The vacation gods must have realized the scales were tipped. After blowing $5,000 on a Mexican cruise of no redeeming value (other than a lesson not to take cruises), we were ready for a good vacation.
So, we set off for Greece and Italy - a vacation of a lifetime. Or, at least a vacation I have been waiting for all of my life. What would it be like? Could it possibly live up to our expectations? Would our family be a little crazy like our Greek family in the states?
Our plane trip was relatively easy. Ayjia watched movies and slept. So far, so good. Things are going exactly as planned. We arrive in Athens with one goal in mind: sleep. Although a second goal of finding good food (after filling up on preservatives during the flight) is also on our minds. We sleep, we eat a good meal. We find a decent bottle of Greek wine with a Turkey on the label. Athens is OK. We’re only there as its a stop on the way to Crete. We’re excited to leave less than 24 hours later. We decide to take a plane to Crete. It’s more than 3 times as expensive as taking the boat, but after 24 hours of travel, the notion of riding waves for another 7 hours is not becoming to us.
We hop aboard a small plane and jump to Crete. The flight reads “on time.” We arrive an hour late. We have arrived.
We are greeted at the gate by Krysoula. We’ve never met her but she identifies us from photos. Hugs, kisses, smiles. If only we could be greeted this way at every airport.
We come back to the house. A beautiful home built 2 years ago next to their parents house. It’s their vacation home. They summer here. Ahhh, the life of a teacher.
We are greeted by an out-of-this world meal. Greek salad made with cucumbers and tomatoes that were shipped directly from my childhood. Postitsio. Homemade wine. I could get used to this.
We meet my yia yia’s brother, George and his wife. He’s 80. He looks like he’s 60. We ask him his secret to looking so young. He says we’re doing it right now..food, family, wine. The night ends with a failed attempt to sleep through it. Everyone else goes to a party.
We wake up the next day with plans of shopping and visiting the village. The town is large with much character. I’m surprised that they have great shopping...Armani even! Mental note: we need to come back for more shopping. We pick up some food at their market. The cheeses are bigger than my head. The food is fresher than one could imagine.
We head back home. We eat another great meal. I don’t even remember what we eat, but I try to eat enough to last me weeks. And then....we nap! We wake up and go to the village. I have no idea what to expect. People living in poverty? Are we going to kill our dinner when we get there? We drive into a Gorge so beautiful it must have been made by God after practicing on the countryside of Ireland. First, we go to my yia yia’s childhood home. She lived here until she was 27. I’m 27. She lived in exactly the type of home I would imagine. Dirt floors. Low ceilings. Extreme heat. Sleeping amongst the animals. I think back to the stories she told me as a kid. She lived a harder life before she was 28 than I can imagine.
No one lives there anymore.
Just down the road, we arrive at Ana’s house. My yia yia must have had a twin. She looks like my yia yia, but doesn’t speak English. I’m a little uncomfortable. I want to talk to her about her life, but there are just too many relatives, not enough time. I just enjoy meeting everyone. Drinking and eating Goat, rabbit, cheese, dessert. And, then, more dessert. Life in the village isn’t so hard anymore, but its a great experience.
Sleep and I wrestle all night. I can’t quite pin her down yet. But, I’m getting closer.
The next day we wake up. We start our days with coffee and family on the porch. Even as I write this, the house is filled with family, unrecognizable conversation, and the scent of a promising lunch. We go to the beach. The beach is shallow and calm. And warm. We swim. We relax. We play. We drink. We smoke. I have no idea what day or time it is. And, I really don’t care.
Lunch is served at 2pm. I’m ready to eat lunch and dinner at that time. We have meatballs. They’re as good as every other meal. I’m convinced there is no bad Greek food.
We nap again. I forego this nap as I want to sleep though the night. We relax. We have plans to do go Chania (the city) again “this afternoon.” The “afternoon” begins at 7pm. We walk around the city. Beachfront shopping and dining. The scenes come directly from the best travel books. We want to take our hosts to dinner in the “old city.” The city was bombed many years ago. The roofs collapsed. The old town is rebuilt with restaurants and shopping. There are still no roofs. The walls look war torn. It is beautiful. We eat dinner. Dolmades, and more indescribable food. We drink another good Greek wine. Dinner ends at midnight. I finally sleep.
There are more than 3 weeks left in our vacation.
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