Podcast: Paros Greece Crowned Best Island, Coldplay Controversy, and Karlaftis Gets Paid
- tony
- Jul 14
- 31 min read
In this episode of the Greece Chats Podcast, host Tony Kariotis is joined by Greek-American entrepreneur Nikitas Tsoukales, founder of RealTop, a digital marketing agency based in Boston. They dive into what’s happening in Greece right now, from the Acropolis shutting down due to extreme heat, is it safe to visit Athens, Greece? They also talk about the new tourist taxes on Santorini and Mykonos, and whether Greece has become too popular for its own good. They also talk about surprisingly cheap flights to Greece this summer, share a fun fact about John Stamos’ Full House character Jessie Katsopolis, and poke fun at Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ now-iconic “Have you been to Samos?” moment.
See audio only edition below:
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Transcript of the episode:
[Tony Kariotis]
Welcome back to the show. I'm Tony Kariotis
[Tony Kariotis]
here with Nikitas Tsoukalis.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What's up?
[Tony Kariotis]
What's up, man?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What's up, bro?
[Tony Kariotis]
We're back at a much different studio
[Tony Kariotis]
today.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. Yeah, we're using, uh, my wife's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
dining room.
[Tony Kariotis]
There we go.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's not mine. I have nothing to do with
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it. I know nothing about design.
[Tony Kariotis]
It's beautiful here.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Shout out to the-
[Tony Kariotis]
So we're good. Anyway, let's jump into the
[Tony Kariotis]
show.
[Tony Kariotis]
What's up, man?
[Tony Kariotis]
What's going on?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So much. We have a lot to talk about.
[Tony Kariotis]
We do. We do.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
There's a lot of major issues happening in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the world.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I know we're gonna go through them one by
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
one. We're prepared.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But, um, I think this is gonna be a more
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
serious chat today.
[Tony Kariotis]
It is. It is. I'll run through the topics
[Tony Kariotis]
that we got for you guys today, and then
[Tony Kariotis]
we'll jump right into the first one.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
Up first, did you see... I know the whole
[Tony Kariotis]
world already saw it, but we gotta talk
[Tony Kariotis]
about it.
[Tony Kariotis]
Coldplay, the boss and the HR both get
[Tony Kariotis]
fired. Who fired them?
[Tony Kariotis]
Have you... You going to a Coldplay? You
[Tony Kariotis]
go to... You ever go to a Coldplay
[Tony Kariotis]
concert?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I don't know anything about Coldplay. I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
know nothing about their music.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But I'm a big fan right now.
[Tony Kariotis]
Big fan? All right.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Big fan of Coldplay.
[Tony Kariotis]
And many of you may have saw, there was
[Tony Kariotis]
a... I had done a, like, Greekified memes
[Tony Kariotis]
on those.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. [laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
Most of the people took it for what it
[Tony Kariotis]
was, but for some reason, some people are
[Tony Kariotis]
a little upset about that one.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[sighs] It's been a rough week.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways, we'll jump into that. Greeks are
[Tony Kariotis]
missing all around the United States.
[Tony Kariotis]
Nowhere to be found.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Crickets.
[Tony Kariotis]
Crickets.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Nobody-
[Tony Kariotis]
It's that time of the year.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Nobody's here. There's no one here. We're
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the-
[Tony Kariotis]
MIA.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
We're the only ones here.
[Tony Kariotis]
We're the last ones still here in America.
[Tony Kariotis]
Paros, named best island in Europe by
[Tony Kariotis]
Travel & Leisure re- uh, readers. We'll
[Tony Kariotis]
get into that. The heatwave in Greece hit
[Tony Kariotis]
today.
[Tony Kariotis]
Couple weeks ago, Michael Jordan was in
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece with a bunch of NBA superstars.
[Tony Kariotis]
Do... Hosting a Board of Greatness event
[Tony Kariotis]
in Athens.
[Tony Kariotis]
Shaq, not NBA... Now, this is not Greek
[Tony Kariotis]
news, but Shaq made a huge comment about
[Tony Kariotis]
the WNBA. I know you wanna touch on that.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I want to touch on that.
[Tony Kariotis]
We'll get into that.
[Tony Kariotis]
The Elliniko prog- uh, the Elliniko
[Tony Kariotis]
project is making progress in Greece.
[Tony Kariotis]
The tower is halfway built. The old
[Tony Kariotis]
airport is going to be a world-class mini
[Tony Kariotis]
city.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I have a lot to say about this.
[Tony Kariotis]
All right. Uh, George Kalaftes from the
[Tony Kariotis]
Kansas City Chiefs, two-time champion,
[Tony Kariotis]
gets a... an extension for $93 million.
[Tony Kariotis]
That puts him in exclusive company. And
[Tony Kariotis]
then,
[Tony Kariotis]
is Greece becoming homogenous? I know you
[Tony Kariotis]
wanna touch on this.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
We'll get into that. And then last,
[Tony Kariotis]
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Prime Minister of
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece, is still not sure if you've been
[Tony Kariotis]
to Samos. So, let's jump right into this,
[Tony Kariotis]
Nikitas.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Let's go, baby. What are we talking about
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
first?
[Tony Kariotis]
Let's go Coldplay.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Coldplay.
[Tony Kariotis]
Coldplay. I know you wanted to touch on
[Tony Kariotis]
this. The boss gets fired. The HR boss
[Tony Kariotis]
gets fired, but who the heck is firing
[Tony Kariotis]
them?
