My Pappou

My Pappou is awesome. He is 91 (i thought he was 89 but he corrected me!) going strong, and has survived losing my Yiayia three years ago, a lot better than expected.

To be fair, because I don't speak enough Greek to converse, I don't know if he's old or funny, because I don't understand a lot of what he says... We communicate through very slow and broken Greek words and sentences, English words and a bit of German; I don't know how much he understands me, but oh well!

He still dresses like it's the 1950s, in a three-piece suit and nice shoes, with an overcoat as well. And he still drives his blue Opel which must be well over 40 years old by now! Parts of it are held together with duc tape, other parts like the bumper are wired together. It's still going, and he drives pretty well - even though I think now it's more a glamourised shopping trolly than anything else!

When I showed up from the bus stop, he was waiting in the window to greet me. Miraculously, he had left the gate open - last time I was here he locked me out for half an hour! We went to lunch at the taverna in Glyfada, where we always go and he always introduces me as Costas' daughter and they never remember. Then he tells me three times Nikos, the owner, went to school with dad. It's kind of a ritual :P

We had had patates and Greek salad and beeftekia (meatballs), with kokino kressi (red wine). Then Nikos bought out pork steak with more patates, but we were both too full so we took it home. We had a little joke about being so full and still eating chips because they were there; Pappou has such a sweet face when he chuckles.

We went home to Voula after lunch and had more slow conversation; about Martine, the weather, my travel, my boyfriend... I think my Greek improved a little bit, and I promised him I'd practice and be better before the next time I come! Unfortunately, as I explained to him - what I want to say, I can say in German. My Greek, as much as i want it to, stays away while I know some German!

Pappou took out some old photo albums which were sent to him and Yiayia when I was little. So many nice memories to go back over, so many nice moments captured on film... There were photos from Yiayia's visit to NZ when I was little, photos from Sydney trips to see dad's friend Mike, and photos of my cousins when we were young and adorable and badly dressed (badly as in so early 90s, by the way!)

It was such a lovely afternoon with my Pappou!