2 years later...

... Probably the first time in my life at one place

with long-term plan of 7 more years to go

 (i know, i know, life is so unpredictable, but after-all there must be a plan

in order to be ruined or not..!)

.. Probably the first time in my life that i am not moving around,

 thus now i realize how much distance I have been traveled,

but this time inwards,

 easing a little bit the noise, going a few steps back,

focusing a little bit on me and my dreams,

entering the adulthood mode

(sometimes sucks!)

while at the same time becoming a little girl growing fast.

And then i understand that the famous quote that i love

"life is like riding the waves..

in order to keep your balance you have to keep moving..",

 can have a lot of different meanings!

The Art of Zero!

It requires courage and strength to progress,
to move on, to overcome feelings,
to change practices that have become habits,
to abstract people you care, to find what really matters for you.

But once you decide to move on, you are already ahead.

Do not afraid, empty the cup, leave space for the new, for the happy,
for the small that matters, for what you want and deserve.

Choose zero for a while, and then another zero and maybe another one..
and the number one will be attached,
will come to head the sequence and you are already lucky and "rich"..
with this glimpse, those radiant eyes that are visible in the dark!

Olympic Makers: Addiction or Just Another Job?

When I first saw my name among the Greeks to have gained the scholarship

 and be involved at the planning and organization

of the Sydney Olympic Games in mid 1999,

I felt very lucky and proud.

I also felt an imperceptible fear..

and it was not fear of moving to another continent on my 22...

although I love my country,

my age and my personality did not allow space for those kind of restrictions.

Years later, I realized that this fear

was nothing more or less than the inner feeling

that once you do the step then it will be difficult to go back...

and I tried a couple of times - without success obviously -

I may even try again in the future - who knows -

but now 13 years later it is clear to my mind:

 It is like the "joker" in playing cards games.

Once you draw the joker,

no matter if it changes your plans or does not really match with the initial

thoughts in your head, you just do not throw it back.

And then, after a while,

you realize that you can not reply to the simple question

 "and you, where do you live?",

so you reply "I am a citizen of the world",

which is half true, half convenient.

You may forget your jacket or your wallet,

but you never forget your Accreditation,

you see familiar faces that you do not really know

but it is always a pleasure to meet them around

and you see some others that you pretend you did not see..

-come on, you have done it at least once ;)

- you get to know drinking games from all different cultures of the planet,

your vocabulary is enriched with some strange words like "pigeonholes",

 "mixed zone" and "post event depression",

you hate all kind of uniforms, 

and when you go back "home" suddenly you notice

those orange barricades at the side of the street

and you are not wondering anymore why your old schoolmates believe

that you are a little bit "strange"!

But also, you make lifetime friendships,

you feel the excitement of creation,

you witness the outcome of your job -

 often at the same time with billions of people across the world -

and you experience the respective judgement on the spot,

you feel the agony of the athletes,

you experience world records,

you get to know new cultures and habits,

you plan recovery trips after the Games,

you hear your National Anthem in the Olympic Stadium,

you cry, you laugh,

and then you say goodbye and..."let's go one more" - or not!

Either way you feel blessed and you are!

Love is...

In love relationships
the combination of physical and mental attraction
is the primary and the least requisite.
The ability to feel free,
to feel yourself and to grow 
through the interaction with the other person is the key.

Negotiations and compromises do not fit here.
Not even rules...

Torinaki, una citta' di qualcosa diverso, unico

c' era una giornata soleggiata quando ho deciso di andare via..


e visitare una citta' nuova di me, in un paese che amo.


ho toccato la neve bianco..
ho camminato lungo il fiume...



ho visto le cose belle...

ho assaggiato i piatti tipici piemontesi...


e ho bevuto un po' di vino rosso.


giravo nel centro tutto il giorno...


e provavo un paio di bar piu tardi.


ho fatto un sacco di fotografie...


e finalmente..
ho imparato un paio di parole...!!

ciao manolaki & alice!
ciao a tutti!
a presto!

Reflections & Shadows..

In two months, Arab Games 2011 will be already a history.
Reflections and shadows.. is this the destiny,
the benediction and the price of working in events industry?!

Summer Is..

...To wake up six o' clock in the morning,
because the sunrise light goes blind to your eyes..

... To lie down at the terrace and struggle
sleeping because of the noisy cicadas...

...To walk barefoot all day long...

...To party and dance all night long
until the sun goes up...




...To have the house full of friends,
food and drinks...




...To stay motionless more than an hour
staring at the sea...




...To drink raki and discuss about
your future...hik..!



...To count the stars...
and if you are lucky,
the falling stars...



Summer is... to see, smell, listen, taste, touch and feel!!

It is all about dreams..

Keep your dreams alive!

Sharing dreams with the people you love is benediction..

If the dreams are not common anymore, 

it is better to stay at the side, leave space or walk away. 

If the crossroads meet again will be for the best, 

if not, means that you already lived the whole thing 

and you leave the relationship to its highest quality level.

Keep walking, 

just do not forget to dream for more than one, 

then you will be surrounded from happiness and you will feel fulfilled.

Utopian? Maybe yes... 

Painful? Some time yes, but this is part of the game... 

But the result is always rewarding and 

I will do my best to give it a chance.