We’ve had the Winter of
Discontent, the Arab Spring and, though the thermometer refuses to rise, we’re
moving into a season of simmering emotions: the horrors of Syria, Egypt
becoming alarmingly polarized as elections take place, Spain joining us in
economic crisis….. Greece remains a place
of infuriating indecision, political prevarication, social turmoil, human
anguish and outrage. In the pre-election party-political-road-show speeches, party
leaders ensured that they spoke against a backdrop of Greek-flag-holding
followers. Semiotics it say: united we stand - all together - save the
Motherland. Post-elections: no parties can agree to form a coalition,
immediately reverting to overtly wearing their badges and blinkers, to putting party
and personal priorities before national need. On June 17th we go to
the polls once more and no one foresees a clear majority coming out of that either-
what a waste of time, effort and finances! And whatever the outcome, the
decisions to be made are not purely domestic ones, so, I guess, not really in our
hands at all.
In English we say you ‘sing for your supper’ - since nothing is free, you have to offer
something to receive in return. It struck me that, generally, students have to ‘sit for their summer’ as the final exam period of the academic year is on us. Not
a bad mnemonic for Greek students to learn as they often use the Greek
equivalent verbal forms:
·
They talk about ‘taking’ exams, which strikes me
as rather immoral, suggesting as it does swiping the topics to improve your grades!
·
They also use ‘giving’ or ‘writing’ exams, which
I’ve always thought was the domain of the teacher – as in administering or
compiling, respectively.
When referring to the protracted
testing-time of such sessions, I’ve always liked the Scottish term of ‘a diet of exams’, as in assembly for that
purpose. Certainly, as a student, I remember getting more than my fill of them! Now our students sit end-of-year exams, both
SAT (US) and Panhellenic university entrance exams – results of which drive
life-determining decisions. Five of our senior high students have already
gained study places and scholarships at US colleges/ universities – hearty congratulations
to them. And to all of you out there - and that includes those affected in the
broader family unit! - burdened with the weight of revising and performing on
the day- good luck and even better results. Summer will taste sweeter after all
that hard work!
Here on the ‘croft’ we’ve been flooded by our
neighbours’ generosity in the form of ….beetroot. Nothing goes to waste :
picked fresh the gently-boiled leaves make a nice green salad with a little
olive oil, salt and lemon juice. The beets and stalks can be micro-waved in roasting bags
with a little water until soft – can take up to 10 minutes+ depending on size
and quantity – and are very tasty seasoned with garlic slivers, salt, oil and
vinegar, topped with Greek yoghurt and chopped walnuts. Now we’ve even had to
pickle in vinegar to stay ahead of the game!
Cherries and strawberries have looked good
this season but have lacked the sunshine to sweeten up. They’re good for jam,
while pitted cherries freeze well and with some sugar and a drop of brandy –
why not?- make a syrup to accompany ice-cream or, with a little cornflour as a thickening agent, will
spread as a cheese-cake topping –mmm!
The food topic links up nicely
with our recent local event, the Courgette Festival! Every year, the village committee
cooperates with local producers and organises an evening of entertainment. The ladies
do a grand job of cooking and serving a wide-range of courgette-based foods :
pies sweet and savoury, fritters, - even a ‘spoon sweet’ of julienne strips in
syrup. Of course, the ubiquitous souvlaki skewers and retsina beakers abound,
but there are cultural events too. Dance troupes come from near and far,
resplendent in their traditional costumes which, like the kilt, identify them
in terms of locale and kin.
This year, despite the event being
rained off initially, the village proudly hosted children and adult ethnic
dance groups from Bosnia/Herzegovina and from Serbia. But as the Belgrade ‘boys’ were performing their
lively circuits, the lift began to darken; our local lads on barbie-duty were certainly
‘cooking up a storm’ for large raindrops began to plop down rhythmically.
Now you may not consider the courgette as much of a cultural
phenomenon but when we left the event, clutching our free bag of veg thanks to
the local producers, it was with a smile: the unassuming courgette had brought us
closer to our Balkan brothers. And it was just as we were leaving that the
heavens really did open. But it had been a great evening. Here’s a final picture
of our gracious hostesses, beautiful Macedonian ladies, in action and in
glorious full regalia.
Our cultural heritage was celebrated, too, on a broader
front as the Olympic flame was handed on to a suitably somber Princess Anne.
Again heavy rain was evident at the beginning of the ceremony during which I
feared David Beckham might lose an eye to the umbrella-spoke of an insouciant,
recently re-elected Mayor, Boris Johnson – but fortunately all went well.
But of all celebrations,
it has to be the Queen’s Jubilee that takes stage front. Today The Big Lunch
will be enjoyed throughout Britain in the form of street parties. We will join
in, but, given our access road is a dirt track, ours will be more of a field event.
Neighbours have been invited tomorrow which
is a Greek holiday, anyway. Ladies have been told to dust off their tiaras or
summer bonnets and do floral outfits. We won’t have a beacon in the area but we
will light a candle; the lawn is freshly mown and our aperitif will be gin-based,
so I suppose ours will be a ….Gordon Party! – with arrangements made for the worst-case
scenario of inside catering. So we will join you all in spirit, raising our
fruit-festooned, home-made ‘Pimms’ to the Good Queen Elizabeth. May God bless
her and all who celebrate her Diamond Jubilee!
