Greek Yogurt

 

Yogurt first appeared during the Neolithic period.  It is probable that the earliest yogurt was made by accident from fermentation of milk in Mesopotamia around 5,000 BC.  Yogurt was well-known food in Ancient Greece and Rome.  The cuisine of Ancient Greeks included a dairy product called Oxygala (Οξυγαλα) which is sour milk.  The Greek physician Galen mentioned that Oxygala was consumed with honey in a similar way Greek yogurt is eaten today.  Yogurt played and still plays a major role in the Mediterranean cuisine today.

Milking a cow painting.  Ancient Egypt c2371-2350 BC. Getty image.

There is folklore linking the consumption of milk to longevity.  In fact people in the Bulgarian village of Momchilovtsi, which is perched on the slopes of Rhodope mountains near the border with Greece claims many centenarians and many locals believe that this is due to large quantities of cultured milk products the they consume.  It was in 1905 the Bulgarian microbiologist Stamen Grigorov at the age of 27 discovered in Geneva the bacterium Lactobacillus Bulgaricus, which ferments milk to yogurt.  A major impetus to yogurt's recent popularity was because in 1904, the Russian scientist Ilya Metchnikov who was working at the Pasteur Institute in Paris published his theory about the health benefits of yogurt for which he received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1908.

Ingredients

1.5 liters of pasteurized whole milk, 2 tablespoons of yogurt with active cultures

Preparation

Place the milk in a pot and heat it to 120° F or 50° C.

In a separate cup or bowl, mix two tablespoons of yogurt, that has active cultures with milk until the yogurt is totally dissolved.  Add it to the pot with the heated milk and stir it well.

Pour the milk into a Pyrex glass container or glass jars, cover it and wrap it in a warm towel and place it in the oven.  Turn the oven light on and leave it for 8-10 hours.

Place the glass container in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours and your homemade yogurt will be ready.  To make the Greek variety, strain the yogurt with a cheesecloth to consistency you enjoy.  When you strain the yogurt, you get, liquid whey, a protein rich liquid. If you strain nearly all the liquid from the yogurt, you get a soft Greek cheese called Anthotyro which is very tasty.  In summary from milk you can make home-made yogurt, liquid whey, Kefir and cheese.  Enjoy! 

Mycenae

In the second millennium BC, Mycenae was one of the major centers of Greek civilisation.  It dominated much of southern Greece, the Cycladitic islands, Crete and the western Anatolia.  At its peak in 1350 BC, the Citadel and the lower town had a population of 30,000.

With 3 of my children in front of the famous Lion Gate. 

Francesco Grimani in 1700 identified the ruins of Mycenae based on Pausanias' description.

Mycenae's Acropolis and surrounding countryside.  The German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann (1822-1890) excavated Mycenae and nearby Tiryns.  Schliemann is considered as the modern discoverer of prehistoric or Bronze Age Greece. 

Grave circle, in the cemetery, inside Mycenae's citadel.

Wild cyclamens growing in the sun-parched fields of Mycenae's palace.

Agamemnon, the king of Mycenae, conducted the 10 year war against Troy, to get beautiful Helen back to his brother Menelaus.  Legend tells us that the long and arduous war divided mortals and gods alike, and contributed to curses and vengeance that followed many of the Greek heroes.  After the war Agamemnon returned to Mycenae and although he was greeted warmly by his subjects, he was slayed by his wife Clytemnestra and her lover Aegistheus.

 The heroes of the Trojan war inspired many writers in antiquity, Homer being the pre-eminent of all, as well as many poets in recent times among whom the American poet Louise Gluck who won the 2020 Nobel price for Literature.  Her emblematic poem on Achilles and her work according to Anders Olsson, Chairman of Nobel Committee,  is "deceptively natural, candid and uncompromising, with no trace of a poetic ornament".

The Triumph of Achilles

In the story of Patroclus

no one survives, not even Achilles

who was near god.

Patroclus resembled him; the wore

the same armor.

Always in these friendships

one serves the other, one less than the other;

the hierarchy

is always apparent, though the legends 

cannot be trusted

their source is the survivor,

the one who has been abandoned.

