Miami's 35th Annual Greek Festival
Good day, I hope your week is going well!
This past Sunday I went with my family to the 35th annual Greek Festival here in Miami. We make it a point to go most years, mainly for the Gyros and Baklava! For the past few years the festival has been held at St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church, however I have attended the festival in the past and it was held at another Greek church in Miami, so I guess the venue varies over time. Anyway, would you believe that of all the beautiful photos I took I didn't take any of the food!? Well, take that as a sign that it was so delicious I had no time for photos. To be honest, I like living in the moment, and most of the time when you really live in the moment you have no time or need for photos and social media.
Basically, I took a slew of photos when we arrived, and then I took a few more when we left. What happened in between is a mystery… Bwahaha… Actually, I'll fill you in a bit on the shopping experience below - I regret not taking photos of the booth full of Russian antiques! Wahhhh…. I wanted a few things, but the guy was so expensive, and I even remembered to haggle like I was in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul! No cigar. Although, he was surprised at the things I picked and that I knew so much about the designs and age of the objects. There have been better booths in the past, especially when it comes to jewelry. A few years ago there was an artist with a booth full of incredible unique gold and sterling silver handmade jewelry, my aunt bought a few pieces from her and gave me a wonderful ring made from an antique Greek coin. Unfortunately, there was no such jewelry booth this time around, most of what was there was fake costume jewelry. Maybe next year!
I don't know if the festival will be held at St. Sophia next year, but it's likely since that's where it has been held for several years now - 2401 SW Third Ave. (Coral Way and 24th Road). If you're interested in attending next year, please refer to the St. Sophia events page or their Facebook page, as I'm sure they will eventually announce that information.
When we arrived, the sky was so incredibly blue and the pattern and shapes of the clouds overhead were breathtaking. Of course, the gold domes of the Greek church were glistening in the sunshine above as well… The whole sight made for some incredible photos, and you know I can't resist taking lots of those…. Enjoy!
Catherine
This is what the sky looked like over St. Sophia as we arrived!
St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church is a Byzantine Cathedral designed and supervised by famed architect Christoforos P. Kantianis, it was completed and opened for service in 1950. Mr. Kantianis is a Greek native and an honor graduate of the University of Syracuse, he has also contributed to the design and construction of several other Greek Churches in the United States. Check out this page if you'd like to read more about St. Sophia's Parish history and Miami's Greek community.
For a moment, the beautiful Aegean blue of the sky and the dome allowed me to imagine I was already in Santorini! Soon, soon…
The marble at the church entrance and other interior areas is from a famous marble quarry in Pentele, Greece. The stained glass windows you see above were produced in Miami by Southern Glass.
The entrance to the church and a quick peel inside...
Here are a couple of shots from the vendor booths at the entrance...
The tent where everyone sits to gobble down the Greek cuisine!
I forgot that I did manage to get a photo of the Baklava!
Bottled peppers and olives for sale...
The sky was captivating that day, here are two identical shots - one from when we arrived and the other when we were leaving:
As we were leaving I took photos of the pretty entrance to the community center building on the church site...
The ladies were lookin' good!
On our walk back to the car I got a shot of this pretty Jewish temple right up the street - Beth David Congregation.
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