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SKG

Constantinos Sfikas
‘‘Thessaloniki’s path
is only forward’’

The tour guide of the VIPs finds the allure of Thessaloniki in
the fragments of its history, hidden inside the modern city. Ο
ξεναγός των διασήμων βρίσκει τη γοητεία της Θεσσαλονίκης
στα ψήγματα της ιστορίας της, κρυμμένα μέσα στη σύγχρονη
πόλη.

by Vassia Antonopoulou

His love of history, geography and my- I consider it an honour and a joy to be and the Ottoman tours have ob-
thology caused him to abandon his given the opportunity by the Thessa- vious recipients, while the Thes-
work at the bank and turn to one of the loniki Film Festival to guide directors saloniki of the Mid-war or Thes-
oldest professions, that of the “explain- and actors that have been my idols since saloniki of the Occupation have
er”, as the spiritual guides of those who my student years, such as John Malk- more sophisticated audiences.
visited Delphi were called. He passed ovich, Willem Dafoe, Oliver Stone and
the particularly demanding exams of Alexander Payne. The visit of the direc- What are the city’s strong and
the Thessaloniki Tour Guide School tor Wim Wenders to Thessaloniki and weak points?
and became its oldest and perhaps most Mount Athos was also very moving, as Thessaloniki’s strong points are
passionate student. He thinks that a he attended the whole ritual while we its characterisation as a UNESCO
guide does not lecture, but every time were there in a unique, almost Ortho- city, as I’ve already mentioned, the
wholeheartedly helps the visitor recon- dox manner. 15 Roman and Byzantine monu-
stitute in his imagination the ancient ments, with additional Jewish and
world and culture, faithfully following What’s Thessaloniki like today from Ottoman monuments. The sea
the facts. He’s guided great figures of the viewpoint of tourism and visitors? front with its six kilometres of the-
politics, science and art through the city In the last eight years, Thessaloniki has matic parks and the ability to trav-
and has great stories to tell. lost - fortunately - its introversion, due el by bike or even on foot is also a
to the political will of Mayor Yannis plus. The cost of living is reason-
What distinguished guests have you Boutaris and Deputy Mayor Spiros Pe- able and so it’s visited by a lot of
guided and who do you particularly gas. The city became known at an inter- young people who are attracted
remember? national level, utilising its great histo- by the night life and its youthful-
Through the years, I’ve guided many ry and the possibilities that a mid-sized ness due to its universities. There’s
visitors of the city, celebrities or not. city has - by international standards - the excellent cuisine with a series
Some days stand out and are unforget- that embraces the sea, has great monu- of great restaurants created before
table, like the most recent visit of Van ments and has been characterised as an and after the crisis. The city has al-
Rompuy, the former president of the UNESCO city. Visitors come from Isra- most zero criminality.
European Union, who was impressed el - let’s not forget that in the past, since The city’s weak points are the ab-
by the Rotunda, the Arch of Galerius - 1492, Thessaloniki was called the Sec- sence of greenery and the need
or Kamara, as we of Thessaloniki call it ond Jerusalem - from America, Russia, for more cleanliness, signage and
- the President of Israel Mr. Rivlin, who neighbouring countries such as Turkey, lighting. Lately the need for up-
enjoyed the panoramic view of our city Bulgaria, Serbia, as well as from Ger- grading local transport has be-
from the Alyseos Tower and the Presi- many, Italy, Spain and France. In recent come huge. In 2020, the metro
dent of the Greek Democracy Mr. Pav- years, the city’s accredited guides have will partly solve the problem, but
lopoulos, who had an extraordinary created a series of themed tours, which for now... There’s a need for more
grasp of the history of Thessaloniki, as were originally targeted at local visitors, policing, so the graffiti phenom-
I guided him from Aghios Dimitrios to but have now become products that enon will be reduced, as it’s now
Aristotelous square. foreigner visitors ask for. So, the Jewish unfortunately spread through the

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