OT: Living the High?? Life ** II

[Guest guest]

Hey Michele,

 

> Hi Butch.....

>

> Ok...crackin up...YES Butch is right...Life is good over there!! And

> the waiter really will hover over you and treat you like royality for

> a buck or two...REALLY!! Been there done that, just a little West of

> you in Kavala, Serres, area in Greece. My husband is from there but

> we live on the Eastern Shore of Maryland now...been here 13 1/2

> years. Yia Yai and Popoo are here now...they love it here but miss

> alot of things that happen summertime in Greece and the

> Meditarrainian.

 

There's much to miss in this lifestyle. I go to Greece often .. have

friends in Athens and in the north, Though I find that the Greeks in

the larger cities (in general) are not so hospitable toward Americans;

except in touristic shops/restaurants. There's lot'sa anti-Americanism

in Athens.. has been for years. Most Athenians are far left of center

so that's enough to make'em upset with Americans I reckon. And part of

it was/is due to American support of Turkey but that is about to slow

down some .. so maybe the Athenians will smile at us again then. ;-p

Folks in the smaller cities and the islands are different fer'shur!

 

> We have considered retiring from the restaurant biz and spending

> 4-5 months a year over there and then back here.

 

Don't blame you at all. I think the Greek Islands beat the Eastern

Shore of Maryland all to pieces. Gotta throw the old joke out though.

Greek feller tells you his relative lives in the USA .. you might ask

where or you might ask what's the name of his restaurant. ;-p Fact is

there are probably more Greeks or Greek-Americans in New York City than

there are in Athens.

 

I was heading to Albania a few years back .. northern Greece .. roads

dirt in many places .. secondary in others .. not marked. Got off the

path somehow and saw this shepherd wearing typical clothing driving his

sheep. Pulled up and asked .. " Tirana Road " .. loud as I could cause

when folks don't speak your language you gotta speak in a loud voice -

right? Feller looks at me and says nothing. I throw up my hands and

start acting like I wanna find a main road to the North .. gonna use

sign language on this dumb peasant I am. Feller's still looking at me

like I'm foolish as I feel .. then he says, " You speak English? " Yep

says I. He says " American? " Yep says I. He says, " No shit! Me too!

I'm from New York! " Long story short .. feller was a Greek-American

retired from the NYC Water Department and he later told me he felt

happier now as a shepherd than he would living in NYC .. plus he could

live a good life on his Social Security in Greece but not in NYC.

 

> We are on the water here so it is relaxing and quite here. There are

> definetly plus and minuses to each country and until you have

> actually been there and experienced it it is hard to really imagine

> the differences. People are very laid back over there and take siesta

> everyday but very serious when it comes to there businesses...Family

> Pride!! > > life is less expensive...even though the Euro has

 

Old world mentality .. once you get outside Athens & Istanbul. Family

pride and fraternity is important in this part of the world. Important

enough to get you shot if you cross certain lines with malice. ;-p

 

> changed alot of that. I suggest a vacation to the Mediteranian in

> the near future. They have alot of EO's being produced in Crete but,

> keep going East until you bump into Butch and all the Roses!!!

 

Crete is good to see .. and Mytelini and Rodos .. gotta see Rodos. I go

there every two or three years and its like the first trip. Mytelini

is also called Lesbos .. folks gotta see the annual pilgrimmage to the

saints. Folks walk or crawl to the top of a mountain village to pray to

the saints in thanks for blessings they asked for during the year. I

asked a feller about a cripple who was scooting along at a rate of a

half-mile an hour .. asked him if the man would ever finish the journey.

Village feller told me .. he will finish unless he dies along the way.

 

> I have taken the whole European theme from my trips to Greece and

> have incorporated that into my products and website that is Coming

> Soon. They know there herbs over there thats for sure!!

 

Twas the home of medicine in many respects. Still a lot of village

medicine practiced. Village folks are different from city folks every

place in the world. I've always been treated like family in Greek and

Turkish villages. But some city folks won't give you the time of day.

 

> Soak up some sun for me over there Butch and keep the roses blooming!!

 

Thankee m'am .. going to the Rose Fields late next week I am. Its hot

in Isparta then .. gonna stand under that big tank of Rose Hydrosol and

let them open the spigot .. drown my butt in Rose Hydrosol. :-)

 

> ~Peace~

> Michele Seretis

> www.thesoapgardenboutique.com

 

Yep .. right you are. And y'all keep smiling,

 

Butch http://www.AV-AT.com

 

> *****************************************************************

> Ya.... a maid. LOL That is the only thing I know to recommend.

> > > Karen J

> >

> > Its a great recommendation .. but not so practical in the USA now

> > I'm afraid. Having gotten used to servants is one of the four

> > reasons I remain in Turkey. I don't want to clean and crap when I

> > can have a maid for $175 a month plus her busfare ..