[Tony Kariotis]
Y- for those that... I think everyone saw
[Tony Kariotis]
it, but the, uh, the CEO and the HR were
[Tony Kariotis]
having a public affair.
[Tony Kariotis]
And when the camera cut to them, they
[Tony Kariotis]
completely overreacted.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
All he had to do was wave.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
All he had to do was stay cool.
[Tony Kariotis]
Stay cool and wave and no one was gonna
[Tony Kariotis]
upload that video.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Stay... He would've stayed cool.
[Tony Kariotis]
His wife would've never saw the video.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Kept his goomah from HR.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And, you know, the world would continue.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But now Coldplay is the most well-known
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
band probably in history.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's the most viral thing that's happened
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
all year. And I think it's like the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
combination. Like, you can't make this up,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you know? The idea that you have this
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
successful CEO,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you have the wife of one of the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
original founding families of Boston. You
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
know this, right?
[Tony Kariotis]
I didn't know this part.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So I was-
[Tony Kariotis]
But today, Maria was telling me how she
[Tony Kariotis]
comes from a super wealthy billionaire
[Tony Kariotis]
family.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
She is married to someone in the Cabot
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
family. And the Cabot family is one of the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
original founding families of Boston, of
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
New England.
[Tony Kariotis]
This was a major fumble.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
This is a major fumble.
[Tony Kariotis]
Biblical proportions.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
On her end. Like... Or maybe it isn't. You
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
know, I don't know. But the, the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
combination of this thing is what's so
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
crazy-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... that's captivated everyone. Like, the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
idea that
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you have a CEO and HR manager. Number one,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
that combo is crazy.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Pretty well-known company in the startup
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
community here in Boston.
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Combining with Coldplay, which is already
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
a big deal-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... here at Gillette Stadium, 10 minutes
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
from where we are right now.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You combine that with
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
this, this viral moment, or the viral
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
moment is the combination of all these
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
things. Like, you can't make that up.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, what do you think is gonna happen
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
with these two right now, if you have to
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
guess?
[Tony Kariotis]
Well, we know they... We know he's gone.
[Tony Kariotis]
He resigned. I don't know what happened
[Tony Kariotis]
with the HR lady. She's gone too?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I mean, she's gotta be gone.
[Tony Kariotis]
I mean, was this... I me- it wasn't a... I
[Tony Kariotis]
don't... I may have read somewhere that
[Tony Kariotis]
this was a setup. I don't think this was a
[Tony Kariotis]
setup. There's no way to put that
[Tony Kariotis]
together.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What? You set up? What, did you call
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Coldplay?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, I know.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You're like, "Hey, let's set up this-"
[Tony Kariotis]
Everyone loves a conspiracy theory.
[Tony Kariotis]
Everyone loves a conspiracy-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
No.
[Tony Kariotis]
Um, honestly, I, I, I don't know much more
[Tony Kariotis]
about... Aside from it became the world's
[Tony Kariotis]
biggest meme for a couple days. Other
[Tony Kariotis]
than that, what happens with them going
[Tony Kariotis]
forward, I think...
[Tony Kariotis]
I think their lives will just... I think
[Tony Kariotis]
life will continue
[Tony Kariotis]
as though they get divorced and go their
[Tony Kariotis]
own ways.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh-
[Tony Kariotis]
But I don't think either one's buried.
[Tony Kariotis]
I don't think either one's buried.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
Unless, unless-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What do you mean buried? They're buried
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
alive.
[Tony Kariotis]
Man.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
They're buried.
[Tony Kariotis]
It'll blow over. It'll blow over.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Okay.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So here's the-
[Tony Kariotis]
It'll blow over because as sad as it is,
[Tony Kariotis]
affairs are common. And
[Tony Kariotis]
he probably doesn't have a bad track
[Tony Kariotis]
record and people are gonna move on.
[Tony Kariotis]
He'll get a job.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I have a question for you.
[Tony Kariotis]
Go.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Is this as big as Hawk Tuohy?
[Tony Kariotis]
Bigger.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's bigger.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's bigger than Hawk Tuohy.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Hawk Tuohy had a good
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
year, maybe 18 months, and she made a lot
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
of money. I think she got in trouble
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
later. But nevertheless-Can they mo-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
Can they monetize it?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, like at this point-
[Tony Kariotis]
Hmm
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... should they, should they embrace this?
[Tony Kariotis]
She, sh- no. She went super viral in a
[Tony Kariotis]
different way. This is not something you
[Tony Kariotis]
can monetize. You can't come out and now
[Tony Kariotis]
sell merch because you're that CEO. No, no
[Tony Kariotis]
that's not gonna fly.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I know people already selling merch.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. Other people are gonna make money
[Tony Kariotis]
off of it, but he's not gonna make money
[Tony Kariotis]
off it. I don't think.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
He's not gonna make money off of it.
[Tony Kariotis]
He might make money in other ways, but
[Tony Kariotis]
not, not the-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
He's gonna lose money.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
She's probably-
[Tony Kariotis]
'Cause I don't think he brings anything to
[Tony Kariotis]
the table that people care for. Like, if
[Tony Kariotis]
he came out and said, "I'm gonna do a
[Tony Kariotis]
podcast." Okay, for what? Like, you're not
[Tony Kariotis]
an interesting person. You just got
[Tony Kariotis]
caught cheating.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Friend of mine told me the other day, he
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
said, "It's interesting," he said,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
"because
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
he's gonna lose half,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
but she's gonna get half."
