Letter from Dublin. My Journey

By Valentina Goulara

     Moving from Nigeria to Greece was a big adventure. The last picture I saw leaving was the flag. Green, white, green. The green represented the nation of agriculture, while the white symbolised unity and peace. I stood. I looked around. I was certainly going to miss the smell of the sand, the earth, the way the sky changes when it was about to rain, the way we, as kids, ran outside to play when it was finally raining. The culture and the traditions, where it's considered rude to eat using the left hand, where on Sunday most women would put on, their traditional best clothes and headdresses or wear long flowing robes and headscarves. I was going to miss the way we celebrate every event and every occasion with festing, dancing, drumming, and sometimes with public masquerades and dancers. I was going to miss the games I played with my friends. I was definitely going to miss grandma’s cooking. My grandpa look whenever I did something silly. My aunts and uncles, my friends, the sense of family and belongings. I don't remember saying goodbye to them and that's what pains me the most. I was going to miss everything and everyone.

     Greece they told me. First time on a plane. I felt anxious. They were so many people at the airport, I was struggling to look somewhere steady. Everyone seems to be travelling somewhere either with kids or pets. On the plane I remember sitting next to the window, I always wanted to see the view of the sky. I boldly remember the smile and the politeness of the flight attendants, they were willing to offer you whatever you need. I put on my seatbelt and was ready to fly. I could feel my heart beating fast. I got more and more scared as the engines roared. The plane started to move down the runway. My hands started to shake as the plane got faster and faster. But when we were in the air, I finally calmed down. We landed at Thessaloniki after hours on the plane. The Greek flag was everywhere at the airport, it had nine equal horizontal stripes of blue, alternating with white and a blue square bearing a white cross in the upper side corner. They told me the colour blue stood for the sky and sea, the white represented clouds in the sky and waves in the sea, while the cross symbolises the Greek Orthodox Church. So different from Nigeria’s flag and with so many meanings. Stepping out the airport door I was entranced by the beauty of the snow. I could feel the cold in my skin. In Nigeria it was never too cold neither did it snow, I had heard and seen snow in books but experiencing it, was majestic. White, very white, wet, shining and cold. The way large snowflakes were falling from heaven smoothly on the ground, the way the snow melted in my mouth, I remember how excited and thrilled I was. Thessaloniki was a city never seen before, the cove, the famous White Tower, so many things to see and do. It was marvellous. I was trying to picture how my life would be, how I was going to get used to everything. However I was so young and little to imagine the kind of adventure ahead of me.

(Snow. Close to our house in the city of Veria)

     First year the language was difficult, very difficult but it's was quite interesting and unique, there was always something new you can learn, so many meanings behind each word, so many ways to pronounce it, so many stories hidden behind each phrase. They say Greeks were known for their hospitality. Well, they were certainly right, amazing people, the way they embraced and welcomed you. The way they share whatever they have with me, just to make me feel welcomed. That why I didn't have any problem making friends, I felt comfortable with almost everyone and quite open. Mostly with Greece I fell in love with the food. I struggled to get used to it at the beginning due to fact that it was very different from the food we eat in Nigeria, but I loved the taste of the greek-cheese, the yogurt and the traditional pies. We always bake a special cake on New Year's Day, and cook different traditional meals on occasions. Every single one of them tasted delicious.

     I noticed the addition to coffee. Everything started with a cup of coffee. Eating, drinking, playing games, listening to music, dancing, conversation all around a nice cup of coffee. My friends and I would arranged to go for coffee on Saturdays and finally go dancing. I enjoyed the traditional singing and dancing with different musical instruments. We always had fun and that's what I liked best about Saturdays. Just like I love Saturdays, I loved Summer. Summertime was always worth it. I was always looking forward to summer, that's when school ended, that's when the heat began to raise. In Greece it was never as hot as Nigeria. In Nigeria the heat was tense, just like a stove the weather would be heating up, you had to carry a bottle of water everywhere you go as you could feel the hotness from the ground, but due to long time living we all got used to it. In Greece at summertime it would be hot but not that hotness that make you want to faint. I loved eating watermelons, peach, strawberries and cherries. I could go all day eating just those fruits. When it was the middle of summer, me and my family would go for holidays. We always choose to go to the Greek islands. They each was one of a kind, with their clean and beautiful beaches, their stunning sunset. What I loved most about summer was the beach, we would start heading to the beach in the morning, with our bath suit, umbrella, sun screen, blankets and some beach games. As soon as we arrived I would run towards the beach with joy and exhilaration. The feel of the cold and cool water on my feet, the smell of the salty sea was something I will never forget. When I got tired of swimming I would lay under the umbrella and grab a book and begin to read, and with warm summer breeze I would be lost in a whole new world, a whole new adventure, in my own imagination. How pleasant and unique that moment was. I remember when we once went to the village my dad was born, I was glad to listen to his childhood stories. He once told me, when at night time, all the neighbourhood kids would gathered to play hide and seek. In Nigeria when it was nighttime and when we saw the moonlight, we would all gathered outside the garden, in circles, waiting to hear my grandma’s bedtime stories. All this memories reminded me of my childhood life and made me realise how much I missed being a child but mostly how fast time passes.

(A sunny day in Benin City, Nigeria)

I promise myself that I would go back to Nigeria and surprise everyone. I would go to see my family and my friends. I would go to eat the traditional foods. I would go back to get a taste of my childhood memories. I wonder how different things would be, how they must have changed. But until that day I'll keep living the adventure life gives me.