly captain of the National Water Polo Team and was soon hooked. You can really find everything in now Lector in the Chemical Engineering School at the book - from the first Olympic Games through the Athens Polytechnic School. Roman times to the present day. I suggest that The book was described as filling a significant juniors participating in the Olympic Games in gap in the literature. The authors were praised for August 2004 should also put a book of this sort in the richness of their material, the text, and the their bag together with their other sports material”. exceptional illustrations in all three chapters of the PETROS LINARDOS: “With my 55 years in book. There were the following comments: journalism, I feel proud and happy to have seen this SERAFIM KOTROTSOS: ‘The Olympic writing partnership that has tried to break through Sports, and Great Figures of the Games, from the so-called generation gap. When there is a com- Ancient Olympia to ATHENS 2004’ is more than mon goal, what does a difference of thirty years an encyclopedia of the Olympic Games, it is a most matter?” worthy undertaking, a guide that familiarises us ZISIS KARAVAS: “It was a very difficult and with the Olympic Sports through a presentation of exacting task. We did the best we could to present the main rules and the history of the Sport. It is a all this by paying attention to detail”. publication that is complete in terms of images, YANNIS TZOUSTAS: “I think that what we tried journalism, and research, and it will help everyone to do in this book was to give an introduction to the in their work and in getting to know the Olympic magic of the Olympic Games”.

Travellers at Athens' award-winning Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport were greeted during this past Christmas week by 2004 Games mascots ‘Phevos' Ronaldo wants Olympic gold and ‘Athena' in front of the official Olympic Store in the departures concourse. Real Madrid's Brazilian superstar Ronaldo has A Christmas surprise with the 2004 Olympic Games mascots, Phevos and admitted his new year won't be complete without Athena, was organised at the Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos by having the chance to win the Olympic gold medal the ATHENS 2004 Licensing Department. in Athens next summer. In front of the Olympic Store, at the airport departure hall, Phevos and Athena Ronaldo, who was the hero for Brazil in last greeted their younger and older friends, who were going on holiday, and any other year's World Cup finals in Asia where he scored airport visitors who happened to be doing their last-minute shopping at the Olympic two goals in the final over Germany, said he Store. wants to make himself available for selection to Olympic team coach Ricardo Gomes. Greek organisers announce timetables "I'm going to be a fan while waiting for the pre- Olympic team to win its ticket (in the qualifying for preparations in first half of 2004 tournament being held in Chile). Then I would like to make myself available for selection to Athens 2004 Olympic organisers (ATHOC) unveiled late last month timetables Gomes for the Olympic Games," Ronaldo told O for a variety of actions and sectors ahead of the upcoming Olympic Games in Globo newspaper. August, especially in terms of managing personnel, volunteers, security and trans- The 27-year-old striker's interest is understand- ports, among others. able given his contribution to Brazil's two World Plans include the transfer of venue management teams to the actual competition Cup victories in the past decade (1994, 2002). venues (by May 2004) as well as cooperation between various agencies in the However, it seems mainly to stem from from greater public sector and local governments with ATHOC’s centralised main oper- the unfinished business of Atlanta in 1996 - when ations center. Brazil could only walk away from the tournament Other initiatives, expectedly, include the completion of equipment deliveries to with the bronze medal. venues and other related facilities, the placement of signs around the city indicat- Ronaldo had been given special permission by ing venues and accommodations, installation of all-important security systems etc. his former club, Dutch side PSV Eindhoven, to - in the final A comprehensive security exercise, meanwhile, is scheduled for May. attend the 1996 Olympics. Only three players over the age of 23 are ATHOC’s paid staff at present stands at 2,200 people, with 3,750 envisioned in However, Brazil