20 years ago I was a lost soul from Norway whom one day decided to get an inter rail ticket and make my way back to Greece where I had spend an enjoyable week the year before.
After sitting on the train from Munich for what seemed years (in fact only about 48 hours) and wondering where the heck I should stay in Athens when I arrive, I was accosted by about 15 "runners" when my train passed the aptly named station Onioi just outside Athens. They all was telling my about their fantastic hostels in Athens and in my haste I decided to place all the pamphlets in my bag and stay at the one which came out first.
I ended up with a place called Diethens Hotel, which at the time was a total dive. I did remember the two guys from the another hostel Joy's and decided the next day to check in there.
After a week I ventured out to Crete to the job I had been promised, which turned out to be hot air. I returned to Athens and to Joy's begging them for a job, at the time they did not have any jobs and got me a job around the corner at Iokastis Guest House. After a few week the folks at Joy's realized where my heart was and welcomed me "home" to the place which was for 18 months my true home and my "real" family: Mana, Manolis, Takis, Wilma and Nicos, and not for getting our merry band of staff from Sweden, England, Australia and other far flung places.
Being the lost soul which I was, I was finally accepted for being me and nothing else, I was not longer the geek with glasses, whom spoke differently and finally felt safe, I felt comfortable around people and did not feel that I had to watch my "back" as I was used to in Norway.
Throughout my 18 months in Greece I was finally home!!! These 18 months were what really defined me and the person I am today. I do not regret any of the things I did back then!
Now 20 years later I am back in Greece for a totally different reason, before I left Greece I gave birth to a boy (who is now 18) but due to my circumstances back in Norway I felt deserved parents like my Greek Mana, so I gave him up for adoption in Greece. I have now found details of my boy, and this is the reason I decided to start this blog.
I have decided that I will allow him to decide if he wants to find me, rather than me turning up in his life saying I am his mum. Comparing my real mum and Mana, I know that I would preferred that Mana was my real mum rather than my so called Norwegian mother, so why should I inflict that choice on a 18 year old boy who might not even know he was adopted. But this blog is dedicated to him, and should we never meet I hope he realizes the what I did was out of love for him and no other reason.
