We live in a small village, Olympiada, situated in a beautiful corner
in Chalkidiki NE off the beach. A place that nature dowered with a lot of beauties,and
a place that combines the embossed green of the Holomondas Mountain with the light
blue the Aegean Sea. Our place has the honour of bordering with
ancient
Stagira, the birthplace of the Great Schoolteacher and Philosopher Aristotles.
The Cultural Association has made efforts in order to save "The
heavy cultural heritage but also the more modern way of life" initially and
then to offer this knowledge it to as many more Greeks and foreigners as possible.
That way we have activated the Cultural Association in various directions: We
maintain two dancing departments with traditional dances, a municipal library
and a small folklore showroom. Also we revive traditional customs (the dance around
the fire with skoptika songs, the festival of our protector Saint Kiraki, the
Feast of mussels etc).
The most important responsibility that we as a Cultural association
have undertaken, in collaboration with the archaelogist of the Inland Revenue
of Antiquities, and the person in charge of excavations in ancient Stagira, Mr
Sismanidis, is the reviving of the "Aristotelion" festival. The idea
of reviving "Aristotelion" came up as the excavating of ancient Stagira revealed
the ancient city. Its splendid natural environment and the marvellous acoustics
in the city market became the influence for the first musical and theatrical events
in the summers of 96 and 97. The success of these first efforts as well as the
need for a different approach and use of this archaeological space, convinced
the Authorities of the need to excavate and our Cultural Association of the importance
in reconnecting with ancient intellectual traditions. Today the wish exists not
only for the continuance of these events, but also for them to be held on a yearly
basis. Through the modern "Aristotelion" festival we hope to give it the form
of a summer festival with events (mainly theatrical and music, but essentially
related with the ancient Greek and modern tradition) that will be addressed not
only to the residents of Chalkidiki, but to the entire area of Northern Greece.
The events will take place during the summer months, while their preparation will
take place during the remainder months of the year.
