Alimos is a standout beachside suburb in Athens, part of the Athens Riviera but, it is also a business centre with numerous commercial headquarters.
What’s most relevant for me is that Alimos and the adjacent suburb of Faliron share the resting home of our Commonwealth fallen World War 2 soldiers in the War Cemetery.
Mayor Andreas Kondylis along with his 2 deputy mayors (Ms Siena Theodorou and Ms Maria Marksntonaki) took the time to take me on a guided walk through the War cemetery.
There are 2,029 Commonwealth servicemen of the Second World War buried or commemorated in this cemetery. Of those, as Mayor Kondylus stated “there are 198 Australian heroes”
This cemetery highlights the multifaceted connection between Greece and Australia. Many of our Australian and Commonwealth soldiers were put to rest adjacent to the Athens Mediterranean waters. The cemetery is a green oasis in a largely concrete city where the Hellenic respect of the Commonwealth allies is visible from the meticulous maintenance of the Cemetery.
We read at the War Cemetery the names of our Australian soldiers including clearly some of Greek origin names such as Zampellis). It was a moving moment for all of us.
We then continued our meeting at Alimos City Hall. I telephoned our own Lord Mayor- Nicholas Reece – and we held a conference call on how we best connect our communities and people. Starting with the Greek Community of Melbourne Film Festival, where we expect to play a feature film recently produced in Alimos through to participation by Alimos City at our Lonsdale Street Antipodes Festival.
Lord Mayor Reece noted the importance of the Greek Community in Melbourne and emphasised how his Council wanted more global cooperation with Greece.
Mayor Kondylis stated “with Bill, I’m sure will make this collaboration happen. We are happy to arrange summer cultural camps for kids from Australia. Our galleries, theatres and beaches offer the best in cultural diversity and history is at the core of our city”.