What were the Greek ships on fire

compared to this loss?

In his tent, Achilles

grieved with his whole being

and the gods saw

he was a man already dead, a victim

of the part that loved,

the part that was mortal.

Achilles tending Patroclus, identified in inscriptions on a vase.  Attic red-figure kylix, ca 500 BC

Sunset

In Greek mythology Hesperides were are nymphs of the evening or the golden light at sunset.  They were called also Atlandides because they were daughters of the titan Atlas.  According to legend the Maidens of the West were tending of the Tree that Dance of the Hesperides around the Golden Tree that was bearing Golden apples.  Hesperides took great pleasure by dancing and singing sweet songs around the tree, (Canvas by Eduard Carvet, 1799-1883)

A happy cow enjoying the green grass of Ireland at sunset (photo by Enya Woods)

View of downtown Columbus, Ohio at sunset after a summer storm (photo by George Spigos)

Chicago also known as windy city or city by the lake at sunset from Adler Planetarium

View of Manhattan skyline and Brooklyn bridge.

Tourists flock at Cape Sounion to visit Poseidon's Temple and to enjoy the sunset at Saronic Gulf. 

Super moon over Poseidon's Temple.  If you can visit the site tomorrow October 2nd you will enjoy the rising beautiful moon between the columns of the Temple that was erected at 440 BC. (photo by T. Matsopoulos) 

Dawn

In Greek mythology Dawn or Eos (Ηως in Greek) is a Goddess that rises each morning from her home the Ocean (Οκεανος).  In the Homeric Hymn to Helios, we are told that Hyperion married  Eryphaesa, and begot tireless Helios (the Sun), rosy Eos (the Dawn) and fair tressed Selene (the Moon).  Dawn appears as many as twenty times in The Odyssey, and the poem repeats similar descriptions of her such as “But when early-born rosy-fingered Dawn appeared…”  Book Eight first lines read When young Dawn with her red-rose fingers shone once more, the royal Alcinous, hallowed island king, rose from bed and great Odysseus, raider of cities, rose too. A There are many similar expressions in Homeric verse, which suggest that different things will happen every day, but Dawn always appears early and always with her rosy fingers.

The Greek Goddess Eos in her Chariot ready for another day of travel.  Edifice found in Herculaneum

Sunrise in our little paradise on earth Porto Rafti: the Homeric expression “when newborn Dawn appeared with rosy fingers…” describes our feelings when we see Eos. At dawn the hue of the sea becomes pink.  The waves become placid and their phosphoresce reflects shades of a red carnation. Όλος ο γιαλός ροδίζει γύρω. Τα κύματα φρικιούν ήρεμα, και το φωσφόρισμά των ανταυγάζει αποχρώσεις ερυθρού γαροφάλλου..." Παπαδιαμαντης

Sunrise in Ukraine; the Homeric expression “when the early Dawn was born; her fingers bloomed” is most appropriate.

The golden throne of Dawn was riding up the sky… and brought a beautiful day… in frozen Lake Baikal.

Aurora, ceiling fresco by Guido Reni (1613) Picture from Encyclopedia Brittanica

Ancient Messene

The charming village Mavromati is on the slope of Mount Ithome.  Ancient Messene or Messini (Αρχαία Μεσσηνία) is a major archaeological site in Greece. It is the city the Theban general Epaminondas founded in 369 BC.  The mountain village has a nice hotel Messana which among other amenities offers a perfect view of the ancient city, which is so well-preserved that you can easily envision how life in a city was 2,500 years ago.

The geographer Pausanias has left us a description of the ancient city which still lies in a fertile valley.  Ancient Messene has the fortune that was not destroyed or altered by later settlements thus its ruins remain untouched.  When the visitor enters the archaeological site the first structure, he sees is a very well-preserved theatre (Odeon). 

The Agora of Ancient Messene was the site where the inhabitants conducted their transactions including sacrifices of animals for religious or commercial purposes. 

The Asclepeion was the most famous sanctuary of Ancient Messene. The Asclepeion was not used for healing purposes as those in Epidaurus and Kos but along with the Agora was the center of public life. There are more than 140 pedestals of statues of prominent citizens and five platforms that surrounded the Doric temple. 

