MACEDONIA WAS, IS, ALWAYS WILL BE GREECE.MACEDONIA MEANS GREECE..

               Thessalonike of Macedon

                       Θεσσαλονίκη - Thessaloniki 
 Thessalonike (Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη or Thessaloniki) (342 - 295 BC) was a Greek princess, the daughter of Macedonian king Philip II of Macedon, by his Thessalian wife or concubine, Nicesipolis, from Pherae.
(Nicesipolis or Nicasipolis of Pherae (in Greek Νικησίπολις), was a Thessalian woman, native of the city Pherae, wife or concubine of king Philip II of Macedon and mother of Thessalonica of Macedon. There is not much surviving evidence about her background and life but she is likely to have been of noble Thessalian origin and maybe she was a niece of Jason of Pherae.)

History links her to three of the most powerful men in Macedon: daughter of King Philip II, half sister of Alexander the Great and wife of Cassander.  

Thessalonike was born around 342 BC; to commemorate the birth of his daughter, which fell on the same day as the armies of Macedon won a significant battle in Thessaly, King Philip is said to have proclaimed, "Let her be called victory in Thessaly". In the Greek language her name is made up of two words Thessaly and niki, that translates into 'Thessaly victory'. Her mother did not live long after her birth and upon her death Thessalonike appears to have been brought up by her stepmother Olympias. In memory of her close friend, Nicesipolis, the queen took Thessalonike to be raised as her own daughter. Thessalonike was, by far, the youngest child in the care of Olympias. Her interaction with her older brother Alexander would have been minimal, as he was under the tutelage of Aristotle in "The Gardens Of Midas" when she was born, and at the age of six or seven when he left on his Persian expedition. She was only ninteen when Alexander, king of the then most known world, died. 

Thus favored, she spent her childhood in the queen’s quarters, to whose fortunes she attached herself when the latter returned to Macedon in 317 BC, and with whom she took refuge, along with the rest of the royal family, in the fortress of Pydna, on the advance of Cassander in 315 BC. The fall of Pydna and the execution of her stepmother threw her into the power of Cassander, who embraced the opportunity to connect himself with the Argead dynasty by marrying her; and he appears to have studiously treated her with the respect due to her illustrious birth. This may have been as much owing to policy as to affection: but the marriage appears to have been a prosperous one; Thessalonike became queen of Macedon and the mother of three sons, Philip, Antipater, and Alexander; and her husband paid her the honour of conferring her name upon the city of Thessaloniki, which he founded on the site of the ancient Therma, and which soon became, as it continues down to the present day, one of the most wealthy and populous cities of Macedonia. After the death of Cassander, Thessalonike appears to have at first retained much influence over her sons. Her son Philip succeeded his father, but while Antipater was the next in line for the throne, Thessalonike demanded that it be shared between Philip and Alexander. Antipater, becoming jealous of the superior favour which his mother showed to his younger brother Alexander, put his mother to death, in 295 BC.

The Legend of Thessalonike

There exists a popular Greek legend which talks about a mermaid who lived in the Aegean for hundreds of years who was thought to be Thessalonike. The legend states that Alexander, in his quest for the Fountain of Immortality, retrieved with great exertion a flask of immortal water with which he bathed his sister's hair.


When Alexander passed away his grief-stricken sister attempted to end her life by jumping into the sea. Instead of drowning, however, she became a mermaid passing judgment on mariners throughout the centuries and across the seven seas.  

To the sailors who encountered her she would always pose the same question: "Is Alexander the king alive?" (Greek: Ζει ο βασιλιάς Αλέξανδρος;), to which the correct answer would be "He lives and still rules" (Greek: Ζει και βασιλεύει, και τον κόσμο κυριεύει!). Given this answer she would allow the ship and her crew to sail safely away in calm seas. Any other answer would transform her into the raging Gorgon, bent on sending the ship and every sailor on board to the bottom.

Another Greek folklore about Thessaloniki the sister of Alexander the Great: 

After conquering the world, Alexander decided that he would conquer death as well. He asked the wise men how to go about this. They said that the water of life would grant him immortality if he could kill the dragon that guards it.
Alexander accomplished this feat and brought the water back to his home. Tired he took a nap.
While sleeping his sister Thessalonica found the water and thought it was only regular water. She took a sip for herself and watered some plants. Those plants never died but changed and became perennials.
When Alexander woke he discovered what his sister had done and cursed her horribly.
She was to live forever in the sea growing larger with each passing year. Her form a woman from the waist up, but from there down she was to have two tails instead of legs.
Now, her mermaid transformation complete, she roams the Aegean and Black Seas. She has become gigantic and can lift an entire ship with one hand.
When she encounters sailors she asks them if Alexander is still alive.
If they say he is dead she raises great waves and their ship is lost.
If they say he still lives and rules as always she allows them to pass in peace.
In Greece she is called the Gorgona. 

