Amid virus, people in Greece make the best of Christmas spirit

By Magda Panoutsopoulou

ATHENS (AA) - Christmas is a holiday like no other for most believers around the world, a time of year when people want to spend time with loved ones and share joy and good tidings.

In Greece, as in countries worldwide, homes are decorated with Christmas trees adorned with shiny ornaments, and families prepare festive holiday dinners.

It’s a time for families to reunite, rejoice, and unlike the character of Ebenezer Scrooge in the Dickens tale, a time for giving and embracing life.

This year especially, embracing life takes on added importance, as nearly 1.75 million lives worldwide have been claimed by the relentless coronavirus pandemic.

Amid the pandemic, family reunions, especially for those who live abroad, are something many will miss.

Amid sweeping restrictions, with little travel allowed even inside the borders of a host of countries, many will be spending this holiday season alone.

No big celebrations will take place and no big get-togethers.

Giagia Eirini – in Greek, Grandmother Eirini – is sitting by her fireplace and watching television. For her, this year’s Christmas celebrations will be very different from years past.

She will be at home, happy to be alive. This year, however, she is spending Christmas alone. Both of her children are in the US and are unable to pay a visit to the land of their birth.

“It’s hard, but it’s something that I can’t do anything about,” she told Anadolu Agency.

One of her neighbors will visit her on Christmas Day and spend some time with her, ensuring that she is not entirely alone.

Her caregiver also decorated her home with some ornaments to get her more into the Christmas spirit. But this year Eirini is grateful simply to be alive.

But it is difficult to forget that Christmas is largely about spending time with the family, sharing feelings of joy, exchanging presents, and preparing for Christmas dinner.

“I’ll miss it, but even more I’ll miss my children and grandchildren, who used to come every year and spend this time with me, especially as I’m old and I don’t know if there will be a next year,” Eirini said.

- Confined to capital

Unlike years past, this year will not see big celebrations, and many people will be unable to spend time with their families.

Christina Petrou, who lives and works in Athens, usually spends the Christmas holidays in her native city of Thessaloniki, in northern Greece. But this time around, she won’t be able to go there due to travel restrictions.

“It’s a very strange feeling for me not to be able to see my family and spend this time of the year with them,” she said.

Petrou, a self-employed consultant, has been living in the capital for the past four years.

“We would always get together at my parents’ house,” she said.

“My mother is an excellent cook, and the smell of the roasted turkey, the pies, the sweets, and especially traditional melomakarona” – cinnamon honey cookies – “are something that I’ll be missing from this year’s Christmas table,” she said.

“I can remember at this time of the year, our house would be full of family members, cousins from abroad, aunts, grandparents, everyone.”

Petrou said she got used to the idea that this year will be different and will just spend it with a couple of good friends.

-Foreign spirit in Greece

Christmastime is a family holiday for most believers worldwide, and the Poles are no exception.

This year, Polish-born Monika Julia Plominska will be spending her first Christmas away from home and without her parents.

“I’m resigned this year that I can’t spend it with my family,” Plominska told Anadolu Agency. “So my partner and I decided to spend Christmas the Polish way and New Year’s the Georgian way, as he’s from Georgia.”

“I’ve ordered some traditional Polish food – pierogi, which is herring, and makowiec, which is a poppy seed cake – and later we’ll do video chats with our families,” she explained.

“No big plans, as the circumstances don’t allow it.”

In Greece this time of year, most families usually spend the season together. It’s a tradition, along with a rich Christmas dinner, including for Plominska.

“We bought a small Christmas tree. We decorated it, and I’m also waiting for my family to send us a parcel with presents that we’ll open on Christmas Day.”

For Megane Bell, who is French and works in Athens, this holiday season will also feel different.

“I was hoping the restrictions would loosen up a bit for Christmas and New Year's Eve, but that didn't really happen,” she said.

“Working more than usual and being away from family gets pretty rough. But I've decided to see the silver lining and make the most of that time to focus on myself and my goals.”

She added: “This year’s festive times, as different as they will be, will make many people appreciate not only the family’s presence but also life itself – probably the most essential ingredients for all festive seasons.”