Ancient history and architecture have fascinated me since childhood. It was my dream from early on to visit places like Egypt, Italy and especially, Greece. The movie, “Zorba the Greek” fuelled this desire even more and hooked me on bouzouki music.
It was a dark film, but I was captivated by the ending. When your whole world comes crashing down, what else can you do but dance and laugh? This is what the Greeks call Kefi, and I wanted to experience it, along with their world-famous Xenia.
••••••••
Irish author Oscar Wilde was equally fascinated by ancient history and the Greek scholars. While an undergraduate at Oxford in 1877, he travelled to Greece and was so profoundly moved by the experience, he wrote a poem about it.
Can’t you picture it? I could! Our family explored much of Europe while living in Germany from 1965 to 1969, but my mother, the travel planner, had no desire to visit Greece. ‘Too far, too hot, too rugged”, she said. Imagine my disappointment!
•••••••
In 1990, for my husband’s 40th birthday, we went to visit his relatives in Italy, near Bari.
I could only get away for a couple of weeks (this was during my stressful “corporate slave” period), but we made the best of it and toured all over the south, plus Rome and Pompeii.
At Brindisi, I spotted a sign:
FERRY TO GREECE →
In my head, I was screaming “turn right!” but knew we didn’t have the time. “Do you think we’ll ever get to Greece?” I asked plaintively. “Maybe next time,” said hubby. Would there even be a next time?
••••••••
Flash forward to the late 2000s: Hubby and I were discussing plans for our 40th anniversary in 2013. “Let’s go back to Italy,” he suggested. “I haven’t seen my sister in a long time.” (She lives in a Roman suburb.) Well, no offence, but visiting his relatives didn’t excite me all that much. Noticing my lack of enthusiasm, he uttered the magic words:
“And this time, why don’t we include a trip to Greece?”
From there, it snowballed. Greece was number one on the bucket list. Why couldn’t we accomplish number two as well? I hadn’t been back to my German birthplace since 1972 and desperately wanted to see it again.
In the end, we came up with a month-long odyssey. Using Rome as our home base, we would first fly to Germany for four days, come back and stay in Rome for four days, then jet off to Athens for two whole weeks in Greece. (!)
After that, Puglia (Bari area) to visit hubby’s brother, as well as my dearest friend of more than 40 years, who had moved there.
Was I excited? Is the Pope Catholic?
Our Greece itinerary consisted of 3 days in Athens, a 4-day Classical Land Tour and a 5-day Islands Cruise, stopping at Ephesus in Turkey and concluding with two nights on the island of Santorini.
Somebody pinch me!
The trip surpassed all expectations, and those memories will stay with me forever. I’ve been writing travelogues, which you can view HERE. It’s a slow process, with hundreds of photos to sort, resize and label, but I hope to finish one of these years. (As of Sept. 2019, there are two more to go. Told you I was slow!)
The one problem with realizing your biggest dreams is that life becomes somewhat anticlimactic afterwards. The only cure is to move others to the top of the list.
Update 2019: This is exactly what we did, with last year’s 45th-anniversary trip. I doubt we’ll be able to surpass that one! Then again, the 50th isn’t too far off… 😉
••••••••
Have you realized a life-long dream?
If so, how did you feel afterwards? If not, do you think it is still achievable?
Looking forward to your comments!
Originally published Apr. 30, 2017 for the April A to Z Challenge.
Updated Sept. 19, 2019
THE ENTIRE GREEK ODYSSEY SERIES:
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Dog Mom and (retired) Canine Innkeeper in suburban Toronto, Canada, known as The Doglady. Former corporate workaholic. Writer, photographer, digital creator. Animal lover, music fanatic, inveterate traveller. Eternal hippie/rockchick. History, literature and cinema buff. Hockey and soccer fan. Dedicated night owl. German/Canadian binational, multilingual. Let me entertain you!
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19 thoughts on “FOR THE LOVE OF GREECE”
Hi, DEBBIE ~
A girlfriend of mine once moved to Greece and she lived there for several years. I took that as a clue that our relationship was probably done. So, I drank a lot of Ouzo for awhile and then moved on. But I’ve never quite forgiven Greece. ;-D
She lived there for several years? Lucky her! Not so nice for you. Too much Ouzo will give you a mean headache; it’s so sweet and thick. 😛 Thanks for coming by, Stephen. 🙂
Wow! Greece must be a fascinating place to visit! Thank you for sharing your adventures.
Yes, Greece is magical! ? There’s a bunch of other posts about Greece if you’re interested. (See link in the post.) Thanks, Eugenia! 🙂
Thanks, Debbie! I’ll check it out! ?
You know, you accidentally hit on something for me here. You said, “The only cure is to move others to the top of the list.” I know you intended ‘other dreams’, but my mind read, ‘other PEOPLE’. And I realize that is the next on my list of growth. That said, I would add I’ve never had that strong of dreams. I recognize there are places I’ll not go and things I’ll not do, and I’m ok with that. It helps when those who do, like yourself, share them so enthusiastically.
You’ve suffered so many losses recently; that must be hard to bear. My sympathies!
Not everyone is interested in travelling, but I’ve been doing it all my life. I know with age and retirement (= less money) we won’t be able to take large trips like that anymore. Kind of makes me sad, but all the more glad that we’ve already seen so many places. We can bask in the memories! ? I’m glad you’re enjoying them too. 🙂
The top of my bucket list is London – to visit the Royals that I so foolishly love. 🙂 – And a close second, a reeealllly close second is Ireland but I have a feeling I wouldn’t want to leave. – I’m so happy you’re getting your bucket list checked off but seriously, will it ever be done? This is a big wide world with TONS of places yet to see! It’s exciting to think about. 🙂
London! I went there for a week in 1969. It was a fascinating city and that was the height of the “Mod” era; Carnaby St., Mary Quant, etc. Bummed that I didn’t get to meet the Beatles, though! ? Maybe you’ll have better luck with the Royals. 😉 You’re right! There’s no such thing as a completed bucket list. As soon as one thing gets crossed off, it’s replaced by another. Gotta have dreams! 😀
That some white building. Wonder how they keep looking so clean.
Coffee is on
Hi Dora! 🙂 I think they have to whitewash them every few years. There’s not as much air pollution in Greece, so the buildings stay cleaner, longer. Thanks for coming by!
I almost visited Greece, but the fates did not align. I know it would have been a great trip.
I am certainly happy you were able to go there, Debbie.
What a bummer that you didn’t get to go, Myke! 🙁 Greece is fantastic for many reasons, not just the history (although, that was my biggest interest). Thanks for coming by. 🙂
Fab post and what a trip. I spent 3 months in Greece when I was 25, Those were the ‘golden years’, lol. But my fav is Italy. 🙂
Thanks, DG! 🙂 Wow! Three months in Greece must have been fabulous. ? Oh yes, I love Italy too and crossed that one off the bucket list early on, plus a few re-visits, thanks to hubby. He’s from there and his immediate family still lives in the Rome and Bari areas. Lucky us! ?
Lucky you. What a trip. I would have loved to do that with hubby, but now we don’t want to travel anymore.
Have a fabulous day, my friend. ♥
Yes. SO lucky! 🙂 I can’t imagine not wanting to travel; it’s been a lifelong passion. That said, it can also be exhausting, and we aren’t getting any younger. Maybe, shorter trips? 😉 You and your hubby are enjoying the boating life instead, which also sounds idyllic.
2 weeks in Greece sounds like heaven to me. I’m so glad you had such a marvelous time!
It was an amazing trip, Carol! ? I didn’t think it could happen, but, there we were…Never give up on your dreams, as they say. 🙂