The city was founded around 315 BC by the King Cassander of Macedon, on or near the site of the ancient town of Therma and twenty-six other local villages. He named it after his wife Thessalonike, a half-sister of Alexander the Great (Thessalo-nike means the "victory of Thessalians").  

Thessaloniki is the capital of the Greek region of Macedonia. Thessaloniki is commonly called the 'symprotevousa' (lit. co-capital) of Greece due to both its long history and its strategic geographic and economic importance. More formally it is called as the "Capital of Cultural Affairs". The Thessaloniki urban area curves round the Thermaic Gulf for approximately 17 km. 

Thessaloniki is a busy, vibrant city and it is Greece's second major economic, industrial, commercial and cultural center as well as a major transportation hub in southeastern Europe. Its commercial port is of a great importance for Greece and for its southeast European hinterland. 

The city has two state universities that host a large student population; it is renowned for its large number of monuments of Byzantine architecture as well as for some main Ottoman structures. 

The city is famous for its picturesque restaurants and tavernas as well as for its lively and diverse nightlife, ranging from the traditional rebetadika to designer bars and the prestigious nightclubs located in the area adjacent to Makedonia International Airport. The city is also famed for its bougatsa delicacy that can be found in special stores in just about every corner of the city (!!!). 
Thessaloniki - The Bride of Thermaikos

Prijateljstvo je jedna duša u dva tela.

Nedavno sam citao knjigu u kojoj se život poredi sa putovanjem u vozu.Bila je to veoma zanimljiva knjiga.
Život je kao putovanje, u vozu ljudi ulaze i silaze.
Prilikom nekih zaustavljanja mogu se dogoditi
prijatna iznenadenja,ljudi proživljavaju
srecne trenutke,ali ima i nezgoda,nesreca,tuge.

Kad se rodimo i zakoracimo u voz,srecemo se
sa ljudima za koje mislimo da ce nas pratiti tokom
citavog našeg putovanja.
Na primer naši roditelji…Nažalost,kad-tad oni ce sici
sa voza i ostaviti nas bez svoje ljubavi,brižnosti,
nežnosti,bez svoga prijateljstva i društva.

Medutim u voz ce uci druge osobe koje ce nam takode
biti veoma važne.To su naša braca i sestre,
naši prijatelji i ljudi koje srecemo i koje cemo
zavoleti tokom putovanja.Mnoge osobe koje ulaze u voz gledaju na putovanje kao na kratku šetnju
.Oni ne uživaju u predelima kraj kojih prolaze,
ne žele da se zbližavaju sa drugima,pa kraj putovanja docekaju sami.
Drugi u ovoj vožnji kroz život nailaze samo na žalost i tugu.Ali ima i onih koji su u vozu,u toku vožnje,uvek nadohvat ruke i spremno pomažu onima
kojima je potrebna pomoc.

Mnogi kada sidu sa voza,ostavljaju iza sebe trajnu cežnju.Neki nas uvaljuju i u nevolje,mnogi ulaze
i silaze a da ih nismo ni zapazili.
Cudi nas što su mnogi putnici koji su nam veoma dragi negde u nekom drugom vagonu.Ostavljaju nas same
u delu našeg putovanja.Ponekad pokušavamo da ih pronademo i da se smestimo u njihov kupe.
Medutim na našu žalost,cesto ne možemo da
sednemo kraj njih,mesto pored neko
drugi je vec zauzeo.

I takav je život,Prepun izazova,snova,maštanja,nadanja,prepun sastanaka i rastanaka bez ponovnog sastajanja.
I nikad se ti trenutci nece vratiti.Zato pokušajmo
da svoje putovanje kroz život ucinimo najlepšim mogucim.Pokušajmo da sa svima u vozu budemo u ljubavi,Pokušajmo da u svakom putniku vidimo
ono najbolje u njemu.

Setimo se toga da na svakom ukrštanju
životnih koloseka neki od vagona može da isklizne iz koloseka i da je putnicima u njima potrebna
naša pomoc.I sami možemo doživeti iskliznuce,
Nadamo se da cemo tada naici na putnika
koji ce nas razumeti.

Najveca misterija putovanja je što ne znamo
kada cemo zauvek sici sa voza,takode neznamo
ni kada ce naši saputnici sici.Pa ni oni koji sede do nas.Sigurno cu biti veoma tuzan kada budem morao
zauvek da napustim voz.Verujem da ce veoma boleti rastanak sa prijateljima koje sam sreo za vreme
putovanja i koji su mi postali dragi.



