Monday, October 3, 2011

From the Editor: "There are two types of people: Greeks, and everybody that wishes they were Greek!"


Yassou! Welcome to Greece!


It gives me great pleasure to announce our next destination of the week will be to Greece! I have a special attachment to this beautiful country due to my own bit of Greek heritage. My paternal grandmother, Olympia, is half Greek, and her mother was from Kalamata.

I wasn't raised in the Greek Orthodox Church, but my grandma taught me how to say my prayers in Greek. I'm sad to report, I barely remember how to say them. Nonetheless, my Greek today amounts to a keen understanding of the basic phrases. Hello. Goodbye. Good morning, how are you? Etc...


In many ways, we are all sons and daughters of Ancient Greece. Greece is really the cradle of Western Civilization. So much is owed to antiquity, and the rich foundation the Ancient Greeks built in terms of philosophy, literature, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, education, and Western drama (just to name a few).

Oh, just the home of the gods. No big deal.....
Greek cuisine is some of the finest dining in the world, and the classic example of the healthy Mediterranean diet. It incorporates fresh ingredients into a variety of dishes like moussaka, Greek Salad, souvlaki, and my absolute favorite, spanakopita. And you'd be crazy to turn down a nice, sweet, and sticky helping of baklava!


Greece is the birth place of the Olympic Games. The Panathenian stadium in Athens hosted the Olympic Games in 1896, 1870, 1875, 1906, and recently in 2004. Of course, you can't talk about Greece without mentioning the numerous gods of the ancient Greek mythology. They intersect with the world of literature's greatest epics ever written (uh, can you say The Odyssey and The Illiad?)

I absolutely love Greek culture, traditions, and customs. I am so thrilled and honor to share this piece of my own personal history with you all.

Stay tuned for all kinds of Greek-ness for your everyday life this week!

♥ Kherete ♥