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And I just sorta stared at him. I was
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like, "That's awful." [laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's just... Anyway.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Tough week.
[Tony Kariotis]
Tough week. But it's a good- week where no
[Tony Kariotis]
one's around. The Greeks will miss 'em.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Where is everybody?
[Tony Kariotis]
They're in, they're in Paros. They're in
[Tony Kariotis]
Sakriti. They're in Rhodes. They're in
[Tony Kariotis]
Athens, Thessaloniki. I mean, especially
[Tony Kariotis]
if we're in Boston, everyone's from
[Tony Kariotis]
Thessaloniki around here, right?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I was almost
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cold calling people the other day, just
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like speed dial this-
[Tony Kariotis]
Hey, you said ʻ'kau pālō. You still here?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Dude, it's shocking. I was speed texting.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I think I was at like 50%.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Not here. Greek Americans, just people are
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gone.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, this year seems like
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it's not just them too, it's just anybody.
[Tony Kariotis]
Because I think last year was a year a lot
[Tony Kariotis]
of people didn't go. And this year
[Tony Kariotis]
they're making up for it. 'Cause like when
[Tony Kariotis]
we... That event we did a couple weeks
[Tony Kariotis]
ago, it wasn't packed. It was a nice
[Tony Kariotis]
crowd, but it wasn't packed.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Wasn't packed.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. Everyone's gone.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
There seems to be a substantial more
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
people in general traveling, this could be
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
wrong, but Greece, Greek Americans,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
they're nowhere to be found.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, nowhere.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You think they're all in Samos?
[Tony Kariotis]
They might be in Samos.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Or in Paros. They're in Paros, these
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
people.
[Tony Kariotis]
They're in Paros.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Come on, bro. Come on.
[Tony Kariotis]
They're in Paros and that's what we call a
[Tony Kariotis]
segue in this business.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Come on.
[Tony Kariotis]
Segue.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
ʻIpame.
[Tony Kariotis]
Paros is named the best island in Europe
[Tony Kariotis]
by Travel and Leisure readers.
[Tony Kariotis]
Granted these readers are not all Greek
[Tony Kariotis]
and they're people that are going to
[Tony Kariotis]
touristy places. However,
[Tony Kariotis]
I've been trying to tell y'all this for a
[Tony Kariotis]
long time. I was a big fan of Paros from
[Tony Kariotis]
way back when.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Okay.
[Tony Kariotis]
And Paros is nice. Is it the best island
[Tony Kariotis]
in Europe?
[Tony Kariotis]
Maybe.
[Tony Kariotis]
But the best island anywhere doesn't mean
[Tony Kariotis]
it's the absolute best.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Not even close.
[Tony Kariotis]
It's just the current flavor. It's the
[Tony Kariotis]
current flavor.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Come on, dude. Paros is not even close.
[Tony Kariotis]
No, no, no. I get it for a Greek. I'm
[Tony Kariotis]
thinking about someone who's not there
[Tony Kariotis]
necessarily just for the Greek culture.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Listen, Paros is a three-day excursion.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
That's the reality. It doesn't have that
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
much. I get it and I understand everyone
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
from the Cyclades is gonna be mad at me,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
but here's the reality.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The Cyclades, the Cyclades,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
they only have one layer. That's the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
reality. The layer is
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
white buildings, linen,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
chic.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
There's a lot of Bohemian stuff and it's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cool. It's awesome.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Paros is awesome.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But that's all it's got. It's got that one
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
layer. You go to another island, like a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
bigger island like Rhodos,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
that's got 10 different layers. You have
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
ancient Greek history. You have o- even
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Ottoman occupation and influence. You have
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
food that has a thousand more flavors.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And you have, you know, parts of Rhodos
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
that have that chic vibe. You have
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
multiple layers.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, I think, uh, I think Paros
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like many of the islands in the Cyclades
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
are a one-trick pony. And, uh...
[Tony Kariotis]
There, there you go. It's, it's one-trick
[Tony Kariotis]
pony. All right, so aside from-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's a great trick.
[Tony Kariotis]
Aside from home, no Kos, Kalymnos, Rhodes,
[Tony Kariotis]
where are you going? And don't say
[Tony Kariotis]
nowhere. Pick an island.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Aside from Kos, Kalymnos and Rhodes.
[Tony Kariotis]
And Rhodes.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs] I was gonna say. Rhodos.
[Tony Kariotis]
A- aside from those three.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I haven't been to that many places.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
Just pick one.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The only other place I've been to is-
[Tony Kariotis]
Samos?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... Zakyn-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Samos. [laughs] It's Paros. [laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Uh, Zakynthos-
[Tony Kariotis]
All right, that's a good choice.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I mean, listen-
[Tony Kariotis]
That used to be my favorite island.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The Ionian Islands-
[Tony Kariotis]
They're beautiful
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... you're gonna have more layers and
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you're gonna have that-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... Italian-Venetian influence, you know?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. And have that crazy blue water that
[Tony Kariotis]
you don't find anywhere else.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Listen, you're gonna have architecture.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You know, nothing against all the white
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
buildings, but if you look at the origin
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
of the white buildings, it's not an
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
architectural marvel. These ʻiṭan naf
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Ptocheia. These were poor places.
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
These were places to stay cool.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And these were typically fishing villages.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You go to a place like Kerkyra, you know,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Corfu for some of you, that has real
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
architecture. You go to places like, like
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Plaka in Athens that has neoclassic
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
architecture or even Kalymnos, how are you
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gonna compare it culturally?
