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| Miranda Mason Class of 2019 |
You are what you eat. We've all heard the old cliche which is meant to remind people that what they take into their bodies defines their health. However, many people haven't considered that you eat what you are. Food is a reflection of the culture of the people who make it and intake it. I never understood this valuable correlation until I came to visit Athens, Greece, which has a rich cuisine befitting the rich history and values of the Hellenic Republic (the official name of the country most of us call “Greece”).
Imagine that you arrive to a table with water and utensils set out. As soon as you are seated, a basket of bread takes its rightful place next to you. It might be pita bread, fluffy white bread or coarse brown bread with sesame seeds. You begin to eat the bread, and after half the basket is empty, appetizers begin to arrive. There are fried zucchini bites, cheese pies, leafy salads, Greek salads, grapevine leaves stuffed with rice, meatballs flavored with mint and ouzo and many other options. Olives are likely used in various fashions around the table. According to myth the olive tree was a gift from Athena, the only tree that easily grew in the rocky and arid soils of Attica. Because of the abundance, olives are used for making drinks, salads, condiments and much more. Now, imagine that all of these appetizers are shared among the friends at your table. Everyone takes what they please, and when a dish runs out, another plate of it appears for you to gorge yourself on. You’ve begun to feel your hunger disappear to the point of feeling content.
You think you feel content, but then you remember that you are still awaiting your main dish. Perhaps this evening you ordered chicken with basmati rice and some lovely sauce. Wait, no, you probably ordered Greek beef burgers with cheese oozing through them. Then again, you might have opted for a seafood platter with whole fried anchovies, fried calamari, or spicy pasta with prawns. Don't worry about disliking your food, no matter what it might be. If you don't like your main dish, you can finish off your appetizers and nibble off of your neighbors’ plates. Keep in mind that sharing is seen differently in Greece than in the United States. Sharing food just comes naturally, and every dish is good for sharing, whether it is in the center of the table or in front of your companions.
After the main course has come and gone (or been boxed up for those of us who don't have the massive appetite of a Greek), there is some delay in which you talk with your companions, and then dessert arrives. It could be some kind of cake, yogurt, fruit, ice cream, etc. Any and all of the sweets are delicious, and they make you forget that a matter of minutes ago you were complaining about eating too much. Finally, you have completed the initial steps of the meal. What happens next depends on how much you enjoy your company.
Some dinners end after about 2 hours, but a true Greek with time to spare will stay at the table for several more hours, talking about anything and everything. I've heard of people easily staying out at a restaurant for dinner from 7 pm to 3 am. For Greeks, dinner is for bonding. This does not apply evenly to other meals.
In contrast to dinner, breakfast doesn't really exist in Greece. The Greek breakfast is composed of coffee and perhaps some pastries. There are bakeries and cafés on nearly every corner with inexpensive treats bedecked in honey, chocolate, syrup and sugar. There are breakfast pastries and lunch pastries, meant to hold consumers over until their lavish dinner. The staff I shadow in Athens’ hospitals often keep coffee, juice and boxes of pastries on hand because they don't have official lunch breaks. Despite these being quick and easy snacks rather than meals, the pastries often deliver a greater sense of quality for small costs than a quick bite in America. In fact, almost every food in Greece seems to be a piece of art, created with fresh ingredients from local farmers, and displayed in the windows of the shops where they are sold. I've begun to simply order things without knowing what exactly to expect, because quality is always a given.
I remember a time when my friend Natasha and I walked into a bakery and each asked for a petite sweet made with a small flaky crust and colorful pieces of fresh fruit. The woman who worked there, rather than charging us, said “It is a gift.” We walked away amazed at the Greek hospitality, which would be illustrated time and time again, whether by a shopkeeper offering us free souvenirs after we made small purchases, or a waiter offering us water when we sat, looking exhausted, near his café.
The various facets of food are evidently related to the many sides of Greek culture. As compared to the rushed, work-focused American culture which inspires fast food, Greek culture revolves less around work and more around what people do with family and friends. That is why Greek dinner is the only long meal: the time devoted to that meal matters most because it is the one that is meant to be shared. Sharing is a big part of Greek culture because the Greek people take pride in their compassionate spirit towards their fellow man. Whether they are accepting endless numbers of refugees into their country or reminiscing of the humanistic philosophies of their ancestors or simply making a friendly gesture toward tourists, the Greeks are extremely giving and usually care about people above all else.
The diversity and intricacy of food in Greece is also indicative of the tendency that the people have to favor quality over quantity (though food is never in short supply). The culture of Greece began developing pre-history, and continues to do so. The country has been touched by Troy, Rome, Christians, Turks, the European Union, American film and many more entities known and unknown. The culture and food have both been developing over time, integrating pieces from each contributor. Greece has absorbed the best of many cultures, preserving them and passing them on. Every recipe has been improved and passed on through the ages, and thus it has some of the richest flavors and dishes of any country in the world. Of course, it doesn't have as many diverse types of food as the multicultural centers of America, such as New York City, but there are countless recipes that are specially crafted. You won't find common pre-packaged Little Debbie cakes in Athens, but you will find goods that are baked fresh daily, and that are unique and delightful.
If food is any indication, Greece is one of the most amazing places in the world. The same way that tables are piled high with great Greek food, the country is chock full of tradition and stories and personality that have impacted the world in innumerable ways. Everywhere I look in Greece I see something beautiful, and I realize that I've been given a taste of culture richer than their cheese and chocolate pastries, aged longer than any of their fine wines, and more abundant than their options of appetizers. I just hope I can share the cultural flavors of Greece with others as well as Greek people have shared them with me.
Miranda Mason is a sophomore McConnell Scholar studying political science and liberal studies at the University of Louisville.