Police officers who try to pick you up, the national guards who wear the most ridiculous uniforms but purr at you when you walk by them, middle aged men who check you out at the super-market…I was stunned at how incredibly sexually aggressive Grecian men can be.
In Toronto, way back in April, I was wandering down Young Street looking for a Greek-English dictionary/phrasebook to take with me to Athens. By coincidence, I happened to walk into a shop run by a Grecian. During our little chat he said, and I quote, “be careful of the Greek boys. When I was young, I used to take the girls by the arm and into the caves, you know…don’t go near the caves”. Right.
And it’s true…Grecians are not afraid of expressing themselves to women in public. They live for the pleasure of that day or this night. I have to admit guiltily, that this was a wonderful confidence booster at first. And apparently, I’m not the only one who thinks this way, cause statistically, Athens has one of the lowest rape rates in the world. A friend tells me that this is because Greek men simply don’t have trouble getting their women. Sometimes though, this behavior is irritating or just plain insulting. For instance, I’ve been mistaken for a prostitute more than once since my arrival here and the line between paying attention or compliments and harassment is crossed too often and too easily.
But hey, don’t get me wrong, all Greek men are not creeps. What I’m trying to say is that I’m simply not used to this type of open sexual dialogue between strangers in the public space. Canadians are way more stand-offish. But I am learning. Learning to adapt to this new world and staying safe at the same time.
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3 comments:
It sounds like there are alot of the same guys all around the world - Greece, Costa Rica, Argentina...I was thinking when I was in Jamaica and being charmed by everyone from the deputy mayor of Mandeville to the bellhop at the hotel that perhaps my tolerance to "game" has been depleted. Canadian men don't run game, or have very weak game. So when I came across game, I discovered my low resistance and had to buck up quick.
Now think ahead to when you get back. No longer will you be Pocahontas (as my mother used to say) but just another faceless person. Prepare for an ego shot.
Your comment on not being used to open dialouge with people is interesting. I find here in Guatemala, people (espeically men) will come right out and comment on your apperance, or size or race or whatnot, which would be very rude in Canada. But at the same time I kind of feel like in Canada people think it anyway, but no one says it, which puts things in the closet where they can't be dealt with openly.
Great blog! I can imagine how direct Greek men are, I am heading over there at the begining of August, so will consider myself warned.
Although, attention from the external world can influence our perceptions of ourselves, they should not be the basis our how we see our selfworth and build self-esteem. I personally welcome beging back in an environment where being complimented will be a nice surprise and not a run of the mill comment...or insult..I am sure you will adjust back without a problem
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