Regional recipes

I am never punctual when it comes to my blog (or life in general, for that matter), but I come through in the end. So here I am with some traditional recipes, from the island of Lesvos or Agiasos in particular.

Cabbage rolls filled with cod

makes 4 average-sized portions

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cod (here we sell each piece of fish individually, they are really salty and you need to put them in cold water from the night before, in order to get them ready to use. Change the water 3-4 times.)
• 1 big cabbage, separated into cabbage leaves
• 1 cup white rice
• 2 onions, minced
• 1 tomato, grated (made into tomato pulp)
• a handful of fresh parsley and spearmint
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• pepper to your liking

Preparation:

1. Cut the cod into tiny pieces and place it in a bowl.
2. Add the rice, onions, tomato, parsley, spearmint, pepper and 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the bowl and mix well with a spoon.
3. Boil some water into a large pot and dip the cabbage leaves in it, for about 2 minutes. Drain.
4. Take each cabbage leave, fill it with some of the bowl mixture and close it, forming a roll.
5. Place your rolls into a large pot, add the olive oil, enough water so that all are covered, and cover the pot with a dish, turned upside down. Cook for about an hour, in low temperature.
   
   

Sfougato (oven-baked zucchini omelet)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 kg grated zucchini
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 1/2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 1/2 cup hard cheese (like parmesan, for example), grated
• a bunch of fresh parsley or dill, chopped
• 6 eggs
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or evaporated milk
• 2 tablespoons bread crumbs
• salt and pepper to your liking
  
  

Preparation:

1. Place the grated zucchini in a colander, add salt and let them drain for about an hour, occasionally pressing them with a spoon.
2. Place them in a bowl and add the feta cheese, the parmesan, the parsley/dill, 2 tablespoons flour and some pepper.
3. Beat 5 eggs with heavy cream/evaporated milk and gradually add them to the bowl too.
4. Butter a medium-sized pan and add the bread crumbs at the bottom.
5. In a small pot, melt the rest of the butter with the olive oil and combine it with the yolk of the 6th egg.
6. Put the bowl mixture into the pan, top it with the butter/olive oil/egg yolk mixture, sprinkle with some water and bake at 360 F for approximately 50 minutes.

Bon apetit!

So... now that you know the procedure, what do you say? Does it seem easy or hard? What hit you as weird/unfamiliar? I have to add that the Greeks are generally non-measure cooks, but I tried to be as precise as possible, when it came to ingredient amounts.

In my next post, I will be posting the recipe for giouzlemedes and anthoi. Until then, eat well and have fun!

Mmmm... what are we having?

Hello, hello! It is time for a new post today. And since you asked for regional recipes last time, you're gonna get some authentic ones.

But first, a quick introduction (or revision) on what people from the island of Mytilene usually eat. As all Greeks, they love fresh vegetables, herbs, olive oil and fish. But in order to honour their own beloved drink "ouzo", they have it with a lot of appetizers, or "mezedes", as they are called here. Sometimes, there is no main course that follows, and dinner consists merely of an assortment of those yummy mezedes.

In order to give you a better idea on what we Greeks eat, I will provide you with a menu that you would be likely to find in a typical restaurant here. So grab your (virtual) forks and let's go! Beware: Major drooling ahead!

Mezedes

• Giouzlemedes: Little cheese pies, fried.



• Anthoi: Zucchini flowers stuffed with zucchini filling, cheese and herbs.




• Bourekakia: Fried rolls, stuffed with cheese and ham.






• Sfougato: Zucchini omelet, oven-baked.






• Tzatziki: Classic appetizer consisting of Greek yoghurt, cucumber, garlic and (sometimes) dill.




• Kavourosalata: Crab salad with mayo.


• Taramosalata: Appetizer usually eaten during Lent, consisting of mashed fish eggs (sounds weird, but tastes delicious).





• Patatokeftedes: Fried potato-cheese balls.
  
  

Salads

• Greek salad / Horiatiki: Another classic, made with tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, olives, feta cheese, and an olive oil-vinegar-oregano dressing.




• Green salad: Various "green" stuff, usually "wild" ones, aka collected from mountain slopes and not gardens.
  




• Beet salad: With a vinegar and mashed garlic dressing.

Main courses

• Grilled octopus




• Fresh fish, fried or grilled


• Fried calamari



• Grilled sausages



• Kopsidia: Grilled pork pieces.


• Fried meatballs

Desserts

• Greek yoghurt with honey and nuts


• Halvas

• "Spoon" dessert: Made with boiled fruit and sugar.

Bon apetit!

So, that was it... I'll give you some time to dream about all this delicious food, and I will come back with some recipes! I hope you liked it!

Agiasos: The place to be (?)

I realised I have written about my job as a village doctor before, but I have yet to describe the village itself. So... it's time for that too.

The place where I am now working is called Agiasos. It is a traditional and pictoresque village, with approximately 3,000 inhabitants. It is built at the slopes of Mount Olympus (not the famous one, which was supposedly where the Greek Gods resided - this one is in Central Greece), at an altitude of 500 metres.

If you are a fan of nature and you love long walks on steep slopes, enjoying the magnificent view and passing through olive groves and chestnut forests, Agiasos really is the place to be. But also if you choose to stick to the housing itself, you can wander at its cobbled streets and photograph its preserved buildings.

Agiasos took its name from the image of "Saint Sion" or "Agia-Sion" in Greek. This was a picture of Holy Mary, painted by Saint Lucas. It was brought here at 802 AD from Jerusalem. A church dedicated to Virgin Mary was built 2 centuries later, and the settlement gradually developed around it. The picture is considered miraculous even to this day, and hundreds of people rush to worship it on 15th August, where the Orthodox honour the Mother of Jesus. A great festival takes place here, and some people even come from Mytilene (22 kms away) on foot. (Yes, a crazy doctor you may know attempted this last summer, she might have scratched her knees in the process, but she finally made it to the village in one piece!)

