Athens, Greece
Konstantina greeted us in her chic Athens apartment whose artsy fun decorations gave clues about her life today. In addition to being a student of Communication, Media and Culture at Athens University where she is focusing on advertising and public relations, Konstantina is also doing design for a very avant-guard Greek magazine called “Ozon” (too avant-guard for Greeks, she says), and making jewelery for friends. Konstantina’s family comes from the island of Chios, which is famous for producing “maxtis” or “mastic” which is what makes chewing gum chewy and which Konstantina insisted we try before leaving her apartment. Look for Konstantina during the 2004 Olympics in Athens – she is applying for work there.
You can email Konstantina at nantiag@hotmail.com and find more pictures of her here.
Serres, Greece
Strains of the American National Anthem wafted down the stairs as we arrived at Dimitrios Karas' house. Dimitri lives in Serres, in the North of Greece, with his father, his grandmother and his sister Eleanna, and he was welcoming us to his house by playing this regal tune on his cello! The rest of the visit was just as full of wonderful surprises. Dimitri showed us the famous cloth bag that he had described at length in his Junior Summit topic group on the environment. He also showed us some computer programs that he had taught himself to write, some beautiful computer music. . . and the strangest set of dancing stuffed creatures, that have been created in honor of the 2004 Olympics in Athens! Dimitri was one of the youngest participants in the Summit at 10 years old. Today he is primarily concerned with finishing the very tough school exams that all 14 year olds must pass, and dreaming of what he wants to do with the future. His dreams encompass both a career as engineer, and also as child psychologist. Talking to the intense but also very caring Dimitri, we have no doubt that he could follow either of these career paths with pleasure and success.
You can email Dimitrios at dim-el@otenet.gr and find more pictures of him here.
Athens, Greece
During the Junior Summit, Nikos was a participant in topic 16 and involved in discussions on how to make computing less expensive, a topic that is still very close to his life and work. As a Mechanical Engineering student at the Technical University in Athens, Nikos is aiming for a career in computer science, specifically nanotechnology. His interest in computers extends beyond academics as well; Nikos has been using his PC to create video montage. He is also learning guitar and currently in a rock band that performs around Athens.
You can find more pictures of Nikos here.
Athens, Greece
Spiros was studying for no less than 9 single subject exams when we met him at his parents home in Athens. Now 16, and in his second to last year in high school (the hardest in Greece) Spiros has little time for much other than school, tutoring, and of course, the Junior Journal. Where would the Junior Journal be without Spiros? The international online journal has been published monthly since the Junior Summit, and is still seeking and finding new writers and editors. (See http://journal.jrsummit.net.) Spiros chose an engineering track in his high school and is hoping to pursue a few graduate degrees in electric engineering. He is still very interested in history and literature though, and made an excellent tour guide pointing out important Greek monuments as we drove around Athens together.
You can email Spiros at tzelepisk@otenet.gr and find more pictures of him here.