• Culture,  Norway & Scandinavia,  Reading

    Bergen International Festival, Music & Silence

    Established in 1953, the Bergen International Festival takes place from 20 May to 3 June 2020. Each year, the program includes over 400 events taking place over 15 days in more than 70 venues in and around Bergen. This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the events have been canceled, but there are still more than 50 events taking place in empty venues; these events are streamed online for free. They include music, theatre, dance, opera and visual art performances. Last Sunday, I watched the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra performing Edvard Grieg’s A minor Piano Concerto in Grieghallen. Considered the Bergen International Festival signature work, the Piano Concerto in…

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  • Nutrition

    Reflecting on my childhood journey to Thailand

    “Club Tropic Karma on the island of Koh Fun, southern Thailand, is a new luxury dive and spa destination owned by British property magnate Rich Long. Eight guests gather in the Beachview bar in the early evening; each has received an anonymous invitation. That morning the body of Bang, the hotel masseur has been found on the beach. She was discovered by hotel staff at 6am, but no alarm was sounded or police called. Two half-finished cocktails were near the body, along with a mysterious symbol drawn in the sand. As the last to leave the bar the previous night, all eight guests are suspects. One is a murderer. At…

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  • Traveling

    Reflecting on my travels around Europe

    The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 final would have taken place tonight in Rotterdam, following the Netherlands’ victory last year with the song ‘Arcade’ performed by Duncan Laurence. Unfortunately, this year’s contest has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I have to admit that Eurovision is my guilty pleasure and an annual event that I am very excited about and always looking forward to. So, understandably, I was rather disappointed when I learned that it wouldn’t be held this year. To mark the occasion, however, I’ve decided to embark on a mental journey and reflect on my travels around Europe. Having been born and raised in Greece, and being a…

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  • Culture,  Greece

    Traveling to Greece through film & music

    The London Greek Film Festival has been taking place every year since 2008. This year, however, the festival will move online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under normal circumstances, the screenings would have taken place at the Theatro Technis, an independent theatre in Camden, North London. The festival, due from 13 to 16 May 2020, showcases feature, short and documentary films either by Greek film-makers (no matter where they are produced) or simply related to Greece. According to the organizers, the festival showcases ‘films from Greek Origin Individuals and Production Companies from all over the world, or International Individuals and Production Companies from all over the world, with film or…

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  • Culture,  Wellbeing

    A wellbeing journey with Víkingur Ólafsson

    I recently watched the Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson performing live from his new home in Reykjavík. In that video, Víkingur played three pieces by Bach, Rameau and Debussy, but also talked about the power of music to take us on a journey, to transport us to another place, and to stabilize emotional turmoil especially during times of crisis. Unfortunately, that video is no longer available on YouTube, so I’m sharing today other videos with Víkingur Ólafsson on the piano. The power of music to stabilize emotional turmoil during a crisis As both a musicophile and a Psychiatrist, I am in total agreement with Víkingur Ólafsson. In fact, I have previously…

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