"Based on Greek mythology and the ancient statues we thought that Greeks would be thin and fit, but instead we saw many overweight people and especially children. We were impressed by the beauty of the Greek women, but they would be much more beautiful if they controlled their weight".

Tight families

31 year-old German, Roman, is a trainer and manages the health center of a big automotive industry in Cologne, while his 30year-old wife Dana is also a physical education teacher in a school. During the last years they spend their vacation at the mountainous villages of Pieria, on the slopes of mount Olympus. We met them in the village Ano Skotina and asked them to talk to us about their impression of the Greeks. They answered politely and apologized in advance in case they would cause offence.

"We detected that the Greek society's core is still the extended family. In fact this may happen more in the villages and less in the big cities. The elders are still an important part of the community and their opinion counts. Parents pathologically love their children and they meddle in their lives for no particular reason. They keep advising them, without giving them any chance to do something their own way. The generations' roles are not yet clarified in Greece. Everybody has a strong word and role here. We found out that the closer the bonds are among the family members the harder it is for the shell to break, when someone wants to get in their team. We were impressed by the Greek families' gatherings that seem like an emotional and culinary feast. The Greeks meet their friends very often and chatter while eating and drinking. We observed, though, that they eat meat in incredibly large quantities, much more than they eat vegetables, even though there are plenty of them in Greece and are very delicious".

Temper outbursts

The two Germans are laconic and tough. They travel lots of kilometers everyday on foot in the alleys of Olympus without getting tired. They have included exercise in their everyday life since their childhood. They consider Olympus as the most beautiful and appropriate mountain for climbing exercise. "In some magical way the mountain exhorts us to communicate with it, but also with each other. We talk about the legends that accompany the mountain and the explosive alternations of the scenery. We wonder why we don't meet any Greeks exercising here like we do".

In Germany, which produces very few kinds of fruits, there are many vegetarian stores and restaurants, but in temperate Greece they found none. They were crazy though about the spaghetti with white cheese (named "feta") and sauce made by ripe tomatoes. "We were impressed when we saw that most of the Greeks take part in cooking and allow other people in their kitchen. But we found the way in which they drive a bit awkward, while sometimes we were scared of their intense outbursts".

When asked if they can describe Greece in one word, Roman and Dana answered: "Contrasts. Steep mountains beside the sea, friendly people who may suddenly erupt like a volcano, strong family bonds that substitute society. In Germany the situation is totally different, where life and nature's rhythms are imperturbable. But this is not necessarily an advantage, because the strict lifestyle limits our freedom and decreases the variety in our lives".
TEXT-PHOTOS: GEORGE ZAFEIROPOULOS
SOURCE: www.greecewithin.com

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