[Tony Kariotis]
No, you can't. It's a completely different
[Tony Kariotis]
world. And that's what's beautiful about
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece, where everyone assumes just 'cause
[Tony Kariotis]
it's all Greece that it should all look
[Tony Kariotis]
the same. But if you backtrack a couple
[Tony Kariotis]
hundred years, this form of Greece didn't
[Tony Kariotis]
exist. There was... The Cyclades were
[Tony Kariotis]
their own. The Ionian were their own, a
[Tony Kariotis]
part of another country at that time. You
[Tony Kariotis]
had, like, the Athens area was separate
[Tony Kariotis]
from the Peloponnese. The Dodecanese was-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
All right. So we got it. He is not going
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Paros, but you might go to Samos?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Maybe.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways, we're gonna take a quick break
[Tony Kariotis]
and when we come back, the heatwave in
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece hit today, Tuesday. And the
[Tony Kariotis]
legendary Michael Jordan hosts an event in
[Tony Kariotis]
Athens, Greece, the Board of Greatness.
[Tony Kariotis]
We will be right back.
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[Tony Kariotis]
All right. Welcome back to the show.
[Tony Kariotis]
No.All right. Welcome back. We were
[Tony Kariotis]
talking the heatwave in Greece hit today.
[Tony Kariotis]
Are you prepared for a heatwave? You're
[Tony Kariotis]
gonna be in Greece next week, it's, it's
[Tony Kariotis]
hot.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I'm, I'm not going to Athens, though.
[Tony Kariotis]
All right.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You're talking about a six... So I'm going
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
straight to Kos.
[Tony Kariotis]
Kos is pretty South.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You're looking at a sick... Oddly enough,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it's, it's cooler there. You're looking at
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like a six, seven degree difference
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
between Athens and Kos.
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So, I'm not too concerned about-
[Tony Kariotis]
Well, always on the island, it's always a
[Tony Kariotis]
nice breeze, even if it's super hot.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But even so, it's like all right, it's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
102,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
but it's dry. 82 at night. So I don't
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
think it's gonna... I think everyone's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
used to it already. I think it's more of a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
headache-
[Tony Kariotis]
It doesn't bother me.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Doesn't bother you? Okay.
[Tony Kariotis]
I'll never complain about heat. I complain
[Tony Kariotis]
about the cold. I don't complain about
[Tony Kariotis]
heat.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
100%.
[Tony Kariotis]
All right. So we're all prepared. Just
[Tony Kariotis]
know, if you're out walking about...
[Tony Kariotis]
I'm not gonna be a teacher, I'm not gonna
[Tony Kariotis]
say, "Drink water."
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You ever meet Greek people that love the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cold?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yes.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Isn't that weird?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Does that ever throw... Does that throw
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you off?
[Tony Kariotis]
Well, here's the thing, it depends where
[Tony Kariotis]
you're from in Greece, 'cause, like, one
[Tony Kariotis]
year I was up in Kavala, and it was still,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, late September, October, and the
[Tony Kariotis]
nights were cold. And it might've read,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, 50 on the thermostat. Or is it
[Tony Kariotis]
thermometer? Thermostat? [laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The thermometer.
[Tony Kariotis]
It might've read, like, 50 degrees
[Tony Kariotis]
Fahrenheit. And for those that do Celsius,
[Tony Kariotis]
I'm sorry, I'm not a converter. Um,
[Tony Kariotis]
it might be, like, 15. But anyways, it was
[Tony Kariotis]
really cold, and it felt like it was
[Tony Kariotis]
freezing here.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Really?
[Tony Kariotis]
Because it's so thin air, the, the air.
[Tony Kariotis]
There's no humidity, so it's, like, really
[Tony Kariotis]
cold.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And, and people, there's some people that
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like that, though.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. They love it.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Some people really-
[Tony Kariotis]
The sun goes down and it's just cold, in
[Tony Kariotis]
the nights, freezing.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I've one friend, I'm not gonna name his
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
name, but many of you might know who it
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
is. He's a Ponvil. [glasses clink] And
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
obviously, his family's from the Black
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Sea,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and I'm pretty sure it's cold as hell
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So his lineage
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
probably goes back 1,500 years. And, like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
when the winter's coming here, he loves
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it. He's like, "Oh, I love the cold. I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
can't wait to go skiing." I'm like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
"Skiing? Are you crazy?"
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. I'm done. No, thank you. [laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The idea of, the idea that you could be in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
a place where just by sitting outside
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
long enough, you will die.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I don't think that's okay.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, yeah, no. We're all set with that.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways, moving on. Michael Jordan, you
[Tony Kariotis]
might've heard of him, was in Athens,
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece, hosting an invitational event for
[Tony Kariotis]
people of the Jordan Brand, called the
[Tony Kariotis]
Board of Greatness.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Board of Greatness.
[Tony Kariotis]
You see, you see any of that stuff on, on
[Tony Kariotis]
the internet?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Why do you think they chose Greece?
[Tony Kariotis]
I think, from when I read that he usually,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, jumps around different cities for a
[Tony Kariotis]
summer vacation with the company, but
[Tony Kariotis]
this is the first time that he's done this
[Tony Kariotis]
Board of Greatness event.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You think that was influenced by Giannis?
[Tony Kariotis]
He's not part of the brand, so maybe not.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh, no, he's not?
