Mayor of Athens, Kostas Bakoyannis, has announced his intention to visit Melbourne for the Antipodes Festival, should he be re-elected in the local elections in Greece, taking place today.
The announcement came during a high-profile meeting held in Athens, attended by Melbourne Deputy Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece and Bill Paperstegiadis OAM, President of the Greek Community of Melbourne & Victoria.
During their gathering at the Athens Town Hall, Deputy Mayor Reece and Mayor Bakoyannis engaged in discussions centered on the strong ties that bind Melbourne and Athens as two of the world’s largest Greek cities.
“For decades now, Melbourne has been called the third largest ‘Greek city’ in the world, after Athens and Thessaloniki,” said Cr Reece, underlining the vibrant Greek community that thrives here.
Paperstegiadis praised Melbourne’s Greek community, “complete with schools, churches, popular meeting areas, enduring traditions, and vibrant festivals, most notably the Antipodes Festival on Lonsdale Street, known as the largest Greek Festival globally.
In addition to their cultural discussions, Deputy Mayor Reece and Mayor Bakoyannis also delved into pressing matters concerning recent extreme weather events in Athens, including heatwaves, wildfires, and floods—issues that hit close to home for Melburnians.
“Cities have an important role to play in tackling climate change and helping manage the impact of increased heatwaves and extreme weather events on people living in an urban environment,” Cr Reece added, highlighting the “insightful exchange of information” between the two cities to combat climate challenges.
The two city leaders went on to explore strategies for economic recovery following COVID-19 restrictions, with Bakoyannis expressing keen interest in Melbourne’s approach to promoting retail, hospitality, entertainment, events, and festivals to reinvigorate the city and attract visitors.
Highlighting Melbourne’s diversified central city economy as a resilience factor during the pandemic, Cr Reece note that “The diversified nature of Melbourne’s central city economy means we have held up much better than many other central business districts which were overly dependent on office workers.”
Deputy Mayor Reece, who was visiting Athens with his family on annual leave, expressed the significance of the trip: “The last time we were in Athens was on our honeymoon, so it was very special and emotional being able to return with our children and introduce them to our extended family.”
He lauded Athens’ resilience, thriving despite economic challenges and political upheavals, with its bustling summer streets attracting people from around the world for food, music, vibrancy, and the quintessential Greek spirit.
In a previous interview with Neos Kosmos Cr Reece had explained that “My beautiful wife Felicity is Greek, and my children are very much growing up as Greek Australians, learning the Greek language, we consider ourselves very much part of the community”.
Mayor Bakoyannis, on the other hand, shared Athens’ success story of bouncing back with tourism and investments surging due to pent-up demand following years of travel restrictions.
Cr Reece extended his thanks to Bill Paperstegiadis for facilitating the meeting with the Mayor of Athens, acknowledging his esteemed status in both Melbourne and Athens.
“Bill is a great friend and a bigwig in Melbourne, but I never realised that he is an absolute rock star in Athens. Mayors, Governors, business tycoons, famous restaurateurs—everywhere we went, they know him and love him,” Cr Reece said.