But this is the info on Agiasos that you can easily find online. I guess you expected more from me - and you are gonna get it. One cannot begin to know Agiasos, if he/she doesn't become aquainted with its people and their mentality.

The people from Agiasos... now that's a long story! Before I came here, I had heard a lot on this matter. The people from Mytilene accused them often - they were "tight on the money the spent", "rude", "they disliked foreigners", "overly proud of themselves", "they fed on fights and arguments" and so on. Literally everybody on this island seemed to dislike them, and I have to admit I was a little prejudistic when I first arrived here.

And now? Well, after spending 5 months here, I have come to know them a little better. Setting the fact that I am in love with one of them aside (major LOL), they are not so bad after all. It all depends on how you behave when you first meet them - if you start with contempt, you are sure to get some back.

Ok, they are not the most sociable people on the island. They are not the ones who smile idiotically at tourists, and rushing to meet their every need, only to curse them under their teeth later. Having lived at a mildly isolated environment, and depending on anything but tourism to earn a living (they turned to farming and wood carving instead), they have grown to be mildly suspicious of new faces. But once they like somebody, they become really open-hearted and friendly to him/her.

Tight on money? No, not really. As all Greeks, every night you go out and have some ouzo or wine, you are most likely to have somebody buy one more bottle for you. Also, I experienced their generosity as their doctor - when you make a home visit, you simply cannot leave without a "tip" (I personally try to avoid them as much as possible), some fresh eggs, sweets or other goodies.

Proud of themselves? Well yes, they are. They definitely are. But they might have some reason to be. It is impossible to be on the island, and not find someone from Agiasos at key places like the area of health, education or the government. Also, they have managed to preserve their specific characteristics through the centuries, such as their traditions or their dialect. If you are not from around here, you are unlikely to understand what they are saying to you. They have their own festivals, their Carnival, they defend their arts and customs with great passion - and sincerely, I wish we all did the same thing at our own villages.

So, is Agiasos the Paradise on Earth? Of course not. There are days where I cannot stand the mist and the cold, and I crave for some sunshine instead. Sometimes, I get tired of trees and mountains, and I want to enjoy some amazing sea views to relax. And of course, being blunt and speaking your mind out loud can occasionaly be quite tiring - some old fashioned savoir vivre and politiness wouldn't be bad.

But overall, I feel lucky to have come here. Learning some dialect, enjoying some new customs and getting in touch with my true self. Dealing with difficult situations and discovering that, surprisingly, I can make it.

And yes, falling in love does add to the positive points a little bit... :P

What I am supposed to do

So... I'm back! Thanks for the warm welcome, people. I started catching up with your blogs and reading about your adventures. As for me, I'm doing fine. I had a new haircut

and got used to driving my new car, "Tempeh" (pre-bumps and scratches picture)

But what about my new job?

Well, it's been 2 months since I started working at the village. Is treating patients as rewarding as I thought it would be? Well... no. Am I missing the good ol' Mytilene days? Um... yes. Have I regretted staying here and throwing a perfectly good job opportunity away? Hmm... no. Not just yet.

To be honest, being the village doctor hasn't turned out to be exactly what I had imagined. But before I can share stories from my everyday life, it is necessary to talk a little about where I work, what I am supposed to do and what I am actually doing.

We are sharing a practice with one more village doctor (actually a fellow student of mine from the university of Crete, who applied for the same position as me by sheer chance!!!) and a nurse. Each doctor has her own office, with a desk and an examination bed and there is also a small kitchen, a toilet and a waiting room for the patients.

Things we CAN do at our practice:

• Measure blood pressure (and deal with an emergency hypertasic crisis) and blood glucose levels. Also, perform a urine stick test to diagnose or rule out an infection, for example.


• Perform a clinincal exam and treat illnesses that are not life threatening, such as a common cold, a mild pneumonia or a case of gastrenteritis.


• Give CPR in case of an emergency, stabilise and monitor the patient, until an ambulance arrives and takes him/her to the hospital.


• Do stitches and perform minimally invasive procedures, such as change a bandage/dressing, a permanent urine catheter or treat wounds/burns.


• Give vaccines when indicated.


• Refill resident doctors' prescriptions.


• Inform the village population on various topics (for example, what the swine flu is and what measures should be taken).


• Verify death and write certificates in case of natural causes.

Our practice is open from 08:30 to 14:00. After that, one of the three available doctors is on call (the third one doesn't work at the practice in the mornings, but at the local mental facility) and the other two get to leave. Being on call means that your mobile phone number is available to everybody, and they can call you in case of emergency. So, if something urgent happens, you have to open the practice and examine that certain patient, or go to his/her home if he/she is unable to move or to the site of the accident if something like that happens.

Things we CAN'T do:

• Give Xrays and blood exams. No such equipment is available.


• In cases of chronic illnesses, prescribe medication for the first time. If a person suffers from asthma or high blood pressure, for example, we are not eligible to plan their treatment. They should consult a specialist, who decides the drugs the patient should get. After the treatment is set, we have the right to refill the patients' drugs when they run out. But again, if changes should be made to the initial medication, only specialists have the right to make them.


• Deal with life-threatening illnesses, such as meningitis, severe pneumonia or pulmonary embolism.


• Prescribe drugs or give vaccines to children - a pediatrician should be consulted.


• Give death certificates if cause of death is unknown.

All of this does sound pretty neat. Basically, our role is that of general practicioners. Taking in mind that villages mostly consider of elderly people, who are unable to travel long distances and go to the hospital at Mytilene, we are there to help them.

Or so we thought when applying.

