Page 12 of Take a Chance on Greece

‘Andreas is a very common name in Greece. I was at school with many boys of that name.’

I forced a laugh, despite my pang of disappointment. ‘I feared that might be the case. Still, you can’t blame a girl for dreaming. I’m sure you think this must be the most melodramatic reaction to a break-up you’ve ever seen.’

Alexis took his time answering. Then he spread his palms and motioned to the bookcases surrounding us. ‘If there is one thing I have learned from many hours of reading, it is that the heart leads us to interesting places. How can it not be right to search for happiness?’

‘Thank you, Alexis. My best friend thinks I’m positively certifiable.’

Alexis crinkled his nose in confusion.

‘She thinks I’ve gone mad,’ I clarified. ‘But I think she’s also glad that I’m finally spreading my wings, so she’s going along with it for the time being. Although, if I don’t give her regular updates, she’s threatened to call the consulate to track me down.’ I looked across the road to the tattoo studio, half-hoping that someone might have reappeared. Sadly, no such luck. ‘I must admit I’m very disappointed that place is closed. I had the idea that they would be able to point me in the right direction and make my search easier. I don’t really know where else to start, and I can’t wander around the street calling out for “Andreas”, can I?’

I laughed again, even though I didn’t find my situation funny. It just seemed pathetic.

‘And you really cannot remember anything of that night?’ Alexis asked, watching me closely. Perhaps he was trying to work out if I was making the whole thing up.

‘Not really. Just the beginning of the night in detail, and then after that it’s more like flashes of feelings more than anything. Don’t ask me how, but I’m confident that it was a good night. When I try hard to think about it, all I can focus on is that feeling of rightness. I know it must sound really peculiar, but I’ve never felt like that before, so utterly content and happy. It has to mean something. And perhaps it’s time that I listen to my gut for a change, and pursue that happiness.’ If I didn’t hang onto that idea, then what was the point in me being here?

‘I wish you the very best in your endeavours,’ said Alexis, dipping his head in a bow-like gesture. I wondered if I was being dismissed and experienced a twinge of sadness. It felt safe tucked away here in this haven of books, separate from the hustle and bustle of the main streets. Alexis had been kind, and most importantly, he hadn’t laughed at me, even if he had looked at me rather strangely when I was telling my story.

I knew that this was my cue to leave. But I decided to be brave. In the last forty-eight hours or so, I had got a tattoo, chucked my boyfriend and my job, and jumped on a plane with a one-way ticket. I could be bold enough now to ask for an extra bit of help from a bookseller.

‘Alexis, can I ask you a question? I don’t suppose you need an assistant?’ I asked tentatively. ‘Sorry, this is a massive long shot, but I am currently between jobs and I’m going to have to find some kind of work if I’m going to be able to stay here for any length of time. Or, at the very least, could you recommend somewhere cheap where I could stay while I go on my Andreas-finding mission? That was another thing I didn’t think about sorting before I set off. I don’t think I can afford to return to the hotel I stayed in with my friends, and I don’t really know where to start when it comes to searching for accommodation that’s not aimed at tourists.’

I knew I sounded pathetic, like I couldn’t stand on my own two feet, but Alexis had been nothing but kind to me so far, and he could always say no.

Again, a strange expression crossed Alexis’s face, and I wondered if I had offended him. Then I realised that all the time I’d been in the shop, I’d been the only customer, and I wasn’t really a customer at all. How tactless of me to try to get a job out of him, when he might not even get enough business at the shop to be able to employ anyone other than himself. What must he think of me?

‘Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked,’ I quickly backtracked. Even if I had to go into every shop in town asking for a job and/or somewhere to stay, I would sort it out somehow. Anything was better than having to return home and admit defeat. ‘My situation is not your problem. You’ve done more than enough to help me. Thank you.’

Alexis started rearranging the stack of books on the counter.

‘I am not offended,’ he said, reading my mind. ‘I will have a think about what is best. I am not sure what I should do.’

He looked genuinely concerned. I hurried to reassure him.

‘Thank you. I don’t want to impose and I know I’m probably being a massive pain.’

He smiled. ‘Ah, but I take the Greek spirit of hospitality very seriously. You are not a pain. Did you know that in ancient Greek the words for “stranger” and “friend” are the same? It would not be right for me not to try to assist you. However, I am not sure how I can achieve this.’ He checked his watch. ‘It is nearly time for the shop to close for the afternoon break. Perhaps you would like to sit in a taverna for a while, charge your phone and have some food, and I will come and find you once I have spoken to a few people about what is best?’