The Stadium is among the most impressive structures of Ancient Messini. Visitors can still run in the field where athletes competed in antiquity.

The restored Mausoleum is located at the far end of the stadium. The temple like structure according to Pausanias who visited the site (155-160 A.D.) was the funerary tomb, the city honored its chief priest as a hero, and it was in this building members of the Saithidas family were buried.    

The Ancient Museum of Messene is worth visiting as it houses an extensive collection ofartwork and sculptures, thus you will be able to complete the image of Ancient Messene you have visited. Excavations at the site are on going under the direction of archaeologist Petros Themelis who has published a book describing the history, structures, sanctuaries and findings of Ancient Messene in detail. 

Ancient Messene, was surrounded by a protective wall, the total length of which was 9 km. The wall which dates to the 3^rd century B.C. is one of the most important achievements of ancient military architecture and protected the city from all directions, except for the Northeast, where Mount Ithome stood as a natural fortress. The wall had two gates, the Arcadian that led towards Megalopolis and the Laconian which has not survived.  The wall was built by Epaminondas, who defeated the Spartans and liberated the Messenian people who for four centuries were Sparta’s helots.  Strabo compares Ancient Messene that was also known as Ithome to Corinth regarding its strategic importance.

Covid-19 Pandemic; observations thus far.

There have been more than 10 million cases and more than 500,000 deaths worldwide due to Covid-19 as of today. It is nearly impossible from the new cases and death numbers that are presented even by respectable sites for someone to reach a conclusion on how Covid-19 pandemic compares those in the past.  The cultural differences among people and the enormous variation of lockdowns, from very strict to light to mini make comparisons very difficult.  The examples below provide us with information on how four distinct populations fared due to their unique characteristics.

On the cruise vessel Diamond Princess 3,618 tests were performed on 3,711 people (2,666 passengers and 1,045 crew).  712 of the tests or 19% were positive. Half of those tested had symptoms while half were asymptomatic. There were 14 deaths.  The death rate of the entire cohort (crew + passengers) was 0.37% while the death rate among those who tested positive, who were likely elderly, it was 2%.  In a brief report has been published in the Journal of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the interested reader, can find epidemiological information regarding Covid-19 in a group of people who were isolated in close proximity within the confines of a vessel. The passengers and crew were quarantined in Yokohama, Japan and the lockdown was total. 

In the State of Ohio 787,929 tests were performed, of which 52,419 or 6.7% of which were positive. There were 2,890 deaths.  The death rate for the 10 million inhabitants is 0.03%.  The death rate is 6% among those who tested positive.  Ohio enacted what I consider a light lockdown.

In Greece a total of 308,392 tests were performed of which 3,409 or 1.11% were positive.  There were 192 deaths.  The death rate from Covid-19 among the 10 million inhabitants is 0.002%.  The death rate is 6% among those who tested positive.  Greece enacted a strict lockdown. 

In Sweden a total of 444,600 tests were performed and 68,451 or 15 % were positive.  There were 5,333 deaths.  The death rate from Covid-19 among the 10 million inhabitants is 0.05% while it is 8% among those who tested positive.  Sweden enacted a mini lockdown allowing its inhabitants to continue their lives as in the past forbidding only gatherings of more than 50 people.

The cultural differences among people and the enormous variation of lockdowns from very strict to light to minimal make comparisons near impossible.  Also, the way different societies care of their elders and those at risk varies not only between countries but also between big cities and small villages within the same country.  The three above mentioned countries have near identical populations (10 million) but fewer than 10,000 elderly are housed in nursing homes in Greece a country in which the elderly are cared at home.  Approximately 30,000 elderly are in nursing homes in Sweden to more than 100,000 in Ohio.  Also, the number of people incarcerated differs as well, from approximately 6,000 in Sweden to 10,000 in Greece to 50,000 in Ohio.  Finally, risk factors such as smoking is more prevalent in Greece while obesity is more prevalent in Ohio. 

