The street people of Athens

I love to do research.   Ever since a was a little kid when the teacher would assign a research assignment, I was probably the only child to be filled with joy!  My heart and mind have been flooded with images of Greece and the people there for months now in the anticipation of meeting them when I arrive.   How will I pray for them?   What needs do they have?   How can I help?   The best way for me to answer these questions is to find out as much as I can about them. 

An awesome writer and world traveler Matt Barrett travels to Athens often.  So often, in fact that he started his own website,  The Athens Survival Guide, where he shares his own adventures and travel tips.  He did an amazing pictorial of Athens Street People and I would love to share it with you.

In HIS Service,
Deana

 

More than the ruins, the traffic, the food, and the history, Athens is about people. Not just the Greek people. Athens has been a center for displaced people since ancient times when it attracted the great minds that had outgrown other towns or whose homes had been over-run by barbarians. Today, people who have fled wars and poverty in their own country try to begin a new life in this ancient city. Because jobs are hard to find many of these people are on the streets selling flowers, cigarettes, tissues, anything they can. Some of them were professionals in their home countries and some of them are children. There are also musicians from Romania, Serbia, Russia, Albania and Turkey, who go from restaurant to cafe entertaining tables with music of such high quality that sometimes it seems that whatever you give them is not enough and you wish you could offer them more or even a recording contract. Scattered among these foreigners are Greeks, some from the mainland and the islands, and others from Eastern Europe. There are Greek-Muslims from Thrace and even a European and an American or two, trying to make a living on the streets of Athens.
I don't know their stories but these are their pictures...Matt Barrett


A night out in the cafes and restaurants of Psiri or the Plaka usually means good food and conversation. It also means an army of children with flowers coming to your table. I always bring plenty of change when I leave the hotel for this purpose. This girl always finds me and I always buy a carnation from her. I can't help it. First of all they smell so beautiful. Second of all she is so lovely that I can't resist her. I think she told her friends and now whenever any of the gypsy flower girls or boys spot me in the taverna their eyes light up because they know they will make at least one sale.

This little girl came to play her drum at our table at the Naxos in Psiri one rainy afternoon after a visit to the flea market.











One sister plays the drum and sings and the younger one dances and they make a fortune. Everyone stops to watch. I think they are from Turkey or Eastern Thrace in Greece, where all the Greek Turks live. Amarandi saw them and decided that this is what she wants to do for a living too. It reminds me of when I was a kid and me and my brothers and sister would dress up like the Beatles and put on shows for our parents and grandparents. But this is the real thing.

I wonder about these kids. Do they go to school? Do they have parents? Some of my friends think it is a terrible crime that these kids are out on the street working. (They call it begging) But, when I see the children together, smiling and laughing and having fun, I can't help but smile to... although it is a very hard life.

Sometimes I am amazed at the beauty of some of these children. I don't know where the money goes. Do they give it to their parents? Are they part of a syndicate and they pool all the money in return for food and shelter? I don't know whether to feel sorry for them or not. Yes, they are out selling flowers or tissues or whatever. But they are interacting with the world. They are doing what is necessary to help their family survive in a strange land. 

This angel puts on her wings and comes every day to the Church of Kapnikarea on Ermou street and just stands there for hours without moving a muscle like a statue. I don't know if she is Greek, Russian, American, or even a refugee.  But I see her performance as a sort of prayer for peace.














One of the most popular street gifts to buy are these little balloons filled with flower that you can mold into different faces. My daughter buys one every trip and spends hours with the people who sell them, learning the techniques for making different expressions. They are only about a thousand drachma and since they usually help support refugees like Michael from Serbia I usually buy at least one per trip.















This man sells nothing but bananas every day, pushing around this giant cart and going wherever the crowds are








I spotted him on the day after Easter from my balcony in the Attalos Hotel walking down a deserted Athinas street with not a soul in sight.















This man comes down from the village every Saturday and Sunday to sell his pumpkins and Mellon's. But I would like to know how much he wants for the truck.

You can't really call this guy a musician since all he plays is a cassette player. But what he lacks in talent he makes up for in charm. And who knows what kind of history he has? You can find him near the Athens Market on Aeolis street.




















Being a street musician is a stressful job and until the authorities realize what a treasure they have walking the streets of Athens, life will be difficult for them. So support your local street musician. Who knows? One day you may be one of them.


Let me know how you liked this page.
Matt Barrettgreecetravel1@aol.com