Oct 5, 2009

Faces and Places!

I was moving s l o w l y on Saturday morning. Sis and I had a date to attend the Greek Festival for lunch and I was looking forward to it, but at the same time I was fighting that foggy-headed feeling all morning. Old "Lead-Foot" got us there in no time, completely ignoring all of "Nori's" (the GPS system voice) directionals. Nori would give the instruction in a polite and gentle voice and Sis gently and politely dismiss each and every one of them. This was fine since Nori doesn't have the benefit of knowing where traffic is predicted, and Sis did. Anyway it only took a little sunshine, a glass of wine and some great food to bring me back to life. Two young members of the Hellenic Folkloric dance troup, all part of the Lykion family of educational institutions who teach Helenic folk culture and preserve it's authenticity. Atlantas Lykion chapter has more than 100 dancers, including an adult performing troupe. Their costumes represent more than 20 different regions of Greece. Bookings of dance performers can be arranged at helenkacur@gmail.com
Inside the "Cathedral of the Annunciation" we had a chance to view the amazing iconography and mosaic dome of Christ, really beautiful. Greek Orthodoxy Sacraments are seven in number: Baptism, Chrismation (anointment with Holy Oil), Confession, Holy Communion, Matrimony, Holy Orders (Ordination), and Unction (anointment of the sick)..... Outside we managed to find a seat in the shade right at the base of the stage where the group "Alpha Omega" played traditional Greek music. We enjoyed a glass of wine with a Greek salad, roasted potatoes, calamatas and the like. After about an hour we could no longer ignore the fact that we were sitting smack dab in front of gigantic speakers, and the music was becoming a little more tradition than we could take. We kept moving and walked deeper into the learning center to shop for to-go goodies taking in other stops along the corridor included cooking clases, lectures, bakery and clothing items to name a few. It was pretty crowded, but standing in a couple of lines paid off for us as we left the festival with a loaf of olive bread, a block of Feta and a couple of Greek pastries. We headed back to the car feeling like we'd robbed a bank, any time we find good bread it's a celebration because the county we live in must have an ordnance that says every citizen must eat white bread exclusively. Even if the label says wheat or rye, one can rest assured it's really white bread in disguise. Yes, I'm being sarcastic, it's maddening, I tell you.... can I get a big OPA!

2 comments:

  1. I went to a greek wedding once. The hospitality was amazing but God did we leave ten sheets to the wind! They had left several bottles of spirits on each table and we were well bladdered by the time we left. I remember falling into a hedge on the way home! A bit different from your experience!

    ReplyDelete
  2. LOL, not very different, MOB.... if they'd been kind enough to leave several bottles on the table, I'd have taken it on as well. At $6.00 per glass, we decided to have 2 each and call it a dry day. Love seeing you up here. Hope all's well. Thanks for checking in. Keri

    ReplyDelete

Thoughts? My word verification is set to "NO" for your convenience. You're welcome!