The food we eat in Greece.
We are eating very well, mostly doing our own cooking. Greek food in the southern Peloponese is rather simple. Being a hot climate, like Mexico, people here eat freshly prepared foods. Traditional Greek meals, before the advent of global markets, had a few ingredients prepared in a variety of ways. Meats were reserved for special days. I have learned how to cure and bottle Kalamata black olives from the owners of the cabin where we are staying. The owner is Maria, who speaks little English, but we have managed to communicate with her. Her grandson Giorgos, who is about 25 years old and speaks good English translates for us. The house is surrounded by olive trees and they allowed us to pick olives and then taught us how to cure and store them. There are two varieties here - the tall broad-leafed Kalamata black olives and the smaller wider trunked tree of the olives for oil production.Giorgos also said that this area is famous for balsamic vinegar, kalamata figs, (ripened on the tree), sesame pastelli and honey. The Kalamata area is also known for its aged pork meats, like Siglino in the Mani and Lukaniko me portocali. Most particular to this area is Pasto, pork that is smoked and aged in oil. You eat the meat first; the skin and fat is reserved for the time of the olive harvest in winter when you go out into the fields and need lots of carbohydrates for hard labor. As you drive around you see olive trees clinging to the steep dry hills and then you come into lush river watered valleys covered with orange trees, grape vines and growing fields.
It is now October in Kalamata and the agora's (public market's) outside stalls are full with the bounty of the fall harvest. As I walk through the stalls I hear, "Kiria this and Kiria that. This place is like a beehive with activity. I see dozens of stalls with produce that farmers have brought down from the hill towns and valleys to sell. " Patatas to Mavromati", a man yells out in a thunderous voice. There are tables and tables with grapes, apples, raw olives, potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, giant cabbages, carrots, greens of all kinds like spinach and dandelions, at least 10 vendors of botanika, or dried herbs and mieli, honey. I buy fresh pink beans from a lady that also bundles spinach leaves with a few sprigs of fresh parsley and fennel for spanakopitas and such. Inside the long market building you find chicken and meats (Hasapiko) that are hanging freshly butchered and cut right before you, as well as a whole section of sea foods.The fish mongers are the loudest, handing you little metal pans so you can grab your own fish or squid. Reminds me of Pike's Market in Seattle. Lastly or daily, we stop at the furnio or bakery. The bread is so good; they bake it in wood burning ovens. And then there are the cafenions that surround the market. Here the old men or husbands sit facing the market while sipping coffee and water and discuss who knows what, with the man in the long black robe and black chef's hat. We also sit with bags full of food for the week at our feet and sip our cafe elinikon (as in Turkish coffee-but that's another story)while in the background a musical trio composed of accordion, bouzuki and clarinet, play “Vagelio” in honor of Bill's grandfather, Dionisis Maroosis of Pakia, whose family produced olive oil.
Salata Horiatiki
"I can eat Greek salad every day." was Jelly's comment when we had our first meal in Greece. "I don't usually like tomatoes but these taste so good."She now has become our expert Greek salad (salata horiatiki) maker. It's a basic bowl of tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, red onions and Feta. We have had some variations, some tavernas add sliced pepper or we had pickled dandelions in Monemvasia added as garnish, but this is how we make it in our Kalamata home.
Greek Salad for 4:
Combine in a bowl: 2 large tomatoes peeled and cut into chunks, 1 long cucumber peeled and sliced, 1/2 small sliced red onion, some olives, a thick slice of Feta cheese
For dressing you can mix in a cup and then pour or add directly over salad: 2 spoons of olive oil, 1/2 spoon of vinegar, pinch of oregano, pinch of salt.
(We really don't measure, we just pour from the bottle, ala greca!)
