[Lbw2007] [Lbw] Hellenic proposal for the LBW 2007

Tue Jan 2 12:34:49 EET 2007

Looking very good, although I'm currently too lazy to click on the links :-)

In concert with the rest of the comments, I'll go metoo and generally
indicate that I don't really feel comfortable with the size of the area.
A smallish village with basic amenities (ie, one or two small-scale
hotels, a few bungalows, some camping space, and a few basic shops)
would be better.

Considering this has been the only confirmation of proposal, and the due
date is now well passed in all timezones, I'd propose to accept this
proposal as the official one as soon as the seemingly common concerns of
location size, hall and internet access have been resolved. Then again,
where would we be if we didn't vote on how to vote on wether to vote ?

ikke

Spiros Bolis wrote:
> Hi guys,
>
> as promised I'm sending our proposal for the LBW 2007 before this year
> ends (local time :-) )
>
> >From all of us, happy and productive new year
>
> See you in Crete this summer,
>
> Spiros
>
>
> =======================================================================
>
> Greetings from sunny (but rather chilly) Athens,
>
> We are pleased to propose that the LBW for 2007 take place here, in
> Greece, on the island of Crete and more specifically the area of
> Hersonissos in Herakleion (Iraklio). We chose that location for the many
> reasons we state below (for those impatient, scroll to the bottom):
>
> Touristic Infrastructure:
>
> Crete is a very popular touristic destination for a large part of the
> western world and as such it has lots of transportation facilities,
> either by sea or by air, and lots of different types of accommodation,
> ranging from luxurious spa resorts to small studios and well organized
> camping sites.
>
> The airport at Iraklion has, apart from the very frequent local flights
> to and from the mainland (mainly Greece's two largest cities, Athens and
> Thessaloniki), a constant flow of charters coming and going to and from
> everywhere in the world especially during the summertime, so that part
> should be easy.
>
> The port of Iraklio is one of the busiest in Greece and has at least two
> very large ferries connecting Iraklio with Athens (6-hour trip) every
> night, itineraries which are doubled or even tripled during peak periods
> in the summer.
>
> At about 15Km from the airport and some 25Km from the port of Iraklio to
> the East by the sea is the area of Hersonissos which has two camping
> sites and plenty of hotels. Hersonissos city consists of several small
> villages and the main tourist destinations of Port Hersonissos ,
> Anissaras and Old Hersonissos. Last population count was 4050 citizens
> while on high touristic season circulating people reach 50.000!
>
> Sightseeing and other activities:
>
> Crete can accommodate a large number of different vacation types as it
> combines vivid night life, antiquities, clear blue sea and nice beaches,
> mountains and canyons. To mention some of either popular or
> geek-oriented destinations we have assembled a non-exhaustive list:
>
> Samaria gorge, the most popular and well known hiking destination
> http://www.west-crete.com/samaria-gorge.htm
>
> Skinakas university observatory, located at a high mountain one of the
> best locations in Europe for high quality astronomical observations
> http://www.physics.uoc.gr/en/menu/skinakas.php
>
> Knossos and Faistos ruins, these two cities used to be the center of the
> Minoan civilization: 
> http://www.culture.gr/2/21/211/21123a/e211wa03.html
> http://www.zeus.gr/en/guide/crete/prefecture_of_heraklion/phaistos.html
>
> ITE (FORTH): The Foundation for Research and Technology  Hellas (FORTH)
> is one of the largest research centers of Greece with well - organised
> facilities and a highly qualified staff. It consists of seven Research
> Institutes most of which are located in Crete. 
> http://www.forth.gr
>
> Thira (Santorini): day-cruises form the port of Iraklio to the volcanic
> island can be arranged.
>
> Boutari winery at Skalani village (8Km south of Iraklio), a very modern
> building with guided tours and wine testing seminars
> http://www.boutaris.gr/%2876EADF0227D055951393144F46B90B3A67122CB06AC96036%29/ecPage.asp?id=2781&nt=18&lang=1
> http://www.boutaris.gr/%28CED762C025E916D1691479F5DFDDE39506F080F0419D7022%29/ecpage.asp?id=2778&nt=106&lang=1
>
> And of course one can do water sports (like scuba diving, canoeing,
> jet-skiing, windsurfing, etc) at every organized beach (including
> Hersonissos)
>
> Cuisine and Local Spirits:
>
> In the latest years many mentions have been made about the Cretan Diet
> and Mediterranean Diet. So it is now well known that the Cretan Diet is
> not only aromatic and tasteful, but also extremely healthy. The
> incorporation of olive oil in the dietary habits of the Cretans dates
> back to ancient times. The writings in Linear A and B tablets ascertain
> that Minoans used it in their nutrition dating at least as far back as
> 1800 BC.
>
> Today, Cretans consume large quantities of virgin olive oil in all their
