τσίκνα – (tsikna). Today, Thursday 20th February 2020, is Τσικνοπέμπτη (Tsiknopempti). Τσίκνα is the smoky smell that comes from meat roasting on a grill, so today is Smoky Thursday or Barbecue Thursday, and in towns all over Greece you will see plenty of activity around barbecues. The Orthodox Church does not have Ash Wednesday or Shrove Tuesday. Instead, the beginning of Lent is marked by Clean Monday and, in preparation for fasting, Tsiknopempti takes place eleven days before Clean Monday (unlike Shrove Tuesday which falls on the day before Ash Wednesday in Western Christianity). Clean Monday this year is on 2nd March and it is a public holiday. Here is an article from Greek Reporter giving more information on the tradition: https://greece.greekreporter.com/2020/02/20/meat-eaters-delight-as-greece-celebrates-tsiknopempti/