DIMITRIS RIGOPOULOS

Us, them and the media

Almost a month ago, when Turkey’s MetroPoll published a survey on how the Turkish public views Greece, many Greeks were surprised.

The shantytowns of the 1920s that grew into a city

Patrons of the Zefyros open-air cinema and the classic family taverna Oikonomou in Petralona may have trouble imagining that until the early 1960s, this part of the hip Athenian neighborhood was the shantytown depicted in the emblematic drama “Synoikia to Oneiro” (“A Neighborhood Named The Dream”), directed by and starring Alekos […]

25.09.2022 / 19:15

Athens poised for an autumnal revival

As we head into the first fall that looks like it will remind us of the last before the pandemic, the lights are back on in Athens, the temperature has dropped all of a sudden (thankfully, it is forecast to go back up) and people are inevitably returning to their “winter” habits.

16.09.2022 / 21:15

The last 20th century icon of Greek beauty

Greece is mourning the loss of its last truly international actress of stage and screen. Irene Papas died at the age of 96 on Wednesday at her home in the downtown Athens district of Plaka after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s.

31.05.2022 / 22:04

Laying claim to our city

Greek social media were on fire over the past weekend with photographs and comments from an expansive digital art exhibition organized by the Onassis Foundation at downtown Athens’ Pedion tou Areos park.

30.03.2022 / 13:44

How many ‘private islands’ can we take?

The recent modification of a joint ministerial decision regarding the areas designated for urban development on the site of the former Athens airport at Elliniko on the capital’s southern coast naturally caused controversy.

02.07.2021 / 16:10

Elliniko versus the city

As the Elliniko development on Athens’ southern coast gets on the road toward its implementation and more and more details come to light, the magnitude of this colossal endeavor is starting to become apparent.

25.06.2020 / 18:26

The drought after To Potami ran dry

There’s more to be read into the contentious TV advertisement released by SYRIZA last week than even the creators themselves would probably like.

14.05.2020 / 19:48

A post-lockdown opportunity to revamp Athens

As we wait for Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis to reveal the details of his plan to revamp the city center, including the creation of an extensive pedestrian network, the recent overhaul of Omonia Square appears to be but a small taste of what’s to come – an appetizer, let’s say.

10.05.2020 / 14:45

A return, yes, but to what?

I understand (and have full respect for) those among us who want to return to where we were in late February, for reasons that have to do with their economic survival and that of their families. However, I am less certain about the rest of us: What exactly is it that we are so anxious to return to?

13.04.2020 / 16:05

Squaring the circle

People will most certainly love the revamped Omonia Square at the heart of Athens.

24.01.2020 / 12:10

The return of Omonia Square

Despite the extreme secrecy that has surrounded the redevelopment of Omonia Square in downtown Athens, it seems that what we will see in the end will have little to do with what the previous municipal authority had announced.

05.12.2019 / 18:45

Smoking ban: The first battle has been won

Every family has an eccentric uncle or a cool but loudmouthed aunt – in other words, a middle-aged relative who dresses like a 20-year-old and sits with the youngsters at big family gatherings.

15.11.2019 / 20:35

The wish that became a curse

The first time I came across a Facebook post by Kostas Bakoyiannis, the new Athens mayor had written enthusiastically about an operation to clean up a neglected Athens square.

27.09.2019 / 16:55

Facebook and politics

The tragicomic backlash sparked by the unfortunate plan to rename Athens’ Evangelismos metro station Pavlos Bakoyannis, after the late conservative politician who was gunned down in the area 30 years ago by the November 17 terrorist group, was not all bad.