had to settle for third place as allowed to take part in Olympic football teams, May and up to 6,500 by August. Nigeria beat Argentina to the gold medal. and two other Brazilians - Real Madrid's Roberto Finally, a press accreditation centre will begin operation in two phases, collect- Nigeria had surprised Brazil in the semi-final Carlos and AC Milan midfielder Kaka - have also ing data and requests as of February, followed by the actual distribution of accred- with a golden goal winner before going on to beat expressed Athens Olympics aspirations. itations and vests in May. Argentina - another South American powerhouse AFP JANUARY 2004 Greek Australian VEMA TO BHMA 19/37

DID YOU KNOW? In 1975 Junko Tabei from Japan became the first woman to reach the Sports top of Everest. Olympic runners get their shows on the road

Olympic front-runners Paris launched datesbut we wish the nine cities good luck and bers acknowledge they were hurt by the per- Paris says it is spending around $US25 million their bid for the 2012 Summer Games with a fair competition.” ceived arrogance of the French who were too ($A32.53 million) on its bid and the estimated a glitzy ceremony at the Eiffel Tower. Already London, New York and Paris have confident their business plan would win the cost for the Games is $US6.9 billion ($A8.98 received warning letters. day in Moscow in 2001 and forgot to go out billion). Second favourites London got their cam- British Prime Minister Tony Blair angered amongst the 125 IOC members and press London’s plans are centred on a regenera- paign off at the Royal Opera House at Covent the IOC ethics commission, set up to monitor flesh. tion scheme for a rundown area in east Lon- Garden after the nine cities vying for the right bidding campaigns following ther 2002 Salt Paris finished behind Beijing, Toronto and don but its bid is hampered by the relatively to host the 2012 Olympics met yesterday’s Lake City cash-for-votes scandal, when he Istanbul in the first round of voting and poor state of the city’s transport. midnight deadline. mentioned London’s bid at a meeting of Com- improved only by one place, ahead of Istanbul, Part of the strategy to strengthen its achilles Paris, London, New York, Moscow, Madrid, monwealth heads in Nigeria late last year. in the second round which clinched the issue heel is to offer a compact Olympiad with the Rio de Janeiro, Leipzig, Havana and Istanbul Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe upset the for Beijing. vast majority of venues within 15 minutes of make up the biggest field of Olympic candi- commission by claiming that Paris and the However, Paris was also fighting a near the athletes village. dates after the 1997 vote for the 2004 Games French government were more united over the impossible battle against Beijing and outgoing London estimates the Games will cost when 10 cities went into the ring against even- Paris bid than London mayor Ken Livingstone IOC president Juan-Antonio Samaranch’s $US4.2 billion ($A5.47 billion). tual winners Athens. and the Blair government were over London. determination to give China the Games before New York is also planning to build its France was then represented by Lille, Rus- The IOC’s executive board could draw up he stepped down. Olympic stadium as part of a major transfor- sia by St Petersburg and Spain by Seville. a short list at its May 18 meeting in Lausanne. “We faced a redoubtable opponent to whom mation of what is a rundown area in the Far Istanbul and Rio de Janeiro were also compet- However, Rogge has several times insisted the the IOC wanted to offer the Games for geopo- West Side. ing. In fact, this is the fourth Olympics in a nine are so strong that all of them could be in litical reasons,” said then Paris bid chief New York is hoping its reputation as a melt- row Istanbul has bid for. the final vote by the 125 IOC members at Sin- Claude Bebear. ing pot which welcomes foreigners and its “We’re delighted by this show of interest,” gapore on July 6 2005. Samaranch also frustrated Paris when it bid tourist attraction will convince IOC members. said IOC president Jacques Rogge. Paris was humiliated in its bid for the 2008 to stage the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, losing But it must address the problems of traffic “There’s a long haul ahead for the candi- Olympics. The current bid committee mem- out to the Catalan’s hometown of Barcelona. congestion, security issues in wake of the Sep- But the