When I first met Nicolas he was being held by his father (Van), he stared at me very intensely for a few seconds and then pushed away from his father so he could get down. He then walked over to my feet and put up his arms for me to pick him up, he continued staring at me for a few more seconds and then pointed to his toy chest and wanted me to play with him! It was SO cute! He is a beautiful child with the bluest eyes!
He can definitely be a handful at times, after all, he is going through the terrible two's phase...he enjoys breaking most things, throwing anything he can get his hands on, and screaming at the top of his lungs because he thinks it is a funny noise...The other day Nancy said to me "it seems like he gets naughtier and naughtier every day!" I told her that it was just his age and that most children go through it, they had never heard about this! They have had an aupair since Nicolas was born because they didn't know anything about babies, not even how to change a diaper! So, their first aupair taught them how to take care of the little guy and they have been taking it one step at a time ever since. I feel like I know more about kids than they do, I mean they know their child; his likes/dislikes, his attitude, etc but they have to read books to know what is to come! I find it amusing!
The Food
The food here is delicious! At home we eat mostly fruits and vegetable dishes, sometimes with pasta and then usually bread and cheese on the side. Greek salads are always on the table and luckily for me very easy to make! Just tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, olive oil, oregano, and feta! There are many variations of this salad of course but this is how we like it. (Nancy and I don't like to add the onions) About two times per week we eat meat and then once a week they eat fish. Nancy goes to the market on Saturday mornings to pick up a fresh fish that was brought in that morning. A few weeks ago they tried to get me to try the fish...we were out at a restaurant in Akrata, a town about 3 hours north of Athens on the coast of the big island connected to the mainland by a few roads. They had told me that even though I normally don't enjoy the taste of fish that I needed to try it here because it is much better due to the saltiness of the Mediterranean, so I agreed to try it...when I saw them bring it out I completely retracted my willingness to try it...it was the whole fish! Head, tail, everything! One look and I completely lost my appetite...They were confused at my reaction and so I explained that in the U.S. fish is served as fillets, not as the entire thing...they were surprised that this was the norm there...either way, I didn't eat it. They had also ordered octopus, I was a little curious about trying it but once again when they brought it out it was the whole thing, suction cups still attached! I was able to get myself to try a small piece, but I cut off all the suction cups... I then made the joke "it tastes like chicken!" but they didn't get it, turns out they don't use that expression here...
The food here is delicious! At home we eat mostly fruits and vegetable dishes, sometimes with pasta and then usually bread and cheese on the side. Greek salads are always on the table and luckily for me very easy to make! Just tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, olive oil, oregano, and feta! There are many variations of this salad of course but this is how we like it. (Nancy and I don't like to add the onions) About two times per week we eat meat and then once a week they eat fish. Nancy goes to the market on Saturday mornings to pick up a fresh fish that was brought in that morning. A few weeks ago they tried to get me to try the fish...we were out at a restaurant in Akrata, a town about 3 hours north of Athens on the coast of the big island connected to the mainland by a few roads. They had told me that even though I normally don't enjoy the taste of fish that I needed to try it here because it is much better due to the saltiness of the Mediterranean, so I agreed to try it...when I saw them bring it out I completely retracted my willingness to try it...it was the whole fish! Head, tail, everything! One look and I completely lost my appetite...They were confused at my reaction and so I explained that in the U.S. fish is served as fillets, not as the entire thing...they were surprised that this was the norm there...either way, I didn't eat it. They had also ordered octopus, I was a little curious about trying it but once again when they brought it out it was the whole thing, suction cups still attached! I was able to get myself to try a small piece, but I cut off all the suction cups... I then made the joke "it tastes like chicken!" but they didn't get it, turns out they don't use that expression here...
Gypsies
So maybe I grew up a little too sheltered or just lacking much cultural experience but before I came to Greece I didn't know that gypsies still existed...the only one I had ever seen or heard of was Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. My first encounter came when we were sitting down for dinner one night at a restaurant by the sea. When we were finished eating a woman and two children came up to the table and started speaking to Van (it was in Greek so I didn't understand). Van then asked the server for some to go containers, he boxed up the rest of the food and gave it to the woman. After they left I asked what they were saying, he said that the woman was asking for money and he said no but that he would give them food. I figured that they were like the beggars I've seen in the states...I mentioned that the children looked really tan and Nancy told me that they are naturally dark but that they live outside, in tents or in the back of vehicles and that they were gypsies. Later that night I was walking down the street and this little girl walked past me, probably 7-8 years old, she was walking alone and selling flowers, I smiled at her when she past and instead of smiling back at me she just put out her hand for me to give her money... Now, I see them more often, I also hear them! They drive around in trucks with speakers attached to the top asking people to bring out anything they don't want from their houses. It is a strange way of life, they send out their children to work at all hours of the day and night while they stay at the tent or truck...I feel bad for the children but from what I've seen they really don't mind...
No comments:
Post a Comment