Stuffed Tomatoes, Peppers and Eggplants
Bill's cousins in Pakia made this dish for us. Patti and Nikki are great cooks and spoiled us when we were visiting with lavish, mostly vegetarian dishes. Every dinner was accompanied with greek salad and sliced bread and great conversation. They worked in London and are now retired. Although, they were infants during the German occupation and civil war they have some recollections/parents memories of that era. They are also very politically informed and it's wonderful to hear their opinion of the current affairs. The stuffed tomatoes/peppers are traditionally made around this time of the year. Patti prepared the day before by doing all the shopping in the agora (food store): large tomatoes, peppers (red and green) eggplants (small size) chopped lamb, rice, chopped onions, chopped parsley. Patti and Nikki cut and prepped everything the night before over glasses of wine and conversations on everything from the state of the economy to saving seeds native to Greece. I mostly took photos, drank wine and shared my experiences in the garden and life in the U.S. in general. They washed the rice and set aside to dry. Next the tops of the tomatoes and peppers and removed the inside to form little bowls, also, cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and scooped them up. Save the tomatoes pulp and juice for the stuffing. Nikki placed the "bowls" in a large lasagna type oven pan and salted then poured a little oil in each. She then made a mixture of rice, meat, tomato sauce, parsley, slightly sauteed onions, salt and pepper. She mixed it all pretty good with her hands and then spooned it into the vegie bowls. She was having so much fun-I was jealous. Meanwhile Patti was making a hollandaise type white cheese sauce. I didn't see how she made it. Nikki spooned the sauce over the stuffing. Nikki, a chain smoker, was always with a cigarette in her mouth or in the process of lighting one up. Patti, who is younger, covered the stuffed veggies with foil and stuck them in the fridge to be cooked tomorrow. It was already tomorrow-past 12 am. The next morning she cooked them in 350 degree oven for 50 minutes or so. We took some as going away presents and ate them days later and they were still Deliciosos!
Kalamata Olives, the big black ones-The Jaractez Method
Recipe from Maria as translated by Giorgos on Oct. 27, 2011
Pick ripe black olives off the tree-forget the ones on the ground-they are bruised or insect bitten.
Take olive lengthwise and make three cuts with sharp knife.
Put in any bowl you have. Top with cool water and 1 tsp of sea salt. Set aside for 4 hours to remove the bitter juice. or so-"This is Greece, do as you like."
Then drain olives and put in a bowl (Maria showed me that she puts them then in wide-mouthed plastic jar) add 1 teaspoon salt (or so) and cover with wine vinegar over night.
Next morning drain the vinegar into bottle (to be used for salad dressing) don't wash, place in jar with some of the vinegar water (or not) and top with olive oil-must be totally covered. They are ready when they are slightly bitter. Taste in a month or so . If too bitter put in fresh water for one week. Change water frequently until right to your taste.
To prepare for the table: spoon a few olives from curing jar into serving dish, drizzle with olive oil and add a pinch of oregano or thyme (as you like).
Or (Nero and Lati) Salt and Water method: place olives in water to cover add salt and don't change the water, cover and leave as they are for one year.
The trick, whether you use the cut method or not is that when you take them out of jar, check for bitterness, if too bitter place in water and change water frequently until you like the taste. Then spoon into serving dish and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle oregano or thyme.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
TheirStories
Everybody's got a story. Those “normal” everyday people, the ones you see every day in the marketplace or on the street have all been part of history. They have peopled the events in the histories we read and fleshed out the ideas we talk over and argue about.
Take my cousins here in Greece, Potitsa Maroussi and Niki Papadimas. They are two very kind and thoughtful Greek ladies, now caring for their bedridden mother, my aunt Angeliki in the town of Pakia. They are two Greek woman who went to England to work when they were young and then returned to the family farm to retire. But, like I say, nothing is so simple..
In 1940, the fascists under Benito Mussolini demanded territorial concessions from Greece, including free passage through the country and the right to build military bases on Greek soil. On October 28 of that year, the Greek Prime Minister answered a resounding “NO! (Oxi!)” to the Italian demands. Mussolini, from his base in Albania, then invaded, or tried to invade, Greece. In a series of battle over several weeks, the Greeks hurled the Italians back and took over parts of Albania.