Medutim gajim nadu da postoji glavna stanica
i da cu videti kako svi moji dragi pristižu,sa prtljagom
koji nisu imali kada su ulazili u voz i bicu srecan što se ponovo srecemo.Usrecice me pomisao da sam ja
pomogao da uvecaju svoj prtljag i da sam u njega
stavio prave sadržaje.

Moramo se truditi da imamo srecno putovanje
i da znamo da se na kraju sva muka stostruko isplati.Pokušajmo da pri silasku sa voza
ostavimo prazno sedište koje kod ostalih putnika,
koji nastavljaju putovanje,budi cežnju i lepa
i prijatna secanja.

Svima želim srecno i prijatno putovanje!!!! :)

PRIJATELJSTVO

Da li ste nekada izneverili/razocarali/izdali prijatelja/prijateljicu? Kako je doslo do toga? Da li vam je on/ona oprostio/la? Da li ste na kraju spasili prijateljstvo?

Isto teško za odgovoriti.. svi smo često ćoravi sami na sebe i često mislimo kako sve radimo kako treba a ispada da nije tako.
zna se dogodit da nenamerno, nesvesno povredimo neku osobu.. osećaj- znam da sam pogrešio ali kad se treba izvinuti ajoooooj.. Nekako s vremenom se nastojim iskupiti sa nekakvim lepim gestom ili znakom pažnje (ne mislim sad na poklone).. ili se više nastojim truditi i pričati o njemu/njoj lepo uokolo i hvaliti.tako da dođe do nega/nje.. Baš blesavo

Slazem se...samo meni je nekako postalo lako reci : OPROSTI..
Valjda zato sto i ja lako oprostim nekome i bez da mi kaze OPROSTI...
Nekad nismo ni svesni koliko znacimo nekome i koliko ga i zapostavljamo i koliko smo se malo spremni zrtvovati za prijatelja...pa tek kad osetimo na vlastitoj kozi kako se on vise nije spreman zrtvovati za nas ili se udaljio,,osvestimo njegovu/njenu potrebu za nasim pozrtvovanjem u datom trenutku.

E..sad, najvise boli kada vise ne mozete da osvezite to prijateljstvo i kada ste se nekom toliko smucili svojim reakcijama da je osetio olaksanje sto vise nije u vasoj blizini..

A ta osoba vam je bila nejvernija i najiskrenija...


POHVALA LUDOSTI

Može svet da priča o meni što mu je drago ( jer mi nije nepoznato kako Ludost prolazi rđavo i kod najluđih ), ipak sam ja, jedino ja, kazem vam, kadar da uveseljavam i bogove i ljude. Nepobitan dokaz moga tvrđenja je to što čim sam stupio pred vaš mnogoljudni skup da progovorim koju reč, na vašim licima je očas zasijala neka nova i neuobičajena veselost: odjednom ste podigli čela, pozdravili me sa tako radosnim i tako prijatnim osmehom i pljeskanjem da mi se zaista čini da ste se svi, sjativši se sa svih strana, napili nektara Homerovih bogova, pomešana sa biljnim sokom što rasteruje žalost, dok ste maločas sedeli žalosni i mračni kao da ste tek izišli iz Trofonijeve pećine. Kao što se obično dešava, kada sunce posle oštre zime pokaže zemlji svoje veselo i sjajno lice, ili kada ponovo zaćarlijaju blagi prolećni povetarci i kada sve iznenada promeni izgled, a podmlađena priroda se zaodene svežim bojama, isto tako je i moje prisustvo izazvalo promenu na vašim licima. Ono što veliki govornici jedva mogu postići dugim i promišljenim govorom da bi rasterali teške brige slušalaca, ja sam to postigao otprve samom svojom pojavom.
Nemojte misliti da ovo govorim zbog toga što hoću da se razmećem svojim darom, kao što čini većina govornika. Tako se oni, kao što znate, iako su celih trideset godina sastavljali jedan govor, koji je često samo kompilacija, ipak zaklinju das u ga napisali za tri dana, tako reći od šale, ili su ga kazivali u pero. A meni je, naprotiv, uvek bilo najdraže što mogu da govorim ono što mi trenutno padne na pamet. Zato neka niko ne očekuje da ću, po ugledu na svakidašnje govornike, dati definiciju sebe samog, a još manje podelu. Ni jedno ni druge se ne bi slagalo sa mojim bićem: jer kako će neko da me okuje u granice kada se moja moć proteže tako daleko po svetu, kako će neko da me podeli kada me čitav ljudski rod poštuje kao božanstvo? I onda, kakvog smisla ima predstavljati definicijom, tako reći, moju senku i lik, kada sam lično pred vama i kada se gledamo u oči? Ja sam, kao što vidite, onaj pravi darovatelj dobara koju Latini zovu Stultitia a Grci Moria.