We met them at the lake of Ioannina, at Pamvotida. “We lived in Athens for several years. After we finished our studies, we worked there”, Kostas tells us as we walk along the pier.
Yiota Gelia has a degree in political science and Kostas Nikolaou in computer science. “The thought of leaving Athens has always been in the back of my mind. There were many things I liked there, but in general I couldn’t imagine myself living in Athens permanently”, says Kostas, who currently runs an IT and mobile phone shop in the centre of Ioannina.
Yiota, on the other hand, works in a large five-star hotel on the lakefront of Ioannina and although she may sometimes reminisce about their life in Athens, she would not change her daily life in Ioannina. “Here things are simpler and easier at the same time. It’s very important to be able to raise your children in a place where they can get in touch with nature”.
The decision to leave Athens
But how did they get here? What is their daily life like? What was the transition like? They got married and shortly afterwards decided to leave Athens and settle in Ioannina, where they had two children.
“We knew that our life in Athens had an expiration date. “We were coming to realize more and more every day, upon seeing relatives and friends, that we could not and would not want to create our own family under the stress and pressure of a big city”, Yiota says and adds: “I understand, of course, that this also has to do with our background, as we both grew up in smaller places, in contact with nature”.
In the beginning, they note, there were difficulties. Nothing was easy and it certainly took a lot of courage and tenacity to support their choice. However, very quickly they acclimated to a rhythm, learned to enjoy the perks of a smaller town and perhaps made peace within themselves with all the things that they were missing.
Kostas tells us: “We quickly found a balance here. Spending the first years of my life in Munich, I remember most vividly the nature in everyday life, even though it’s a huge city, there are many ways to escape. Then in my teens we came to Greece, where I finished school in Paramythia, Thesprotia. Again things were different. Going to Athens, a lot changed. At that time we liked it very much. We had a good time as students, but that was it. When we started working, every day we were getting closer and closer to the decision to move to a smaller town. After a few years of working in Athens, we made the decision. Most of what we were missing was insubstantial. That’s why, after all, everyday life in Ioannina turned out to be so good. We quickly developed relationships, made friends and generally acclimatized”.
Everyday life
Speaking of a typical day in their daily routine, it starts early enough as the children have to get ready for school. “A lot of things have to be done by the evening, like meal prep, but in the morning you have to have time to make breakfast and get the kids ready”, Yiota tells Travel.gr.
Kostas usually takes the kids to school and then goes to work. Even in these last two difficult years of the pandemic, things here are somewhat better. We can more easily isolate ourselves or go for a walk without coming into contact with other people. One couple who made the decision, took the leap and now live a different reality.
Read also:
The Athenian couple who left the city to live at 1,250 m altitude
The Athenian couple that gave up urban life for a remote village in Nothern Greece
The guitarist that became a woodcarver in Zagori, Greece