In the past 6 months we have learned that certain practices such as social distancing, avoidance of crowded places and wearing masks, the practice of respiratory etiquette and other hygienic practices such as washing hands are effective.  Intense early testing and contact tracing in the early phase of the epidemic have been employed successfully by several Asian countries such as Singapore, S. Korea and Taiwan.   We also learned that strict infection control measures at hospitals, nursing homes, meat processing facilities, prisons and cruise ships are necessary. 

We now know that locking down entire countries adversely impacts economies.  McKinsey's researchers estimate that government deficits could reach $30 trillion by 2023.  Stanford University's epidemiologist John Ioannidis believes that the infection fatality rate (IFR) of Covid-19 can vary from less than that of Influenza to ten times more.  It all depends on case mix, how patients are treated and what age group is infected.  It is known that almost 80% of the deaths are individuals over the age of 80 or those with poor health due to risk factors.  Since several countries  such as Taiwan, Singapore, S. Korea and Japan have dealt successfully with the viral epidemic, hopefully the rest of the countries can decrease their fatality rate if a second or more waves take place. (In the picture the US daily fatality rate as depicted in a NYT article)   

Taiwan, Japan, Sweden and Greece; a tale of four countries.

Early in 2020, the world started taking notice that a novel coronavirus disease, was spreading in the Chinese city of Wuhan.  It was later named, SARS-CoV-2 and the disease Covid-19.  As of today, there are slightly more than 6 million confirmed cases around the world and the global death toll has surpassed 370,000.   

Taiwan is an island nation of 24 million that sits just 70 miles from China.  More than four-hundred thousands of its citizens work in China and more than 2 million Chinese visit Taiwan every year thus a massive outbreak of the disease named Covid-19 seemed all but inevitablefor Taiwan would be one of the hardest hit countries.  Yet despite the odds, Taiwan has recorded only 441 cases of the disease as of today, with only 7 patients dying.  

So how did Taiwan manage to have so few cases and so few deaths from the disease.  First and most important Taiwan enacted prevention measures early.  On Dec. 31, the day the Wuhan authorities announced that there were several patients with an unidentified type of pneumonia, Taiwan activated stricter control measures with testing of incoming travellers with fever and questioned suspected travellers about their contact history.

On Jan 20, Taiwan activated its Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), which rolled out more than 124 measures such as banning all exports of surgical masks and providing all its citizens with two free masks.  On Jan 26 it banned travel to and from Wuhan.  According to a March 3 article published in JAMA, the CECC rolled out measures that included border control, case identification, quarantine for all travelers from regions hard hit by the disease, and postponing the reopening of schools following the winter break.  The center also served as the source of information for the public, with daily press conferences that provided the population with reliable and easy to understand information about the outbreak.  It was thanks to these measures that Taiwan experienced one of the smallest fatality rates in the world of only 0.3 deaths per million.

Japan went its own way, limiting tests to only the most severe cases.

Japan — the grayest country in the world and a popular tourist destination with large, crowded cities — has one of the lowest mortality rates from Covid-19. Τhe government never forced businesses to close and the medical system did not get overwhelmed. 

Japan focused on quickly containing small outbreaks through contact tracing. It has focused on lessening people’s anxiety and stressing the basic science of prevention: wash your hands, wear a mask, keep your distance from others.

A public education campaign urged people to avoid the “Three C’s” which are closed spaces with poor ventilation, crowded places and close contact.

Last week, Prime Minister Abe declared Japan’s battle against the outbreak a success, taking the country off its “lockdown lite” that lasted only a month and a half.  Japan experienced one of the smallest fatality rates in the world of only 7 deaths per million.

As the virus spread across Europe, many Greeks feared that Greece would be hit as bad asItaly and Spain.  On Feb. 27, a day after the country’s first Covid-19 case was diagnosed the government canceled the annual carnival and all sporting events and on March 11, it closed down schools and universities. Two days later all travelers from abroad had to go through a two-week mandatory quarantine.  It also closed down cafes, restaurants, libraries and museums.  Attendance of mass in churches was also forbidden even during Holy week and Easter. 

Everyone in the country during the 2 ½ months lockdown had to request permission by sending an SMS each time we were to leave our homes, to go to supermarkets, doctors’ offices, pharmacies to visit and help our elderly relatives, to go for a walk or risk a fine.

