General News
Meropi Kyriacou Honored as TNH Educator of the Year
NEW YORK – Meropi Kyriacou, the new Principal of The Cathedral School in Manhattan, was honored as The National Herald’s Educator of the Year.
ASTORIA – That of all the ouza of Chios, which can hold its own against Lesvos (Mytilene) as the ouzo capital of the world, up until recently only one made by Stoupakis was available in the United States was as great a mystery as why American tourists who travel to Greece only seem to visit two islands: Mykonos and Santorini. Those are two perfectly good islands, just as Stoupakis makes a perfectly good ouzo – but why the monopoly?
I have been a fan of Psychis ouzo since I first tried it in 2008, the year of my first trip to Chios. I often wondered why I couldn’t find it in the United States – not even in Astoria.
But last weekend, while visiting there, much to my pleasant surprise, there it was – sitting on the shelf of Omega Wines & Liquors, on 31st Street off of 23rd Avenue in Astoria – in the same strip mall as Mediterranean Foods. And at $17 a bottle, it was quite a bargain, considering many other better-known (but not necessarily better-quality) brands sell for over $20, and more than that outside Astoria.
The “classic” Psychis, like most Chian ouza is 76 proof (38% alcohol), thus 5% below the ouzo standard of 80 proof (40% alcohol). The version I found at Omega is the Rempiko, a full 10% stronger (84 proof, 42% alcohol) than the classic version, but only 5% stronger than the standard ouzo. In other words, if you’re used to the standard proof ouzo, or even the slightly lighter ouza of Chios, the Rempiko won’t cause you to fall off your stool – unless of course you drink excessively.
This is a win-win: a good sign for the Greek economy – as entrepreneurs are figuring out ways to export what they are good at producing – and a bonus for those of us here in the U.S., who don’t have to wait for the authentic taste of Psychis until our next trip to Greece.
NEW YORK – Meropi Kyriacou, the new Principal of The Cathedral School in Manhattan, was honored as The National Herald’s Educator of the Year.
CLOSTER, NJ – The well-attended Greek Independence Day Celebration in Closter, NJ, took place on March 25, beginning with the Flag Raising Ceremony at Ruckman Park in Closter.
ALBANY – New York State Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R, C-Staten Island/Brooklyn) on March 26 was joined in Albany by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America to recognize Greek Independence Day and the 50th anniversary of the illegal Turkish invasion and continued occupation of Cyprus.
ATHENS - Historic member of PASOK and passionate advocate of the recognition of Pontian Greek genocide Michalis Charalambidis died on Wednesday aged 73.
ATHENS - While the New Democracy government denied audio files from the 2023 head-on train crash in Tempe which killed 57 had been tampered with, five managers at the state-run OSE railways agency reportedly had access to them.
FAIRVIEW, NJ – The Greek Cypriots of New Jersey under the auspices of the Federation of Cypriot American Organizations, the Consulate General of the Republic of Cyprus in New York and Consul General of Cyprus Michalis Firillas will commemorate the 69th Anniversary of the EOKA Liberation Struggle of Cyprus from British Colonial Rule 1955-1959, with a memorial service at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Ascension, 101 Anderson Avenue in Fairview, NJ, on Sunday, March 31.