Quiet Days Spent With My Greek Family
By Helen Grubner. Filed in Uncategorized |
Family home – Kastelli Kissamos
The reward for all those weeks of long hours, working towards making yet another spell in Greece possible … with the weather here unbelievably warm, day and night and still suffering lower back pain from the onslaught of Shingles within days of leaving New Zealand, I have not moved too far from the house.
As I am reminded from time to time “then eesay xeni” – you are not a stranger, the hospitality extended to me by this family I have known for 31 years, is second to none. Wonderful meals made from produce grown in our garden or sourced locally, accompanied by divine, chemical free wine. My days begin with a mug of Greek coffee, Paximadia (barley rusks) and Graviera (a Cretan cheese made from sheep’s milk). As Vassiles broke his leg recently in a motorbike accident, he is given a large mug of fresh goat’s milk, from our own obliging goat, to help the bone mend.
Greek Salads, the likes of which I can never duplicate back in New Zealand. Cucumbers, red onions, peppers and basil all freshly picked from the garden … only the large, plump, red tomatoes need to be bought at this time of the year. Dressed with the finest olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice … served with fresh crusty spread, by now you will all be salivating! Should the postman arrive during lunchtime, he like anyone else will be offered food and wine. When he declined both the other day, it was because he had already had a wine and two tsikoudia elsewhere! After lunch on Sunday, the hot coals, over which our delicious chops had been cooked, were then used to roast freshly harvested chestnuts. If you have never tried these, it is a must if ever you visit Greece. This morning I sampled freshly shelled walnuts, the likes of which I have never tasted in my life. It is all about fresh and local, produced without the use of chemicals … just as nature intended.
I don’t know what it is all about, however, everyone here seems to have become obsessed with dog ownership. Ioanna and Antoni arrived from Hania on Sunday with their poodle pooch “Letta”. Yesterday I visited Vanna where her mother Thespina has a wee dog called Leon and Vanna’s son Manolis has a pit bull puppy. We have the adorable Billy, as well as Bin Laden and another addition, the latter being tied up for most of the day. This I don’t understand, however, he is just outside in our yard with plenty of human contact, unlike Bin Laden who has been tied up in the same place by the rabbit hutches (the lives of seven rabbits ended yesterday, the carcasses now either in the fridge or freezer for later consumption) and chicken coup for as many years as I can remember … this is beyond me.
There are presently no resident cats, however, up until yesterday, Katina was feeding a wild tabby and white moggy and her two young offspring, who would appear early morning and again in the evening to eat whatever she put out for them. Alas, they seem to have disappeared, perhaps frightened away, who knows.
This afternoon at 1600 hours, in an attempt to escape the warmth in the house, we sat outside under the grapevine to drink our afternoon coffee … something we do every day, that is Anna, Katina and I around this hour. However, today was a little different to most days as Anna launched into reminiscing about what was, what is and what will be. Stories about when at the age of just 15, when she had nothing, not even a pair of shoes and Vassiles took her to be married. Other stories about her three sons … Stratis the eldest, who passed away just 23 days after first becoming ill. Yannis who suffered for a long time before he passed and of course, her youngest Costas who was my partner back in the 1980’s. Costas died in Germany in 1996 at the age of just 39 … all are buried here in Kastelli. These conversations that we have from time to time bring tears to our eyes but they are very healing. They are also a great test of my knowledge of the Greek language.
A German friend emailed me yesterday, referring to following my dreams and keeping my spirit high … yes, I believe I am doing all of that. Sorry I have no images to upload as yet … perhaps tomorrow I will remedy the situation.