Sunset International Studies Division

Clean Monday (Kathara Deftera) is the time to clean the house of any non-fasting foods (is fasting food an oxymoron?) including meat, milk, poultry, eggs, and blood-containing fish. That pretty much leaves crustaceans. I get the impression that fasting in not as popular as it once was and the rules, if observed at all, are kind of made up by each individual.

The day is a holiday and the city literally shuts down. We usually take a bus and the metro into school on Mondays because the traffic and parking are just terrible. Today Jim drove in and the highways were almost empty and parking was readily available. The restaurant we usually go to for lunch was closed. The quick-food place we sometimes go to was closed. The restaurant we never thought about going to was closed. Fortunately, we found a kiosk with some sandwiches and that was lunch.

There is also a tradition of baking an unleavened bread called lagana on Clean Monday. This is the only day of the year this particular recipe is used. The hard crust is liberally covered with sesame seeds and it is quite tasty. I bought four big loafs of it from a bakery that opened especially for the occasion. Two of the loaves were consumed by the students and Jim and I each took a loaf home. I put most of mine in the freezer and it will probably last until I leave.

Today is a day when people go to the beach, feast on fasting-foods, drink, and fly kites. Yesterday and today many street corners featured people selling kites. On the way home we drove by the beach and saw hundreds of people flying scores of kites. I have tried in vain to find the reason for the tradition of flying the kites on Clean Monday. Someone suggested they are flying the sins of the past 40 days up to heaven, but I can't find any documentation of that.

Lanny's Journal - AIBI - Week 5
	February 20, 2004 One of my to-do items since I have been in Athens is to purchase an authentic Greek fisherman's hat. I actually have one at home which was bequeathed to me by my good friend Wayde Vanderdasson, but for reasons to boring to recount at this time, I didn't bring it with me. Hence the desire to buy one. What could be easier? I am in Greece after all. The first clue should have been when I noticed that Greek men don't wear authentic Greek fisherman hats. But, I couldn't let a little thing like that deter my resolve.
Today being a reasonably nice day, I hopped on a bus for the Glyfada business district with its myriad of clothing stores. After discounting most of the stores based on window shopping, I finally went into a more likely looking one and explained what I was wanting. The kind lady salesperson suggested a store that stocks some Greek items and pointed me in a general direction. A few blocks later I picked out one that looked more Greekish than the others and went in. The Greek salesman said the best bet for such an item would be to find a tourist shop. He graciously pointed me in the opposite direction where he thought he remembered one possibly being located. Sure enough, I soon came to a store that shouted "tourist trap." Upon entering I found an English proprietor who promptly fitted me with an authentic Greek fisherman's hat in the proper size. I know that is what it is because, in very large letters are the words Authentic Greek Fisherman's Hat neatly stamped in gold on the plastic sweatband that no doubt came from Japan. At any rate, for the very reasonable sum of €7.50 I got to make a checkmark on my to-do list.
	February 21, 2004 Meet Isaac Osagie. He is one of Sam Odey's converts. Sam not only brought him to Christ, but also got him so excited about the Gospel that he enrolled in the school as well. Like Sam, Isaac is a Nigerian. He has a wife and five children in Nigeria and a 20 year old daughter in a university in London. As with so many of the Nigerians, Isaac left home to be able to provide a private education for his children. It is either that or pretty much no education for them.
Isaac is self-emloyed as a Trader, meaning he buys and sells merchandise where ever he can. He also provides some merchandise for his wife to sell out of their home back in Nigeria. He works as hard as he can Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday to make a living so he can spend all day Saturday, Sunday, and Monday in classes at the school. In his spare time he does the heavy load of homework the classes generate. It has been four years since he has seen his wife and children, simply because he cannot pay his living expenses, keep his children in school, and afford the €1,000 (US $1,300) round-trip air fare at the same time. Now with Sam going back to Nigeria to work full-time with the churches, Isaac is consumed with a burning desire to join him as soon as he can. AIBI is making a difference in Nigeria.
	February 23, 2004 "Clean Monday" The Catholics have Ash Wednesday; the Greek Orthodox have "Clean Monday." "Carnival' is now over and Great Lent is beginning. For forty days people have been dressing up in costumes and celebrating the Greek equivalent of Mardi Gras. Even a shopping trip down town in the middle of the day is sufficient reason for mothers to dress their children up in colorful costumes. Clothing store windows have been filled with costumes for weeks.
Clean Monday (Kathara Deftera) is the time to clean the house of any non-fasting foods (is fasting food an oxymoron?) including meat, milk, poultry, eggs, and blood-containing fish. That pretty much leaves crustaceans. I get the impression that fasting in not as popular as it once was and the rules, if observed at all, are kind of made up by each individual. The day is a holiday and the city literally shuts down. We usually take a bus and the metro into school on Mondays because the traffic and parking are just terrible. Today Jim drove in and the highways were almost empty and parking was readily available. The restaurant we usually go to for lunch was closed. The quick-food place we sometimes go to was closed. The restaurant we never thought about going to was closed. Fortunately, we found a kiosk with some sandwiches and that was lunch. There is also a tradition of baking an unleavened bread called lagana on Clean Monday. This is the only day of the year this particular recipe is used. The hard crust is liberally covered with sesame seeds and it is quite tasty. I bought four big loafs of it from a bakery that opened especially for the occasion. Two of the loaves were consumed by the students and Jim and I each took a loaf home. I put most of mine in the freezer and it will probably last until I leave. Today is a day when people go to the beach, feast on fasting-foods, drink, and fly kites. Yesterday and today many street corners featured people selling kites. On the way home we drove by the beach and saw hundreds of people flying scores of kites. I have tried in vain to find the reason for the tradition of flying the kites on Clean Monday. Someone suggested they are flying the sins of the past 40 days up to heaven, but I can't find any documentation of that.
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