Leander, the story of my family

My name is Leander, I am 10 years old and live in Berlin, in Germany. My hobbies are chess and basketball. I am among the Top 20 chess players in Berlin. I play basketball very well. It was a good week when I missed school because I attended the DSM (German School Chess Championship). If I had to move to another country, I would take a checkerboard, a basketball and clothing.

My nan and poppy live in Katerini, in Greece. They came to Germany as guest-workers at the end of the 60s. It was a difficult period for them as they didn’t know the country nor the language. At the beginning, they worked in a factory. Later on they had their own restaurant in Ladenburg, in southern Germany. In 1998, they returned to Greece.

My father was born in Greece. In Germany, he went to preschool and school. In 1996, he moved to Greece to Thessaloniki to study. It was really difficult for him as he had to manage his daily affairs alone. My dad has been living in Germany since 2004. This is where he met my mum. She was born in Potsdam, in Germany. Both times my brother and I were born, my mum went to Greece for a period of half a year. She also learnt the language. We feel at home in Germany and in Greece.