French scored a major win over Eng- tember 11 terror attacks and massive construc- land last year when they won the right to stage tion projects. the 2007 Rugby World Cup. Its Games budget is $US2.699 billion Woodbridge makes Paris, which successfully staged the 1998 ($A3.51 billion) with capital costs for World Cup soccer tournament, will centre its improvements set at $US924 million ($A1.2 bid around the 80,000 capacity Stade de billion). history in Sydney France, the Roland-Garros tennis stadium and Paris (1900, 1924), London (1908, 1948) the Longchamps racecourse. Yachting will be and Moscow (1980) have already organised Australia’s Todd Woodbridge has Hewitt pleased held at the Atlantic port of La Rochelle. the Games. The Moscow Games were hit by a become the most successful doubles play- with Open build-up Fourteen of the 32 stadiums needed for the US-led boycott over the Soviet Union’s inva- er in tennis history after claiming his Games are already built and bid committee sion of Afghanistan in 1979. director Essar Gabriel has promised there will All the bidding cities have been invited to 79th championship at the Sydney Inter- Lleyton Hewitt says he is pleased with his national. be no white elephants which will be left to rust send observer teams to this year’s Olympics in form ahead of the Australian Open, despite once the Games are over. Athens in August. AFP seeing his last two matches at the Sydney Woodbridge and Sweden’s Jonas Bjorkman International cut short after his opponents beat American twins Bob and Mike Bryan 7- pulled out. 6 (7-3), 7-5 to send the 32-year-old Australian Hewitt claimed his third Sydney title when clear of Dutchman Tom Okker’s previous all- fellow finalist Carlos Moya was forced to quit time record mark of 78 titles. in the eighth game of the first set after sprain- The glory at the end belonged to Wood- ing his right ankle. bridge, who did not drop a single point as he Hewitt’s semi-final against Martin Verkerk served out the final game to clinch the match had lasted just one set when Verkerk retired in front of his home crowd. complaing of a stomach bug. CongratulationsCongratulations to: to: But Woodbridge and Bjorkman had survi- But Hewitt said the two walkovers could ved a nervous game earlier, with the Swede help keep him fresh for the Open campaign. Irine Tsimiklis – Dux of College pushed to break point, then producing an ace “It could be perfect in one way that I’ve had * Irini Tsimiklis - Dux of College to level the set 5-5. to go out there, and had to prepare and warm- After the match an emotional Woodbridge up and do everything in match conditions, but * Callie Kalimniou (Saturday School) - 50/50 for Greek paid tribute to the Sydney crowd. Callie Kalimniou (Saturday School) – 50/50 I haven’t actually had to use that full energy,” * The VCEfor class Greek of 2003 - 100% pass rate “[This is] a pretty special honour for me,” he reasoned. he told Channel Seven. “I was pretty nervous about today, I played very well, I’m pretty happy. The fact that this was in Sydney, where my tennis dreams start- ed, I grew up, I played all my early stuff - it couldn’t have been a better script for us. “To surpass the record here in my home town is just magnificient.” Woodbridge says he has no plans to retire, pleasing his playing partner Bjorkman. St John’s Greek Orthodox College “I think it’s possible for another two years because the way he’s been hitting the ball from Celebrates its Silver Jubilee. the start of this year it hasn’t been that good for the last two years,” Bjorkman said. 25 Years of Greek Orthodox Woodbridge and Bjorkman have now claimed Schooling in Australia 12 doubles titles together. Woodbridge also won 61 titles with now- retired Australian partner Mark Woodforde. Help us celebrate at our Reunion Barbeque Woodbridge has won 21 Grand Slam doubles on Sunday 22nd February 2004 crowns. between 12noon and 5.00pm Okker’s 78-game record had stood since 1968. The all-time Open era doubles titles Please book: 21 Railway Place West, Preston 3072 leaders are: Phone: 9480 5300 Fax: 9480 4314 E-mail: [email protected] 1. Todd Woodbridge (AUS) 79 2. Tom Okker (NED) 78 3. John McEnroe (USA) 77 4. Frew McMillan (RSA) 74 VÉÅÅ|ààxw àÉ tv{|xä|Çz ÉâÜ áàâwxÇàá ÑÉàxÇà|tÄ 5. Mark Woodforde (AUS) 67 Woodbridge makes SPORTS history The Greek Australian VEMA in Sydney PAGE 19/37

YEAR IN REVIEW 2003: A vintage year in sport

