Dear Friend,

In the evenings we have been going to the πλατεία (Plateia - Town Square). In Greek villages and towns, this is the main meeting place for festivals and other celebrations. The Taverna in Arfara's Plateia has a lot of seating... one side has seating for a cafe where you can order drinks and the other side is a Ταβέρνα (Taverna) for ordering Souvlaki, Pita (thick rolled up pita sandwich with meat, tzatziki, french fries and sometimes onions and tomatoes), Pizza, Tzatziki (a cucumber yogurt sauce served with bread), Greek Salads, etc. The owners, like in all of the Tavernas and Cafes have large flat screen t.v.s playing sports games or news and of course the World Cup is currently playing most evenings. At the foot of the Plateia is a playground and Kolya can meet up with new friends there. Families with children come out around 9 or 10pm for dinner and allow the kids to play. Other children show up at around 10pm just to enjoy some fun in the cooler weather.

Our daily schedule is much different here from at home in the U.S. We get up between 8 and 9am and spend the morning and early afternoon at the beach. We return home for lunch and then stores close and people go inside for a midday nap from 2:30 - 5:30 pm. You need to be quiet during this time and not play your music loudly or do construction on your house or loud work in your garden. Even the animals seem to know to be quiet. Stores and offices close up during this time and workers return again in the evening. After 5:30pm people start to emerge from their homes... windows and shutters are opened up to enjoy the cooler evening air. We usually eat dinner at home or meet up with friends at a Taverna around 9pm and people linger for hours at their meals and usually head home around 12 or 1am. We usually head back home around 11pm to have some time to unwind often still running into my Cousin George who is hoping we will join him for just one more Souvlaki...

XOXO,

Karen June