This infuriated Mussolini's fascist parter, Adolf Hitler, then planning his grand invasion of The Soviet Union. He diverted some of his Panzers and invaded Greece, eventually subduing the country in five weeks. In payment for his lost time, he ordered a particularly brutal occupation, which included wholesale murder and starvation for the Greek population. But many historians consider that those five weeks were the difference that spelled the eventual failure of the Soviet campaign for the Germans. Winston Churchill celebrated the Greek Army with one of his typical inverted homilies: “Not every Greek fought like a hero, but every hero fought like a Greek.”
That is the history. The personal side of the war, for the Maroussi, is as follows. Pakia, with its wide flat valley, was selected by the Nazis as a landing strip and departure point for planes carrying supplies to German forces in Crete, Malta, and to General Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps in Libya. My uncle George joined the resistance and took to the mountains around Pakia, coming down now and then to raid German garrisons in the area. The SS identified him and went to his home, where my aunt lived with her four – year old daughter, Niki. The Germans questioned the little girl, but she had been prompted to say that she was the daughter of a shepherd who had “forty or fifty sheep.” The Germans took her anyway, and imprisoned her with other hostages in the local jail. The partisans, led by Uncle George, attacked the outpost and rescued her and the others. She spent the rest of the war living in the mountains with the resistance forces.
After the Germans left Greece (as the result of a wartime deal between Hitler and Churchill), the partisan resistance forces, banded together as ELAM, fought a long and bitter civil war for control of the post war government, hoping to replace the monarchy with a democratic socialist government. As happened in many similar situations, the right wing forces supporting the monarchy were often the very same people who had collaborated with the Nazis! At first widely successful, the democratic fighters were undone by massive US aide to the government, and the rigid, authoritarian stance of the Stalinists among them, who as the stewards of Soviet aid, favored a murderous campaign of fear and terror. By 1949, the civil war was over; the US – backed anti-communist forces had triumphed and Greece was saved from progressive democracy.
During the following years my uncle George, who had fought with the leftists, had to leave Pakia. The conservative ruling group had put a price on his head, and the family went to Athens, where they lived in a makeshift treehouse in the slums outside the city. Old friends and relatives were afraid to help them. The police were on the lookout for him and once he was actually arrested. Finally,a distant relative helped raised enough money and bribed the police to let him go.
Later, after several very hard years in Athens, Uncle George and his family moved back to Pakia. His main accusers had died and he and my aunt Angeliki were able to spend their retired years at the family home.
I met him in 1997, but that is another story. My cousins have been unfailingly generous and hospitable to us each time we visit Greece. Even when tending their invalid mother, they welcomed us and opened their house to us. But they have done more. They have passed on to me chapters of their personal history, which, by extension has become my own. Peppermint Pati and Niki the Greek. Two ordinary ladies? Yes, but only ordinary in sense that each of us has lived history and participated in the making of it. Oh, yes...Happy “Oxi” Day.
Take my cousins here in Greece, Potitsa Maroussi and Niki Papadimas. They are two very kind and thoughtful Greek ladies, now caring for their bedridden mother, my aunt Angeliki in the town of Pakia. They are two Greek woman who went to England to work when they were young and then returned to the family farm to retire. But, like I say, nothing is so simple..
In 1940, the fascists under Benito Mussolini demanded territorial concessions from Greece, including free passage through the country and the right to build military bases on Greek soil. On October 28 of that year, the Greek Prime Minister answered a resounding “NO! (Oxi!)” to the Italian demands. Mussolini, from his base in Albania, then invaded, or tried to invade, Greece. In a series of battle over several weeks, the Greeks hurled the Italians back and took over parts of Albania.