[Tony Kariotis]
No.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh, interesting. I mean, it was pretty
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cool though, right, Vouliagmeni?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What was the restaurant they were at?
[Tony Kariotis]
I'm not sure, but I saw, like, during,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, there was a picture of the tables
[Tony Kariotis]
with the sea in the background. There was
[Tony Kariotis]
a golden Michael Jordan silhouette thing,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, it was probably, like, 10 feet tall.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It was- Vouliagmeni was in the news twice
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
in the same week.
[Tony Kariotis]
The riviera itself is just, it gets people
[Tony Kariotis]
there.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Well, no. The other, the problem is you
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
have Michael Jordan in the news, and then
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the same week, someone got shot in the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
face in Vouliagmeni.
[Tony Kariotis]
Oh, I didn't hear about that.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. So, evidently, I mean, this has
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gotta be some mafia hit. So, there was a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
guy from, uh, from Berkeley, California
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
that went there for a trial,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
uh, tr- uh, went there for a trial or some
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
sort of issue having to do with the, um,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the, his, his kids.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Uh, he went through a divorce and had to
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
deal with his kids. And while he was
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
um, a, a motorcycle or a mini bike pulled
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
up to him and just shot him dead in the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
face, like, a few times.
[Tony Kariotis]
Wow.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And now, the ex-wife has been arrested,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and I think three or four other people. So
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there was, like, there was a hit in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Vouliagmeni, and then Jordan shows up. Big
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
deal. Vouliagmeni's just crushing it
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
right now.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, it is.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways, a little bit north of Vouliagmeni
[Tony Kariotis]
is the old airport. Remember the old
[Tony Kariotis]
airport?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh, I remember.
[Tony Kariotis]
The Ellinikon Airport is soon
[Tony Kariotis]
gonna be the Ellinikon City? Town?
[Tony Kariotis]
Whatever you wanna call it, micro-city?
[Tony Kariotis]
And development started a few years ago, I
[Tony Kariotis]
suppose starting before that, they call
[Tony Kariotis]
it a 10 to 20 year development. However,
[Tony Kariotis]
there's gonna be a tower in this
[Tony Kariotis]
community,
[Tony Kariotis]
and the tower apparently is halfway built.
[Tony Kariotis]
Have you... You know about this town? You
[Tony Kariotis]
planning to check it out, or is there
[Tony Kariotis]
something you don't want any of this to be
[Tony Kariotis]
in Greece?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I mean, listen, ul- ultimately, that site
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
is, is, is a real eyesore, right? I- it's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
not a nice thing, just having this.
[Tony Kariotis]
What's currently there?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah, I mean, uh-
[Tony Kariotis]
Just empty airport land.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Having the old... Yeah, having the old
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
airport there is a shame. I mean, it's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
right on the water, it's right near the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
city. It almost makes no sense.
[Tony Kariotis]
It's great space to do something
[Tony Kariotis]
beautiful.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Phenomenal space. I think the idea is
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
phenomenal. You know, the only thing I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
wonder,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you know, number one, I, I think when this
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
place gets rolled out, it's probably
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gonna be awesome. I hope it can get
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
maintained very well.
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I hope the people behind it are gonna be
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the people that are handling the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
management of this thing.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And the second thing, and the, the worry I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
have,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
especially because there's gonna be so
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
much,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there is so much foreign investment is,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
if we go there, I- is it gonna feel like
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
we're in Greece?
[Tony Kariotis]
Right.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Is it gonna feel like we're going into
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
some sort of project in Florida, or
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
France, or Dubai? Is it going to be Greek?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Are people from Greece-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... going to be living there? Or is it
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gonna be...
[Tony Kariotis]
I think it's gonna be a mix. It's gonna be
[Tony Kariotis]
a mix of probably locals that maybe have
[Tony Kariotis]
jobs in there, they might wanna live
[Tony Kariotis]
really close and just walk right to work.
[Tony Kariotis]
I think you're gonna get a lot of tourist
[Tony Kariotis]
Airbnb, apartments, rentals, uh, short
[Tony Kariotis]
stays. You're gonna get a lot of high end,
[Tony Kariotis]
um-... rich money coming in. That's
[Tony Kariotis]
gonna bring a lot of that.
[Tony Kariotis]
Um, does the casino part pull in a lot of
[Tony Kariotis]
high-end people? Possibly, I would think
[Tony Kariotis]
so. Um, [clears throat] it's gonna be a
[Tony Kariotis]
mix. It's not gonna be... It's gonna be
[Tony Kariotis]
basically Mykonos in Athens.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Mykonos in Athens.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. I think that's what it is.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Listen, I'm, I'm cool with it. I think
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it's awesome. I think it's progress, and
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
they're saying that it's gonna create
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
between 70,000 and 80,000 jobs.
[Tony Kariotis]
Nothing wrong with that. So if you're
[Tony Kariotis]
Greek in Greece, don't tell me you can't
[Tony Kariotis]
find a job.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Well, I'll tell you, that's something
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
needed in Athens, and we need
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
higher-paying jobs in Athens, too.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So, I like the fact that it's... How it's
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
gonna contribute to the local economy. I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
think it's phenomenal. I think we need
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
more of it,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and I think we need more
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
residences and industries right now,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
versus just Airbnbs and tourism. I hope
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it's not just a tourist neighborhood.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Um, that way, the local economy can
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
benefit more from it-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... but it's pretty incredible.
