Θεσσαλονίκη - Thessaloniki

It might be the light who bright the most mystery to our life's - Credit: Balance-Rng

A manifest to glorified the Greek community and criticized capitalism through my Thessaloniki's vagrancy.

To common knowledge Thessaloniki is the second biggest city in Greece. First in central Macedonia. The thousands face's city. Balkan's Jerusalem. A old, dynamic, cultural, gastronomic, among other things, international city. But I'm not Wikipedia and glad not to be. So I'll talk about something an internet site cannot, my personal feelings about the city and in extension, cities.

What's a city if not its inhabitant? An unpleasant, mortified environment. A city only is a living thing thanks to who live in it. I've only been living among them (that include the cats) for four, intense, full, marvelous, exhausting, hilarious, holy, kind, noisy, beautiful, contaminated, succulent, difficult to read, serious, sick, joy-full and unexpected days. Multi faced you said? My devil, yes!

παράκαλο, ένα ποτήρι κόκκινο ξηρό κρασί

Or how I've been welcomed here in Thessaloniki.

I have a rule on my own when I'm traveling. I do not drink or consume drugs. It could only lead me bad ways. So even when I met that guy on the boat which who we had nice time and discussion, I didn't took a sip of wine while the other passengers could literally fall drunk on the deck. The euphoria and drunkenness times always arrives fast enough in the Babylon's daughters enclosure. And it's precisely where I was sailing for.

Fast forward, my stuffs are in my new habitation, a modern and comfortable flat in Políchni district and I take the path of my feet's will to a light-full café nearby.

My first impression's not that good. There is a huge TV hooked to the wall where I recognized the famous (not my favorite) green pitch. I decided to got in anyway. I'm obviously not here to meet people like me and I've learned before that stick to your first impression prevent from learning and evolve.

Thanks to my previous mistakes I enter this peaceful and welcoming Greek shelter. Here I will find a group of close friends talking and drinking while listening to good Greek variety music and be including among them with more open-earthed attitude I could've imagine. I always say that human's have infinite love to offer but I'm actually always a bit choked when I eventually face it.

This place will of course became a common place for me to go. There I will learn my first Greek basics as how to properly order my glass of wine or the proper diction and articulation to wish my mates a good health when I'd like to drink with them. Eventually, the moment happen, let say the day before the orthodox Light-day, when ivress come to a thing in ourselfs, where I will witness the Greek partying performance to smash a plate on the floor so the joy of the moment could remain in our memory's even after a too much drunk night.

The moment I have a hard time to be poetic

But I'll try anyway

It take all the Thessaloniki's inhabitant kindness, and I'd like to deaply thanks them for that, to be greatful while I have to breath a poisened air and enjoy my though when they tell me that It would be nice to have five-hundred euros for a Lego toy or that I would look nice it that suit all in a constant motors noise.

I may not teach anything to anyone telling that cities are a the capitalism key to consumtion. Here, mainly if you are a solo traveller, but it can also occur for those who were born in the place, you might meet hundreds new faces a day without recognize or being recognized by any. The feeling of loneliness become inevitable as the urge to become someone to be recognize. But don't you worry! the solution exist. You will just have to buy it. A cafe, a meal, a new jacket or tennis pair, a book, a film. This way you might encounter one of the multiple face of the city and share a privilegied moment with your pairs. Even if it's just the paying-bill time, it matter. And if you encounter someone to see again, you will probably make a appointement in a consumtion place buying a bus ticket, a taxi's ride or your own car price and petrol. Time's an important thing, It would be a shame to walk it on dangerous and dirty pathway. So, It became obvious to priorize what's bring the right to socialize, the most payed activities you can managed to endure. Leading to less famical, meditative, creative and non-productives life moments. It also became evident for the most observatives among us, that the most rich looking person should have the most intense and pleasing social life. What a person to became, what a path to take, what a lie to live.

As I grow in a large city, this is not a discover. Although It might just be the twisted mind of mine who's feeling this way, I tend to think that what I pitifully and in a simplified-way tried to desmonstrated, have consequences on mental health and empathic communication. Fortunaltely, Greek people doesn't live this way. With the almost twenty years ago crisis we were witness of the resilience, supportiveness and great courage Hellenic communities can express. A inspirative subject I'd like to explore further in a following article.

This personal but nourished by sociological litterature conclusion led me to escape, to run away, to find a maybe an and dearthy but alive path-way. To be unknowned, coinless, vulnerable but building something no other master can give you, self-knowledge. And it may takes to know who you are, not to be lost in the urban jungle of infinite distraction and sinned pleasures. So, if you'd be reading this from the beginning, thank you and congrat's, It mustn't have been easy to endure the arrogant writing. But at least now you know that I, sincerely am, your sinner who berely know his name.

Balance_Rng for Artivia's magazine.