January Bourne, 47, dies in a New Zealand hospital, July 27: Lance Armstrong wins his fifth October 12: Greg Murphy and Todd Kelly after his family decided to turn of the life straight Tour de France. in their Commodore lead virtually from start January 3: Steve Waugh smacks a century support system following a road accident. August to finish to win the Bathurst 1000 round of off the last ball of the day on day two of the the V8 Supercars series. fifth and final Ashes Test against England at May August 11: Shane Warne spins himself into October 26: Canadian Paul Tracy seals the the SCG. more trouble with claims from a South Champ Car championship after title rival January 7: Australian goalkeeper Mark May 6: Sprinter Patrick Johnson dashes into African woman that he harassed her with a Bruno Junqueira crashes out in the hail- Bosnich is sacked by English club side Australian sporting history with a sub-10 barrage of “disgusting” mobile phone text affected Indy 300 on the Gold Coast. Chelsea after testing positive for cocaine. second run in Japan. Johnson’s time of 9.93 messages. American rookie Ryan Hunter-Reay wins January 10: After months of speculation, is the 17th fastest in history and the fastest in August 18: American Shaun Micheel, 34, the action-packed race. Australian tennis great Pat Rafter finally the world this year. becomes the fourth first time major winner announces his retirement. May 6: Australia loses the final match of the of the year with a two-shot victory in the US November January 26: Andre Agassi captures his four-Test series against the West Indies in PGA Championship in New York. fourth Australian Open title in Melbourne Antigua. August 23: Richmond legend Jack ‘Captain November 4: Jockey Glen Boss rides the with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-1 win over Rainer Blood’ Dyer passes away at the age of 89 David-Hall trained Makybe Diva to victory Schuettler. Serena Williams beats sister June after developing pneumonia. in the $4.6 million Melbourne Cup at Venus to the women’s title. August 25: Hosts the Netherlands defeat Flemington racecourse. June 7: Bali bombings survivor Jason Australia 4-2 to retain field hockey’s November 15: The Wallabies pull off one of February McCartney makes one of the most amazing Champions Trophy in Amstelveen. the biggest upsets in rugby history as they comebacks in AFL history when the August 29: Jana Pittman confirms her status romp past the All Blacks 22-10 to qualify for February 13: Socceroos pin-up Harry Kangaroos face Richmond. as the new darling of Australian athletics the World Cup final. Kewell scores one goal and creates the rest June 8: Justin Henin-Hardenne gives with gold in the 400 metres hurdles at the November 22: England becomes the first as Australia inflicts a humbling 3-1 defeat on Belgium its first grand slam with a 7-5, 6-1 World Championships in Paris. northern hemisphere nation to claim the England’s highly-paid soccer stars at victory over compatriot Kim Clijsters in the Rugby World Cup after a thrilling 20-17 bat- London’s Upton Park. French Open final. Juan Carlos Ferrero is September tle with Australia in Sydney. February 26: Leg spinner Shane Warne crowned the king of clay with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 November 23: The injury-hit Kangaroos starts serving a one-year ban after cricket demolition of Dutchman Martin Verkerk in September 3: Anthony ‘the Man’ Mundine complete a clean sweep of their Ashes rugby bosses are unimpressed by his excuse that he the men’s final. silences his critics with an unanimous points league series against Great Britain with an only took a banned diuretic at the insistence June 16: American golfer Jim Furyk holds decision over American Antwun Echols in 18-12 come-from-behind victory in the third of his mother. off Australia’s Stephen Leaney to claim the their WBA super middleweight title fight in Test in Huddersfield. US Open title in Chicago and his first major Sydney. November 30: Mark Philippoussis powers March victory. September 8: American Andy Roddick Australia to a 3-1 victory over Spain in the June 18: Manchester United star David breaks through for his first Grand Slam title Davis Cup final in Melbourne. March 2: Swiss challenger Alinghi takes out Beckham ends months of speculation by with a convincing 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 victory over November 30: Ford driver Marcos Ambrose the America’s Cup - and the Auld Mug is on announcing his transfer to Spanish giants Juan Carlos Ferrero in the final of the US