Unlike the “English world” who considers Friday the 13th a day of bad luck, the Greeks have marked down Tuesday the 13th on their calendars as the unluckiest day of all. A number of reasons can be cited for the superstitions surrounding 13. one reason Greeks have associated that particular day with bad luck finds its roots in the Byzantine era and more specifically in Christian Orthodoxy. It is linked to two of the greatest disasters in Byzantine history, the fall of Constantinople to the Franks in 1204 during the 4th Crusade, which occurred on Tuesday, April 13, and the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks on Tuesday, May 29, 1453, which resulted in 400 years of Ottoman rule across Greece. But what does May 29 have to do with the number 13, you may ask? If you add up the 1+4+5+3 you get the number 13. Going even further back in history before the Byzantine Empire, there also other reasons Greeks dislike 13. It is a number that follows the perfection of the 12 Gods, the 12 Apostles of Christ. Furthermore, Philip II of Macedonia offended the 12 gods and died right after he erected his statue next to the 12 gods. For Greek Orthodox Christians number 13 represents the 13th chapter of the Revelation and the coming of the Antichrist. So, don’t plan anything special for Tuesday the 13th to avoid getting into any trouble…