T H E G R A P E V I N E

(Newsletter of the Hellenic Dance Group)

Edited by: Rita Wild

By the time you read this we will all, I hope, have had a pleasant Easter and be looking forward to our annual holidays in Greece. The past winter admittedly was not a bad one here but did, at least to me, seem to be a long one. Let us hope that this year will be the UK's turn for a decent few months we can honestly call summer!

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"SKOPELOS"
(A "Sporadic" experience)

Last September found us in the group of islands known as the Sporades, based on Skopelos to be precise.

Getting there was quite an enjoyable experience. We had a flight to Skiathos and were quickly and efficiently transferred to the port about 10 minutes away where the luggage was unloaded. We were told to leave it on the waterfront, where the Flying Dolphins come in, and go off for a wander, have a drink or whatever, being assured that our luggage would be absolutely fine unattended on the thoroughfare for, in the words of the tour rep, "now you are in Greece!" This was an extremely relaxed and pleasant way to arrive and spend time waiting for the Dolphin, sitting in a taverna by the harbour, watching the usual hubbub of harbour activity whilst sipping a long cool drink and unwinding after the flight and check-in at the airport. We had about an hour and a half to wait for the Dolphin which would take us on to Skopelos and it arrived dead on time. We all boarded, leaving our luggage just inside, which gradually grew into an immense pile. In seemingly no time we were off on the last leg of our journey in a very happy state of mind and body. Dusk was gathering by this time so we did not see much of the landscape speedily passing the windows and we arrived at a harbour twinkling with lights and a transfer coach awaiting us,

Before disembarking from the Dolphin we were told that in order to save time leaving the vessel, everyone was to take off one piece of luggage, whatever came to hand first whether or not it was our own, and to deposit it on the quayside where it would be claimed by the rightful owner. This seemed to work extremely well, particularly when we noticed that all the young and eager passengers who could not wait for the vessel to actually stop before queuing up by the Exit were happily taking off two pieces of luggage each. By the time the vessel had docked, the young and eager had disembarked and we had joined the end of the queue to go ashore, we found there was no luggage left to be taken off!! This is a trick to remember for future occasions!

Skopelos has a very large, horseshoe shaped harbour where we were put ashore and since this is the main town on the island, it is fronted by tavernas, cafes and bars the whole way round, and provided a very pretty and welcoming sight on arrival. Our hotel the "Prince Stafylos" was very pretty, furnished and decorated in the style of the island with dark wood, woven rugs and hangings and pretty white lace trimmed curtains. However, there were many steps everywhere to be negotiated (not mentioned in the brochure) which created something of a problem for me.

Skopelos is definitely a walkers' island and many of our fellow guests would set off each day in a different direction to tramp the surroundings hills and mountain sides, returning with healthy appetites. Perhaps it was due to this that food overall on the island was of a superior standard. Apart from a couple of tavernas in the small main square which were expensive, geared to the unsuspecting tourist and offering the usual limited menu of warm food, all the other tavernas had a good reputation, served large portions of really good Greek home-cooked food from large pots and, astonishingly, the food was so hot we actually burned our tongues!!! Most of the eateries are in the lower town around the harbour but on exploring the stepped back-streets there were always more to be discovered and, near the top of the town, was "Alexander's" where there was a queue each night. Alexander's was more of a proper restaurant rather than a taverna and the prices reflected this but, even so, the food was not expensive. Tables were set out in a very pretty garden with pomegranate trees decorated with their own Christmas tree bauble-like fruits of bright red, glistening in the soft light from lamps scattered around the garden. Kyria Alexander cooked chicken kebabs to die for, truly the best I have ever tasted.

The little Skopelos Town Museum is worth a visit to see the traditional Skopelos costume (engagement and marriage) on view, plus embroideries and weaving. It is only small - a sort of two up-two down arrangement but worth half an hour or so.

Also on Skopelos we managed, by diligent and persistent searching, to track down some of the best traditional folk dance music we have ever managed to find in, of all places, a ceramic shop! Most of these acquisitions have been added to our Club collection and we have been dancing to many of the tunes throughtout the past winter.