To know what really happened, stay tuned for my next post! I wouldn't want to bore you with more medical stuff for now, plus I got a call for a patient, just when I had put my pajamas on.

Some bad news

My not having posted for a while now is no news, nor something that needs an elaborate explanation: It was simply a result of enjoying the last days of the summer, and also the last days of the best trimester of my life so far.

As I have explained before, I will be working as an agricultural doctor in Lesvos for a whole year. The first 3 months are spent in Mytilene, where each one of us is trained at the hospital here. After this educational trimester ends, we are to move to our village of choice (the one we applied for 6 months ago) and actually start working.

I guess that my everyday life at the village will be interesting, challenging, funny and with a few surprises. I promise to share my experiences, good and bad, along the way. But until Monday 31st, my first day at work as a "real" doctor, I am still a trainee.

A trainee not being trained, actually - but this is for another future post. But as a result of the flexible hours and the everything-but-intensive schedule, I have lots of free time. Free time to make friends, swim, sunbathe, watch interesting movies (or cr@ppy ones - it doesn't matter, as long as you have good company!), play board games, enjoy long drives in my car (and occasionally create a new bump or two), drink yummy cocktails and gain 100 pounds by enjoying the local cuisine! In short, free time to have fun.

Somewhere along the way, I feel the annoying presence of guilt for not studying, and not being 100% dedicated to my job. But you know what? In my 24 years of life, I can't remember myself having much fun. It was always a race, a competition - I had to give my best, I had to be the best. And after going through the incredibly painful process of Greek exams, upon entering Med school, I discovered that I had been cheated - where was all the "fun" I was promised, right after the exam torment had ended? Not only things were not "fun", they were even harder then! In fact, I had to study more than ever before!

And I did. And I will, until the very last day of my life. Because Medicine requires true dedication, and it is a science that always evolves. There are no givens, and no golden rules. Everything we take for granted now, may change tomorrow. So we must always be up-to-date.

So, for the last 3 months, I decided to tell my guilt to shut it and go away. It was one of my very few opportunities to have fun, and I promised myself to take it. And I did. And it was amazing!

But today, I feel awful. I know, it is ok to be a little sorry that the trimester is ending, and also a little (or a lot!) terrified that starting Monday, I will be responsible for real, flesh and bones, people.

However, the reason for my bad mood is a bit more practical. There is a problem with my accomodation at the village. I was going to rent an appartment there for 9 months, and started looking for one with my colleague, a while back (we agreed to not stay together, for various reasons, so we had to find one for each). There had to be good heating, because the village is on the top of a mountain and it is cold in the winter, and since it was for 9 months only, it would be better if they were already furnished (because after 18395 moves, dragging my furniture across the other end of Greece was not an option).

We searched a lot, and found only 2 suitable places. My colleague and I liked the same one, but I decided it was just not worth fighting for, so I went for the other. She herself closed the deal with hers, and today I phoned the owner of "mine", in order to agree on some last details.

But guess what? The owner decided that she won't accept me, because I have a dog! I was furious! Don't get me wrong, it is TOTALLY her right not to want pets at her property. However, we had talked about this TWICE before, and she had said there was no problem whatsoever! Not only did she not need convincing, but she seemed more than ok with Phoebs.

And today, 4 days before my move and while we had unofficially agreed and I had stopped searching for something else, she decided against us! I did not see that coming - and I am wondering what to do now.

I asked again, and there are no other accomodation options at the village that suit my needs. So, my only 2 options are: 1) Rent an unfurnished appartment and spend a small fortune (which I lack at the moment) equipping it for a stay of just 9 months - not to add the need to transfer every single piece in my tiny car, because having the shop move it is not possible, or 2) Rent an appartment in Mytilene, and go back and forth every single day, driving in potentially dangerous roads, with snow and ice in the winter (not to mention also spending a small fortune on gas).

I am really frustrated right now, and feel that I am out of time. Also, next weekend I will be off to Germany (I'll share the details in another post) and will have no time to deal with all this, so the pressure of finding a solution fast is overwhelming.

I know it's not possible to help me from so far away (and I am sure that, not knowing the specific details of the accomodation process, it all sounds Greek to you! LOL) but you can at least send me your good vibes and wishes for a viable solution. Or you can try voodoo on the owner for being so inconsistent and untrustworthy. Whichever suits you best...

The craziness continues...

My last post about the flaws of the Greek healthcare system led to unexpected comments and conclusions: That public healthcare really sucks, and that the American system had better remain unchanged.

Don't get me wrong, I am by no means familiar with the American system (I've heard and read a lot, but didn't experience it myself), so I am not the one to say if it should be changed and how. But, at least as far as my own country is concerned, I am and have always been an avid supporter of public healthcare. Maybe in a future post we'll discuss about how this could work and benefit both patients and hospital employees. It may seem unreal and idealistic, but I think it could be done - if only someone was really willing to change the current horrible situation.

But before we talk about changes, it is important to describe what is really happening right now. So, our journey to The Twilight Zone featuring Greek hospitals continues...

If you think that winning the lottery is impossible, try finding a nurse in the Emergency department.

This is the second time I am writing about nurses, and taking in mind that the first time I was disagreeing with the fact that doctors and nurses are paid the same, while they don't work for the same hours and don't share the same responsibilities, you have every right to be suspicious of me. Maybe, like most doctors, I am suffering from "superiority/God complex", shunning nurses and flattering myself that I am much, much better.

Uh, I don't think so.

Because, let's face it - I am not. After all, I am just a clumsy Medical school graduate, still shaking when stitching (alert: This is NOT pleasant to watch - let alone experience!), almost pooping myself when an emergency comes in and I am alone in the room, even for a few minutes, while having no clue about most of the questions patients ask ("Will I get better?", "Is it too bad to eat half a roast lamb while suffering from gastric ulcer?", "Will the guys from Lost ever get out of this f-ing island for good?" - no sorry, the last one is a question I ask myself all the time, and not the patients!)