This infuriated Mussolini's fascist parter, Adolf Hitler, then planning his grand invasion of The Soviet Union. He diverted some of his Panzers and invaded Greece, eventually subduing the country in five weeks. In payment for his lost time, he ordered a particularly brutal occupation, which included wholesale murder and starvation for the Greek population. But many historians consider that those five weeks were the difference that spelled the eventual failure of the Soviet campaign for the Germans. Winston Churchill celebrated the Greek Army with one of his typical inverted homilies: “Not every Greek fought like a hero, but every hero fought like a Greek.”
That is the history. The personal side of the war, for the Maroussi, is as follows. Pakia, with its wide flat valley, was selected by the Nazis as a landing strip and departure point for planes carrying supplies to German forces in Crete, Malta, and to General Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps in Libya. My uncle George joined the resistance and took to the mountains around Pakia, coming down now and then to raid German garrisons in the area. The SS identified him and went to his home, where my aunt lived with her four – year old daughter, Niki. The Germans questioned the little girl, but she had been prompted to say that she was the daughter of a shepherd who had “forty or fifty sheep.” The Germans took her anyway, and imprisoned her with other hostages in the local jail. The partisans, led by Uncle George, attacked the outpost and rescued her and the others. She spent the rest of the war living in the mountains with the resistance forces.
After the Germans left Greece (as the result of a wartime deal between Hitler and Churchill), the partisan resistance forces, banded together as ELAM, fought a long and bitter civil war for control of the post war government, hoping to replace the monarchy with a democratic socialist government. As happened in many similar situations, the right wing forces supporting the monarchy were often the very same people who had collaborated with the Nazis! At first widely successful, the democratic fighters were undone by massive US aide to the government, and the rigid, authoritarian stance of the Stalinists among them, who as the stewards of Soviet aid, favored a murderous campaign of fear and terror. By 1949, the civil war was over; the US – backed anti-communist forces had triumphed and Greece was saved from progressive democracy.
During the following years my uncle George, who had fought with the leftists, had to leave Pakia. The conservative ruling group had put a price on his head, and the family went to Athens, where they lived in a makeshift treehouse in the slums outside the city. Old friends and relatives were afraid to help them. The police were on the lookout for him and once he was actually arrested. Finally,a distant relative helped raised enough money and bribed the police to let him go.
Later, after several very hard years in Athens, Uncle George and his family moved back to Pakia. His main accusers had died and he and my aunt Angeliki were able to spend their retired years at the family home.
I met him in 1997, but that is another story. My cousins have been unfailingly generous and hospitable to us each time we visit Greece. Even when tending their invalid mother, they welcomed us and opened their house to us. But they have done more. They have passed on to me chapters of their personal history, which, by extension has become my own. Peppermint Pati and Niki the Greek. Two ordinary ladies? Yes, but only ordinary in sense that each of us has lived history and participated in the making of it. Oh, yes...Happy “Oxi” Day.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
The First Hour of My Birthday
How I Spent the First Hour of My Birthday
For the most part, my time in Greece has been amazing. Even though it has only been about two weeks, I can say I have had many memorable moments. From trying to communicate with the locals, eating some of the most amazing food of my life and swimming in the Aegean Sea I think I can safely say I am enjoying myself. The reason I say “for the most part” is because of what occured last night, during the first hour of my 19th birthday. It all started weeks before we even left for Greece. My history teacher had assigned a paper that would be due October 18th. When I saw the date I thought to myself “Oh, thatll be easy to remember because its one day before my birthday.” With that thought I assured myself that I would not procrastinate as usual and that I would get it done ahead of time. That way I wouldn't continue my habit of doing my assignments 1 hour before they are due and having a heart attack in the process. Fast forward to October 18th 5pm in Kalamata, Greece. I am just starting my paper that is due at 9pm California time, which is 7am in Greece. Once again, I left myself the minimum amount of time to write a 7 page paper about some European person ive never heard of in my entire life. I have just started my first paragraph and I realize that this exactly what I promised myself not to do! So, finally at about 12 o' clock at night I finish my nine page paper on Pope Urban II. Now, all I had to do was turn it in to the class website. Unfortunately the where we are staying at doesnt have wifi. So my father and I hop in to the car in the dead of night and plan t drive through Kalamata to find a hotspot. After what feels forever, many failed attempts and getting to know the dodgiest parts of Kalamata we find a decent hotspot. I am finally able to hand my paper in. I look at the clock and turn to my father and say “It's 12:35” and he says with a smile “happy birthday!” So, after that chaotic scramble for wifi I realized my 19th birthday had already come. Now, not only was I an expert on pope Urban II, but I was also 19 years old.