[Tony Kariotis]
I think in the summer you'll, it'll feel
[Tony Kariotis]
completely touristy, but let's see how
[Tony Kariotis]
they handle a winter season in, in Mykon.
[Tony Kariotis]
That'll say a lot.
[Tony Kariotis]
But what you did say in there was talking
[Tony Kariotis]
about how... Is it gonna feel like Greece?
[Tony Kariotis]
You're gonna feel like Greece? That kinda
[Tony Kariotis]
leads to my next topic,
[Tony Kariotis]
and I think it's a topic that you
[Tony Kariotis]
definitely wanted to chime in on, and is
[Tony Kariotis]
Greece becoming homogenous?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I think that's a...
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I think that's a big yes.
[Tony Kariotis]
Is that a good thing?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[sighs].
[Tony Kariotis]
Or do you... Do you remember the days of
[Tony Kariotis]
the '90s when you'd go to Greece, and
[Tony Kariotis]
like, their version of a device or toy or
[Tony Kariotis]
item was a completely weird name you've
[Tony Kariotis]
never heard of 'cause they had no
[Tony Kariotis]
connection to America? And now the world
[Tony Kariotis]
is literally in everyone's palms.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. I mean, you're seeing it. You know,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I'll tell you, the first time I went there
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
as a family was in 2012. I hadn't gone
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
back in over 10 years.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
If you compare 2012 to 2025, it's far more
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
homogenous. I mean, Greece is in the top
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
10 countries of English-speaking, uh, or
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
English-speaking countries right now. Um,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
everyone speaks English. You can get
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
around easily. All your technology works
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You know, if there is a fad here in the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
United States,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
we already have it in Greece. If there's a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
fad in Greece, it's already here in the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
United States.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And I don't know if you remember, like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you know, speaking of '90s... '90s, early
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
2000s, like, when something was hot in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Greece,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it took almost a year for it to become hot
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
here.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And now it's like-
[Tony Kariotis]
It's just hot everywhere
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... it's the same time.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So-
[Tony Kariotis]
Even with music that was the case.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Do you wonder if, if,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
if it starts becoming more or less the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
same, like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
does something lose its appeal after? Does
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it become more or less the same
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
everywhere, and then that thing that made
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
it unique is lost?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, I'm worried about... I mean, it's
[Tony Kariotis]
already happened, but it... I do miss
[Tony Kariotis]
the... Going to Greece and seeing things
[Tony Kariotis]
that... Seeing them live differently. Not
[Tony Kariotis]
nec- They do live differently, but they...
[Tony Kariotis]
Seeing them live differently with... In
[Tony Kariotis]
different ways. Like, for instance, in the
[Tony Kariotis]
'90s, I remember hanging out in the Ɣýρι
[Tony Kariotis]
in the island. A cousin would be like,
[Tony Kariotis]
"Oh, do you wanna go inside and play video
[Tony Kariotis]
game?" And I'm... I'd go in there
[Tony Kariotis]
assuming he has Nintendo, Super Nintendo,
[Tony Kariotis]
Sega Genesis, right? That was the '90s.
[Tony Kariotis]
And we went in there, he had a game that
[Tony Kariotis]
was similar quality, but the system was
[Tony Kariotis]
not a Nintendo or a Sega. It was not even
[Tony Kariotis]
a name I even heard of. Not like some
[Tony Kariotis]
old-school thing that we had in, in
[Tony Kariotis]
America previous generation. No, that was
[Tony Kariotis]
the current generation probably for, like,
[Tony Kariotis]
the other side of the planet.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
And I was just like, "Wow, like,
[Tony Kariotis]
everything's just different."
[Tony Kariotis]
And that's gone.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
That seems to be gone.
[Tony Kariotis]
That's gone. Everyone-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Especially in Athens.
[Tony Kariotis]
Everyone has the same brands. Your
[Tony Kariotis]
computers are either Apple or the Windows
[Tony Kariotis]
side. Your phones are either an iPhone or,
[Tony Kariotis]
or an Android. Your brand clothes are the
[Tony Kariotis]
same. Your TV shows feel the same.
[Tony Kariotis]
Even back then, like TV,
[Tony Kariotis]
eh, I think TV,
[Tony Kariotis]
I don't know. I don't have an opinion on
[Tony Kariotis]
that. But
[Tony Kariotis]
even like the brands, uh, that you'd find
[Tony Kariotis]
like a Coca-Cola, that is worldwide, don't
[Tony Kariotis]
get me wrong, but when you go to the
[Tony Kariotis]
convenience store and you see something
[Tony Kariotis]
similar to what you know in America, and
[Tony Kariotis]
then you have like this knockoff brand,
[Tony Kariotis]
but it's not a knockoff brand, it's just
[Tony Kariotis]
their version of the regular brand, and
[Tony Kariotis]
you're just like, "What is this..." Like
[Tony Kariotis]
culture shock. There's no more culture
[Tony Kariotis]
shock.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Well, I would say, like, th- Like
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
thinking, thinking this through,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like you go, you go to Greece right now
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and so much of the US is already there,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
right? So you don't feel this, this,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
this, this drastic difference in cultures
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like you used to.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Um, there's still a major difference, but
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
not like when we were kids.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
On the flip side though, the cool thing
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
is, here in the United States,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
we have far more... We have a lot more
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
access to culture. We have far more access
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
to cuisine from Greece, and every other,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and every other culture. Uh, fashion,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
music. Um, we can partake in other
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cultures so much more here at home, where
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I think in the '90s we didn't have this
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
much access. I mean, like even Greek
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
restaurants here in the Boston area,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
they're everywhere now.