> foods. They use generous quantities in their salads, in their fried
> dishes (fish, potatoes, etc.), in boiled greens, in soups, in all oily
> dishes, in pastries and even in the preparation of pork!
>
> Raki (or tsikoudia) is an anise-flavored apritif produced by distilling
> grapes and is an extract with alcohol concentration between 40 and 80 %!
> It is usually accompanied by "meze" (a selection of appetisers or small
> dishes of seafood such as "little fishes", grilled octopus, cheese or
> ham) which can replace main course. Sitting down for a "raki" in a
> kafeneio, you could be served with the most simple but wonderful mezedes
> like goat cheese, olives, dolmades (stuffed vine-leaves), grapes,
> raisins or rusks.
>
> Wine has been an important part of Greek culture for over 4000 years as
> the numerous archeological discoveries throughout Greece have revealed.
> The ancient Greeks knew well the nutritional value of wine as it became
> an inseparable part of their daily regimen. Wine also played and
> important role in the evolution of the local economy.
>
> The first traces of wine production in Greece were found on the island
> of Crete, in the middle of the 3rd century BC. Many fascinating insights
> into the culture of wine were discovered in the Minoan village of Myrtos
> near Ierapetra. Several clay wine presses, wine cups, amphorae and wine
> seeds were discovered throughout the island of Crete and brought to
> light the important role that wine has played in Greek culture since
> these ancient times. Discoveries of tombs in Crete that date from
> between 3000-2000 BC portray replicas of winepresses and possibly the
> oldest winepress in the world was found in the ruins of Vathypetro near
> the village of Archanes
>
> Nowadays there are two main wine producing regions in Iraklion. The
> first one is centred in the areas of Archanes and Peza where two
> varieties of red grapes are cultivated , "Kotsifali" with a
> characteristic aroma and taste and "Mandilari" with a deep ruby color.
> Wines made from these two varieties of grapes aquire a color and taste
> ,quite distinctive. There is also a dry white wine with a distinctive
> aroma and fruity taste , produced in the area , from the "Vilana" grape
> variety. The second region is centred in the areas of Dafnes and
> Arkaloxhori , where the main variety of grapes cultivated is the red
> "Liatiko". In general the wines produced in the prefecture of Iraklion
> are red and rose . The red ones from the varieties "kotsifali",
> "mandilari" , "liatiko", "ladikino", "sirah" and "carignane", and the
> rose ones from the varieties "athiri", "thrapsathiri", "silvaner",
> "chauvignon" and "vilana". There are four "appelation d'origine
> controlee" categories of the wines produced in the prefecture of
> Iraklio.
>
> Local Organizing: People and ideas:
>
> We've already recruited 2 more fellow geeks to help with the organizing
> of LBW, they're both living in Iraklio, have a lot of ideas and are
> willing to do the face to face contacts with the local authorities, the
> local tourist agents etc. At the same time the rest of us (two members
> of the Hellenic Linux Users Board, all situated in Athens) will try to
> secure some short of sponsorship in order a) to make the stay more
> pleasant and b) to be able to invite one or two popular figures of the
> FLOSS movement (we've already took the liberty of sending some e-mails).
>
> We feel that there's a lot of time to organize and we'll do our best to
> show you the Greek hospitality as we understand it. We've also set up a
> wiki at http://lbw2007.hellug.gr/ which will be world viewable as soon
> as we prepare more content for it and through that we will be expecting
> your input
>
> Time of the event:
>
> As August and especially the week surrounding the 15th, the most
> important religious holiday of Greece (after Easter), is the busiest
> touristic period, we would advise against picking a date then because
> of a) the crowd: Everyone who can will be somewhere near a beach,
> filling the hotels, etc. We can get around this by booking early (say by
> the end of February) but the prices will be the highest one can get and
> b) heat: we're talking about sunstroke intensity - it is not unusual to
> get peaks of 40 degrees Celsius with and average of 35. If one is not
> careful it can get to you, but if a few rules are followed, this too, is
> doable.
>
>
>
>
> Concluding, we think that Crete offers all the things LBW would ask for
> and we have the people to make sure that everything will run smoothly
> and everyone will have fun.
>
> Our first choice of dates would be the 2nd till the 9th of September but
> if the majority insists on August we propose the period of 26th of
> August till the 2nd of September
>
> On behalf of the Organizing Committee,
>
> Richard Kweskin, president of HEL.L.U.G.
>
> =======================================================================
> _______________________________________________
> LBW mailing list
> LBW at x31.com
> http://www.x31.com/mailman/listinfo/lbw
>
>   

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