The final evening of the Sochos Panigyri belongs to the adult oil wrestling competition. Categories One and Two take the field, the musicians never stop, and the whole festival comes down to who shows their belly to the stars.
Beach Wrestling World Series champion Christos Christoforidis competed at the Sochos Panigyri of the Holy Twelve Apostles and won his category outright. This is his story.
The Panigyri of the Holy Twelve Apostles in Sochos is best known for its oil wrestling, but the festival begins long before anyone steps onto the field. Part 2 follows the Sunday evening procession through the upper village, a cultural performance that stopped me in my tracks, and the moment the youngest generation of Pechlevanides took to the field.
The morning of Clean Monday began with a light smattering of snow that settled on the hills above Sochos. Here in the village, the flakes melted as soon as they hit the ground. Such is the early March weather in Northern Macedonia. Today is the finale of Carnival. Clean Monday or Kathara Deftera marks the…
Sunday morning brought with it a bout of light drizzle. The overcast sky did not feel very “Carnival” to me. From within the church, the solemn tone of the priest’s chanting reminded all that now is a time for Christian worship. The Pagan revelry will come later. There were very few signs of life outside,…
Friday 28th February was a day of national strikes and a time to remember the 57 souls that were tragically lost during the Tempi rail disaster. Speak to any Greek and they will call it murder – most certainly not an accident. To show respect on the 2nd anniversary of this horrific event, all carnival…
I can quite honestly say that Edessa has more than exceeded my expectations. Edessa hadn’t been on my bucket list – unlike Florina which I chose because of its reputation as being the coldest place in Greece. I saw Edessa as a stopping-off point on the way back to Thessaloniki and would see what I…
During my five days in Edessa I’d more or less exhausted all the key attractions so yesterday I decided to visit the neighbouring town of Naoussa. Naoussa is famous for its vineyards and winemaking. In the past it also had a thriving wool industry and many households in Greece would have had a blanket made…
One of the most popular places to visit in this region is Loutra Pozar, a thermal spa located in the foothills of Mount Kaimaktsalan/Voras. It is less than 40 km from Edessa and after enquiring at the bus station I have a plan for how to get there (and back!). The bus from Edessa departs…
Can you pack it all in on one day in Edessa? Well, even though I’m here for 5 (possibly 6) nights, I decided to throw everything at it, allowing me to pace myself for the rest of the stay. After a good night’s sleep in yet another fabulously comfortable bed, I was up early, ready…
My time in Florina came to an end way too soon. It was time to move on to the next destination. It’s a shame that I wasn’t able to explore further than Florina town. In this blog, I try to show that you can travel almost anywhere in Greece using public transport. A car may…
Bloody hell – what a last couple of days they have been! The day after my little ‘episode’ I awoke with a bruised arm and chest and a lump on my head. I had no idea that I’d hit my head when I passed out but I’d probably bashed it on the edge of the…