(Picture of an empty Monastiraki square in Athens with view of the Acropolis in the background.)  

The government established a council of experts who issued information and advice on a daily basis.  It was the willingness of most Greeks to comply with experts’ suggestions that brought about an outstanding result of only 2,915 confirmed cases and 175 deaths as of today.  Greece similarly to Japan tested for the virus less than 1 percent of the population. As of today, 15,903 tests per million were performed mostly on people admitted to hospitals with symptoms and those who have been in contact with confirmed cases. Spot tests on travelers coming into the country from abroad were performed as well.  For comparison purposes Germany and Austria countries that also had very good results performed 47,194 and 47,477 tests per million of inhabitants respectively.  

As of this week, the number of cases and more important the number of deaths per million comparing to other European countries point to a Greek success story.  So, what was Greece’s good result due to?  First, as Taiwan, Greece enacted its plan, a strict lockdown, earlier than most European countries.  Second, the population of 11 million Greeks lives in a mainland which is mountainous, the size of which is 50,000 square miles, and which is surrounded by two seas the Aegean (82,000 square miles) and the Ionian sea (65,000 square miles) with more than a thousand islands,  thus the country is sparsely populated as its physical characteristics make contact between villages and small towns difficult, which after all was forbidden during the lockdown.  Third, most of the Greeks accepted the enacted recommendations of social distancing and adhered to its principles.   Greece experienced one of the smallest fatality rates in Europe of only 18 deaths per million.

(Picture of a deserted beach in Porto Rafti, Greece)

Sweden's controversial plan to deal with the coronavirus allowed for people to go outside, visit restaurants, bars  and shops as long as they kept distant from each other.  Sweden closed high schools and universities and did not allow gatherings of more than 50 people.  Although not everyone in Sweden is happy with this approach, the majority of the people were satisfied.

Anders Tegnell, who advocated this approach, estimated that 40% of the people in Stockholm will be immune by the end of June which will give the country a big advantage, as most of the countries will experience a “big second wave” later this year.  As of May 20th, only 7.3% of Stockholm’s inhabitants have antibodies to Covid-19.  He also said the “lockdown strategy” has not scientific basis especially when it comes to the young and children as they do not transmit the disease.   Sweden has reported zero coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours, for the first time since March 13.  Sweden experienced fatality rate was average in Europe with 440 deaths per million.

So, which approach should countries follow in the future when an infectious disease appears to be spreading and the danger of an epidemic is real?  Extensive testing such as performed in Singapore allows authorities to quickly determine who is infected and isolate them.  More than 90% of cases in Singapore  were mostly young, healthy men. Of those who died, 95% were more than 60 years old, while the vast majority of those infected were between the ages of 20 and 59. 

Taiwan’s and Greece’s success stories suggest that an early detection of a pandemic and enactment of measures for its control minimize the number of cases, flattens the curve and deaths.  

The “lockdown light’ approach of Japan also ensured a low death fatality rate.   

The open society approach with social distancing as it was practiced in Sweden has higher death toll but left the economy minimally affected.  

All four countries followed their experts’ advice and their policies did not become a source of political discord.  Unfortunately, fear and politicization of crises stigmatize governments or groups of people without helping to solve the challenge at hand therefore are ultimately unproductive.  Hopefully, in 2021 an effective vaccine will become available that will limit the prevalence of the disease.  Past pandemics such as the 1918-1919 Spanish flu, still have lessons we all can learn and benefit from as most viral pandemics have similarities therefore similar measures such social distancing, wearing masks when in crowded places, washing our hands often, use of hand sanitiser,  sneezing and coughing etiquette, often help in their control.  

Finally, going out for a walk and spending time in nearby park or nature reserve reduces stress and help us feel healthier and happier.  Looking at greenery and listening at nature’s sounds including total silence afforded to us in remote areas can boost our sense of well-being.   

Well, my friends this is the last post on pandemics and Covid-19.  In my opinion the pandemic will die down on its own as most epidemics do and all of us those infected or not will remember the Covid-19 epoch for the rest of our lives.

(Picture of the view and the undeveloped path  I took my daily walk that helped my mood during the lockdown)