A land unknown by many
Greece is a complex place. Beautiful from the outside, and beautiful, yet extremely complicated from the inside. The country has faced more challenges in it’s existence than most people realize. It’s always been the cradle of Western society, and such an important part of the global puzzle. The start of democracy, philosophy, theater, and the Olympics. The Greek Islands are known for their romantic charm. A place that you venture off to to enjoy a holiday, and over the recent years Greece has been a hot destination for travelers from all over the world. People flock to the white and blue landscape of Santorini for their instagram stories. Mykonos is an international playground for the elite and famous, as so is the “Athenian Riviera” which lines the coast of Athens from Piraeus to Sounio including the posh areas of Glyfada and Vougliameni. Deep down however, this country holds so much more than many people know. Centuries of occupation and war, despair and depression. This year marks the 200th anniversary of Greece’s independence from Turkey, but despite gaining freedom, the Greeks faced tremendous challenges in the years following. From the Balkan Wars and the Greek & Armenian genocide of Smyrna (the modern day city of Izmir, Turkey) to WW1 & WWII (the Greek-Italian war which led into the German occupation), followed by the Greek Civil War, it seems that it has been one catastrophe after another. The coup d’etat on April 21st 1967 led to the control of the Junta for 10 years to follow where free elections were no longer, demonstrations and strikes were forbidden, and the Greek Royal Family was exiled. This in succession with the Greek-Turkish war over Cyprus where in July of 1974 Turkish forces invaded and captured part of the island before there was a ceasefire. The 80’s and 90’s were a more idealized era for Greece from what I understand. Times were better and the country was enjoying upward prosperity, although for some, perhaps it was the start of the long road leading up to the current financial crisis. In 2001, Greece became part of the European Union and many argue this might have been the beginning of their next struggle. 2008, commonly known in Greece as “The Crisis” led to the country’s high unemployment rate and lack of jobs. The young, educated population left to seek work elsewhere in countries like the UK, Germany and Dubai. Overall, not a pleasant time for the country, and possibly the most well known stigma recently laid on the shoulders of the Greeks. In 2015 Greece defaulted on it’s debt missing a payment of $1.6billion to the IMF (International Monetary Fund), the first time in history a developing country has missed such a payment. It was a difficult time that so many are still struggling to get out of. Slowly, slowly, (as the Greeks say) things started to get better, until the current Global Pandemic which has devastated Greece’s main industry, Tourism. For me, on Crete, I was surprised to see how many tourists travelled to Greece this summer. In fact, the island is still bustling and full with tourists from all over Europe and the US. It has been nice to see the island busy after such a long dormancy, and with the season only 2 months in 2020 they definitely needed it to make up for some lost time and lost revenue.
Now you know that Greece is not all about beautiful islands, gorgeous beaches and amazing food. There is a history all on it’s own that is important to understand if you are going to choose to live here as I have. The people of this country are amazingly strong. I know because I was raised by them. There is a struggle behind their eyes that I have grown to learn well. When Greeks find out that I was born and raised in Alaska and that yes, we have many Greeks in Alaska, they laugh from disbelief. They first ask what took them there, in which I reply simply…opportunities. The Greeks that left Greece to come to America, left for a better life. In many ways, they had no choice. Much of the older generation of Greeks in America, will never talk about why they left, what brought them to their new home and why they often times choose to not go back, but as 2nd and 3rd generation Greeks raised abroad, it’s important that we read the stories and understand the past of the country if we want to better understand the people that raised us.
My Greek Immigrant grandparents raising my dad and two aunts in Chicago in the 1950’s. .
I grew up with Grandparents who came to America in between two world wars. My pappou (grandfather) came over as a young man and my yiayia (grandmother) came with her mother and one of her brothers to join family that was already settled in Chicago. This happened with many, and it is why you will often find that there are Greeks from the same area of Greece in various parts of the US. For example, there is an entire community from Tripoli that lives in and around Glenview, IL and a community from Sparta that has settled in the Albany/Schenectaty area of New York. My grandparents were introduced in America. They married and raised 3 children. My father was born and raised in a city neighborhood of Chicago that had many Greeks. They lived amongst their own, cooked their own food and spoke their own language. To give you an idea of how it was in America in the 30’s 40’s and 50’s, there is even a cemetery in Chicago that is the “Greek" cemetery where many of the people from the various Greek neighborhoods are buried. In those times, the neighborhoods stuck together and raised their kids the only way they knew how, as if they were still in Greece while trying to assimilate to now living in America. It must have been a very confusing time for them. My father did not speak English until he went to school. During his generation, the traditions and customs followed, as well as the mindset. The church was the center of the community. A place where they gather still today, every week to see each other, eat food from home, and remember the traditions and the culture. The Greeks in America that left all those years ago still remember a Greece from the time they left, and in reality it cannot be more different. The country has very much changed.
Being raised Greek. Learning to dance the Greek Traditional Dances from all over Greece as children (my brother and I, 1980’s).
Like so many Greek American children, I grew up in Greek school, Greek dance class, and was part of the Greek youth organizations. It’s the way that our parents and grandparents understood to stay connected in a new and unfamiliar place, and it is something that we try to pass down to our children. I felt so Greek my entire life, but then I moved to Greece and realized that I am so American. It has become much more clear to me now the difference between being a Greek and a Greek American. I will never be fully Greek, (although now on paper I am). I will aways be the Greek American, or "GA” as I’ve been called. I’m ok with that. For me, I want to live in Greece as an American and be proud of where I come from and bring my American traditions along side the Greek ones that have embodied my life for as long as I can remember. Of course the country has brutally reminded me time and time again that I am not in America anymore, and I have found myself needing to let go and adapt to the life here slowly, which always takes time. Living here and learning more about modern day Greece and the people has in a way taught me so much about myself and the way I was raised. Things that I was never able to understand from a generation that was neither Greek any longer, nor fully American. It has helped me better understand why the people I know and love in America are the way they are and it has allowed me to really appreciate where they come from.
Greece is one of the most beautiful countries that I have ever experienced, but at the same time, what makes is even more fascinating doesn’t just lie on the surface of beautiful landscapes and pristine waters, it’s something even deeper. It’s a land unknown by many and by experiencing it now first hand I am learning so much about myself, a part that I’m not sure I knew was ever there before.
“Don’t let your past dictate who you are, but let it be part of who you will become.”
Sitting on the pier in Karystos, South Evia, 2016 - the town my grandfather was born and raised in before coming to the US.
St. Nikolaos Cathedral, Karystos, South Evia