There are several beautiful bays on the island which can be reached by the local buses. Our personal favourite became that of Panormos, a beautiful large sweeping bay. This features large in the book "Gates of the Wind" by Michael Carroll, an Englishman of Irish/Scottish extraction, who settled at Panormos. (This book is available for loan to club members from us on request and makes very entertaining reading. I read it while on holiday in these islands which brought the book to life for me).

The book tells of the legend of the Panaormos Dragon, thought to have had its lair somewhere in the pine-clad hills surrounding the area and might have survived had it not been for the most popular local saint, Ayios Rhiginos, the martyr. This saint was Bishop of Skopelos at the beginning of the 4th Century and on arrival seemed to have some sort of forewarning of his fate for he fell to his knees and cried aloud to God "Eleos!" (mercy). He was a very learned man and loved by the people for his gentleness and his interest in the poor.

Read the book to discover how the dragon was despatched!

On the beach at Panormos was the Taverna "Asterias" owned by Kostas a very friendly and welcoming host and where one could order and eat the locally famous fish soup. The custom was to order it about half an hour before one wished to eat it and then return to the sun-lounger, or have a swim while is was cooked fresh for you in the kitchen and, when ready, they would give you a call or the young waiter would amble down to tell you lunch was ready - all very civilised indeed. On seating yourselves at the table, your "fish soup" would be served, the fish and vegetables laid out nicely on a large platter, two barbounie and one, I think, dorada each, with the "soup", rich with vegetables, in two large bowls, all accompanied by lots of freshly baked bread. Yummy!. Try swimming after that and you might drown! The sensible thing to do was either to take a stroll around the surrounding area or return to the sunbed and sleep it off!

It turned out that the said Kostas was the boyhood friend of Michael Carroll the above-mentioned author who, incidentally, still lives just around the point of the bay at Panormos. Kostas had many stories to tell us of the development of the island, not least of interest being those of "The Road" which now runs from Skopelos town right up to Glossa at the other end of the island, before the making of which, the only way from one village to another was by donkey or mule over the hills and was a very lengthy procedure. He also told us of the development of the "Bus Service". This originally began as one bus per day from Skopelos to Glossa and back again. Having completed this return run, the bus driver would then hop on a ferry over to Skiathos where he would drive the once-a-day bus there and then return to Skopelos to repeat the whole procedure over again! This happened day after day for a very long time until the bus service was further developed as the needs of the islanders dictated. Boarding the bus was always something of a interesting procedure as there were always 3 buses waiting and no-one, not even the locals, knew which one was actually going to Glossa until the driver, (having finished his leisurely Frappe in the local cafe) would amble across and board one of the waiting buses. This was the signal for all those who had been queuing in an orderly (and hopeful) and essentially English manner by the bus of their choice to join the mad push and shove to board the bus that was actually going somewhere!

These islands are lovely. Skiathos cosmopolitan but still Greek, although we thought the back streets of the town grubby and smelly when we were there and the food of the "fast" variety and geared to the tourist trade; Skopelos beautiful, a walkers' paradise, kept very clean with notices about keeping Skopelos tidy and with a charity set up by an English woman on the control and care of the cats - all of which looked healthy and considerably fatter (no, not pregnant!) and well cared for than anywhere else we have been in Greece; Alonissos very, very quiet, very hot, very traditional, and very slow.

One of the best things about this holiday was the ease of travel. Our return journey was just as well organised and on arrival at Skiathos airport, after checking in our luggage, we were directed to pass the waiting time in one of the two adjoining tavernas about 5 minutes walk from the airport where our flights would be called in good time for us to return to the airport building. This system worked extremely well and took a lot of the hassle out of the travelling.

We are now looking forward to our visit to Ipiros in June, having been told by Nikos of the wonders to be enjoyed in this scenic area of NW Greece. Any of you who have not been bored to tears by the above report on Skopelos can eagerly await my report on Ipiros in the autumn!

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GREEK LANGUAGE

A new Greek book for foreigners, "Ellinika Paramythia".

Want to learn how to speak Greek but find it slightly difficult? The Athens Centre and writer Dora Papaioanou have put together a book designed to do just that. "Greek Myths" is the name of a new novel by this author which aims to teach and entertain foreigners who are interested in learning the Greek language, as well an introducing them to Greek literature. The book which is being incorporated into the Athens Centres' Educational Programme is also being sold at major bookstores for a modest 2,000 Drs. and has already received much acclaim for its simplicity and thorough teaching method. It is a book filled with myth and fantasy and cheerfully takes the reader to a medieval time of fairies, dragons and myths but with a Greek twist, as well as containing a glossary in French, English and German.

