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National holiday in Crete, in honour of the tragedy that took place at the Arkadi Monastery in 1866. It is a public holiday in Rethymnon. On this occasion, a solemn mass is held in commemoration of the 1,000 Cretans, men, women and children who killed themselves by setting fire to the monastery's powder magazine where they had locked themselves up to escape the reprisals of the Ottoman occupiers. A large parade takes place in the main streets of Rethymnon with the participation of students and the Greek armed forces.

The biggest Greek religious festival, whose date varies every year, is the occasion of several days of celebration and meditation. On the program: a week in slow motion, punctuated by religious celebrations with in particular the procession of theepitafios on Friday and the mass on Saturday evening, followed by a great meal and the lamayiritsa (a soup of offal). It is particularly interesting to visit Patmos where the most solemn celebrations are held, with the reproduction of the Last Supper and the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday.

This festival is held in Corfu around August 11 and celebrates the miracle of St. Spiridon who is said to have protected the island from the Turkish invasion on August 11, 1716. The festival takes place precisely in the bay of Paleokastritsa in the north of the island. Boats gather in the bay, music plays and traditional dancers come to life. At the end, a small wooden boat is burned and fireworks are lit to commemorate the end of the Turkish naval siege.

On August 6 in the village of Englouvi, in Lefkada, Saint Donatos has his feast day. On the occasion of the tribute to the saint, the women prepare lentils, grown in this abundant plateau of the island. Sardines and wine are also distributed to guests. An original celebration that attracts many Greeks.

Forty days before the Orthodox Easter begins a period of fasting during which practitioners abstain from eating meat, poultry and fish. The day marking the beginning of Lent is Fat Monday (one day after Carnival). People go to the countryside and fly kites. We eat shellfish, the famous tarama and lagana, a kind of unleavened bread. It is a holiday in Crete (and in Greece), and is an opportunity to celebrate with ouzo and raki in public squares or in front of chapels.