A Weekly Journal of Toastmasters International-Philippines Speaking Greek

(First of Two Parts)

Why is it that when one is speaking gibberish & is totally incomprehensible, we say that person is speaking Greek? I researched the phrase (just to be clear if I'd dream it up) & found out that I was totally correct (which when it comes to obscure English words & phrases — I rarely am!) & found that to "speak Greek" is a tongue-in-cheek expression to mean you don't speak the same language or are not on the same wavelength as the other person. Poor Greeks — to be singled out of all nationalities for such a phrase. My internet research also found that to "speak Greek"—in sex lingo, means you are willing to "use the backdoor" aka anal sex. Woow! The silly things one can glean from the Internet. Again, poor, poor Greeks.

Having said that, I find myself totally enamored with Greece. I was in Sweden the week before I visited and my co-facilitator asked me which of the places I've travelled to I found the most beautiful. Without any hesitation, I told her, I have a feeling it will be Greece! In my mind I'd totally built up such huge expectations of the place, due to a childhood love of Greek mythology. I remember as a young child when we had this encyclopedia at home and I spent hours poring over the stories of all the Greek gods and goddesses, even the creatures in Greek mythology. Yup — even before the Percy Jackson book series, I could probably ace a trivia contest on Greek lore — even give you the Greek AND Roman name of each god/goddess.

I was not disappointed. Although my first glance of Greece, I found it a bit strange — for seeing Greece from afar, from the vantage point of my airplane window — the whole spread/landscape of Greece reminded me of Mactan stones — brown hills, beige houses & buildings dotting the landscape like dried, brown grasses. It was funny how my first thought of Greece (of Mactan stones!) was not so far from the myth of how Greece came to be (as told by my tour bus guide) — when the Gods made the world & allocated all the beauty in other countries, they'd forgotten about Greece, & the only thing they had left was a pile of stones which they threw in the ocean — & this is how Greece came to be. Stony. No lush, verdant green landscapes at all. Greece is a harsh landscape — in a drive through the countryside, I asked my Greek brother-in-law, how come, for a stretch of over a few kilometers, all the trees and bushes were leaning eerily to the left — I think it was because of  the strong wind that blew over the area. This, after all, is a place that has weather in the extremes - hot, tropical temperature that can reach up to the 40's yet they also have winter and snow up in the mountains! Yup, the whole time I was in Greece I alternated between wanting to strip off my clothes (it was that hot!) to also bundling up in the winter jackets I'd used in Sweden, brrr...(truly Jeckyl and Hyde weather!).

Extremes is a word I'd give to Greece. Here you have haunting, Greek ruins that have stood the test of time juxtaposed with modern-day graffiti scrawled all over Athens. Each stone one touches has history imbued on it—my sister told me if you built a basement in your house in Greece you have to get a permit coz you never know if you'd stumble into a great archeological find. Like what they found in excavating for the Athens subway, was an archeological site of the city's old cistern pipes built a hundred years B.C. Everything here is B.C.! So I found it cool that they have a museum in the subway! Greece is a place soooo beautiful (got a lot of  likes from my Facebook friends mixed with envy — as most have it as a dream destination, in their bucket list) that you just wonder how Greece could end up as Europe's poor relative. Greece, after all is the cradle of civilization, of  democracy, of even drama (c/o Dionysius), yet from its proud beginnings, it is a country facing bankruptcy, with almost daily rallies (I walked into two rallies during my four-day visit! Even took pics) although they have peaceful, organized street rallies compared to the Philippines, but it still had the requisite tension brought about by people chanting, placard-carrying, megaphones and police in full force — with their glass shields & security sticks on the ready.