is crowned V8 Supercar championship win- its way to Europe for the first time in its 152- Real Madrid. Open. ner for 2003 after winning the final round at year history. June 23: Lleyton Hewitt’s world number September 15: Australia’s Lauren Jackson Eastern Creek - his first ever title win. March 4: South Sydney coach Craig one crown starts to slip with a shock loss to becomes the first international basketballer Coleman is unceremoniously dumped after Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic in the first round at to win the American women’s National December the hapless Rabbitohs plunge to a 58-12 pre- Wimbledon. Basketball Association’s Most Valuable season defeat at the hands of the Wests Player award. December 1: Australian rugby league coach Tigers. July September 22: For the first time in 73 years Chris Anderson is handed his marching March 9: Lantern-jawed Scottish Formula the AFL’s best and fairest award, the orders after a tumultuous two years at the One ace David Coulthard snatches the hon- July 7: Roger Federer defeats Mark Brownlow Medal ends in a three-way tie helm of Cronulla Sharks. ours in the Australian Grand Prix. Philippoussis in straight sets to win the with Sydney’s Adam Goodes, Colling- December 7: The Australian women’s hock- March 15: After missing selection for the Wimbledon crown and his first Grand Slam wood’s Nathan Buckley and Adelaide’s ey team won the Champions Trophy at home 2003 World Cup, Steve Waugh bounces title. Mark Ricciuto taking out the honour. with a thrilling 3-2 win over China in back to lead New South Wales to victory in July 8: Collingwood legend Bob Rose dies September 23: The Brisbane Lions roar into Sydney, giving the Hockeyroos their first both the four-day and one-day domestic of cancer at the age of 74. football history with their third straight AFL major championship since the Sydney cricket competitions. July 16: Queensland turns in a barnstorming premiership crown following a 50-point Olympics in 2000. March 23: Ricky Ponting smacks 140 from performance to grab a 36-6 win and rescue thumping of last year’s beaten finalists December 7: Peter Robertson and Emma 121 balls as Australia crushes India to claim some pride - but not the series - in the third Collingwood at the MCG. Snowsill made it a red-letter day for the Cricket World Cup. Australia amasses 2 and final State of Origin battle at Lang Park Australian triathletes, taking out the men’s for 359 before skittling the Indians out for in Brisbane. October and women’s world championships at 234. July 16: Australia’s golden girl Cathy Queenstown in New Zealand. As an added Freeman announces her retirement from the October 5: Overwhelming underdogs the bonus, fellow Australian Michellie Jones April track in London with three words: “This is Penrith Panthers surprise everyone but them- took the bronze in the women’s race. it.” selves by capturing the 2003 NRL premier- December 7: Local Robert Allenby wins April 6: Australia defeats Sweden 5-0 in July 21: New Zealand is hailed netball ship with an impressive 18-6 victory over Australia’s first golf tournament of the sum- Davis Cup quarter-final. champion of the world after defeating defending premiers the Sydney Roosters. mer, the prestigious Australian Masters. April 10: Canadian Mike Weir struck a blow Australia 49-47 in the final in Jamaica. October 10: Australian opening batsman December 8: A task force recommended for all lefties when he won his first golf July 21: Little known American golfer Ben Matthew Hayden continues his awesome sweeping changes to domestic soccer, major, the US Masters. Curtis wins the British Open after narrowly 2003 form smashing Zimbabwe’s attack to including scrapping the National Soccer April 19: Japanese Moto GP ace Daijiro qualifying for the event. all parts of the WACA ground in setting a League and starting again from scratch with Kato dies in hospital after failing to recover July 26: American teenager Michael Phelps new world record Test score of 380. well-funded clubs in a well-marketed league. from injuries sustained in the Japan Grand breaks his own 200 metre individual medley October 10: Australia beats Argentina 24-8 December 14: Queenslander Peter Senior Prix on April 6. world record less than an hour after setting a in the opening match of the Rugby World takes out the Australian PGA golf tourna- April 29: New Zealand rally driver Possum new mark in the 100m butterfly semi-finals. Cup. ment on the Sunshine Coast.