So yeah, I am not better, and I know it. The nurses know it. The whole hospital knows it. But it's ok. Because I'm not supposed to know everything right away. But please, dear nurse looking at me with a scornful look, help me. Teach me. Don't scowl at me in front of the (terrified) patient. And most importantly, don't leave me alone when I need you the most.

For some weird reason, becoming a doctor in Greece is much too popular than becoming a nurse. As a result, for every 5 doctors that beg for a job, there is only one nurse, who is always in high demand. And also for some curious reason, there are never enough nurses in the Greek hospitals. So, in order to deal with that, we have come up with the model of "Beaming-up-Nurse 3000", a special-patented nurse that manages to move from one clinic to another in seconds.

Or at least, she is supposed to. Because the nurses working in hospitals, compared to those that are actually needed to meet the needs, are much much less. As a result, the same nurse is supposed to cover the surgical department, while performing patch tests at the dermatology clinic, and measuring glucose levels in diabetic patients. All these cannot possibly be done at the same time.

The result? Huge lines of patients complaining about the long wait, doctors carrying samples to the labs, because there is no one else to take them down there, patients' relatives making the patients' beds and carrying them to the X-ray department themselves, students left alone to deal with life-threatening situations simply because there is no one else at the ER at that moment. It is CRAZY in there!

So no, I don't hate nurses. In fact, I love them dearly. So much, that I would like to have as many of them as possible. Please god, give me nurses. Because a good nurse can always save the day (and my own a$$ as well)...

I blame it all on George Clooney

My last post was going to be about Medicine and Med school, but "Greek parents" appeared out of nowhere and monopolised the conversation - after all, it was to be expected. Hopefully, this time there won't be any more surprises. We'll see...

As I wrote last time, I chose to be a doctor pretty much because I was an ER fanatic (and of course I mean the tv show, not the actual Emergency Room!). I was so carried away by the stories, that I ended up believing that real - life doctors would be like this:

Instead, I was terrified to discover that they actually look like this:

So I will some inside info today - dirty things that I didn't know when I applied for Med school. Had I known them, maybe I would have chosen a different profession altogether. Or at least I would have gotten a second job, trying to save money for therapy sessions, right from the start!

This post is not meant to be funny. Some of the things that I will describe are actually tragic. Any similarity to real facts or people is NOT a coincidence. So if you are easily upset and don't want to end up avoiding all hospitals and doctors just because you don't trust them anymore, please don't read any further. Oh, and if you choose to think that these things only happen in Greece because in reality it is a third - world country, feel free to do so. Whatever helps you sleep at night...

1) Taking the Hippocrates oath to heart (as long as my heart is where my wallet is)

The first thing you swear to do as a doctor, is to provide your help without asking for a reward. This is pretty cool, but doctors are people too, and they too need to eat, have a safe place to spend the night, and generally meet their biological needs - so they need to get paid for their work. The real problem arises when having a 197-inch plasma screen is considered a biological need, and the fact that you definitely have to get one forces the patient out of his own place!

In Greece, healthcare is public. This means that hospital care is provided for free, as long as your are insured. Fear not of the mighty term "insured", my friends. In Greece it is very easy to get insurance, and it covers pretty much everything. So basically, hospitals are open for everybody, free of charge.

In theory, at least. Because in the hypothetical case you need an operation, for example, doctors' implications become quite nasty: "There is a great waiting list", and "your operation should take place after 3 months or so and not earlier", and "it is a fairly difficult procedure that needs the utmost care and dedication from the physician", and so on.

If you fail to take a hint, you are likely to be banished to the worst room, with a broken bed or something, while the medical staff weirdly doesn't notice you very much, and your operation somehow takes forever to schedule. Unless you manage to produce some pocket money, say 500 or 1,000 dollars to the physician in charge. Not out in the open, of course. You need to be discreet, put them in an envelope, and carefully slide them into the doctor's pocket.

If you perform this trick, you almost instantly get an upgrade, the staff becomes very tentative of you, and your operation is due for the very next day. All goes well in the end, you recover quickly and go home, satisfied with the excellent medical care you received. It is a win - win situation.

The problem? You spent 1,000 dollars to get medical care that is supposed to be provided for free!

And this, my friends, is the number one pain in the booty in the Greek medical system. "The envelope situation". Money you are not obliged to give, but you give anyway. Money that is not taxed, and just fill the attending doctor's pocket. Money you may not even have - and what happens then, if you are in desperate need of an operation?

Please don't tell me that in the USA a tonsilectomy, for example, would cost far more money than only 1,000 dollars, so we should be happy for not paying as much. The problem is that you cannot have public and free healthcare and then demand "black" money from the patients! It is illegal to do so, and yet, most doctors do it and nobody EVER gets prosecuted! It is a secret that everybody knows, and nobody takes action against. It is a practice that encourages corruption and exploitation of the patients. THIS makes us a third - world country, and not one less metro station, or one less overpriced stadium.

But, to be absolutely fair, this is the opposite opinion...

Greek doctors are the worst paid doctors in Europe. Not only is it painfully difficult to find a job here (I described the situation with the waiting lists and the fact that you may need to wait for 10 years from the moment you graduate, until you start your residency in an earlier post), but the salary is a joke. We get paid 2,000 dollars per month - approximately 25,000 dollars per year. Our salary is the same as the nurses', school teachers', and even civil cervants' working in the tax department. By no means do I mean that we are better than all these people. It's just that our work hours are incredibly more.

While I am on call, 5 different shifts of nurses come and go. That means that I work as much as 5 different nurses, (starting on Monday morning, for example, and going home on Tuesday afternoon) and somehow I am paid the same as each one of them! And I don't even need to stress the fact that our time of studies is not the same, and our accountability in case something goes wrong is anything but similar.

