Athens Changing of the Guards
Every Sunday morning tourists gather in front of the Hellenic (Greek) Parliament in Syntagma Square to witness an age-old spectacle. It is here that a special unit of the Hellenic Army guard the Monument of the Unknown Soldier under the Presidential Mansion. Each week it is the official Changing of the Guards ceremony that gathers the crowds, and this unique ceremonial event is a must-see when in Athens.
Once the soldiers who guarded the country’s borders, members of this elite unit are hand-picked, known for their courage and bravery. (They also must be at least 1.86 meters tall!) The Evzones soldiers undergo the most difficult training in the Greek Army in order to become motionless foot-soldiers. Their job is unpaid, done only for honour.
Before the change of shift, the main street is closed and a military marching band delivers replacement guards from their barracks. Unlike any other guard ceremony in the world, the slow procession resembles The Ministry of Silly Walks (yet much more profound), as the Evzones soldiers move to their post in the most flamboyant of choreography, each high-kick dance movement symbolic.
And every piece of clothing they wear is symbolic too. Their white kilt has 400 pleats, representing the 400 years of Ottoman occupation over the Greeks. Each one requires 30 metres of cloth to make. The blue and white fringes represent the Greek flag. The waistcoat (worn over white shirts with widely flared sleeves) is the most difficult part to construct. Handmade with wool they are embroidered with the soldier’s rank and symbols representing various parts of Greece. Finally, their distinctive clogs weigh three kilos each! Each one is hand-stitched and adorned with large black silk pom-poms. Each sole has 60 nails tapped into the bottom to simulate the sound of horses in battle.
Once the troop is in place, soldiers work in pairs to make the change, coordinating their moves in perfect slow motion after 60 minutes of immobility. No easy feat in those shoes! Should a guard require anything once on duty, they signal to a soldier by banging their rifle butt on the ground. The guard is not allowed to speak so the soldier must ask him a series of questions, and the guard will answer them by blinking – one blink for ‘yes’ and two blinks for ‘no’. Even a Molotov cocktail was no match for one Evzone on guard some years ago, who did not move a muscle even as his guardhouse went up in flames! He remained on duty with a scorched and partly smoking uniform until given orders to move.
