An American mayor enthusiastically advertises Thessaloniki

“Those who want to really get to know Greece, should put Thessaloniki on their map”, says the Greek-born mayor of Fort Lauderdale (Fort Lauderdale) in the USA, Dean J. Trantalis, excited by what he saw, heard and tasted during his recent visit to the city.

“In America, it is the Greek islands that are advertised par excellence. However, I think that those who want to really get to know Greece should come to Thessaloniki”, explains Dean Trantalis to APE-MPE, who signed a twinning agreement between Fort Lauderdale and Thessaloniki at the beginning of the month, together with the mayor Konstantinos Zerva.

“It was the first time I visited Thessaloniki. I had never been this far north in Greece. I am very happy about this twinning. There are quite a few people in the area where I live, in the United States, who come from northern Greece. Together with them I will try to promote everything I saw – real treasures – and experienced in Thessaloniki and the surrounding area”, he says characteristically.

For the mayor of Fort Lauderdale, it is not only the many common features between the two cities, such as the long and beautiful beachfront, that make Thessaloniki attractive to tourists from the US, but also what the wider region has to offer.

“I visited the Vergina museum and was really impressed. And yet, most Americans don’t know about this amazing museum. Thessaloniki is not only the White Tower, it has Pella, Vergina, Mount Olympus… We don’t have Mount Olympus in Fort Lauderdale!”, he emphasizes.

With these images in his suitcase, Dean Trantalis left Thessaloniki, with the promise to share them with his fellow citizens as a “recompense” for the hospitality and love with which he was surrounded by everyone he met here.

“What sticks in my mind is how friendly and generous everyone is. They make you feel at home and that’s the most important thing”, he points out, while the discussion does not lack references to the “great gastronomy” of Thessaloniki, with flavors that satisfy even the most demanding palate.

With roots from Plomari, Lesvos

A second-generation Greek-American, Dean Trantalis grew up with his mother always cooking Greek food, while every Sunday his family went to church and participated in all the Greek festivals organized by the community.

It was shortly before World War I that his ancestors settled in Norwich, Connecticut, coming from the Plomari of Lesbos. “My parents were born there, in Norwich, and so was I,” he says.

He studied Political Science at Boston University and since his student years had already developed social action. In 1982 he moved to Florida and shortly after, in 1990, he became involved in the movement of equal rights for the LGBT community.

In 2003 he decided to run for city council in Fort Lauderdale and this was the beginning of his activity in local government.

RES-EMP

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