Probably You have heard all the typical stereotypes about Greece and Greek people, but not all of them are true and some are not well known and there are things that people don’t even know before coming to Greece, so as I’m living in Crete now for about 10 years I feel like I’ve got to know locals here pretty well so I would like to share my experience.
Greek people are very patriotic, they love their country and their culture, so whenever You go into a shop make sure to say Hello in Greek. There are several ways to say Hello in Greek, but the most popular of course is to say good morning – Kalimera, usually people use this till midnight and after good afternoon – Kalispera. You can make this small gesture, and locals will love it, especially older people. Most Greek people speak English and a lot of them do speak also other languages, but even if they know tourists most probably don’t know their language, they appreciate it so much that You try to show your love for their country.
Language all over Greece is more or less the same, each region has some specific words or pronunciations, but overall, it is the same, You should know that Cretan people call themselves Cretan and not Greek! Crete used to be an independent country before it was united with Greece, so still, so many people consider themselves Cretan and not Greek. Some local people even still argue about this because some agree that it was best to get united with Greece, but some disagree so much about this, so maybe itš best to keep quiet about this 😉
So many people in the world say that Italy is the coffee country or some other country, but no, for sure the best country for coffee is Greece, you just need to know what to order! The coffee here is not expensive and there is a big variety of coffee to choose from. Of course, in summer here we drink cold coffee, for instant coffee lovers Frape is the coffee to order, or if you like natural coffee and you want it cold then Fredo Espresso is for you! And they will always ask you – Me galla? – meaning with milk? If you like milky coffee, make sure to ask them for super extra milk as greeks put just a small drop of milk! And even sugar they add for you as well, they would ask you – Sketo, Metrio or Gliko – so Sketo means no sugar, Metrio means medium sweet, usually 2 spoons of sugar, and Gliko meaning sweet that usually is 4 spoons of sugar, teaspoons of course! Sure you can ask for just one spone or more than 4, and you can even choose regular sugar or brown sugar! So which is the coffee country? I think Greece and after you try local coffee you will think so too!
So now when you come to create you know how to say hello, you know that Cretans are greeks but not really and you know how to order coffee like a local person! Overall locals here are very welcoming and they like to talk and say hello just to random people on the street, and they help you out if you mess up your order in a coffee shop or get lost in the Cretan mountains so when you come here just be prepared to fall in love and have the time of your life! Have a great holiday and Iļl see you in the next story!
Things that You need to know when coming to Crete
