Off to Xania

Visions of me on a motorcycle drive by,
The cigarette ash flies in my eyes, and I don't mind, I smile,
And say the world doesn't fit with me.
You don't believe me, I'm so serene.
Careening through the universe, my axis on a tilt, I'm guiltless and free

-Third Eye Blind

This afternoon we are leaving for Chania (Xania) in Crete. Marili, Takis, and I will catch a ferry to meet Grigoris at his house on the shore. I couldn’t ask for better travel guides.

I’ll start where I left off…

Yesterday evening Grigoris and I went to meet his friend for frappes while Takis went with Xristos to I don’t know where (hopefully not Starbucks). We sat and chatted with his friend Stavros for about an hour. He mainly talked in English, but he tested my Greek some, too. Afterwards Grigoris took me to his house, and I met his mother, father, and younger brother, Odysseus. (What an awesome name! It’s not a very common name here, either.) His mother is from Argentina, but she has lived here for eighteen years. I love this story…

Grigoris’ father was in the Greek navy, and when the ship was docked in Argentina, he met Grigoris’ mother (I already forget both of their names). Anyway, they fell in love, but he had to continue serving in the navy, of course, and left. They kept in touch, she waited for him, and he came back for her. They got married, lived in Argentina for about fifteen years, and moved to Greece when Grigoris was ten and Odysseus was five. *sigh*

So moving on…his entire family speaks Greek, Spanish, and English (but his mother only speaks little English). Talk about an overwhelming language experience. I would understand them in Spanish just fine, but then they would switch to Greek and I would be totally lost, thinking I didn’t know nearly as much Spanish than I had thought. Then by the time I realized they were speaking Greek, they would switch back to Spanish. And when I would try to respond to their questions, I would speak Granglish (my term for a mixture of all three languages). Even though it was a little exhausting, I enjoyed every minute of it. Those two hours made up for the lack of opportunity to practice both languages in West Virginia.

His mother served me homemade pastsio, bread, a real Greek salad (no lettuce—only tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and feta), and fresh figs that her husband had just picked. Then Theios Ilithios (“Uncle Stupid” aka Takis) arrived, and we all switched back to Grenglish. We sat for about another hour on the balcony, then Grigoris had to leave to catch the ferry to Xania in order to “prepare the house.” (But he had forgotten that his mother had just been there the day before for vacation and had cleaned it.) Before we left, his mother gave me a mug from Argentina. It is made from a hallowed piece of fruit (I’m not sure what kind, but it is the size of a large apple) with a straw made from a reed. It is used to drink the national tea, “mate.” It will probably be my favorite souvenir I bring back, and it’s not even from Greece.

On the way back to his apartment, Takis and I went downtown to collect money from his client. (I just made him sound like a dealer. He’s a private/travel masseuse. Now I made him sound like a male escort. He’s not either.) It was the first time this trip that I had seen the Acropolis. But I didn’t even get to see the Parthenon because we were flying down the narrow alleyways. I only got a quick glimpse of the wall (that’s when you know you’ve moved beyond the “tourist” status).

When we arrived at the apartment, Marili came over to help us (well, Takis) pack. She and I actually ended up distracting Takis to have him translate. But when he wasn’t readily available to translate, we ended up getting along just fine. Using many exaggerated hand motions, we mainly talked about our trip and how we will share hair products. It’s going to be a fun and educational week in Xania.

Even though I’m having the same amount of fun, exciting experiences, things are very different this year. For one, Pappous is no longer with us, and we don’t have lunch with the family. Also, I am the only American, so Takis and his friends are less likely to speak English around me. It can be very tiring to try to comprehend and communicate all of the time, but I do not get frustrated like I did in Spain. Just tired. But I still find it very rewarding, and I don’t get discouraged. But one undeniably good change is having another koplela (lady) around. When Marili is with us, the sexual jokes and gawking stares are less frequent. (Talking to a Greek male can be very annoying because their eyes are always on any female passerby.) I also learn what Greek customs are typical for all Greeks or just men.

I am so glad to be back here. I was just getting to a point in my life where things in Morgantown were getting almost unbearably mundane. And even though school will be starting soon and my schedule will change, I still felt like I needed not only a change of pace, but an escape. I couldn’t have a chosen a more perfect destination. When I am here, I don’t worry about anything back home. I have no immediate contact with anyone. Nobody aside my family and friends here knows me. I am an entire ocean away from my tote bag and “Miss King” name tag. It’s almost as if I take on a new identity. I’m not longer “Ashley,” but “Anna.” It sounds completely cheesy and exaggerated, I know, but I don’t know any other way to explain it. I’m so carefree here.

Well enough of my rant. I’m off to Xania! Geia! (Everything rhymes in this dang language.)

Oh! For your reading pleasure. Kirk sent this to me; I thought it was hilarious.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8189296.stm