The Time is Now.
Today is Winter Solstice and the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in Aquarius. Say what you will about astrology, but I’m feeling some strong sentiments about change, darkness, and the path ahead. Do you feel it, too? I bet you do, even if you’re not into all that astrology stuff.
In light of all of this, I feel it’s time to share more about the ultimate purpose behind GreekLikeMe. It’s about sharing cultural and culinary experiences in Greece with people who want to get off the beaten track, and see Greece the way I have, as a person tied to that land through ancestry.
Curating tours for small groups is really what I think I’ve been meant to do my whole life, but I honestly didn’t know it until about two years ago when I went to Greece and friends came with me. I did the same last year with three other friends, and it finally hit me. It combines all my loves - people, food, booze, travel, newness, hosting, hospitality, and authentic, once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Don’t you want to join me?
The general idea is that I will be your host, tour guide, translator, driver, and general concierge within Greece. The further off the beaten track you get, the more challenging it is to find people who speak English. Your specific tour will be completely individualized based on the season, location, and your personal preferences. No matter where or when you choose to travel within Greece, I promise we’ll find the most fun culinary + cultural experiences to share.
Contact me so we can chat about what you’re looking for. I’ll provide you with an itinerary and cost based on the length of your trip, your travel style, and budget. I want this travel to be as inclusive as possible, so trips will start around the $2000 price per person for 6 days (exclusive of travel to/from Greece). The longer you stay, the cheaper your price per day per person, in case that’s an incentive to book an extended vacay :)
The beauty of traveling through Greece, off the beaten path, is that you will find beauty and magic wherever you go. The magic lies not only in the actual food you eat and the products you taste, but most especially in the generosity of the people who make them. You never know who you might meet, what you might learn, where that conversation will lead, and what you might taste. I’m sharing a few stories of people I’ve connected with in my travels to give you an idea of the endless possibilities.
I’ll take you to the best “laiki,” or local farmer’s markets and public markets to taste regional cheeses, see local produce, fish, and meat. You’ll meet the people who grow the food, who make the cheese, who catch the fish, and why all of those things are so special.
I drove by the roadside farm stand twice before I finally stopped and spoke with the woman sitting behind the table. She told me she makes the preserves just like her grandmother taught her. The land she works with her husband and her son was part of her inheritance and she’s lived there her whole life. I bought these sun-dried tomatoes preserved in olive oil, onions, garlic, and herbs and used them up as I cooked for myself in different places across Greece.
We’ll talk to a winemaker about how he is carrying on his family’s traditions of land stewardship and elevating the level of wine that they’ve been producing for decades.
We’ll walk through the rocky landscape to forage herbs and wild greens and mushrooms to cook and truffles hidden beneath oak tree roots.
On our way back from a day at the beach we might drive by a grape harvest for raisins like I did last year. It was in the village where my grandfather was born, Nemea, near Corinth. I pulled to the side of the road and asked the gents laying out literal tons of grapes on trying mats some questions. They asked me how I knew about Nemea, and I explained my grandfather was born here, and his father, my great grandfather, was the Mayor of the town at one point. They were shocked I knew my ancestry and history, and shared some of their beautiful black Corinthian grapes with me. Perfect roadtrip snack.
And we haven’t even talked about olives and olive oil yet. Every region of Greece purports to have THE BEST olive oil. I can’t say I have a particular preference, or even enough knowledge to say which one is best. What I can say, however, is that each olive oil you will taste will give you a sense of terroir and tradition based on thousands of years of experience, not only from the people making it, but from the trees themselves. Like the 3000-year-old tree below, everything has roots.
These are the kinds of experiences I want to share with you, and that only come with getting out of major tourist areas, to where the people of Greece are in their own environments. I’m not knocking the highly-instagrammable touristy spots at all. I love a good sunset on Santorini and a bright blue beach in Zakynthos. What I’m saying is that Greece has so much more to offer than just those things. And I think you’re going to love them.
So let’s have a cold ouzo and meze, and let me show you the best that Greece has to offer.
Happy solstice, dear souls.
Anastasia