Locals and diasporans extend warm welcome to Australian ambassador on first visit to Ithaca (Photos)

“As the locals say, there isn’t a single location successful Ithaca without a transportation to Australia.”

The reflection, shared by the Australian Embassy successful Athens successful a thank you enactment pursuing the Ambassador’s visit to Ithaca, summarises 170 years of assemblage ties betwixt Australia and the Ionian island. Ithacans were among the archetypal Greeks to migrate to Australia, dating backmost to the 1850s.

These ties were astatine the centre of Alison Duncan’s authoritative two-day visit past week.

Australia’s Ambassador to Greece was welcomed by the Eparch of Ithaca Smaragda Sardeli, and Mayor Dionisis Stanitsas successful ceremonial meetings.

With researchers astatine the Archive of Ithaca. Photo: Supplied/Ithacan Historical Society

Joined by vice president of the Ithacan Philanthropic Society, Penny Maroulis, and vice president of the Ithacan Historical Society (IHS), Kyriaco Nikias, Ambassador Duncan paid an authoritative visit to the metropolis hallway where she was bestowed the title of honorary citizen.

“This visit represents not conscionable diplomatic courtesy, but a genuine designation of the taste bonds that person sustained our radical for generations,” Maroulis said.

Talks with section authorities officials focused connected initiatives to strengthen ties betwixt Ithaca and Australia done culture, acquisition and tourism, while the Ambassador was invited to be a league connected Greece’s demographic diminution acceptable to beryllium hosted successful Ithaca successful May 2026.

Ambassador Duncan was declared an honorary national of Ithaca successful designation of the Australian Embassy’s contributions successful “strengthening relations betwixt the two countries”. Photo: Australian Embassy Greece

Organised by the IHS, the taste programme of the itinerary included a visit to the Historical Archive successful Vathy, location to a affluent postulation of humanities documents spanning 4 centuries.

Time besides allowed for a tour astatine the island’s northernmost village, Exogi, the birthplace of Anthony JJ Lucas, 1 of the founders of Melbourne’s Greek Orthodox assemblage successful 1897.

Locals and visiting Greek Australians attended assemblage events honouring the Ambassador. Photo: Supplied/Ithacan Historical Society

“Ambassador Duncan’s historical visit — the very archetypal by immoderate ambassador to our beloved Ithaca — represents a profoundly important milestone for Ithacan Australians[…] honouring the heavy taste roots that proceed to specify our individuality crossed vast oceans and respective generations,” IHS president, Peter Raftopoulos said.

Ambassador Duncan met with officials, assemblage representatives and members of the island’s exigency services. Photo: Facebook/StanitsasDionisis

Both nights concluded with assemblage plot parties, 1 astatine the Ithaca Regional Unit, Eparcheio, successful the superior Vathy, and different 1 astatine a edifice successful Stavros village.

Hosted by the Eparch and the Ithacan Historical Society, the events featured unrecorded dances by the section ‘Charilaos Tsigonias’ group, a singing show by mezzo soprano Katerini Manolatos and an informal accidental for locals and diasporans to conscionable and sermon with the Australian Ambassador.

Still from the ‘Charilaos Tsigonias’ section creation radical performance. Photo: Supplied/Ithacan Historical Society

“There was large section interest, due to the fact that there is not a household connected Ithaca without some transportation to Australia,” IHS vice president Kyriaco Nikias said.

“The Ambassador’s visit honoured our shared past which spans astir two centuries.”

The Eparch of Ithaca Smaragda Sardeli welcoming Ambassador Duncan connected stage astatine a full-house assemblage event. Photo: Supplied/Ithacan Historical Society