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A cinematic journey around the world
On Saturday 2nd September, hundreds of cinemas across the UK are coming together for National Cinema Day. Although I’m not currently in the UK, I would like to take this opportunity and embark on a cinematic journey around the world. I will discuss 10 films which have travelling at their core and take place in exotic countries that I would like to visit (either for the first time or visit again). I’m starting this cinematic journey around the world from Greece, the country where I was born and I’m currently in. Triangle of Sadness – Greece Triangle of Sadness is one of the most recent films in this list. It…
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20 European TV series to watch
It is not a secret that I enjoy watching European TV series; they offer an interesting insight into different cultures that are foreign to me. In fact, I recently published the post ‘Nordic Noir: 20 Scandinavian TV series to watch’, whereas last year I published the post ‘9 Italian TV series to watch‘. Today, I’m visiting a total of 10 European countries, including my home country. Without further ado, here are 20 European TV series I would recommend. 20 European TV series to watch (in alphabetical order) Capitani (Luxemburg) Capitani is a Luxembourgish crime drama, available on Netflix. There are currently two seasons, with twelve episodes each. In the first…
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12 Haruki Murakami books to read
Earlier this year, I published the post ‘23 Japanese books to read in 2023’. This was later followed by the post ‘9+1 Japanese literature classics’. Neither of these posts included any books by Haruki Murakami. The reason was that I was planning to publish another post specifically discussing some of his works (those I’ve read so far that is). Here it is. Novels by Haruki Murakami My fascination with Japan, which I am yet to visit, began in childhood. However, I was in my 30s when I first read a Japanese novel, Murakami’s Norwegian Wood. Since then, I have read many more Japanese novels. Through those, I have learned a lot…
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Bordeaux neighbourhoods: saints, churches, wine
Bonjour! Today is Bastille Day, also known as la Fête nationale française, or le 14 juillet. The French National Day is the anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille, which took place on 14 July 1789. I would like to take the opportunity to share some tips about Bordeaux, France’s sixth-largest city, which I visited (for the first, but certainly not the last, time) a couple of weeks ago. A port city on the Garonne River in southwestern France, Bordeaux is also known as Port of the Moon (Port de la Lune). It is the capital and the largest city of both the wine-growing Gironde department and the much larger…
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7 (+4) American literature classics
07/04/2023. Today is the US Independence Day, also known as the Fourth of July, a day of celebrations in America. The day commemorates the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States of America. To mark the occasion, I discuss 7 American literature classics (this list is, of course, far from exhaustive), as well as 4 more recent books. 7 American literature classics The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925) Set in the 1920s on Long Island, near New York City, The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third novel. It is widely considered a literary masterpiece, as…
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9+1 Japanese literature classics
A few months ago, I published the post ‘23 Japanese books to read in 2023’. Since then, I’ve read a few more books from the Land of the Rising Sun (but I’ve still not been there). Among those, there are a few Japanese literature classics, which I would specifically like to discuss today. In writing this post, I’ve made two rather controversial decisions. First, to include works by Kazuo Ishiguro. Born in Nagasaki, Ishiguro moved to the UK at the age of 5, and has been a British citizen since 1983 (Japan does not permit dual citizenship). Even though he writes in English, and most of his books have little to…
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Nordic Noir: 20 Scandinavian TV series to watch
The winner of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest was rightfully Sweden with the song “Tattoo”, performed by Loreen. Although Sweden won the jury vote and the overall competition, it actually came second in the public vote. Neighbouring Finland might have won the public vote, but came second overall (in my opinion, it should have come last). Sweden’s other neighbour, Norway, finished fifth, whereas Denmark and Iceland did not qualify for the final. Inspired by Eurovision, today I’m reflecting on the Scandinavian TV series (mostly crime dramas) I’ve recently watched (as well as some older ones). 20 Scandinavian TV series to watch I have previously written about Norwegian, Finnish and Icelandic TV series, but…
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Travel writing: 10 books to read
The Sherborne Travel Writing Festival, curated by the renowned British-Canadian travel writer Rory MacLean, took place from 14 to 16 April 2023. I was in Greece then, celebrating Easter, so I did not attend the festival. I have to admit here that I am yet to read any books by MacLean. Or, as a matter of fact, the writings of the ancient Greek geographer Pausanias, widely considered the first travel writer. But, what exactly constitutes travel writing? According to the Auckland-based travel writer Petrina Darrah, travel writing is defined as “writing that describes places the author has visited and the experiences they had while travelling”. Most agree that travel writing has…
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A short stay in Milan
I recently wrote about my skiing holiday in Madonna di Campiglio, a village and ski resort in Northern Italy. I combined my holiday with a few days in Trento and Milan. Trento, the gateway to Madonna di Campiglio, is an hour and a half by train from Verona, and two hours and a half from Milan, the second-largest city in Italy and capital of Lombardy. Since I’d been to Verona before, and considering that there are far fewer international flights to Verona than to Milan, I decided to fly to Milan and spent the night there. The following day, I took the train to Trento, where I spend another night.…
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Skiing in Madonna di Campiglio, Trentino
I recently went on a skiing holiday in Madonna di Campiglio, a village and ski resort in Trentino, in Northern Italy. This was my second skiing holiday in Italy. I had previously gone skiing in Cortina d’Ampezzo, a town and ski resort in Veneto, due to co-host the 2026 Winter Olympics (together with Milan). Trentino is renowned for its mountains, such as the Dolomites, which are part of the Alps. It is one of the two autonomous provinces of Italy. The other one is the neighbouring South Tyrol, officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol (South Tyrol), an autonomous region…