Six-Month Cultural Journey of the Hellenic Semester

JAN : FEB : MAR : APR : MAY : JUN

Thank you for being with us on this cultural journey of the Hellenic semester.
Grazie per essere con noi in questo viaggio culturale del semestre ellenico.
Σας ευχαριστούμε που ήσασταν μαζί μας σ' αυτό το πολιτιστικό ταξίδι του Ελληνικού εξαμήνου

Download the Hellenic Semester Events Booklet

Timeline Photos

OPENING CEREMONY

The Greek Semester Opening Ceremony took place on Thursday 16 January at 13:00, as usual at the Ispra Site main entrance. The new DG Vladimir Šucha was present and addressed the audience. Special guests were Dr. Christos Vasilakos, Secretary General of Research and Technology and Mr. George Papadopoulos, Greek Consul-General of Milan.

The programme of the Hellenic semester in Ispra was presented by the President of the semester organizing committee, Antonios Koletsos, who also explained the meaning behind the symbols placed at the roundabout: the three letters of the Greek Alphabet, pi [π], delta [δ] and phi [ϕ], do not stand for "pdf" as someone had thought, but they were selected by the Greek organizing committee as those which they best illustrate the connection between the Greek Alphabet and science.

TASTES OF GREECE

Greek Cuisine Lessons All the participants had the opportunity to learn some traditional Greek dishes, such as mousaka, tzatziki, baklava, etc.
Wine Tasting The wines presented by Greek sommeliers and wine producers. Since wine is meant to be enjoyed with food, each wine accompanied by traditional Greek meze
Carnival Party for children During the carnival Greek finger food served
“Touch of Spice” movie and aperitivo “Apericena” with homemade dishes based on the recipes described in the film “a Touch of Spice” served before the movie.
Semester Closing Dinner An authentic Greek Dinner with awarded Greek wine, cooked by our preferred Greek chef, Vassilis, brought over specifically for the event.

ARTS & LITERATURE

Greek Movie Nights The event offereda panoramic view of Greek cinema from the 1960’s to the present day. The purpose of the event was to entertain the participants while offering a bird’s eye view of the Greek society and life of the last 50 years.
Greek Language Courses The Greek language courses aimed at providing an acquaintance with the Greek civilization in general.
Greek Dancing Courses The group ''Chorostates" gave a series of Greek Dances courses.
Literary Aperitif A "tasting" of Greek literature with readings from Plato, Sappho, Elytis, Ritsos, Kazantzakis and Cavafy.
Theatrical show of the JRC Theatre Club Stories about goddesses, ships, shipwrecks and a guy named Ulysses
Art Exhibition, Tribute to the Painter & sculptor Costas Tsoclis “Artemis”, the timeless art of Costas Tsoclis, one of the representatives of the glorious generation of '60s.

SPORTS & LEISURE

Two Cycling Tours 1st Cycling tour: Varese Lake 2nd Cycling tour: Sesto Calende – Milano
Schuman Cup 2014 The Schuman Cup is a 5 x5 football tournament among teams of JRC staff members and their relatives.
Four-nation Football Tournament The BRIG Together is a four-nation football tournament with teams from four European countries: Belgium (Ottignies), Romania (Fundu Moldovei), Italy (Ispra) and Greece (Kilkis).
Running Races The Hellenic Semester, under the auspices of the Municipality of Ispra and Regione Lombardia and in co-operation with the Ispra Pro-Loco group, holding a running event in Ispra. The event consisted two races, ½ marathon and 5km.
9-day Excursion & Hiking trip: Epirus region Pindos mountain range A trip to the scenic NW part of Greece, Epirus, took place beginning of May. Crossing Vikos, the deepest gorge in the world, hiking to Drakolimni, a lake on mount Tymphi inhabited by alpine newts, and trekking past the arched stone bridges of Zagori, through its picturesque villages, were only few of the attractions to this trip.

IMAGES OF GREECE

Photo competition: “Visions of Greece” The aim of the contest was to capture your vision of Greece through a lens. Besides landscapes and historic references, portraits and street photography, that reflect social, cultural and economic aspects of the country, were also welcomed.
Comics and Illustration Since 2003 En Ethria exhibition brings together creators from all over Greece, of different styles and schools. The 2014 exhibition is a fusion of well recognized “veterans” and promising newcomers featuring new and in most cases previously unpublished works.
Photo Exhibition: "Travelling" The exhibition with the title "Travelling", had to do with Travel and Street Photography from places like Greece, Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and Spain.
Mosaic exhibition The art of Mosaic joins the man with the earth.
Photo exhibition: “Eleni Papaioannou” I love listening to other people's stories. Happy or sad, ordinary or different ones.

SOUNDS OF GREECE

Rempetiko live Urban Underground Folk Music A melodic journey in authentic and unforgettable creations by great composers.
Concert Tribute to M. Theodorakis "from Eluard to Elytis" A journey to the very different styles of Mikis Theodorakis's music.
Evi Evan Rebetiko “The Hellenic band Evi Evan tells, sings and dances to the rebetiko”.
Concert by ‘“EN CHORDAIS” A concert with music and songs from the byzantine musical legacy, Mediterranean traditional melodies.
Ιspra Lakeside Summer Party An unforgettable all-day event at the lakeside of Ispra with music, dance, Greek food and wine.
Roman-Byzantine Choir in Ispra - Irini Pasi Ensemble The Turin-based group "IRINI PASI ENSEMBLE" offered a choir of psalms of early Christian origin known as Roman-Byzantine chant.
Concert Tribute to Manos Hadjidakis The program included "Magnus Eroticus" and a collection of songs from other cycles.

HISTORY & SCIENCE

Traveling exhibition of the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology Kostas Kotsanas A guided and virtual tour of an exceptional selection of fifty exhibits of the museum of the ancient Greek technology covering the period from 2000 B.C up to the end of the ancient Greek world.
Lecture on the Antikythera Mechanism by Prof. John H. Seiradakis The Antikythera Mechanism was a portable (laptop-size), geared mechanism, built ca. 150–100 BCE, which calculated and displayed, with high precision, the movement of the Sun and the Moon on the sky and the phase of the Moon for a given epoch.
Journey to archaeological sites in Greece A magical journey through time to the glorious kingdom of ancient Macedonia, where Alexander the Great was born and to the core of classical Greece. The Journey started at Athens and it included Delphi, Meteora, Pella, Vergina, Philippi and Thessaloniki.
Lecture on mathematician C. Carathéodory by Prof. Roland Bulirsch Carathéodory was an exraordinary mathematician from the first half of the 20th Century and probably the one Greek mathematician who has had the greatest influence worldwide.