Hi I’m Nick Yates, and I contend that a visit to the Greek Isles could stir emotions among even the most travel-jaded.
Stunning landscapes, spectacularly dramatic sunlight, an “opa!” spirit that still pervades life and of course the glittering sea of Homeric legend. All this hasn’t perceptively changed much in my years of visits to the Greek Isles.
And could it ever become possible to tire of looking at slim, young, sparsely-clothed European females on their island vacations? I include this thought because I’m male and most males, I’m confident, would answer the question with a hearty “Ohi!”(No!). Heck, just look what beach volleyball and its bikinied stars did for NBC Television’s Beijing Olympics ratings. Not all of the many viewers can have been beachwear manufacturers or volleyball aficionados, even if some did hold themselves out as such.
And the food. I’ve never been able to figure out if it’s the uniquely-flavored and ubiquitous retsina wine of Greece that is so very conducive to eating olives, tsaziki and pita bread appetizers while overlooking idyllic shorelines, or whether it’s the other way around. Hopefully my future will provide yet more opportunities to ponder this delicious but essential riddle. And may the Greeks keep their distinctive cuisine in the face of the growing world threat of global chain-restaurant fare.
Prices, on the other hand, have changed a tad in Greece in recent decades. But not exorbitantly so. And Greece can even feign budget-friendliness in the months of May and September, when the endemic summer crowds of tourists and city Greeks are thinner on the ground.
Much of the Greek mainland ironically remains a imperfect foil for the beauty and tranquility of the isles. That relationship is little changed over the years since I first set foot in Greece, though perhaps one day they may find the inclination and resources to make mainland cities more livable. That it hasn’t happened yet isn’t unique among nations and detracts not one wit from the singular island life.
And now I’ve worked myself into such an Aegean mood that you’ll have to excuse me while I hunt down a wine shop that carries retsina! If you’re in Greece in the near future, be sure to look for Nick Yates! I’ll be there.