Giorgos Seferis

The luxurious Athanasiou Mansion at 10 Panepistimiou Street in photographed by Pavlos Mylonas in 1945. Eighty years ago, Athens experienced its most somber Christmas. New Year's Day 1945 arrived in a city shrouded in darkness and fear. Despite the shadow of terror that had paralyzed daily life that December, much of the population awaited the coming day with anticipation.

"Who will calculate for us the cost of our decision to forget?"
                                   George Seferis, "Mythistorema"

The waiting is excruciating.

Waiting to have something returned, a birthright, that was taken. Realizing that 4,000 babies and children were forgotten, too long ago to care about - a past too painful to remember.

The system of ancient Athenian justice was complex, considering it essentially included a combination of elected and appointed officials. What we know is that ancient Athens had over 6,000 judges. Today, the total number of judges (including prosecutors) in Greece is around 4,000 to 5,000.

The atmosphere at the event to mark the creation of the Seferis Office and the Roderick Beaton Reading Room at the Greek Embassy in London last Monday afternoon was wonderful and worthy of Greek-British friendship. Suddenly, "after the speeches, the atmosphere changed. The room went cold, we were all surprised," prominent writer Victoria Hislop, who was at the embassy, told Kathimerini.

An online event organized in Turkey to mark International Greek Language Day on Tuesday was cancelled in the wake of reactions on social and mainstream media.

The conference was called off "because of erroneous perceptions regarding its purpose," the University of Ankara said in a statement.

Exploring the elements that shape great personalities and the principles that define them is a process that is both fascinating and useful. One such endeavor was carried out by Vassilis Papadopoulos, a former ambassador and the general secretary of the Presidency of the Hellenic Republic, in his book "Diplomacy and Poetry: The Case of Giorgos Seferis," published in Greek by Ikaros.

The election of Greece's first Jewish mayor, Ioannina's Moisis Elisaf, was news that was heard around the world last May.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) has put together a retrospective on Yiannis Psychopedis that focuses on the artist's love of poetry, something that is evident throughout his oeuvre.

Odysseas Elytis, Giorgos Seferis and scores of other writers have waxed poetic about Santorini's natural attractions, just as dozens of visual artists have been unable to resist the island's stunning landscapes.

The prolific and esteemed Greek poet, novelist, playwright and translator Nanos Valaoritis has died, according to an announcement on his Facebook page. He was 98 years old, and "lived a life full of riches," fellow poet Dinos Siotis said in a Facebook post.