This was more than I could have hoped for. I helped Alexis pull down the shutters and then he led me to a quiet taverna a couple of hundred yards from the ferry port. The kitchen was on one side of the road, while the dining area was on the other. The tables and chairs were set up on two levels, some on a concrete platform with a blue and white shade above it, the rest on the beach itself. A couple of well-fed cats were winding in and out of the seats, inspecting the ground for titbits.

‘It does not look like it is the most dazzling of the restaurants in town, but it is the best,’ said Alexis, waving at the chef and directing me towards a table. ‘In fact, it is the place where the locals choose to go. There is no menu as such, but Maria will cook whatever is fresh or whatever her husband has caught today, and it will be delicious, I promise you. Give me an hour or so, and I will return to find you.’

I sat on a rickety wooden chair at the water’s edge and watched him walk down the street. After years of ignoring them, I was once again trusting my instincts and it felt good. I reached down to pick up my phone, keen to update Kat and Amira about my situation and let them know that I was still alive. When Maria came bustling over to present me with a basket of bread, I asked her if she could help. I quickly realised that my English and two Greek words were not making any sense to her, but thankfully we found some mutual ground through miming and gestures, and she carried off my phone to plug it in behind the kitchen counter. At least, I hoped that was what she was doing. I couldn’t cope with a complete digital detox along with all the other challenges I was facing.

While I waited for my meal, I watched the waves lapping on the shore. There was something calming about the steady back and forth motion of the water. There was only a gentle breeze so the swell was small, just enough to make the pebbles on the beach clink against each other. The sea was clear enough for me to be able to see the tiny fish darting around in the shallows. The water looked very inviting. I was sitting so close to the edge that my feet could reach it. I glanced around me and quickly decided that this was not the kind of place where people would stand on ceremony. I kicked off my hot trainers and relished the cool sensation of the water tickling its way around my toes. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the peace of the shady spot. If I could only be certain that I’d be able to find somewhere to stay and a way of sustaining myself, then this place would be sheer heaven.

Maria bustled out of the kitchen and crossed the road to the seating area on the beach, seemingly without concern for any passing traffic. I guessed the drivers around here must be used to running the gauntlet of waiting staff dashing between the restaurants. She placed a couple of bowls and a plate in front of me and gestured at each one in turn.

‘Tzatziki,’ she pointed at a dip in a bowl from which a delicious scent of garlic was emanating. ‘Gigantes’ – this was the contents of the plate. It looked likegiganteswere large butter beans in a tomato sauce. The final bowl was full of little pastry parcels which she calledspanakopita. They looked rather like the spinach and feta pie that I’d had as my post-hangover breakfast in the airport, but fresher and much more appetising.

I pulled a notebook out of my handbag and employed my miming skills again to ask Maria to write down the words for each of the dishes. She happily obliged, and then I quickly wrote a phonetic version at their side so I could remember how to pronounce them. Food seemed like a good place to start with my Greek language education. I tried the words out a few times until Maria nodded in satisfaction that I’d got the correct emphasis. And then she gestured at me to start eating before the food went cold.

Last week on my holiday with the girls, Kat had taken the lead on ordering food, claiming that her backpacking days had provided her with a much more daring palate than ours, although it was funny how often our meals had involved the culturally ubiquitous side of chips. Today, I was once again letting someone else take the lead on the culinary front, but I was more than happy to follow Maria’s excellent guidance. Despite the surreal nature of my personal circumstances, the beautiful surroundings and mouth-watering food made me decide pretty quickly that this was possibly the best meal I had ever eaten. The herby tomato sauce of thegiganteswas perfectly offset by the fresh coolness of thetzatziki, while the salty tang of the feta made me eat thespanakopitaso quickly, I practically inhaled it.

I tore a piece of crusty bread, and wiped it around the bowl to make sure I’d mopped up every last bit oftzatziki. I was sure my breath would be thoroughly garlicky by the time I finished the meal, but as Awesome Andreas was yet to arrive on the scene, it wasn’t really a problem.

I decided to continue the holiday feeling by having dessert as well. This meal was going to make serious inroads into my stash of euros, but I had to eat, and hopefully Alexis would follow through with his offer of help. If I had to start wielding my emergency credit card, then it was a price I was prepared to pay for food this good.

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