Aegina Part II

IMG_6758.jpgApart from a trip to Paris with my mom 12 years ago and a long weekend in Vienna with the whole tribe some 5 years ago, I haven’t been on a family excursion since I was 17. I tend to avoid holidays together since we’re all so different and friction can arise from the most trivial issues, especially with a partner from another culture.

IMG_6764

And the first days did bear the mark of light misunderstandings and cultural differences, so much so that I had to use all my energy to smooth things over. Luckily, it worked so well that F got to be best buddies with both Diana and mom. Phew!

IMG_6746.jpg

The bone of contention is child rearing- why do Romanians let children have so much sweets, why does Diana eat “buscuiti” (sweet crackers) before lunch and dinner, why doesn’t she sit tight and runs after cats at the dinner table, back in his days he’d have to settle for a soda every third day and so on. But we’re having beer, I’d answer. And you expect her to say thanks to water?

IMG_6637.jpg

All in all it was a lovely holiday. My mother got a couple of hours to herself here and there, we’d retire into our “chambers” for a siesta every day, Diana got the best of everybody and couldn’t be more pleased with that. She bewitched the hotell staff with her cheeky smile and carefree posture, she made friends with Ukrainians and Greeks on the beach, she was the star of her surroundings.

IMG_6751.jpg

And she did treat us like a little starlet, every time she didn’t get what she wanted, she’d hold back her posing skills. 😉 Like here.

IMG_6688.jpgIMG_6659.jpgIMG_6662.jpg

The princess eating gyros, after removing all the onion. 😉 In her favorite cherry dress. Oh, and sharing the meat with stray cats. 😉

IMG_6683.jpg

Thinking of having her come here next year for a Norwegian summer holiday already, hopefully she’ll dare fly alone. 😉

xxx, Alina

Grandma’s Place

As you might remember, grandma passed away last November and I’ve been missing her ever since. It’s not that I saw her that often, but I liked to know she was always there. For the past 18 years I made plans to stay with her for a week and learn how to make green walnuts jam, biscuits and cheese pie, but I never got around to do it. She lived in the countryside, she only got a toilet 5-10 years ago, the summers were too hot and the winters too cold and so on. Excuses, excuses. And now she’s no more.

_MG_2801.jpg Continue reading