What's more disturbing, is that the government fails to pay us even this small salary in time. All through 2008, doctors in Greece went on strike, because the extra money they legally deserved for being on-call and working overtime wasn't given. According to European Union laws, it is now obligatory to work only 4 days overtime per month. This is what you are paid for. Unfortunately, there are not enough doctors in the hospital to meet the patients' needs, and if each one of us worked overtime only 4 days per month, the emergency department would be empty and unstaffed!

So what are the idiotic doctors forced to do? Work 10 days per month overtime (or else patients would need a bounty hunter to search for a doctor at weekends, for example), and get paid for 4! What kind of country does that to its citizens? Isn't slavery supposed to have been abolished centuries ago?

This horrible situation is the excuse many doctors give for getting the notorious "envelope money". But this excuse is a lame one, in my opinion. I agree that we are underpaid, and in many cases, non-paid. I agree that the government treats us like fools. I agree that we have worked our @sses off and don't deserve this situation.

But exploiting patients is not the answer. We took an oath, remember? An oath to help them, as much as possible, no matter what. We are the victims in this, but victimising patients too is not the solution. We should fight for more. We should ask for more. But we are turning to the wrong people to ask for money.

That's it for now. Hit me with your comments and tranquilizers, people! And imagine this - we are still on #1! A long way to go...

The vampire country

As many of you now, I am now living on the island of Mytilene, working (?) as a general practitioner. It is an exciting experience, and I will come back with photos of the beautiful island and my everyday life as soon as possible. But today's post is about how I ended up on this island of Northern Aegean Sea, just a few miles west of Turkey.

But before we start, here is a picture of Mytilene's port. There are many more amazing photos to show you, so be patient until my next posts.

And here is Mytilene on the map of Greece. For the record, I had been living on Crete before, which is the biggest island of Greece, located on its southernmost end.

I wouldn't be here, if I hadn't chosen to become a doctor. And I wouldn't have chosen to become a doctor, if I weren't completely nuts. And naive. And with no sense of self - preservation whatsoever.

When I was little, I used to watch ER on tv. I couldn't get enough of the brave, self sacrifising doctors, who managed to save lives and look extra cute at the same time! No matter the time, or the extreme circumstances, they fought to do good. The adrenaline was intoxicating, and the sense of accomplishment was hypnotizing.

Unfortunately for me, I relied too much on tv, and didn't have any doctors in my family to wake me up and introduce me to reality. So, while I was studying Ancient History, Ancient Greek, Latin and Literature, (and not having a clue in Math, Biology, Physics and Chemistry that are essential for Med School), I applied for the latter. It was more of a joke, actually. I was going to become a Literature teacher, like my parents, and didn't stand a single chance to be accepted. Well, wrong...

So, I entered Med school, wanting to learn new and exciting things, in order to help people and take away as much pain and suffering as possible. And then, I had to wake up.

Before I continue, it is important to explain a bit about universities in Greece. In my country, it is obligatory to attend school for 9 years (starting at the age of 6). You can then choose to go to a technical school and learn a craft, or continue to high school for another 3 years. At the age of 18, you take exams. These exams are the same for every Greek student. The subjects are the same, the questions are identical, and they all start at the same date and time. So basically, you compete with every other Greek student all over the country simultaneously. Once you get your grades, you are free to apply to any school you like. The school will accept a given number of candidates, depending on their grades only, from highest to lowest.

Example: If you apply for Med school and your University of choice admits 50 students per year, you have to be in the top 50 students that applied for the same position at the same time to be accepted. Even if you have done extraordinarily, you won't get accepted if 50 students did better than you. On the contrary, you may have had a few misses, but if everyone else did as well, it won't matter. As long as you are in the top 50 / 100 / 150, depending on the number of students the school accepts, you are ok. So having good grades alone doesn't matter. The whole idea is the competition - where others stand and where you stand. And it is a matter of supply and demand. Getting into a much wanted school is a whole lot more difficult than getting to one few people apply to.

Anyway, it is difficult to get into university (and it costs a lot of money, since all kids pay for private education in the afternoon along with public education that is offered for free at schools in the mornings). But once you get there, a different era begins. The era of enjoying yourself and simply doing nothing. Because university education is public in Greece - that means you don't pay a thing for your studies. There are no teaching fees and no book fees. Also, there is no limit to the years you can study. You can fail in the same course zillions of times, and it's ok. You can be 35 and still studying after 20 years - nobody tells you anything, and of course nobody throws you out of school. But what makes student life amazing, is the concept of "Greek parents".

You may have heard about this rare species, watched it on National Geographic documentaries, or laughed at it watching "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" on tv. Oh, "Greek parents" are strange creatures indeed, and they deserve a little analyzing. Their whole existence is based on the concept that children don't grow up. The years may pass by, but their babies remain babies. Like vampires or something, time does not touch them.

So, no matter if they are 10, 20 or 40, you still have to fuss about them eating their dinner, dressing in a certain way, and playing / going out / getting married to people you like and approve of. And of course, they never ever go away. In the most extreme circumstances, they may move to a house that is right next to their parents'. But even then, having a spare key and being able to come and go to your children's house as you please is a given.

Having this kind of parents may be a pain in the gluteus maximus, if you get my drift. It is suffocating and infuriating. But it has its benefits as well. One of which is the fact that Greek parents are adamant about their children going to university. To achieve this goal, no expense is too great and no effort is too big. And once their offspring get this much-wanted place, the proud parents continue to provide for them. And they never stop giving, unless their "kid" graduates and finds a job.

