Three weeks short of its 1st anniversary, the Thessaloniki Metro has shut down. Is there anything worse than having a benefit withdrawn, even if temporarily? Apparently, it should last for around 30 days while the extension to Kalamaria is being completed. Also, they are bringing in new rolling stock. The idea is for passengers to... Continue Reading →
25/021 Greek Word – πεσκέσι – a gift
One more Turkish loanword. If used correctly, it means specifically a gift of food or drink. According to Babiniotis, its second meaning is τυχαίο απόκτημα as in “μαζί με την προαγωγή του ’ρθε πεσκέσι και ο πρώτος λαχνός στο λαχείο.” As well as getting promoted, he also won first prize in the lottery. Here it... Continue Reading →
25/020 Greek Word – σκρατς
Seen on TV last night in an ΟΠΑΠ advert. Again, an unnecessary borrowing as there are at least two words in common use, ξύνω and γρατζουνίζω. The call to war was originally ξύστο (scratch it) but it has recently changed to σκρατς (as in the picture). Greek dictionaries haven’t caught up with the word yet.... Continue Reading →
25/016 Life in Northern Greece – Feast and Femicide
26th October. The feast of St. Demetrius and the 113th anniversary of the retaking of Thessaloniki from the Turks. It’s not a national holiday but it is a quasi-public holiday in our co-capital. As today is a Sunday, the schools are closed tomorrow, and again on Tuesday for Greece’s second National Day, Όχι Μέρα. In... Continue Reading →
25/011 Irish Music in Northern Greece
29th September 2025. The search for a session home continues. If we don’t find anything suitable by the end of the year, I will admit defeat. Although we had a very enjoyable session last Sunday at my place, I don’t think a house session is a sustainable option in the 21st century. We need a... Continue Reading →
25/015 Life in Northern Greece – Family mobilisation
As reported in 25/019 Greek Word, my nephew has been offered a place in a School of Medicine here in Greece. Getting his transcripts from the UK was one problem; Getting everything translated, signed, sealed and delivered was another. At a time like this, who ya gonna call? Nepobusters or, maybe Mesobusters, the web of... Continue Reading →
25/019 Greek Word – γαμίδι – a source of annoyance.
As I have said previously, when you’re with young people you pick up new words, with νέρντουλας, κιούσπα and γαμίδι all being heard in one afternoon. My nephew finished his schooling in England. He has been offered a place in a School of Medicine in Greece. As usual with life here, everything was last-minute and... Continue Reading →
25/018 Greek Word – κιούσπα – an unattractive woman
When you are in the company of young people you are often exposed to new expressions. Κιούσπα was one I heard last weekend. In the context, it meant an unattractive woman. www.slang.gr says it’s chiefly used in Northern Greece in two contexts: 1) the aforementioned, and 2) bad quality heroin or marijuana. Κιούσπα also means... Continue Reading →
25/017 Greek Word – μπαφιάζω – to have had enough of something.
When my mother-in-law was asked if she was ready to leave the village and return to Thessaloniki, she said yes and added “Μπάφιασα” – I’ve had enough. It’s a synonym of μπουχτίζω, and both are more often heard in the past tense. Μπαφιάζω can mean that your μπάφιασμα is due to anything from boredom to... Continue Reading →
25/016 Greek Word – νέρντουλας
One of the books I read when I was doing my teaching diploma was Jean Aitchison’s Language Change: Progress or Decay? While Linguistic conservatives tend to decry any borrowing, I tend to sympathise with them only when there already exists a word in the home language. However, some of the “native” words are often made-up... Continue Reading →
25/014 Life in Northern Greece – Autumn is here and femicide continues.
The temperature has dropped and it’s raining. I think we can kiss summer goodbye. The one-a-month femicide average is not abating. Earlier this month in our fair city, a brother strangled his older half-sister with a supermarket plastic bag. I say ‘strangled’ and not ‘suffocated’ because he did not put the bag over the victim’s... Continue Reading →
25/015 Greek Word – τσαλαπετεινός
A new addition to the domestic insult list. As I emerged from the bedroom this morning, the woman of the house took one look at my hair and called me a τσαλαπετεινός, the Eurasian hoopoe. At least, the insults are getting more exotic. A combination of τσαλί (çalı in Turkish, a kind of dry grass used... Continue Reading →
25/013 Life in Northern Greece – In the land of Pyrrhus
A complete change of scene. Every summer we take the mother-in-law to her native village. In recent years, due to her age, she has been spending less and less time there, but this year she stayed for seven weeks. It is literally at the end of the road, a stone’s throw from Albania. From the... Continue Reading →
25/014 Greek Word – παστρικιά – a whore or prostitute
An unusual one. How does one get from παστρικός (scrupulously clean) to παστρικιά? πάστρα = καθαριότητα. Παστρεύω = to clean, especially with a brush made of a tough reed or grass called σπάρτο (esparto grass?). OK, we’re still miles away from whore. Παστρικός, as we have said, means very clean. By the nature of their... Continue Reading →
25/013 Greek Word – καλλωπίζω – to spruce up, to beautify
Aimed at me, and not as a compliment. A few days ago before going for a shower, I decided to trim the beard and treat my face to L’Oreal Men Expert Deep Exfoliating Wash Anti-Blocked Pores plus L’Oreal Men Expert Black Charcoal Wash Multi-Action Purifier. OK, I overdid it. With the charcoal I looked like... Continue Reading →
25/012 Greek Word – Ανωτέρα Βία – unforeseen circumstances
Note the stress is on the third syllable. My bilingual dictionaries translate it as “Act of God” and/or “force majeure”. Babiniotis reduces the drama by giving the first definition thus: “ο παράγοντας (συνήθ απρόβλεπτος) που προβάλλει ανυπέρβλητα εμπόδια, ανατρέπει σχέδια, προγράμματα…” In other words, “unforeseen circumstances”. I knew the Act of God meaning, so I... Continue Reading →
25/012 Life in Northern Greece – Femicide
In my last post, I suggested a bar (actually a CAFÉ-ΟΥΖΕΡΙ) called Το Κάστρο might no longer host Greek musicians playing Greek music. I stopped there this morning to ask. My suspicions were correct. I sometimes address the issue of spousal abuse here in Greece. Unfortunately, I have two more to report. The more recent... Continue Reading →
25/010 Irish Music in Northern Greece: Revival?
Harat’s has contacted us. We have been invited back to do monthly gigs from September onwards. This has come as an unexpected and pleasant surprise. No mention of sessions, however. There will be complications regarding pay and social insurance, which might make playing a non-starter. So far nobody has come up with a working solution... Continue Reading →
25/011 Life in Northern Greece – Overtourism
The UN's World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) defines overtourism as “the impact of tourism on a destination that negatively affects the quality of life for residents or visitors. This impact can be environmental, economic, or sociocultural, and it's often characterized by overcrowding and strain on resources.” Let’s look at the adjectives more closely with reference to... Continue Reading →
25/010 Life in Northern Greece – Licence to be killed
Well, it arrived – eventually. I received a call to tell me if I could submit my UK licence by Wednesday, July 16th, I would receive my Greek driving licence on 17th. Trouble was it was already 16th July and I was 120km away in Halkidiki. I wanted to get it over and done with,... Continue Reading →