birthday boys

saturday night at the queen mary in embankment...! vivek and dimi:

sad...

happy...
serious...
and after a tequila shot!

thanks to everyone who was there to celebrate our birthdays!

rotterdam graffiti

i don't need to write where it is since you can see it on the photo. but i am so fond of street art!

die hard dutch advertising

ad for a spa centre. the only one that beats it is the one aired on tv a few years back, advertising shoes - with the shit trying to avoid the shoes on the street. say no more.

.nl contd

...2 days in a country where i feel at home [the netherlands]
...2 days in two cities with unique characters in europe [amsterdam and rotterdam]
...1 night in a party of an organisation with the craziest and most creative people i have met in my life [aiesec]
...2 days of reunion with friends i have not seen in quite a while
...2 days of meeting new and bright people, dancing, having lots of fun and interesting [incl. some drunken] conversations.

a great weekend in the netherlands. i think i'll be coming back for a lifetime, there hasn't been a single time it wasn't worth it.

only in england

το στερεότυπο για τους άγγλους επιβεβαιώνεται! ιδού φωοτογραφικό ντοκουμέντο που κατέγραψε ο φακός του υποφαινόμενου τις προάλλες στο λονδίνο, έξω από κεντρικό ξενοδοχείο! exclusive parking!

:-ρ

contentment

friday night, 6th of july. after multiple tube delays, changes, and security checks at the airport, i board the plane to athens. 1 and a half hours delayed, i land at 03:30. panos is waiting at the airport and we go straight out where the rest of the gang is. after a few hours there, at 7.30ish am we are heading home, with all friends from the school years who are in town for chryssa's & socrates' wedding. clear blue skies and heat. we have a laugh, and i take to sleep on the floor, since not all of us fit in the house. just like the old times.

surprisingly, during these few hours of sleep, i had a dream. i dreamt that all my friends from school years and family lived in london with me, and all of this was taking place in london. very nostalgic type of dream, but i wake up in a very pleasant feeling. and realise i have a little more than a day ahead of me to live the rest of this experience.

12ish noon i wake up. i go to my sister's place - see my parents, georgia and dionysis, and have our usual lunch together, and all sorts of discussions and updates. later, we start preparing for the grand event: the wedding itself. by 7pm we are heading to church.

the wedding is great. the couple are very happy, and so is the entire family and all friends who are in church and at the reception to wish them their best. the celebration lasts all night. dancing, talking, drinking, laughing. 5:30 am, after the party is over, we are again heading to the centre, have something to eat and continue talking till 8am over coffee and cigarettes. old friends. just like the old times. not a single day has ever gone by.

all of us have followed such different paths in life and yet all of us - family and friends - time and again, discover that the same connection is still there. and getting stronger by the day.

it is now sunday. after another 4 hours of sleep till noon, again lunch with my close family, and then heading to the airport. last goodbyes, till the next time we meet. it looks surreal, but by the evening i will be in london again, and by morning time i am again in my routine, at work. on the plane i can't keep my eyes open for long.

when i land - i take the tube and head home. all of this seems like a dream. a very pleasant one. but i simply know that it's not a dream. it's as real as it gets, and i couldn't be luckier and happier than that, to have all of these people in my life.

Χρύσα και Σωκράτη, να ζήσετε ευτυχισμένοι!

παραλία

ακούω mad radio σήμερα το πρωί προ δουλειάς κι ακούγεται η παραλία από τα ημισκούμπρια (πάμε όλοι μαζί...σε μια παραλία κτλ). καλοκαιρινό τραγούδι και τα ρέστα - εδώ όμως βρέχει εδώ και 2 βδομάδες κάθε μέρα, κι από ό,τι διαβάζω θα χειροτερέψει ο καιρός! (!)

μετά την πρώτη εύκολη δευτέρα εδώ και ενάμιση μήνα όμως, το κέφι δε χαλάει με τίποτα! χαμογελάω και φεύγω για δουλειά! καλήμέρα.

half year review

well, new year's resolutions are there for a reason - to try and achieve them - so as we've passed the point that indicated half the year is gone, i had a look at what i am achieving so far from the goals i set in the beginning of 2007:

1. make important and conscious decisions and steps for my future
i have narrowed down a couple of important issues that i need to decide on within the year. career wise, money wise, purchase wise...so i am on the right track with this one, though no tangible results yet...

2. not smoke for at least 6 months
i am just through my third non smoking month, which means i am exactly on the threshold with this one, so far i haven't smoked for half the months of 2007.

3. start exercising
...i started - but i stopped somewhere along the way. i spent a good one month jogging every day in january, and then somehow let it go. good effort though, and i plan to take it up again now in the summer.

4. read more than in 2006
i'm left slightly behind on this one. 32 books in 2006, 12 so far in 2007, although 4 are work in progress currently. i guess than i will catch up in autumn :-) since i only have 1.5 day of holidays left and that means that my travels will be restricted at some point in time...so more reading to be done there!

5. travel to at least 4 new countries
ireland, denmark, china, malaysia, thailand. these are already five! and i have norway and the czech republic waiting for me ! ! !

overall it looks like i haven't done badly, but need that extra push to