So, this attitude is the reason why the image of students selling lemonade as a part-time job in the summer seemed more strange to me, than Paris Hilton actually settling down. Greek parents don't ever get that. To them, a kid having to earn his pocket money by working would be insulting. It would mean that they themselves cannot provide for him. Don't get me wrong, I get the whole "being independent" and "learning how hard it is to earn your own money" idea. I actually applaud the concept. If more kids did that here, we would have less brats that couldn't stop being dependent on their parents. But that doesn't happen here often.

Still, not earning your own pocket money at 15 is not dramatic. But depending on your parents to pay for your cigarettes at 30 is pathetic. Because, as I told you earlier, parents don't stop giving until their "kid" graduates and finds a job. And let's face it - finding a job isn't easy nowadays. And the recent economic crisis is not the only reason for that. It is all a fault of the species of Greek parents, actually. Being so persistent about their kids going to university, they created a country where every kid has a university degree. The result? There are far too many unemployed doctors and lawyers here, while it is painfully difficult to find a plumber or an electrician!

And here comes the last and most important characteristic of Greek parents: Pride. They are immensely proud of their children. To them, they represent all that is good and right in this world. And, having worked so hard to get them to university, they refuse to see them getting a job that is "beneath them". So no, it is not ok to find any job in order to earn a living. You have to find a job that you "deserve". Until then, "you have your family to turn to"!

So, in this vampire country I live, kids don't ever grow up. They live with their parents instead, bargaining for more pocket money at 35, having their mother wash their underwear and cook their favourite dinner. Waiting for the "right" job to come, hoping to get their own place some time - as long as it is close to their parents' house, of course. In the end, getting married to "appropriate" people and giving birth to "extraordinary" children. And this vicious circle continues...

I started this post wanting to tell you about how and why I got into university. I talked about all Greek students instead. As much as this got out of hand, I think this is even better. And while it may seem I detest my country, I actually love it very much. Because only if you really love something or someone, you can accept it with all its flaws and weaknesses.

And to be fair, the species of Greek parents is an amazing species by all means. It is one that never ever lets you down, and always looks out for you - no matter what. It is a species that always makes you a priority, and sacrifises itself for you without a second thought. It is a species we all love and respect. Do you want proof for that?

In Greece, kids selling lemonade is an unknown concept. But old parents staying in nursery homes is an unknown concept as well... :)

PS: I would love to hear your comments and also your own experiences from your own country / community / family.

Welcome to Athens! (part 3)

Hello, blog buddies! This is the last and final call... err, post about Athens, the capital of Greece. Today we will be focusing more on Greek mentality and way of life. I kind of feel like a spy, because I will be giving you "confidential" and inside information but... here we go!

5 things I love about Athens

• The first one would definitely be the climate. It is really difficult to feel down when there is sunshine for more than 300 days a year. When the colour of the sky is the most amazing and clear blue you have ever seen, how could YOU be blue? According to official studies, the Greeks have the lowest incidence for depression in the world. Well, the weather certainly contributes to that.


• Athens is a city that never sleeps, a 24/7 city. There are always people on the streets and open places to eat, drink and have fun. Unlike other European cities, life doesn't stop as soon as the sun goes down. In fact, that's when things get more lively!

• The Greek hospitality is not a myth. Ok, it is not as easy to come by as 50 years ago, as Athens gets bigger by the second and people are more self-absorbed nowadays. But, it is definitely there. You can see it once you will need help, directions or information. You can ask the perfect stranger in the street for those, and not only will you get an answer (accompanied with a smile) instantly, but the person may even take you to your place of interest himself/herself!

• When you walk to the same cobbled streets that millions of people have walked before you over the centuries, you have a surreal feeling. Somehow, you feel that it is all connected - past, present and future. You feel whole, in a way that cannot easily be explained with words. Like you discover your own personal place throughout history - it's tinier than tiny, but it's there.


• There is only one thing that rivals the amazing Greek sky, and that is the breathtaking beauty of the Greek sea. It is widely accepted that there are far more notable beaches at the Greek islands. Nobody can argue with that. But the Athenian sea can still be seen and immensely enjoyed.

5 things I hate about Athens

• Athens is one of the few European cities that still suffer in terms of public transport, cars and traffic. The fact that the Greeks had to wait for the Olympic Games of 2004 to get metro for the first time, is rather embarassing. As you can imagine, with 5 million moving around every day, and a subway system that is still developing and cannot possibly serve more than 1 million, things can get pretty hectic. The Athenians may have come to terms with the fact that they have to wake up 2 hours earlier, because they will definitely have to face a traffic jam going to work (even if their office is only 5 - 10 kms away), but the average tourist is not prepared for this mess. And honestly, why should he/she be? Luckily, if you stick to the centre and don't venture to the outer districts, the public transport will serve you perfectly.


• Athens is painfully expensive, especially when it comes to food and drinks. While the metro ticket will only cost 0.70 euros / 1 dollar (one of the cheapest in Europe), and most of the sites will be free, you are likely to get a heart attack when you will be asked to pay at least 5 euros / 6.5 dollars for a single coffee! And, to be fair with Ernestos and his dislike for Lykavittos hill, if you go there, the minimum for the same coffee will be 7 euros / 9 dollars! This stuff is NOT for the faint-hearted.

• Athenian taxi drivers have a nasty reputation for ripping off locals and tourists alike. Outrageous stories, charging tourists 50 dollars for a distance of 1.5 kms, are unfortunately true. So, a little tip: Never, and I mean NEVER enter a taxi, unless you agree on the tariff beforehand. It is ok to ask how much it will probably cost, and then decide if you are ok with it.
  

