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Anne Zouroudi writes much like a poet, and she writes much like a poet about Greece. About its romantic landscapes, about its less romantic realities, its cultural nuances and, what I find most enjoyable, the divinity of its food (in there is also a detective story, but it’s subtle compared to the cultural landscape of Greece, at least to me…) Her books are a very well versed outsider’s intimate knowledge and perspective of Greece. Back to the food…. the detective of her series enjoys life, (what archetypal Greek doesn’t?). So we get to savor each an every one of his meals. His coffees, the wines he favors (complete with the varieties of grapes). The processed food clutter of the periptero (newstand)–it still makes your mouth water even though you know it’s junk food. Because it is a nostalgia for Greece that anyone torn away from the land (forgetting its annoyances) knows… It’s not like she’s writing pages about the salami and kopanisti cheese the multi-purpose storeman’s slicing for you (I mean the detective); it’s about how it falls onto the wax paper, how the storekeeper wraps the package up with an elastic band… it’s the banter that goes along with it… Sigh, it’s as if you’re there in the kafeneion with our portly detective just taking in life.

Ode to the writings of Zouroudi! An author that brings back memories of Greece, the modern, the mythical, the gastronomical… The detective story is enjoyable too!

For a complete selection of her series visit the British version of the website, though not it’s not always updated (I had to do some detective work of my own to find out her new novel was out). You can order her books from sellers like Alibris or Abe books- only a few of her books are available in US bookstores- the rest you can order from overseas.

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If the link doesn’t work, click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaHb8grTIUk

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This is not a new book, just something I picked up with interest as someone who has lived in Athens for a few years as part of an Urban Odyssey. Publishing the book might have been a rush job trying to capture the market of the 2004 Athens Olympics when Modern Greece suddenly was on people’s minds (anticipated failure, complaints, etc, like most media here seems to be about Greece). Consider this book the anti-romantic portrait of modern Greece. If you loved Greece before you read it, you might hate it after you finish reading 142 easy-reading pages of this book. Written by a native Greek who left when he was 10 years old, who paid yearly visits there growing up and spent 3 months living there in part as a personal journey, in part to write this  book… it basically puts a magnifying glass on all of the flaws of the modern Greek state, its people and, it seems (it can be that dark) their souls. Take all the bad, post it on pages like a collage, provide minimal analysis and you’ve got this book. This is not to say what the author speaks about is not true… indeed the most depressing aspect of this book, as a once-ago resident who lived in and with many of the groups the author describes, is that what he talks about is real. In falling in love, did I ignore the monster? I don’t think so but the book shakes you up, even though it is a tad bit unfair, it is so very superficial in some ways (but not in that it presents a glimpse into the “native” life that tourists might not ever see). It is harsh. Maybe it has to be. I know there is more to Greece than this, but then again… Sigh… if only life were as simple as Ode to Frappes and a sun-filled life…

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For those who haven’t been paying attention. The crack of all coffees.

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1. Start marketing frappes like you do Fage yogurt. This is an untapped market that can rival the Dunkin Donuts brand.
2. Become lifestyle consultants on how the rest of us can:  drink crazy amounts of instant coffee, smoke like chimneys,  lather ourselves with olive oil (not sun screen) and soak up the sun, f*ck like porn stars, argue ’til the veins pop out of our heads and still have one of the highest life-expectancies in the world. Here are some no-brainers: siestas are good. Loving life is good. Sun and sea… eh we all can’t have it all but it helps.
3. Become the next eco-gurus of Europe instead of one of its more infamous offenders.
4. Reclaim your agricultural roots, feed yourself first and then export what you want.
5. Keep working on your beautiful, neglected wines.
6. Forget credit cards, the stock-market and all other non-tangible nonsense.
7. Become a national consultant agency for how to strike, community organize and instill populations with a sense of advocacy.

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…I miss you.

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I often hear of some Greeks advising potential tourists to the patrida to skip Athens in their itinerary. If the Greek islands are your destination with limited time, I can see that. BUT… here’s why Athens works, either to visit or to live in, despite some of the harshness found in any city, in its own form.

• The Acropolis. Could very well be personal taste, years of Euro-centric schooling- Nah! Shut up. The sight of the Acropolis at night, draped in moonlight with an eerie glow… is breathtaking and surreal. How many times have I shed a tear just catching sight of it, wherever I may be in the Athenian night? Visit during the hours of 12pm-3pm during the months of July and August and you’ll swear you’ve just hiked into the atmosphere of the sun.
• Coffee culture. Try a damn frappé, for goodness sake, and people watch behind black sunglasses. If you’re a man, have black hair with Adonis wavy locks– you’ll blend right in. If you’re uppity, go to Kolonaki for your cafe. But you will have a nice frappé atmosphere almost anywhere. If coffee is not your thing, try a frosty beer with some feta-cheese flavored Lay’s chips.
• The beach. It’s just a drive away. You don’t have to island hop or go broke. City dweller by week day, beach god or goddess during the weekend. 
• Island excursions. Just a short plane ride away (or more true to the Greek experience) a ferry away. See above!
• Meet Greeks from all over Greece. It’s a city. You’ll find Greeks from all regions.
• Find scattered ruins of temples and old civilizations in the middle of a street (sectioned off of course). It’s part of the natural landscape. Find scattered ruins off the beaten path (like I did during a hike (though in Milos), near the site where they unearthed the Venus de Milo. Pick it up, get chills, almost shit your pants, then drop it where you found it in and run your ass off before the Greek government agents think you’re stealing.  No-one tell me it was a fake. If you went to the places where C-mixto takes me off the beaten path, you’d probably find Atlantis.
• Abundance of farmers’ markets. Not just in neighborhoods. On different streets!
• Cool flea market on Sundays under the Acropolis. Find some old relics, ignoring the tail end of it with crap from China. Wish list: someone get me a coin of the Phoenix currency of the new nation of Greece.
• Because it’s Athens. It’s got some haunting history and it’s cool.

That’s all I’m coming up with now, thought there’s tons more. Anyone care to add to the list?

Inspired by a great meal at Snack on Thompson Street, NYC and a highly caffeinated frappé. Try one yet?

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I’ve mentioned them enough, so for those of you wondering, too lazy to click on the wikipedia links I occasionally provide, or don’t care enough but are still reading now… What are frappés? And how are they relevant to one’s urban odyssey?

Frappés are the idler’s rice and beans. They are frothy ice-coffees drunk by the entire population of Greece, contributing to fast talking, hyper arm gestures, and tachycardia. Made from crystals from the Mines of Moira by minions of Nescafe, they provide hours of liquid sustenance for people watching at cafés. 

I’ve never met a Frappé drinker who’s taken their shake straight (without milk). I honestly think one would die of a heart attack from the potency of not being diluted. Don’t believe me? Drink your frappé down to just the mucky bottom, and fill your frappé glass up with water. It’ll taste just as strong. Order a decaf and you’ll either get a laugh (doesn’t exist), or they’ll lie and bring you a regular.

Frappés are the cool man’s drink. It shows you don’t have to worry ’bout notin. You can lounge in your café chair for hours behind sunglasses. Watch. Sip. Watch. 

Ode to Frappé! To not sleeping for two days! To stomach cramps! To hyperactivity! Ode to you, Frappé.

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