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like we have Souvla Zitika, we have
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Hiradika. Like, we have these spots. We
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
didn't have them before.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
New York always had the token few in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Astoria, or more than a few in Astoria.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
but once you left Astoria, you didn't
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
really see anything outside of Astoria.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But even around New York and Manhattan,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
there are places everywhere. So like, as
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
much as the US is giving over there, we're
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
getting back in a really positive way
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
too. So maybe this homogenous world is a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
good thing.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. No, it's, it is a good thing. It
[Tony Kariotis]
definitely is a good thing. Uh, I just...
[Tony Kariotis]
Not... I don't miss it, but it was like,
[Tony Kariotis]
it was a unique feeling when you run into
[Tony Kariotis]
that difference back in the day.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I'll tell you what. One of the cool things
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
about going to Greece as an adult
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
was you were forced to disconnect from
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
work. Because, you know, again, when I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
went there in 2012 as an adult-... and I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
was self-employed.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
like, my cell phone didn't work there.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I had to get a SIM card. Um, there was a
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
bigger disconnect. You were actually able
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
to disconnect a little bit more-
[Tony Kariotis]
Mm-hmm
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... in Greece. Now, you're bringing your
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
cell phone there.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, and you've, you're just still
[Tony Kariotis]
connected.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
Like, nothing's changed. You just have a
[Tony Kariotis]
different scenery.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So, you're bringing work with you-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... a little bit more easily in Greece-
[Tony Kariotis]
That, yeah
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
... which I think is a downside.
[Tony Kariotis]
It is a downside. It kind of,
[Tony Kariotis]
it, it destroys what a trip to Greece was
[Tony Kariotis]
all about.
[Tony Kariotis]
Um, for instance, for me, like, my work
[Tony Kariotis]
has become around Greece travel and Greece
[Tony Kariotis]
culture.
[Tony Kariotis]
And now, when I go there, I don't... I've
[Tony Kariotis]
destroyed the vacation aspect of Greece
[Tony Kariotis]
for me.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
I go there and it's just like, all right,
[Tony Kariotis]
I get off the plane. I get in the car. We
[Tony Kariotis]
drive. All right, I know where we're
[Tony Kariotis]
going. There's no more... I don't want to
[Tony Kariotis]
say wow factor. There's still a wow
[Tony Kariotis]
factor, but it's diminished.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. I mean, last year, I was there for,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you know, a few weeks. And worked the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
whole time.
[Tony Kariotis]
And you had work with you, right?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah, I had my desk set up.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You know, I waited for that seven-hour
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
time difference, around 4:00 or 5:00 in
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the afternoon there.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. Like, one year, when we stayed for,
[Tony Kariotis]
like, four or five months, but I... Maria
[Tony Kariotis]
had to get back a little bit before I did,
[Tony Kariotis]
so I stayed about three, four more weeks.
[Tony Kariotis]
And at that point, I was done traveling. I
[Tony Kariotis]
was done running around. I was in Athens
[Tony Kariotis]
and literally my every day was... Because
[Tony Kariotis]
I wasn't still there...
[Tony Kariotis]
No, 'cause I... Yes, there was work. And
[Tony Kariotis]
my every single day became go to this
[Tony Kariotis]
coffee shop, post op, get my laptop out,
[Tony Kariotis]
grab my Freddo espresso. You know what I'm
[Tony Kariotis]
talking about, Dope.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
And just spend the day there. And then,
[Tony Kariotis]
okay, if I finish most of the things I
[Tony Kariotis]
need to do by, like, 3:00, 4:00, it's nice
[Tony Kariotis]
out. I'll do my little walk through
[Tony Kariotis]
Plaka.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
Grab my second coffee. And then...
[Tony Kariotis]
Because this time of the year, October,
[Tony Kariotis]
November, it's not like anyone's... It's a
[Tony Kariotis]
different season.
[Tony Kariotis]
So, it's not like you just call someone
[Tony Kariotis]
you know in Greece 'cause they're back in
[Tony Kariotis]
their work schedule.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
And it's like, all right, I guess I'll
[Tony Kariotis]
just go home and call it a night.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs]
[Tony Kariotis]
And it's just like, holy crap. This is
[Tony Kariotis]
not,
[Tony Kariotis]
this is not that summer in Greece anymore.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Did you enjoy the time advantage there?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah. Yeah. That's the best part of about
[Tony Kariotis]
getting your work done in Greece, is you
[Tony Kariotis]
are ahead of the game every day. It's like
[Tony Kariotis]
getting up at 2:00 in the morning here-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah
[Tony Kariotis]
... and finishing by, like, 9:00 AM.
[Tony Kariotis]
'Cause when you're done at 4:00, 5:00,
[Tony Kariotis]
it's only 9:00 AM in Boston.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
If you have a job and-
[Tony Kariotis]
You're waiting for America to wake up to
[Tony Kariotis]
get in touch with you.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
That's phenomenal.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I mean, I-
[Tony Kariotis]
So, you're ahead of the game.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I loved it. I mean, the idea that, like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
before the workday started, I'm clearing
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
emails.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, I'm take, going through my
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
administrative tasks.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And then the actual working hours, all I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
had to do was show up for a few Zoom
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
meetings throughout the day and do some,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
you know, little, little defense, little
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
offense in terms of, like, uh, strategy
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
meetings. I thought it was awesome.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Actually, it was super productive for me
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
being there. So, I don't know.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways. Last topic. Kyriakos Mitsotakis,
[Tony Kariotis]
Prime Minister of Greece, is not sure
[Tony Kariotis]
if you've met the Ɛsamos.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
That skit just gonna, it's gonna keep
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
coming-
[Tony Kariotis]
It's never going away. We're just kidding.
