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Wine as a Way of Life
Médoc: The Wine Marathon You can read Part 1 here… Part 2 🏃 The Marathon That Could Have Happened The Médoc Marathon is Bordeaux’s famous wine marathon, winding through the vineyards and châteaux of the Médoc. The course covers the classic marathon distance of 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers), but here athletic competition goes hand in… →
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Wine as a Way of Life
Médoc: The Wine Marathon Part 1 🏃 42 Kilometers of Wine, Costumes, and History On 5 September 2026, the 40th Médoc Marathon took place in Pauillac—Bordeaux’s famous wine marathon. Its 42.195- kilometer (26.2-mile) route wound through the vineyards and châteaux of the Médoc, while along the way runners encountered wine, music, costumes, oysters, and other… →
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The Vineyard Olympics
Part 3 Ancient Rome You can read Chapter 1 here… Chapter 2 When the Vineyard Became a System …Pompeii. The day before the eruption of AD 79. A small thermopolium not far from the Forum. In the shop, someone is always complaining about the price of the wine. Someone else demands that his be diluted… →
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The World’s Greatest Vineyards
The Vineyard Olympics You can read the second part here… Part 3 Ancient Rome How was wine made and drunk in Ancient Rome? Where were Rome’s most famous vineyards, why was Falernian considered one of the finest wines of the ancient world, and how did the Romans transport it over thousands of miles? Rome did… →
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The World’s Greatest Vineyards
The Vineyard Olympics You can read Part 1 here… Part 2 Wine in Ancient Greece was far more than an ordinary drink. Viticulture and winemaking, the trade in famous island wines, amphorae and symposia made it an important part of Greek economy, culture and everyday life. It was here that wine became not only a… →
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The World’s Greatest Vineyards
The Vineyard Olympics Part 1 Introduction When we speak of famous people, the greatest artists, or undefeated military commanders, arguments can go on for centuries. But when it comes to vineyards, things become even more complicated. Over two and a half thousand years of the development of fine and increasingly sophisticated winemaking, different generations have… →
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Odessa Courtyard
An Album of Memories 🍇 Chapter 4 Aron Botvinnik, the Tailor You can read Part 4 here… Part 5 JFK Airport. After completing all the immigration formalities, Aron slowly walked out into the arrivals hall. It was noisy all around him. People were embracing relatives, some were already hurrying toward the taxis, while others searched… →
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Odessa Courtyard
“An Album of Memories” 🍇 Chapter 4 Aron Botvinnik, the Tailor Part 4 You can read Part 3 here… 🧳 A Journey Across Several Borders Aron did not make the decision to leave the Soviet Union in a single evening. It took shape over the course of years—from hundreds of small incidents, doubts, hopes, and… →
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Odessa Courtyard
“An Album of Memories” 🍇 Chapter 4 Aron Botvinnik, the Tailor You can watch Part 2 here… Part 3 The war did not spare the Botvinnik family, bringing with it loss, hardship, and grief. But eventually the war ended, and the family began putting its life back together. Ahead lay decades of rebuilding, work, raising… →
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Odessa Courtyard
“An Album of Memories” 🍇 Chapter 4 Aron Botvinnik, the Tailor In Part 1, the Botvinnik family made their way to Odessa, began building a new life there, and managed to preserve their family trade. Now the story moves beyond the walls of the tailor’s shop. We will look at the traditions of the Jewish… →
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Odessa Courtyard
“An Album of Memories” You can read Chapter 3 here… 🍇 Chapter 4 Aron Botvinnik, the Tailor Part 1 Departure Aron Moiseyevich Botvinnik was thirty when, in the mid-1970s, he became the first resident of the courtyard to emigrate. The entire courtyard came out to see him off. …September 1975. Odessa, 10 Sadovaya Street. It… →
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The Odessa Courtyard
A Family Album of Memories 🍇 Chapter 3 You can read the first part of Chapter 3 here… Part 2. For many years, Spiridon Kyriakidi would walk down to the Odessa Passenger Port whenever Greek ships came in. One day, one of those ships would mark the beginning of his first journey to Greece—the country… →
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The Odessa Courtyard
A Family Album of Memories 🍇 Chapter 3 Part 1. Spiridon Kyriakidi, the Soda-Water Vendor You can read Chapter 2 here… For more than thirty years, soda-water vendor Spiridon Kyriakidi greeted the people of Odessa near the City Garden. This is the story of one man, a Greek family, a vanished profession, and an Odessa… →
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Odessa Courtyard
Album of Memories 🍇 Chapter 2 (continued). The Grapevine—One of the Courtyard’s Oldest Residents and Its Chronicler The beginning of Chapter 2 can be read here… On the appointed day, the courtyard looked like a curious blend of a Soviet collective farm during harvest season and the set of one of those inspirational films celebrating… →
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Odessa Courtyard
An Album of Memories 🍇 Chapter 2. The Grapevine: The Courtyard’s Oldest Resident and Chronicler You can read Chapter 1 here… Many old Odessa courtyards had their own winemaking traditions. Some were known for their apricot trees. Others for laundry fluttering between balconies. Ours was remembered for something else entirely—an old Lydia grapevine that had… →