The padrinos of the arras hold the 13 coins the bride and groom will present to each other following the blessing and placing of rings. This unusual custom comes from the Romans, whose tradition included breaking of gold or silver with one half to be kept by the woman and the other half by the man as a pledge of their marriage.
Bouzouki /Î¼ÏÎ¿ÏÎ¶Î¿ÏÎºÎ¹. Sirtaki or syrtaki /ÏÏÏÏÎ¬ÎºÎ¹ is a popular dance of Greek origin, choreographed by Giorgos Provias for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. It is a recent Greek folkdance, and a mixture of the slow and fast versions of the hasapiko dance.
Apokreas: Greece's Carnival Season. One of the best times to be in Greece is during the last two weeks of Apokreas when people are having as much fun as they can before they have to fast the 40 days before Easter. There are carnival parades and festivities all over Greece, particularly in Patra, Rethymnon Crete, the island of Skyros and the Athens neighborhood of Moschaton.