For any information on this book you can always contact Dora Papaioanou at the Athens
Centre on 672 6839.

Another book on Greek language is: "Learn Greek in 25 Years" by Brian Church

Can't read? Can't write? This could be the book for you. Are you fed up with being ridiculed for not speaking Greek? Does it take you half an hour to spell your name? (And even longer in Greek!?) At 100 Drs. per lesson, Brian Church, Athens News Columnist, guides you through the many minefields of modern Greek and explains difficult words like "the" and " counter-inflationary policy".

It is said to be available from selected newstands and bookstores throughout Greece which carry foreign language press, and from various bookshops in Athens.

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HOMER's ODYSSEY

In Homer's Odyssey the sea is almost the main character, battling against the hero
Odysseus in his efforts to return home to the island of Ithaki after the Trojan War.

Unfortunately he and his men were lured into one trap after another and many of them perished.

Homer was blind but he became famous for his recitations. He could repeat a poem of any length - even if he had only heard it once. He had friends who wrote down the poems he composed. Among the longer ones is a story about part of the Trojan war.

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I recently received a surprising, but interesting phone call from a Professor at Norwich University. I'm afraid I cannot recall how he heard about me, but he is trying to gather information on all the solely Greek traditional folk dance groups in Britain. He has been asked to do this as a research project for Alkis Raftis, the author of "The World of Greek Dance" (available on loan from our Club library) and who is also closely connected with the Dora Stratou Theatre Company of dancers in Athens. The Professor from Norwich was very interested in our little group and we chatted for approximately 1 hour about our history, how we became interested, how long we have been operating, what we do, our costumes, and repertoire of dances, our newsletter, and our individual and extensive travels in Greece. He himself always returns to the same place and was impressed by our collective, extensive wanderings. He was most interested in what he heard. He belongs to a local Greek dance group in the Norwich area, comprising about 40-50 members. He was most impressed with our repertoire.

He then asked me if I knew the other Greek dance group in Surbiton and would I hold on whilst he went to get the name of the teacher. He returned to tell me the teacher's name was Jenny Lazarou and did I know her! I was able then to tell him that she is a very good friend of ours and that she had been our original teacher until she retired to Greece and we acquired Nikos Zekis as our current teacher.

We exchanged Internet and Web site details and hope to keep in touch in this way.

It is nice to know that someone as influential as Alkis Raftis in Athens is interested enough to set up this research into Greek folk dance groups in Britain. There may be more groups around the country than we are aware of and it will prove that there is a considerable interest in this form of dance in this country. Rita.

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RECIPE CORNER

Yiaourtopita me Stafida (Sticky yoghurt cake with raisin syrup)

This style of cake has played a role in many family celebrations in many Greek homes. Traditionally, it is served with lots of sticky lemon syrup, the type that only a good Greek coffee could counteract!

Raisin syrup

8ozs.raisins
3 fl. oz. brandy
l fl. oz. ouzo
3 fl. oz. lemon juice
l5 fl. oz. water
8 oz. sugar

Sticky yoghurt cake

4 eggs separated
3 ozs. caster sugar
3 ozs. light honey
9 ozs. plain flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
pinch of salt
finely grated rind of 2 lemons
3 ozs. unsalted butter melted and cooled
l2 fl. oz. Greek-style yoghurt

Soak the raisins in the brandy and ouzo overnight. In a pan heat the raisins and their syrup with the lemon juice, water and sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for l5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Preheat over to l80°C. Grease and flour a 9" cake tin.

Beat the egg yolks with the caster sugar and honey until pale and creamy. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together into a large bowl. Stir in the egg mixture and lemon rind. Now stir in the melted butter and yoghurt and incorporate well.

Whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Stir one-third into the cake batter to lighten. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites and pour the batter into the cake pan.
Bake for about 35 minutes. Pour some of the raisin syrup over the cake while hot and allow to soak through the cake. Serve slices of the cake with the poached raisins and more of the syrup.

(I haven't tried this yet but it sounds yummy) Ed.