Hopefully, I have learned my lesson and won't procrastinate so much, especially in Greece. Where the wifi is tempermental and only works when its in the mood to. Luckily, the rest of my birthday was awesome. We went to a cafe and used the internet. I did a little shopping at one of the only places that was open. Nearly every store was closed because of the strike that is happening all over Greece. We swam in the ocean for a while. And for dinner we had my favorite dish: spaghetti with pesto!
For the most part, my time in Greece has been amazing. Even though it has only been about two weeks, I can say I have had many memorable moments. From trying to communicate with the locals, eating some of the most amazing food of my life and swimming in the Aegean Sea I think I can safely say I am enjoying myself. The reason I say “for the most part” is because of what occured last night, during the first hour of my 19th birthday. It all started weeks before we even left for Greece. My history teacher had assigned a paper that would be due October 18th. When I saw the date I thought to myself “Oh, thatll be easy to remember because its one day before my birthday.” With that thought I assured myself that I would not procrastinate as usual and that I would get it done ahead of time. That way I wouldn't continue my habit of doing my assignments 1 hour before they are due and having a heart attack in the process. Fast forward to October 18th 5pm in Kalamata, Greece. I am just starting my paper that is due at 9pm California time, which is 7am in Greece. Once again, I left myself the minimum amount of time to write a 7 page paper about some European person ive never heard of in my entire life. I have just started my first paragraph and I realize that this exactly what I promised myself not to do! So, finally at about 12 o' clock at night I finish my nine page paper on Pope Urban II. Now, all I had to do was turn it in to the class website. Unfortunately the where we are staying at doesnt have wifi. So my father and I hop in to the car in the dead of night and plan t drive through Kalamata to find a hotspot. After what feels forever, many failed attempts and getting to know the dodgiest parts of Kalamata we find a decent hotspot. I am finally able to hand my paper in. I look at the clock and turn to my father and say “It's 12:35” and he says with a smile “happy birthday!” So, after that chaotic scramble for wifi I realized my 19th birthday had already come. Now, not only was I an expert on pope Urban II, but I was also 19 years old.
Hopefully, I have learned my lesson and won't procrastinate so much, especially in Greece. Where the wifi is tempermental and only works when its in the mood to. Luckily, the rest of my birthday was awesome. We went to a cafe and used the internet. I did a little shopping at one of the only places that was open. Nearly every store was closed because of the strike that is happening all over Greece. We swam in the ocean for a while. And for dinner we had my favorite dish: spaghetti with pesto!
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Greece!
Greece!
I wasn't quite sure what to write about so I decided to write just about the things that have caught my attention.
People: the people are quite nice but some can be a bit grumpy if you interrupt their siesta time (a time in the afternoon where the natives take a few hours to relax, take a nap, and do absolutely nothing at all); since we're clearly American, people act a little different with us. Sometimes it's a good thing and other times not. In tourist towns a lot of people speak a little English, which is nice but some see our American-ness as a chance to make a quick buck which can get a little annoying. Overall the people are friendly enough even if every so often there's a judgmental person or two.
Climate: its been pretty chilly with rain here and there. Some places are different than others but its been pretty much the same, cold weather with occasional sunny days.
