According To Sylvia

Olympic flame relay

Posted on 18 May 2012 by admin

Once again the eyes of the world were focused on Greece yesterday. But this time it was for a good reason as the Olympic flame was handed over to the London Olympic Committee at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens. The grey skies over the stadium resembled the gloomy atmosphere in the country but in the end the rainbow came out. With the elections looming the Greek people needed something to be proud of again.

And sport has always united Greeks: from the 1987 European Basketball Championship to Olympic wins in Atlanta, Sydney and Athens to the Euro 2004 win.

Despite the crisis and the political uncertainty the people of Athens went to the stadium to say farewell to the flame, the symbol of the Olympic Games, that travelled to London on a special British Airways flight in a gold-painted plane.

And there to receive the flame were London mayor Boris Johnson (thank God he didn’t drop the flame or stumble), Lord Sebastian Coe, David Beckham (after meeting up with Barack Obama in the US this week) and Princess Anne.

The flame has now reached the British shores and it will continue its journey for 70 days around the country until it reaches its final destination the Olympic Stadium in Stratford where the games will begin on July 27.

Posted in Greece, Olympic Games 2012, UK | Comments Off

Sylvia is walking against cancer

Posted on 15 May 2012 by admin

In September I will walk 20 miles (32 km) through the dark streets of London in aid of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres. So, please dig deep in your pockets and support this worthy cause.

Last year I walked 20 miles through the streets of London in 8.5 hours and raised lots of money for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres. This year, I am doing it again and aiming to reduce my time to 8 hours. So, please dig deep and support this worthy cause (or you can bet on which mile I am going to give up – all money will go to charity). I am sure you all know someone who has been affected by cancer, so please show your generosity and support (and if you happen to be in central London on the night of September 21st come and cheer the walkers).

www.justgiving.com/sylvia-sleepwalking-for-20-miles

Maggie’s is about empowering people to live with, through and beyond cancer by bringing together professional help, communities of support and building design to create exceptional centres for cancer care.

http://www.maggiescentres.org

I will be posting photos and updates of the training and the build up to the big day. Stay tuned!

So please donate now. Every little helps!

Posted in UK | Comments Off

Greek elections: the next step

Posted on 11 May 2012 by admin

So what is going to happen now? After months of anticipation the elections took place a few days ago and the country is still without a government (at the time this post was written). Not surprisingly none of the big parties won the majority and not even the big names of politics are guaranteed to take a seat in the parliament. The mandate to form a new government has been going back and forth among parties like a table tennis ball.

Whatever happens with the elections and whether there will be a second round in June, new austerity measures will have to be passed in June on top of the existing taxes.

So what is left for Greece after the elections? No government and the rise of the far-right party Golden Dawn that continues to rise echoing the increase in popularity of Marine Le Pen and her far-right National Front party in the French presidential elections.

And an overwhelming mistrust and aversion of the electorate towards political parties (so nothing new there!).

The most worrying message of the elections is of course the rise of the far-right with their radical views on immigrants. Their suggestion was to put minefields in the Greek borders to deter immigrants from entering the country.

Not only that but other political parties have said that on the day of the election Golden Dawn members entered polling stations and started threatening and bullying people.

So, with the threat of the exit from the euro still looming do we have the politicians that we deserve? What do you think?

Posted in Greece | Comments Off

Solidarity to the Greek people

Posted on 25 February 2012 by admin

Last Saturday about 200 people gathered outside the Greek embassy in London to show their solidarity to the troubled country as part of the global movement “We are all Greeks”. The light drizzle did not deter the demonstrators who were joined by representatives from the Socialist Worker Party and the Occupy London movements. The group decided to continue the action with another demonstration outside the Greek embassy (1A Holland Park, W11 3TP) at 1pm today. It was also decided to open a facebook group called “Solidarity with the Greek resistance” in order to co-ordinate the action.

Posted in Greece, UK | Comments Off

Happy 2012!

Posted on 1 January 2012 by admin

Happy new year to one and all! More stories to follow soon… (I promise, part of my new year’s resolutions)