Hello, goodbye, please and thank you!

Finally, I'm back and in the central time zone!  What an amazing trip!  I've been asked what I liked best about the 2 weeks I spent in Europe.  My response is, without a doubt, Athens and Dubrovnik (Croatia).  These 2 cities could be visited numerous times and still there would be more to see and experience.  Athens is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the Western world, almost 4000 years of civilization!  And Dubrovnik is the perfect example of a medieval city - small narrow winding cobblestone streets with surprises around every bend and the 3rd oldest pharmacy in the world!  And you can still buy aspirin there!  But what I'm going to write about today is the dining experience we had on the island of Mykonos - a tiny Greek island nestled in the area of islands called the Cyclades.  For any of you who have traveled with me before you know my insistence that you learn, at the very least, the words for hello, goodbye, please and thank you in the language of the country you'll be visiting.  Cindy, Andy, Dave and I had been practicing these words in Greek for a few days and had gotten pretty good at them by the time we arrived in the port city on the island.  We enjoyed the short walk from where the buses dropped us off to the end of the beachfront businesses - souvenir shops, tavernas, restaurants, and the man with the pelican!  We checked out menus as we walked along as we wanted an authentic Greek experience for dinner that evening.  We finally found a lovely outdoor cafe called "Kadena" and greeted the cute waitress with "Kali spera", the Greek word for "Good evening".  When she seated us we all said "Efkaristo" which means "thank you".  We told her our mission for the evening was to have a real Greek feast and she smiled her beautiful smile, with dark eyes flashing and said she'd be glad to help us with that.  As she went over the menu with us we asked lots of questions and wanted to know how to say everything in Greek - the name of the wine (a local white that was wonderful), the name of the 3 appetizers we ordered, the name of the main courses and the official name of the amazing Greek salad. She answered all of our questions and spent time with us as though we were the only people in the place.  We practiced our language skills - which were obviously limited, but she was a good and patient teacher.  When it was time for dessert we told her that we didn't think we could possibly eat any more!  It was all so tasty and filling.  In a little bit she came back with a large rectangular plate.  On it were 3 generous slices of a type of brownie with a chocolate syrup drizzled over the top.  She said it was "on the house".  When we thanked her with the only Greek word we knew for thank you and told her that she was so nice to do that for us, her response was "But you are all so nice!"  We were taken aback by that.  Had the "ugly American" been  to this little island and caused her to think that "polite Americans" were an endangered species?!  Anyway, the dessert was awesome, but it didn't stop there.  After we had finished and wondered how we could possibly make it back to the ship without being rolled (!) she brought a tray with 4 shot glasses on it.  Again saying that it was "on the house".  She said we couldn't finish an authentic Greek meal without the traditional after dinner drink (the French call it a "digestif").  It was a very tasty (and I don't even drink!) cinnamon flavored liqueur.  And she was right - it was the perfect finish to our perfectly Greek dinner.  So the moral of the story is, it doesn't take much to show others respect and consideration.  We were simply practicing the few phrases we knew and were always polite, realizing that we were in someone else's country and wanted to be respectful.  I figured out that she brought us close to $40 in free desserts and drinks.  All because we could say 4 phrases in her language and showed that we loved being in her restaurant.  Somehow, "efkaristo" seemed inadequate at that point.  We shook her hand and waved to the owner inside as we said our goodbyes - "yassis" - to the best dinner experience any of us have ever had.

Anticipation!

I leave next week for Greece!  This trip has been planned for over a year and now it is only a few days away.  How time flies!  This is my retirement gift to myself - a little long in coming as I retired three years ago.  But I've been saving for and anticipating it for a long time.  I've never been to Greece so I will be a true tourist there.  I say that because when I travel in France, I no longer feel like a tourist as it is my second home.  I feel pretty much at home in Italy as well although my Italian needs a little "vino locale" in order to start flowing freely!   But Greece!  The home of western civilization.  The home of the gods of legend and myth.  (The Romans loved the Greek gods so much that they stole them and gave them Latin names.)  I've been reading as much as I can about the places we'll visit: Olympia, the site of the original Greek games;  Santorini, the island famous for those beautiful blue domed roofs; Mykonos, the island of beaches and parties; Athens, the capital of democracy, of learning, of now faded decadence and power, the Parthenon.  Seven days of our two week trip is a cruise which originates in Venice - one of my most favorite cities in Europe.  Our first stop will be in Bari, at the heel of Italy - the home of Saint Nicolas they tell me.  And the last stop before returning to Venice will be Dubrovnik, Croatia - an ancient walled city on the Adriatic coast.  Except for Venice, this will all be new to me.  And I can't wait!!  I love travel.  I love learning new things about new places because it helps me learn new things about myself.  My son has told me many times that the travels he has done since he was 4 and I took him to Mexico (his first time out of the country) have helped him see the world in a different way than most of his friends and acquaintances.  Perhaps with more tolerance and understanding.  And he is extremely grateful for all of those experiences that have enriched his life.  I know exactly what he means.  It's something we talk about often.  The love of travel is such a part of who I am.  I mentioned in an earlier post that my dad's favorite phrase was: "It's just around the next bend!"  So here I go again, around the next bend, not really knowing what's there, but anticipating every turn in the path as I find out. I won't be posting again until I get back the week of October 24.  And then I'll have a wealth of new experiences to share with you.  Enjoy the new season while I'm gone.  A bientôt!