Kallithea is a suburb adjoining the center of Athens. It boasts one of the city’s largest metropolitan parks (check the SNFCC article), but my favorite is the abundance of small restaurants and shops offering Russian products and delicacies.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a flow of ethnic Greek immigrants found their way back to Greece in the 1990s. Many of them found a home in Kallithea and brought back the cuisine and customs they loved. Moscow (Mockвa) is one of the biggest places to shop and enjoy various products at great prices. I eat pelmeni, a kind of dumpling filled with cabbage or potato or meat or white cheese, at least once a week along with smetana, which is a crossbreed of yogurt and sour cream, and caviar d’aubergine, a sauce with tomato and eggplant.

You will find a great range of sausages, pâté, and tinned food that cannot be found anywhere else. Moscow carries everything that you can find in a supermarket. After filling your basket with pickled mushrooms and the lavash puff bread, try the candy bars with the illustrated packaging reminding you of the Soviet Union days. The last time I shopped in Moscow, the cashiers I met spoke fluent Greek and English. And, of course, Russian. After the first taste, you will find yourself returning to Moscow again and again.