Beaches: the temperature of the water is pretty warm everywhere. I'd say so far, Kalamata has the warmest water on its beaches. Its genuinely luke-warm when you dip your hands in, its wonderful. the sea water is pretty clear which is trippy since the water of the beaches on the Californian coast are dark and a little murky. Since its off-season its not crowded and its more comfortable. Overall I'd give the beaches in the Peloponnese an A.
Food: so far the food has been excellent. They may be over-priced sometimes but all in all pretty good. The Greek salad is my favorite. It consists of big chunks of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, occasionally green peppers, red onions, and a big slice of almost creamy feta cheese and has no greens whatsoever. On top they drizzle a mixture of olive oil, dried oregano and pepper. It's pretty much the only thing that is consistently great. A lot of the restaurants have really good traditional Greek food and some American stuff too if you crave something familiar.
Accommodations: we tend to stay away from fancy hotels because they're a lot more expensive and we don't really need all the fufu rufu. We, basically, we just park the car and walk around looking for places. Then: going in, asking a price, haggling a bit and moving on to see if we can get a better price somewhere else. Sometimes we run into a perfect place for us out of nowhere.
Places we've been so far: Sparta, Gythio, Monenvasia, Pakia, Areopoli, and Kalamata.
Well, that's it for now.
-Cynthia Nayeli Moncada
I wasn't quite sure what to write about so I decided to write just about the things that have caught my attention.
People: the people are quite nice but some can be a bit grumpy if you interrupt their siesta time (a time in the afternoon where the natives take a few hours to relax, take a nap, and do absolutely nothing at all); since we're clearly American, people act a little different with us. Sometimes it's a good thing and other times not. In tourist towns a lot of people speak a little English, which is nice but some see our American-ness as a chance to make a quick buck which can get a little annoying. Overall the people are friendly enough even if every so often there's a judgmental person or two.
Climate: its been pretty chilly with rain here and there. Some places are different than others but its been pretty much the same, cold weather with occasional sunny days.
Beaches: the temperature of the water is pretty warm everywhere. I'd say so far, Kalamata has the warmest water on its beaches. Its genuinely luke-warm when you dip your hands in, its wonderful. the sea water is pretty clear which is trippy since the water of the beaches on the Californian coast are dark and a little murky. Since its off-season its not crowded and its more comfortable. Overall I'd give the beaches in the Peloponnese an A.
Food: so far the food has been excellent. They may be over-priced sometimes but all in all pretty good. The Greek salad is my favorite. It consists of big chunks of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, occasionally green peppers, red onions, and a big slice of almost creamy feta cheese and has no greens whatsoever. On top they drizzle a mixture of olive oil, dried oregano and pepper. It's pretty much the only thing that is consistently great. A lot of the restaurants have really good traditional Greek food and some American stuff too if you crave something familiar.
Accommodations: we tend to stay away from fancy hotels because they're a lot more expensive and we don't really need all the fufu rufu. We, basically, we just park the car and walk around looking for places. Then: going in, asking a price, haggling a bit and moving on to see if we can get a better price somewhere else. Sometimes we run into a perfect place for us out of nowhere.
Places we've been so far: Sparta, Gythio, Monenvasia, Pakia, Areopoli, and Kalamata.
Well, that's it for now.
-Cynthia Nayeli Moncada
Friday, October 14, 2011
We have arrived!
Hello everyone. We are in Gythio. It is a beautiful little port in the Limeni Bay. It was known as the port of Sparta in ancient times and was burned down several times by the Athenians. The Romans build it as a resort before succumbing to the big earthquake of 375 BC. Most of that town is underwater. The roman theater survives. It has a lively waterfront and pier where ferry boats come out of here to go to the islands of Kythira and Crete. This town has particular significance to Bill because his maternal grandmother, Alexandra Rozakis was born here.The girls ran down to touch the blue water and fell in love with the place. We will stay here for a week and then explore the Laconia east of here where Bill's maternal grandfather, Dionisis Maroussis, comes from. That town is Pakia and there are cousins there, living in a traditionally built home. They worked in London for many years and are now retired. They are just wonderful, intellectual and hospitable ladies. Their father, was a legendary WWII anti-german fighter who lived through a lot of hardship after the war but later retired to the family farm. We are looking forward to that visit and their wonderful stories of old and new Greece. I'm sure they'll have plenty to say about the current events over a few ouzos and local olives.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Why Did I Come?
