We had been together with Despina for 3 years already when I went to Sweden. And even though it was hard, she supported me in the decision to live and work abroad. She knew I had to follow my dream. The plan was that I would go first, see how life is, what work I can find and she would join me later. We realised however that Sweden and other Scandinavian countries were not for us. That’s when I got back to Greece, to Athens. Despina was working in Athens at that time already. I found a job at a lovely restaurant in Glyfada. At the same time I was still trying to pursue my career as an engineer. I sent about 1 500 job applications to companies in Greece and abroad. One day I got a phone call from the UK, they offered me a job in a shipping company (I also have a degree in ship brokerage and supply). I was offered to move to the north of the UK, do the training for 6 months and then work in a new office the company was opening in Athens. I went for the training, again leaving Despina behind. Unfortunately the company decided not to open the offices in Athens and instead they offered me to stay and work in the UK, but I said no. Already at that time I started thinking about getting involved in the family restaurant. I liked very much the lifestyle here on Poros and I enjoyed the work itself, especially meeting new people all the time. In a corporate environment I felt I could not show my personality and here at the taverna I’m able to show it everyday. I love to make people happy, show them our hospitality. My heart has always been here on Poros.
We got married here on the island in September 2016. Despina came with a small boat to the chapel, I came with Alex on his scooter. I wanted my brother to take me to church. It was fantastic! We moved to Poros permanently in spring 2017. Despina immediately fell in love with the life on the island too. She couldn’t believe the freedom one feels living here. It is just magical to sit on our balcony, drink coffee and watch the sea.
My favourite thing to do is to travel around Greece (and the world) and taste local food. I’m also passionate about wine. Together with my brother Alex we are planning to make some additions to the family taverna. We would like to have a counter with fresh vegetables (only locally grown) so our customers can choose themselves which veggies they would like to eat in their salad. There will be also a special wine fridge with a large selection of wines and a counter with fresh fish and seafood. We want to create something different. We want people to know what they are actually eating.