Nikolaos Yiasemakis
Interviewer(s):
Alexandros Balasis
Project:
Greek Canadian Stories
INTERVIEW LOCATION:
Scarborough, ON
LANGUAGE:
Greek
DATE:
February 9, 2024

Interview Summary:

Nikos Yiasemakis was born in 1941 in Chalkida, where he grew up playing football before training at a merchant marine academy. He became a radio operator and travelled extensively around the world before deciding to leave his ship while docked in Vancouver. Settling in Toronto, he worked a variety of jobs before attaining legal status in Canada. He describes playing soccer with the city's Greek team, Omiros F.C., the possibility of returning to Greece and keeping in touch with his family.

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Interview Details
Categories and Themes
Content
Media
Date and Location
February 9, 2024
Scarborough, ON
Interviewee(s)
Nikolaos Yiasemakis
Interviewer(s)
Alexandros Balasis
Languages
Greek
Reference ID
GICREF047
Project
Greek Canadian Stories
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Categories
Working Life
Historical Events
Migration
Rites
Tags
Greek Civil War
Marriage
Post-WW2 Migration
Remittances
Ship Jumpers
Soccer
Decades Referenced
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
Locations Referenced
Chalkida, Athens, Pylos, Poland, Alexandria, Odessa, Havana, Novorossiysk, Emden, Veroia, Houston Texas, Mekong River, Vietnam, Dabaw, Philippines, San Francisco, Toronto
Occupation(s)
Ship's radio operator, welder, driver
Parents Occupation(s)
Names Referenced
Rigas Pentelis; Konstantinos Gikas; Georgios Andrianopoulos (Minister of Marine Affairs); Andonios Kakaras (Parliament Member), Achileas Frangistas (Shipowner), Demetrios Tsekouras (Captain); Stephanos Perivolaris (Shipowner), Kosta Vlahos (Relative), Savvas Leventis, Stavros Leventis (Omiros Club)

[00:00:29] His childhood and his passion for the sea

[00:04:54] Merchant Marine Academy and “social beliefs”

[00:07:11] His father's affiliation with the Communist Party

[00:11:40] Labelled a communist and becoming a radio operator

[00:24:40]  His first embarkation and the ship’s voyages

[00:34:00] Life at sea and the voyages in Africa

[00:38:57] Serving in the Army until 1965

[00:46:15] Returning to the sea and embarking for Vietnam

[00:49:30] Arriving in San Francisco and considering staying

[00:51:40] Docking in Vancouver and leaving his ship

[01:00:37] Arriving in Toronto and starting his first job

[01:03:10] Working as a welder

[01:07:03] Working at KFC and other "irregular migrants"

[01:09:14] Attaining legal status in Canada

[01:14:50] Meeting his future wife

[01:16:27] Sharing his impressions of Toronto

[01:18:25] Playing soccer at Omiros and working as a driver

[01:23:03] His parents' visit to Canada

[01:25:50] Thoughts to return to Greece

[01:27:07] Sending remittances to his mother

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