Canaan, Eugenia S.: - My story did not begin in Greece, but in Sudan, where I was born to a Lebanese father and an Italian mother. My childhood unfolded within Catholic education and the layered realities of a multicultural world-shaped by movement, languages, and blended traditions that taught me early that identity can stretch across continents.In my late teens, I traveled to the United States for my education, expecting only an academic chapter. Life unfolded differently. During university, I married my high-school sweetheart, Bashir, and together we built our future one step at a time. Our ability to remain in the United States depended entirely on sponsorship, which was generously provided by my sister-in-law, Amina Stamboulieh Perdue, and her husband, George Perdue. Their support changed the course of my life, allowing me to build a career in healthcare administration across academic medicine, nonprofit leadership, and humanitarian outreach-including work in South Sudan during civil war.I raised my son, Selim, and later welcomed three grandchildren. Widowhood eventually reshaped my path-until an unexpected reconnection altered it once more.A former classmate from Sudan, Farid, reached out after forty-five years. I traveled to Greece in 2014 to meet him, and within three months we were married. Though our lives had unfolded in different countries, we shared common roots. His family welcomed me warmly, and together we formed a life grounded in both history and renewal.Today, we live on a mountaintop overlooking the Aegean, surrounded by olive trees and the quiet rhythms of nature. Life in Greece reveals itself not as a postcard, but as a lived experience-sometimes challenging, often beautiful, and always meaningful.This book is not written from theory, but from lived reality-the adjustments, frustrations, kindnesses, and small victories of building a home on unfamiliar soil.I write for those considering Greece not as an idea, but as a place to live-with clarity, honesty, and hope.
Stamboulieh, Selim B.: - Selim Stamboulieh is a freelance photographer and world traveler whose lens captures the quiet intersections of culture, ritual, and nature, revealing the stillness within everyday life. From the islands of Greece to the temples of Thailand and the pyramids of Egypt, his work invites viewers into moments of reflection and connection.He is the photographer behind Thailand Whispers: Haiku & Lens, his first major work in visual storytelling, and the author of Racked & Poured: Spirits from the Shelf, published under the pen name Alessandro Asante.In addition to photography, Selim is a bartender, chef, martial artist, and builder. Raised between cultures and shaped by international travel, he brings both an intuitive eye and a craftsman's discipline to his work. His creative pursuits extend across visual art, culinary expression, and hands-on design, reflecting a life rooted in experience rather than observation alone.As Alessandro Asante, he is also the author of The Art of Smoking: Mastering Smoke, Fire & Flavor Across Cultures, the companion to Racked & Poured. Together, his works reflect a multicultural perspective and a deep appreciation for craft, culture, and the shared rituals that connect people across the world.
