From Greece, with love! (RO/EN)

Holiday, sun and good people

Frog Greece, with love!

Bunica mea era dobrogeanca de mai multe generatii, iar in povestile despre radacinile familiei se regasea iubirea dintre unul de-ai nostri care, fiind comerciant si calator pe mare, s-a indragostit nebuneste de frumoasa fata a unui armator grec din Pireu. Doar ca tatal fetei nici nu se gandea sa-si dea unica fiica dupa un strain venit de te miri unde.

 Dar cu dragostea mai bine nu te pui! Pentru ca tatal fetei a ramas cu ochii pierduti in orizonturi albastre, dupa fiica lui draga furata de baiatul de departe. S-au casatorit cei doi si undeva, in neamul care le-a urmat, am aparut pe lume eu. Tot cu dragoste de mare si de soare, de caldura si de briza vesela! Bunica mea nu imi spunea povesti cu zane sau zmei. Bunica imi povestea vietile sfintilor si povesti despre neamul nostru. Am invatat sa fac cafea la ibric pe la 7 – 8 ani, am inceput sa si beau pe la 13 – 14 (bunica nici nu concepea sa traiasca fara!). La noi, daca veneai, nu exista sa pleci fara sa fi mancat dulceata servita pe farfurioare speciale, serbet, inghetata de casa si apa rece. Toata vara, masa de pranz incepea cu salata greceasca. Imi place la nebunie si acum, o mananca si copilul meu, iar cand stau cu farfuria plina in fata, imi revad toate verile copilariei, cand lingeam blidele la propriu, atunci cand terminam salata asta delicioasa.

Iubesc Grecia! Oftez de drag si dor de parca m-as fi nascut acolo si ar trebui, printr-un ciudat joc al circumstantelor, sa traiesc in alta parte. Cand am pasit prima oara pe pamant grecesc, eram in calatoria de nunta. Mergeam in Rodos, iar cand am aterizat pe insula, soarele tocmai mergea la culcare. M-am urcat in masina care urma sa ne duca la hotel si ma uitam pe geamul portierei. Am sunat-o pe mama si am vrut sa-i spun ca am ajuns, ca mi-am vazut visul cu ochii, ca sunt ACOLO! Mama mea a raspuns si tot spunea “Alo!”, doar ca eu nu puteam sa scot o vorba…doar plangeam, iar printre lacrimi i-am spus ca este mai frumos decat mi-as fi imaginat.

Azi serbam Ziua Nationala a Greciei, 25 martie reamintindu-ne declansarea razboiului de independenta din 1821, pentru eliberarea de sub dominatia otomana. Pentru ca grecii au vrut sa fie liberi, uniti si au luptat din greu pentru acest vis.

Iubim si respectam Grecia, pentru ca de acolo provin radacinile noastre culturale. Sa nu uitam ca “cea mai veche urma de prezenta umana in Balcani, datand de circa 270.000 de ani, se gaseste in pestera Petralona, din provincia greceasca actuala Macedonia. Asezarile neolitice din Grecia, datand din mileniul al VII-lea i.Hr., sunt printre cele mai vechi din Europa, tara aflandu-se pe ruta pe care s-a raspandit revolutia agrara din Orientul Apropiat in Europa.”1

Azi, Grecia ne incanta cu vacante de vis, mancare extraordinara (buna pentru trup si suflet), mare incredibila, oameni minunati, dansuri frumoase si briza care te indeamna sa visezi la departari. Dar si cu o istorie milenara, care si-a lasat amprenta asupra intregii lumi.

                         - ENGLISH VERSION -

My grandmother was from Dobrogea for several generations, and the tales about our family roots included tales of the love story between one of ours (Romanian) - trader and sea traveler, who was madly in love with the beautiful daughter of a Greek ship-owner from Piraeus. Problem was that her father would not even think about giving his only daughter to a stranger came from elsewhere. 

But with love better not mess! At the end her father was left with the eyes lost in blue horizons after his daughter was kidnaped by her lover over the seas. They were married and somewhere in the family history that has followed, I came into this world too. Also with love for the sea and the sun, for the warmth and cheerful breeze! My grandmother wasn't telling me bed stories with fairies and dragons. My grandmother told me stories about the lives of saints and about our family. At about 7 – 8 years old, I have learned to make coffee in the kettle, and at 13 – 14, I was drinking coffee regularly (also because Grandma didn’t conceive life without it). When visiting our family, one should have been sure to be welcomed with natural jam served on special saucers, sherbet, homemade ice cream and cold water. All summer, lunch was beginning with Greek salad. I still love this salad, my boy love it too! And every time I put in front of me a saucer full with it, I see again in my mind all the summer from my childhood, when we were eating the dishes literally to get every last bite from this marvelous salad. I love Greece! And I sigh with longing as if I had been born there and through a strange game of circumstances I have been compelled to live elsewhere.

When I first stepped on Greek soil, I was on my honeymoon. I was going to Rhodes Island, and when I landed on the island, the sun just went down. I got in the car that was to take us to the hotel and I was looking through the window. I have called my mother because I wanted to say that I have arrived, I was seeing my dream, and I was there! My mother answered and she was saying “Hello!” but I wasn’t capable to speak…not a word…because I was crying…and through the tears I was telling her that everything was beautiful beyond my imagination.

Today we celebrate the National Day of Greece, March 25 reminding us the beginning of 1821 independence war for liberation from Ottoman domination. Because the Greeks wanted to be free, united and they fought hard for this dream.

We love and respect Greece because of our cultural roots originating there. We must never forget that “the oldest trace of human presence in the Balkans dating back about 270,000 years ago was found in the cave Petralona, the current Greek province of Macedonia. The Neolithic settlements in Greece, dating from the VIIth millennium BC, are among the oldest in Europe, the country being on the route that allowed the access of the agrarian revolution from the Middle East to Europe.”1

Today, Greece captivate us with dream vacations, great food (good for body and soul), incredible sea, wonderful people, nice dances and the breeze that makes us to dream away. But also with a millennial history that has left its mark on the world.

To Greece, with love!

 https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grecia