I ain’t never been happier to see my barbers before. Not my barbers in Athens, but the one in London. I missed just sitting in his chair and him knowing what type of trim I wanted as opposed to giving detailed instructions with loads of picture pointing. The first trim I got in Athens was actually alright and the service had me gassed. So I dunno if complacency kicked in but the subsequent cuts was like I was being trimmed by my enemies. No love, no care for detail, hairline looking like SnapChat’s stock exchange graph. I don’t deserve this Costas, I don’t deserve this at all. The worst part is when they ask “you like?” and I’m there smiling like the Cheshire Cat. Like if I said no at this point, can I leave without paying? Cos if not, I don’t know where this conversation goes from here…
As you probably guessed, I’m back in the UK after my cameo appearance in Greece for the last six months. Notice how this is the first time I’ve specified the duration that I was away for. Didn’t want my enemies to know how long my yard was unoccupied for and show up there unannounced like the bailiffs. Anyways, I remember the day I arrived… I was sh*tting it, having cold feet about the whole thing. Six months just seemed like an age away but now that I’m back, it’s like it was over in a flash. Didn’t take me long to settle though, out there I met some genuine peeps. People who went out of their way to make me feel welcomed and ease my transition period. Maybe it was the accent that peeps warmed to. Some guys will hear a British accent and think you’re buddies with the Queen. Little do they know I’m still out here negotiating an extra wing from “bossman” at the chicken shops.
Race wasn’t an issue neither! Wanted to complete my stay before mentioning that in my blogs just encase a man boomeranged the N word at me from across the street on my last day. Admittedly, I had a few concerns about living in a country with hardly any black people; I’m used to being a minority but as you can imagine seeing people like me was few and far between. In fact, when I did see another black guy we’d give each other that ‘black guy nod’ and keep it moving. I definitely made myself more paranoid by watching a few Reggie Yates documentaries on Eastern Europe a couple days before arriving. That whole series will have you questioning your own shadow. Have a man contemplating doing an MJ and changing complexions. I feel that especially as a Black Brit, we see certain places as a bit of an unknown and hold these preconceptions about an area without giving it a try. Traveling is definitely the antidote to ignorance.
Race wasn’t an issue neither! Wanted to complete my stay before mentioning that in my blogs just encase a man boomeranged the N word at me from across the street on my last day.
It seems crazy that for half of the year it was socially acceptable to throw used toilet paper in the trash can rather than the toilet itself. Even crazier that I was probably one of five people in the whole of Athens who actually paid for public transport. Definitely gonna miss my apartment though, it was twice the size of where I live in the UK and half the price. Apartment was so good it had me contemplating hiding in the wardrobe and surprising the new tenant with a “welcome to *our* home” banner. All jokes aside though, I’ll advise anyone to take up any opportunity to explore. Certain guys haven’t even left Zone 2 yet they swear they’re “woke”. Travel.. especially to non-English speaking countries and you’ll realise how small you are in this big ol’ world. These guys are casually speaking two or three languages yet your crush is struggling to use “there”, “their” and “they’re” correctly. But thank you Greece, despite sweating everywhere I went, it was a pleasure.
Part 1: https://joeoriade.com/2018/03/03/my-big-fat-greek-adventure-part-1/
Part 2: https://joeoriade.com/2018/04/21/my-big-fat-greek-adventure-part-ii/
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