• Greeks have quite a temper, demand a lot from their governors, and they don't like to be treated unfairly. As a result, whenever they disagree with a government bill or a political decision, they protest and go on a strike, asking for amendments. It is quite complex to explain, but this is not the time or the place for that. As a tourist, you will face the aftermath: Closed sites, jammed streets, and unavailable public transport. If you are unlucky enough to be in Athens during a strike, there is no real tips I can give you - just try to be patient.

• It is hard to be a pedestrian in Athens. There are no pavements at all, or those who exist are uneven and even full of holes. Add in the infuriating way in which most Greeks drive (speeding, having no respect for traffic lights and parking in the most absurd places available), and you'll realise that walking on foot at places with heavy traffic is no fun - no fun at all.

When in Athens, DO:

• Walk the Ancient promenade, enjoy the sun and fresh air and ponder about how many generations have followed the same route as you do now, over the centuries.

• Try the Greek specialties, and explore new tastes.

• Enjoy the hospitality of locals, their warm smile and generous ways. When having a conversation with Greeks, it is ok to ask about personal matters, age, income or marital status - just be prepared to answer these questions yourself!

• Dine late (Greek restaurants are quite empty before 9 pm), hop into a bar and sleep in the next morning.

• Spend an evening at an open-air cafe, sipping a "frappe" and watching people pass by. The famous frappe is a Greek legend - to be fair, it is not THAT special, but just a frothy version of iced coffee made with an instant brew. I personally don't like it, and it's ok (although I occasionally get shunned for it). But before you make up your mind, you have to try it.

• Be carefree, and leave your stress behind. Not only are you on vacation, but you are in a place where people just don't think about things too much - try to follow their example, even for a few days!
  
  
  

When in Athens, DON'T:

• Wear sandals with socks. If you do so, you label yourself as a tourist.


• Believe in the stereotype that wants Greeks eager to smash plates in places with live music (bouzoukia), when enjoying themselves. This was ok 50 years ago. Nowadays, if you want to do something similar, you can throw flowers (carnations) at the singer, or napkings. But beware: This is a pricey thing to do, as you have to pay for the napkins or flowers afterwards!


• Get disappointed when you discover what heavy smokers Greeks are. It is frustrating, but true. There is already a law that prohibits smoking in public places, but as with everything else, it is only loosely followed. According to European union laws, smoking WILL be banned at restaurants/cafes/etc the following summer, but I personally have to see it to believe it.


• Expect to dine peacefully when there are Greeks in the same place. We are outgoing, expressive and LOUD, and yet unaware of that. To us, the Spanish seem awfully loud and annoying. When travelling to Europe, though, my friends and I always get mistaken for Spanish, so there really isn't much difference!


• Insist on paying for the meal or sharing, when at least one of the persons you eat with is Greek! This is considered a HUGE insult - guests just don't pay! Like, EVER! (If you want to be extra polite, you can suggest sharing, but accept the treat with no further disagreement when it is offered).


• Our relationship with the Turks is a long and troubled one. The things is that, after 400 years of domination (1453 - 1821 A.C.), the two nations have come to share many traditions, words and habits - more than they care to admit. So, no, DON'T argue whether the baklava is Greek or Turkish, if the right term is "gyros" or "doner kebab", or if you are indeed drinking Greek coffee and not Turkish coffee. There are some things that are considered Greek, and not Turkish, and we choose to overlook their real origin. Just let it be. Nobody will be hostile after such comments in any case, but you are sure to cause some discomfort. Try to avoid it.


• Claim to be familiar with Greek history and mythology just by watching "300", "Troy", "Hercules" and "Xena". While you may have enjoyed these films/shows, they have all greatly distorted the actual story and original data. It is ok to be unfamiliar with Greek civilisation - sadly most modern Greeks are, after all. Just don't try to sound like a connoisseur based on the aforementioned productions. You are sure to induce laughter and irony. And by the way, to us Greeks, Alexander the Great was an admirable leader who managed to conquer most of the then known world - not just a plain homo caring about nothing else than to hook up with Haephestion (no pun intended)!

• Complain about how Greeks cannot organise things, follow schedules, take on responsibilities and be respectful to others, in terms of noise and smoke. All these are true. But, to enjoy yourselves more, focus on the positive things: That we are warm people, sincere, generous and fun to be with. We are not famous for our kindness or tact, but we are always there when they need us, no matter what. Lastly, we make great friends - friends for a lifetime...
  
  
  
  
  

Welcome to Athens! (part 2)

In the previous post, we talked about which sights a person visiting Athens should not miss (in my opinion, of course!). This post is about Greek food, Greek mentality and way of life.

5 things to eat (or 10!)

1. Well... you guessed it! Is it POSSIBLE to visit Greece and not taste the no 1 delicacy, souvlaki? Of course not. Souvlaki is the first "emergency food" that comes to mind when your fridge is empty, or when you're not in the mood to cook. You can have it on the go, before or after you hop into a bar and you can find it everywhere, 24 hours a day! Seriously, a neighbourhood doesn't always have a grocery store, or a bakery shop, but it will most definitely have a place where you can have souvlaki (or, as it is called in Greek, a "souvlatzidiko").

But what is souvlaki exactly? Well, even the Greeks cannot agree on that! People from Crete claim that Athenians have no clue what the "original" souvlaki is, while the inhabitants of Salonica laugh at the rest for their ignorance. If we want to be precise, though, there are 3 kinds of "souvlaki": Pita with meat in skewers, pita gyros and pita kebab.

The original "souvlaki" is just the first one: Pita bread, filled with pork or chicken chunks in a skewer, tomato slices, onion slices and tzatziki sauce. Tzatziki sauce is made with greek yoghurt, cucumber, lots of garlic and (sometimes) dill.

What about french fries? Well, it depends on the region you are in. In Athens, no french fries are added, while on Crete, french fries are essential.