[Tony Kariotis]
It's not a hot topic. It's just the old
[Tony Kariotis]
meme. We just keep bringing that up.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The meme is so good.
[Tony Kariotis]
'Cause you've not met the Ɛsamos.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Dude.
[Tony Kariotis]
No, no, stop it. You have not met the
[Tony Kariotis]
Ɛsamos.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
[laughs] How good is that?
[Tony Kariotis]
Oh, it's the greatest clip ever.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
You know, I wonder what the next viral
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
thing is gonna be from him. He's had a few
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
good ones.
[Tony Kariotis]
He's had a few.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Did you see the one of him with Trump the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
other day?
[Tony Kariotis]
No.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh, man. There was a funny one where they,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
um... Someone created a meme where the...
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It was a video,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and it was like a romantic song, and it
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
was like somewhere they had been together.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I think it was a NATO summit. And, like,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Trump would just be, like, talking to
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
someone else and Mitsotakis is just
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
looking over with these eyes like he
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
was... Just wanted to be part of the cool
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
kids' club.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And it was absolutely hilarious. All
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
right. I'll, um, I'll see if I can find
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
this one since you-
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, you try finding that while I, while
[Tony Kariotis]
you do, there are a couple other topics. A
[Tony Kariotis]
little bit of diaspora news. Greeks in
[Tony Kariotis]
America.
[Tony Kariotis]
NFL star, Greek American, George
[Tony Kariotis]
Kalafatis. Kansas City Chiefs give him a
[Tony Kariotis]
four-year extension, $93 million.
[Tony Kariotis]
Congratulations to George.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
$93 million. Absolutely crushing it,
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
George.
[Tony Kariotis]
Kid born in Athens. Moves here I think
[Tony Kariotis]
when he was, like, 10 to 12 years old.
[Tony Kariotis]
Becomes a Greek American.
[Tony Kariotis]
And now, he's a star on a two-time
[Tony Kariotis]
championship team in the NFL.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Phenomenal. Phenomenal story, man.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
93 million. I don't care if that's over
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
100 years.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
I don't care what that costs.
[Tony Kariotis]
No, they said, they said-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
93.
[Tony Kariotis]
They can build the rest of the tower with
[Tony Kariotis]
the Ellinikos project.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah. Where-
[Tony Kariotis]
[laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Where do you go from there? 93.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What do you think he's, uh, what do you
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
think he's paying to agents on that?
[Tony Kariotis]
I'm not sure what the rate is.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
What do you think you'd take out of the
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
93? Actually, let's do a little Greek
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
talk.
[Tony Kariotis]
It's probably 10%.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Κάθαρα.
[Tony Kariotis]
[laughs] Κάθαρα, πόσα θα πάρει; Σκατό...
[Tony Kariotis]
Εξήντα;
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
By the way, I gotta tell you. So, when I
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
entered, when I entered the corporate
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
workforce in the early 2000s, I remember
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
when people would talk about what you
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
made, it was always gross.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So, let's say someone made 10,000, right?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Back then, that was like millions, right?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Someone said, "Oh, that guy made $10,000,"
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
but it was gross.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
But I remember at the time, like, going to
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
visit my dad at the, at the store.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And [laughs], we'd go like, "Hey, you
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
know, αυτό έβγαλε 10 χιλιάδες."
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like this guy made 10,000.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
And he would always be like, "Κάθαρα."
[Tony Kariotis]
[laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like, it was always the net.
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Like-
[Tony Kariotis]
Like the clean cash.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Yeah.
[Tony Kariotis]
I get it.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Why are you, why are you telling me about
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
the gross?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Oh, wait, so the government's taking 45%.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
So he'd be like, "Oh, so he is making five
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
and a half." Eh, you know.
[Tony Kariotis]
[laughs]
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
It's phenomenal.
[Tony Kariotis]
Anyways. That's all we got for this week's
[Tony Kariotis]
show. Nikitas, it's been fun.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
We cut it short today, huh?
[Tony Kariotis]
Yeah, we got to cut it short. I have a...
[Tony Kariotis]
I gotta be somewhere. Uh, we're not gonna
[Tony Kariotis]
talk about where we gotta be.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
We don't want to know where he's going.
[Tony Kariotis]
We don't want to know. But anyways. Thank
[Tony Kariotis]
you guys for listening to this episode of
[Tony Kariotis]
the podcast, Greece Chat podcast. Tony
[Tony Kariotis]
Karydatis here with-
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Nikitas Tsoukalis
[Tony Kariotis]
... and we will talk to you again next
[Tony Kariotis]
week, same pl- Oh, no, sorry, he's leaving
[Tony Kariotis]
for Greece.
[Tony Kariotis]
Maybe we'll record one more before he
[Tony Kariotis]
goes.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
Aren't you leaving for Greece?
[Tony Kariotis]
The following week?
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
There's nobody here. There's-
[Tony Kariotis]
There's nobody here.
[Nikitas Tsoukales]
The United States is empty.
[Tony Kariotis]
So, we'll talk to you later. See ya.
