Work is a big part of life for the average Greek. Mind you, work is not really the same there as it is back here in Cape Town, or maybe even civilisation. An average Greek’s working day consists of about 12 hours. You wake up, go down to the store/tavern/beach and talk to everyone there — two hours. You open things up, set out the tables etc. — 10 minutes. Then you argue for four hours about how it should be set up, during which time the neighbours/clients/staff/passing cleaners/delivery men all chip in their two2 cents, by which time you are so tired you go and have a siesta, with perhaps a swim somewhere in between, to cool off.

Occasionally a brave tourist will break the local conversation with a polite ‘how much is this, please’ to which starts another hour of conversation in a medley of broken English, rapid Greek and 400 en’daxi’s (which means OK) interspersed throughout. At the end of which the owner has forgotten what he wanted, the neighbour what he’s doing away from his shop and the tourist has missed his ferry and is wondering why he even bothered.

African oranges in the Adriatic

Going shopping at the supermarket was always a challenge as the names of most products are in Greek lettering and the barcodes and prices never seemed to match, which made for some interesting eating later on. We did however finally meet an Egyptian attendant who was only too happy to help fellow Africans find the bargains and avoid the pitfalls of bad purchases.

It was interesting to see South African-made charcoal braai packs for sale, as well as our world famous oranges. The best part of the adventure was speeding from supermarket to bakery to green grocer on our scooter, often three to a bike with one helmet between us, to find the best deals and products around the main town of Parikia.

The highlights were definitely the yoghurt, mixed with honey and nuts, literally anything from a bakery and the infamous gyros — a wrap stuffed with meat, diced vegetables and sour cream. The tap water, which even the locals don’t drink, meant that a fair portion of my finances were spent supporting the local beer Mythos, a far better European Amstel and of course bottled water.

An average day for me would consist of breakfast while watching the local news and hilarious, but probably misunderstood, Greek adverts. Then a scooter ride down to the beach where a full day of snorkelling, kiting, wind-surfing, swimming and other such activities would be pursued. In between all that would be a trip to the bakery for lunch, a brief siesta on the hammock and some lively international conversation on all manner of topics.

This daily routine was far better than my touristy trip down to the world-famous Santorini, paying through the nose to see the extinct volcano and hot springs. It was one of the most simple and enjoyable holidays I have ever had and has made me rethink the art of holidaying and even day to day life as we know it. More importantly, it has made me re-look at how the two can be married into the perfect existence.

So what is Greece? What’s it like to actually live, eat and interact with Greeks?

Greece is someone embracing you while commenting that you smell. Greece is arguing for hours about aimless, insignificant things that make the price of eggs seem like the discovery of nuclear fission.

What happened to the cradle of western civilisation?

Greece is where everyone becomes involved in everyone else’s business and you can’t move without a hundred people’s opinions. Greece is a lesson in patience, where I learned that lateness should be excused because talking to a friend is important. In Greece everyone is a politician, a philosopher and is most definitely right — or at least thinks so. It’s a country where you break the rules and two seconds later scream at someone else for doing the same thing. It’s a country of paradox. And I loved it.

So what, you may ask, happened to the cradle of western civilisation? After they achieved such heights in so many fields in the ancient world they now seem to have sat back, poured themselves a drink and just chatted about life. Why isn’t Athens the centre of the economic world — instead of London, New York and Beijing?

Well, you see, the modern world seems to have missed it, whereas the Greeks have understood, much like their forefathers Plato and Aristotle: That life is meant to be enjoyed, that everyone is a philosopher and if we all take the time to stop and think about life, talk to the people we pass in the streets and have a coffee with them, then the world would be a better place, albeit at a slower pace.