So, if you order souvlaki, it will be something like this:

This is the meat in skewers. Of course, you can even order these individually (without any pita bread, meat only). But if you want pita souvlaki, the skewer will be removed, the aforementioned ingredients will be used, and the end result will be something like this:

Pita gyros has the same basic ingredients, but the meat is different. It is now not in skewers, but in a tall vertical spit, which turns around a source of heat. It is quite similar to the Middle Eastern doner kebab.

Then, the meat is sliced vertically and the end result will be something like this:

Finally, pita kebab is filled with lamb meat, minced and placed on a stick, like this (then, a pita bread is used, and the same "procedure" follows):

2. Now that you are a souvlaki expert, we can move on to other Greek dishes. The second one is not a surprise, either: Mousakas! It is a layered baked dish, consisting of fried potato slices, fried eggplant slices, ground beef, bechamel sauce (made with milk and flour) and ground cheese sprinkled on top. It demands quite a lot of preparation when making it at home and to be honest, it is quite a calorie bomb, but it tastes so good, that it should be illegal! Some people (my mom included!) also use fried zucchini at the bottom, but this is not typical.

3. Pastitsio has some things in common with mousaka, as it is layered as well. A kind of bucatini or other tubular pasta is used at the bottom, then ground beef, seasoned with nutmeg and cinnamon, toppped by another layer of pasta. After that, the same bechamel sauce follows and, finally, ground cheese is sprinkled on top.

4. Feeling full, aren't you? Well, I don't blame you at all - even hard core Greeks cannot handle pastitsio after mousaka! So, next day's dinner should be lighter. What about seafood? Fried calamari, or grilled octopus are a staple in Greek cuisine, and can be perfectly accompanied with a glass of ouzo. Ouzo is an alcoholic beverage, consisting of ethyl alcohol (coming from sugar cane), water and a mixture of herbs, such as aniseed, fennel, liquorice, cinnamon, cardamom, mastic and others (each producer uses his own combination). It can be consumed straight, or diluted with water, which produces a cloudy appearance. If not drinked with caution, it can cause a mean hangover!

Fried calamari

Grilled octopus

Ouzo - it accompanies seafood perfectly

5. And to give you some vegeterian options as well, if you visit Athens during the summer, you can order gemista, which is a baked dish with tomatoes, peppers (and sometimes zucchini), stuffed with rice. Prior to stuffing, the rice has been simmered in a tomato sauce, with onions, garlic and spearmint as well. This dish is amazing, and it will look like this:

And of course, it goes without saying that you will have to try the Greek salad, or "village salad", as the exact translation would be. In fact, this is a staple in every Greek lunch or dinner. If you want to be true to its "original" form, it will have to contain tomatoes, onions, cucumber, olives and feta cheese, drizzled with olive oil and vinegar, with some oregano sprinkled on top too. It wouldn't be unusual to add some green bell pepper slices, while in the islands people also use capers.

So, that's it with the food suggestions. Before we move on, however, I have to make a small observation. I kind of sabotaged myself with these recommendations - in the previous posts I tried to persuade you about the health benefits of Greek diet, and now I am giving you calorie bombs and fried stuff! THAT doesn't sound healthy at all, does it? Well, Greek people don't eat like this every single day (in fact, my mom complained for a month after having to make mousaka, and we were all doomed to have 5 minute meals for an indefinite time period, until she felt "ready to cook again"! LOL) But you will be here for vacation, and I think it would be ok to indulge a little bit - at least my always-eager-to-go-overboard Greek mind thinks so!

5 things to buy:

1. Well, nowadays, you can buy pretty much anything, regardless of where you live. But if you would like to buy some things that are produced almost exclusively in Greece, so that you would get better quality for lower prices, I would definitely suggest some olive oil (just make sure to check with the safety precautions about transporting liquid stuff in the US - the only thing that I know first hand is that it is OK to transport olive oil from Greece to Germany).

2. Then, I would personally go for some spices. Thyme, rosemary, therapeutical herbs, or whatever else is not widely available in the US in "normal" prices. My personal favourite is mastic, which is a miracle product that deserves a post of its own. It can be used both for cooking/baking purposes, and beauty home treatments (it's been ages since we last had one here, but still...)

3. One cool souvenir is the komboloi. It consists of beads that may resemble prayer beads, but hold no religious significance whatsoever. It can be constructed by any material, but amber is considered to be the best. Greek komboloi typically has an odd number of beads, and it is a good way to relieve the stress, pass the time, or make the people next to you pull their hair out in agony!

4. Greeks are quite superstitious, and they believe in the "evil eye". It refers to a person who is terribly jealous of you, for any reason, and thus consciously or not wishes your unhappiness. As a result, he/she sends negative vibes towards you, against which you have to be protected. Well, it all sounds pretty mystical and voodoo like, but it is much more simple than that. For example, when a person emphatically admires your dress (even if he/she has NO bad intentions at all), it is believed that you are quite possible to stumble, have an accident, tear it or stain it. So, he/she has to say out loud "I don't want to put my evil eye on you" and you have to spit inside your blouse (well, no actual saliva involved, it is just a mimic reaction)!

Ok, by now you definitely think that Greeks are crazy. I won't argue with you - but I will get to the main point of this paragraph, which is talismans against the evil eye! They are a great souvenir, and you can either buy a single blue bead to wear in your bracelet or necklace, or a larger one, to hang at your favourite part of the house (or somewhere private, so that you don't have to explain this whole crazy story!)

5. Finally, it is always a great idea to get Greek sandals, or Greek embroidery - or both.

Well, as always, this post has gotten longer that originally expected. So, I'll show some mercy and stop for now. I will come back soon with the 3rd (and hopefully, the last) part about Greek etiquette, DOs and DON'Ts, and generally some insights on the Greek thinking and way of life. Because I believe that you cannot really see a country, until you've met and tried to understand its people... See you!