I have decided to post my first short story, ‘Greek Time’ and will post more short stories every now and again. My short stories generally consist of bits and pieces from our travels. Some are about our many mishaps and some are just two folks experiencing new places and new things. I hope you enjoy!
I was introduced to Greek time early on during my first trip to Greece. My Husband and I decided to go to Greece on a whim and a prayer for our honeymoon. We really did not know much about Greece other than they have a Parthenon, a lot of history, it is the birthplace of democracy and it is in Europe. We didn’t know the language nor the food or culture. Regardless, Greece was a place we both actually agreed on and neither of us had ever been here before.

After spending our first day in Athens we flew out early in the morning on a very small plane to the island of MIlos. At that time Milos was not a touristy destination, it was just starting to become more popular but was still hard to find information on. I saw pictures of Sarakiniko Beach and decided this is where we should go.

The flight was quite choppy as there had been an earlier storm. White knuckled we landed at the smallest airport I have ever been to. We grabbed our bags while looking around for the arranged transfer to our hotel, assuming there would be someone with a sign as there was in Athens the day before. We continued out the front door following the other passengers still looking for our ride. Outside, we watched other passengers hop in cars and leave. Then it was just us. It was very remote and here we were, alone, in a foreign country, waiting for an arranged stranger to pick us up. We wandered back into the airport, not a soul there. It was as if the entire airport closed down. From the vague map I had, it looked about 10 Km to our hotel. Walking was not an option I was wishing to entertain.

Once outside again my husband reassured me our driver would be coming as the agency that booked us were well respected and it was going to be ok and to just calm down. Me, I’m having a melt down. I am not known for my patience and I hate being told to calm down! Pacing back and forth from outside the airport to inside the airport, I was getting anxious to say the least. Panic mode was brewing as all sorts of thoughts go through my head. I’m in a foreign country I do not know how to even say hello in Greek and we are all by ourselves on a remote little island that most people have never heard of. Worst of all, I was sure we would be walking to our hotel in Pollonia.
Eventually, we see a car in the distance slowly approaching. The car stops, driver gets out and says with a smile, “Griffiths?” (We were the only ones there). We affirmed and he said he would drive us to the Milos Breeze Hotel. He grabbed our bags and asked how was our flight and had we just arrived. My husband replied that our flight was a bit choppy and we arrived just a bit ago. I commented politely the plane landed as scheduled at 9:30. Our driver looked at his watch, shrugged his shoulders and said nonchalantly, “Eh, It’s not 10:00.” (As if that was equal to being punctual). He smiled and continued on. It was no big deal and a schedule didn’t mean that much. We were fine. We came to find out that this seemed to be typical in Greece. I just needed to learn to chill.
The driver drove us to our hotel while telling us a lot about the island. We listened intently as we were so intrigued by his matter of fact laid back style. He predicted within a year or two the island was going to become inundated with tourist as developers were already buying up land. He said he liked it the way it was but the tourist money was nice as well. Needless to say, we really enjoyed our ride and liked this guy!

I knew right then I was going to love this little laid back island. Little did I know though, I would come to love not only the island of MIlos, but all I have visited in Greece, and also it’s people, food and culture. I am working on learning the language and customs as I feel it is their county and I should learn to adapt. As a matter of fact, I’m even embracing Greek time!!!
I hope you enjoyed my first short story and you too can learn to relax and take life easy by following Greek time.
Well done!
Thank you! Coming from you that means a lot!!
💗
Awwww, I loved your short story! It kept me intrigued to the end! …and I would love to see Greece!
Thank you! I’m not a writer but I enjoy it and it keeps me busy!!
Haha, Greek time is definitely not American time! I’ve also experienced this sort of punctuality (or rather, lack thereof) in countries like France, Spain, and Italy, and it drives me bonkers. Eventually, you learn to chill and just roll with it– it ends up working out in the end, anyway! Enjoyed reading your Greek short stories. 🙂
Thank you, Rebecca! I always appreciate your support! 😊
Enjoyed reading this, I’m hlad everything worked out in the end. Look forward to hearing more.
Thank you!
It is always nice to see a place as it was before it was over run with tourists Lori. Sounds like quite the adventure. A lot of hotter European countries believe in the slower pace of mañana. Who is to say that is a bad thing? Cheers. Allan
Thanks for reading, Allan. The older I get the more I come to appreciate a slower pace!!
Well written 😊😊
Thank you.
We’ve only been to one Greek isle, so your post has exposed us to another. They may all be beautiful and interesting.
Your writing is quite good, and we hope you continue to share your experiences and thoughts. Best wishes to you.
Thank you! We absolutely love Greece. Milos was our first and it was awesome! Take care!! Lori
I enjoyed your short story. I feel like Greek time is totally the same in Spain and other Mediterranean countries too. I find it much easier in Germany or Northern Europe where they are early 😂
Each time we go to Greece I enjoy the Laos back lifestyle more! I have not been to Northern Europe yet but hopefully someday!! Lori
That was a wonderful short story, Lori ~ a pleasure to read! Thank you for sharing your creativity and experiences, my friend 🙂
Thank you, Phil!
This brings back memories of our visit there. Thanks for sharing this and this is such an historic site we saw.
Anita
😊
An enjoyable yarn. Good to know that the Greek aren’t as punctual as, perhaps, northern Europeans are. It’ll help me attain the correct mindset when we visit Greece one day.
I’m glad we found this out early in our trip!
It sounds like you found out what is most important … to relax and let things flow in their own time. I’ve had a similar experience with Chinese Time. Haven’t visited the country, but been a part of a lot of Chinese celebrations because of studying Kung Fu when I was younger. Great story.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Diane. Learning to slow down and relax is not a virtue I was born with. Trying though!! Lori