Welcome to the Greece 2011 blog from Sylvia, Vita, Cynthia and Bill! We will be taking turns posting on this blog, so those of you who read it can hear the reactions of each of us. We're calling it "The Future Comes Sooner" because in Greece, we are 10 hours ahead of our US time zone. I (Bill) will be the first because, in a strange way, we are here because of my grandparents.
Prologue
Our grandfather came from an area of Southern Greece (The Peloponnese) , called Lakonia; more specifically, from Pakia, a small town in the area. Our grandmother grew up in an area about 50 kilometers North and west of here, near a town called Gythio, Gythio is a beautiful little port town, as you will see from the photos which we include on the blog. I've come to Greece several times before, but only for 10 days or two weeks at the most. This time was special because: 1) Sylvia and I have retired from teaching and do not have to return in August; 2) We wanted to spend an extended time; 3) We invited two young people - my daughter Vita and Sylvia's granddaughter Cynthia (who lives with us in Pacifica) - to come with us.
The central question for me has to be, "Why Did I Come to Greece?" and the answer is another question: Am I Greek or Not? My mother's family was first generation Greek - most of them still spoke some Greek and celebrated the idea, if not the reality, of being Greek. For their generation, the thing was to become Greek-American, which they did. At our family gatherings, my cousins and I heard less and less Greek, and more and more English. Our Greek connection was around the church, and most of us gave that up as we got older. In my generation, no one - aside from myself and my cousin Denny - are at all interested in being Greek. We are at that crucial moment which so many American immigrant families have faced - we're losing the immigrant culture in favor of whatever passes for American culture.
Should I just give it up? Let it go? Luckily, I have the chance to try and maintain the culture by traveling to Greece, studying the language, and reconnecting with whatever family I can find. Is Greece part of my future, part of who I am? We'll see. That's why i came to Greece. My next blog will be about two of my Greek cousins - Niki the Greek and Peppermint Patty.
Prologue
Our grandfather came from an area of Southern Greece (The Peloponnese) , called Lakonia; more specifically, from Pakia, a small town in the area. Our grandmother grew up in an area about 50 kilometers North and west of here, near a town called Gythio, Gythio is a beautiful little port town, as you will see from the photos which we include on the blog. I've come to Greece several times before, but only for 10 days or two weeks at the most. This time was special because: 1) Sylvia and I have retired from teaching and do not have to return in August; 2) We wanted to spend an extended time; 3) We invited two young people - my daughter Vita and Sylvia's granddaughter Cynthia (who lives with us in Pacifica) - to come with us.
The central question for me has to be, "Why Did I Come to Greece?" and the answer is another question: Am I Greek or Not? My mother's family was first generation Greek - most of them still spoke some Greek and celebrated the idea, if not the reality, of being Greek. For their generation, the thing was to become Greek-American, which they did. At our family gatherings, my cousins and I heard less and less Greek, and more and more English. Our Greek connection was around the church, and most of us gave that up as we got older. In my generation, no one - aside from myself and my cousin Denny - are at all interested in being Greek. We are at that crucial moment which so many American immigrant families have faced - we're losing the immigrant culture in favor of whatever passes for American culture.
Should I just give it up? Let it go? Luckily, I have the chance to try and maintain the culture by traveling to Greece, studying the language, and reconnecting with whatever family I can find. Is Greece part of my future, part of who I am? We'll see. That's why i came to Greece. My next blog will be about two of my Greek cousins - Niki the Greek and Peppermint Patty.
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