Top 10 Favorite Things About Greece
My Kundalini teacher, Lynn Roulo, makes a list of her top 10 favorite things about Greece every year. In fact, the first time I found her online, I read that list of her favorite things and new I had to go take her class!
Here are my top 10 favorite things about Greece
April 2018:
10. Old men sitting at cafes. I don’t mean 2 old men having a conversation. I mean 10 old men hanging out, talking, arguing, laughing, drinking coffee, acting like they know it all, and playing with there komboloi (worry beads). You are never to old to LIVE and ENJOY life with friends.
9. They give you snacks when you order an ouzo. For those that know me, you know how I feel about little delicious, crunchy, salty snacks. Snack time is basically my favorite time of the day. Over here, we call them mezedes. You know, just a little something for you to savor with your ouzo, so you can sit longer, sip it, and enjoy great conversation about life. Sometimes, you literally get a meal! The snacks vary from sauteed or fried sardines, salad, olives and cheese, meatballs, fava beans, sausages, or even a mixture of ALL of it. It’s insanely incredible.
8. The possibility of looking out your window at something cool like a mountain or an ancient ruin is pretty high. My favorite time is morning when it’s quiet and you can gaze out the window at something pretty neat. I have one mountain view out my front balcony and another mountain view out my back bedroom window. The back window mountain isn’t directly in front of me or unobstructed, but it’s still over to the right in the distance and I love it. I can only imagine what someone that notices me staring out my bedroom window in the morning is thinking… ha!
7. You can pay your water bill at a gambling facility. Seriously. People were in the local ΟΠΑΠ (pronounced O’POP) watching games they bet on and scratching numbers on tickets hoping to win a little something extra, and I stroll in and walk up to the counter wanting to pay my water bill. Some of my cousins didn’t even know this!
6. Most homes have balconies. (if not all!) It’s amazing to wake up and sit out your balcony overlooking a mountain and drink your tea or coffee while breathing in fresh air and planning out your day. Then you go to a friend’s home and you eat lunch out on the balcony. In the early evening, you go over to your aunts for a coffee, and you guessed it; YOU SIT OUT ON THE BALCONY. Let me tell you that almost all of these balconies have beautiful plants and flowers surrounding you. People take their balconies seriously. Now I do too.
5. The accordion players on the train. I really like the accordion, especially in an old French film. I typically run into an accordion player almost every time I’m on the train. Some are older, some are middle-aged, some are just kids. One kid played Sorry by Justin Bieber, I mean…. Awesome. Funny enough, I saw him another time in the city center playing the same song. Must be his money maker…
4. House Music. I’m a sucker for House music (Chicago House of course) and the music in many cafes and stores is awesome. It makes my veins pulsate and my body move to the beat, even if I’m just pulling out my wallet to buy a book.
3. You can drive 1-3 hours and feel like you are in a totally different place. You can drive to the Peloponnese, drink coffee on a mountain, go for a swim in the sea, eat olives and go shopping. You can drive to a shipping port and take a boat to an island. You can go skiing. You can drive to a village and eat foods that are specific to that village and not in Athens. You can drive literally anywhere and see ruins. You can do a million things within a few hours and I love it.
2. Coffee. Greek coffee, espresso, cappuccino, iced espresso…You name it. I still LOVE a good Greek coffee and can say it’s my favorite, even when it’s hot out, but the Freddo Espresso is a staple iced coffee in everyone’s daily life. You can’t walk out of your house without seeing someone holding one and walking down the street. If you are feeling lazy, you can call up and have a little scooter deliver it to your house!
1. THE MARKET. The colors of the farmers market are basically a tasty rainbow explosion in your face. Literally an explosion of happiness. How can this not be my favorite? First of all, you can buy all the fruits and veggies you need for one person for a good average of 15 euros and if you don’t use them for 5 days they are still fresh! Secondly, there are fresh flowers, plants, clothes, household items, and at the end there is a fish market. I mean, can somebody say ultimate shopping experience? If someone tries to plan something for Wednesday morning, I always tell them, “Mmmm, yeah, that’s not gonna work for me.” They say, “Do you have an appointment or something?” I say, “Noooo, I have the market.” End of story.
I REALLY want to say the food, the olive trees, and the Sun are my absolute favorites, but those will be tied at number 1 for a lifetime! So I will most likely make separate posts about all three! You can check out my about me page at the bottom to read how I currently feel about the magical SUN here in Greece. 🙂
P.S. Pics coming soon…