By Stamatina Notaras
Come Christmas, there are celebrations galore. And yes, while you might have friendsmas at a quaint restaurant that serves martinis and kingfish, or your work parties might be held on boats serving caviar and bubbly, let me be the first to tell you – there ain’t no Christmas party like a Hellenic RSL Christmas party.
When I walked into the RSL Hall in South Melbourne, Victoria on Sunday, December 15, I was struck by a warm and fuzzy feeling of nostalgia and familiarity, and a passionate group of elderly that personify the spirit and soul of Greece.
“I hope you know that as soon as the bouzouki begins, the dance floor will be full and they won’t stop dancing for hours,” someone warned me on the day.
I’ve never heard a sentence truer than that. With the first strum of the bouzouki, played by the talented and iconic Spiros Vitsentzatos, bodies flooded the dance floor and tea towels went straight above heads. Dancing tsifteteli and weaving in and out of each other as if gliding through water, rhythm took over as the elderly danced like nobody was watching.
One thing us Greeks have nailed is the ability to hold on to our youth with two hands, gripping on tight in hopes of never letting go.
In a room of people who have lived many lives, I felt more youthfulness than I have with those who are decades their junior. Looking around the room, it was quite obvious to me that at the end of the day, they’re just a group of pals who feel like they’re in their early 20s, cracking jokes at each other’s expense and living life the best they know how – with good food, enviable company, and that “I’m Greek” glow that we all know and love (and that all our grandparents possess).
Now what’s a Greek Christmas without the star of the show? As you would expect at a Greek function, I didn’t merely attend – I was offered a plate of food and a seat. La Cantina Catering was on feast duties, while my new friend Vicky – everyone’s yiayia, sister, aunty, and best friend – was there to make sure the show ran smoothly. With Vicky around, consider your thirst quenched and your vibes sky-high.
As it turns out, melt-in-your-mouth chicken and lemon-drenched potatoes with salad are the way to my heart. And lucky for me, they were offered in abundance. If I listed everything on offer, we might be here for a while (and I might get the names of a dish or two wrong), but what I did see were tables filled and mouths, even more so. With smiles on their faces as they made conversation and yelled across tables, they dug into the food they grew up on with the friends they call family.
While there were many ‘favourite parts of the day’ moments, there’s one visual, I fear, that I might never forget. At auction time, when they were bartering for bottles of grazi and the usual culprits, up comes a man holding a frozen snapper, parading it around the room like a boxing match girl would with a WWE belt.
And with that, I walked home with an aluminium-foiled plate of home-made sweets and a joyous heart, thumping with pride.
Side note – if you’re ever feeling down and out about life, just pay the Greek ladies a visit. I left the room with a big head filled with compliments, a squeezed cheek or two, and the assurance that I was young and have “still got time.” Phew!
*All photos copyright The Greek Herald / Stamatina Notaras.
