First of all I would like to apologise for not blogging for so long. It’s been almost 3 months I think. The reason of course was the lack of time and minus a laptop and not lack of subjects to rant about. There were lots of things happening into my life the last few months and I still have not settled, but I thought to make this comeback finally and write about something more often. There is plenty of material, believe me.
I have chosen to make this comeback today and talk about Greek men. With this post I will try to answer the question that has been buzzing my ears for years. Everyone has openly been wondering, -once I am Greek myself: “Why I don’t date Greek men... “Not like I have a better luck with other nationalities but this post it’s just about my personal preference or I should say my personal resentment.
Greek men were never my cup of tea or coffee or any other beverage. I choose to go “exotic” and by exotic I would mean any other nationality but Greeks. Apart from the facts that we speak the same language, we have similar childhood memories and we understand similar jokes, I feel nothing else in common with the Greek guys. I feel I have a different mentality. I do love my country, but I am not particularly proud of many modern Greek habits and let’s say minds.
I would like though to make clear here that I am not writing this post to target all Greek men because there are also diamonds out there. You just need to be lucky to meet them. Additionally, it is just my personal opinion, so my main objective writing this, is not to offend my fellow Greeks or judge anyone, but to present facts about the greek mentality and lifestyle that I do not personally like. Being Greek myself, gave me the opportunity to grow up in that society surrounded by those particular male role models, I will present in this post. And I had one of those in my own house: my daddy.
1. They are mommy’s boys literally. And they stay like ones forever.
They say behind every great man, there is a great woman. Well, behind every Greek man is his mother. And those mothers are the roots of everything “evil” linked to this man and his mind or attitude. Why? It’s the way they bring them up and treat them from the day they are born (and for the rest of their lives). How? Basically, like they are kings and like there are no others. They are spoilt beyond belief. It’s rare that you find a Greek guy, who knows how to survive without his mommy by his side or behind his back. That’s because those wonderful Greek mothers -and grandmothers for the matter- taught them from a young age that it’s not manly for them to do any housework and that it’s totally normal that all women in his life should serve them. After all those years this becomes part of their DNA and it’s something you can’t judge or question. You will never see a proper Greek guy cleaning, cooking, ironing or anything like that. They were never bothered to learn because it’s inappropriate – why we have women for, right?
So a greek bachelor cannot actually be independent because he leaves from his mommy’s nest and goes to his wife’s arms. He expects everything in his hands because his mom was treating him like this and therefore you have to do the same. It’s when you request for a fair help and they will start either a fight or they will make fun of you asking for their help in the first place. If they will decide to help you out they don’t know how and they always end up messing everything or in a worst case scenario, they will help you while pulling grumpy faces for having to do women stuff. And the best excuses you can always hear are: “I don’t know how to…” or “I didn’t know I was supposed to clean that –name it-or wash the dishes”. Right, it takes a rocket science degree to know how or to understand that the mountain of dishes that are piling up in the sink need to be washed! Well, yeah all the other times, they were washed themselves by magic.
As another by-result of their highly controlled upbringing, Greek men are very fussy. This fuss may be created over their appearance, their health, their home, their food or their car. And while he may be allowed to throw his dirty underwear around and he will do it because his mama was always around to pick it up, you should be always the goddess of cleanliness. And for this very future reason your mom has been training you from a young age along with your granny on how to cook or serve the pasha aka your husband to be, because of course you are obliged to. So do not forget: Greek men are notoriously close to their mothers so be careful what you are saying. You should also be aware that those mommies love getting involved in your lives as hell and they have a say to everything.
2. They have complexes embedded on their DNA
They have complexes that are linked to their upbringing and their general greek mentality. Modern greek mentality to be correct. Which is a combination of thousands of years of history blowing up their egos and the 400 years of the Ottoman occupation that added that Middle Eastern flavor to our way of thinking and culture! Explosive combination if you are asking me. It blows your brain away…. literally!
A Greek male is a complex creature full of contradictions, hyperboles and oxymoron. You can probably never have a proper argue with them because they think they are always right and as single-minded, they tend to sway from wonderful, cultured, caring beings to arrogant buffoons who believe that their word -and don’t forget their mother’s one- is law.
Many times I have been bullied because of my gender regardless the country, but not as much I have been by Greek men. I have also live examples from close non Greek girlfriends. Despite all this modern talk about equality, Greek men tend to be very traditional and at the end of the day, the man is the head, the woman only the neck, blah, blah, blah. So they are dominative and authoritarian and they think they know everything. Because they are Greeks and because they are men on top of that. Greeks are the best right? No question about that.
So Greeks want a woman who will tend to them, love them, praise them, look after their children, cook them nice meals and keep their bed warm. They don’t want a woman who shows she can outdo a man, which happens anyway because in the end you run the house, you raise the kids, you have a great career and he depends on you as well. So whatever…. I am no willing to put the nunchucks away, hide my presidential electoral speech and don an apron just because he feels intimidated and threaten by me. It’s not my fault I am better than him. Next time let him ask his mom why this is happening after all.
4. They are chauvinists and intolerant to anything different.
I have to blame the mentality once again on these ones. Their hard shell is not easy to break. Even by living abroad they never change. You expect that by living abroad along with other nationalities that it will broaden their minds and that they will become more tolerant. Unfortunately it does not happen. I do not see any progress myself here in London. They still come across as chauvinists, racists and sexists.
I do not only blame this to their hard shell and narrow-mindness but also to the fact that they tend to socialize only with their own species and they do not like mingling and exploring new cultures and civilizations. Why is that? Because we Greeks are the best? I do think there is also another reason as well. The Greeks are afraid of rejection or failure. They only understand their greek life, their greek jokes and sometimes their language skills might not be the best. They always like to be the centre of the world. And they are not confident enough to be part of a group they can’t excel in!
It’s also funny the fact that since I have started using online dating apps every single time I don’t reply back to a Greek guy he texts me again and rudely asks me why I don’t reply back or he simply swears at me! Am I obliged to reply back to him because we are both Greeks or what? It never happens with any other nationality! Greeks have to have the last word, right? Even if it is a swear one! They have attitude, no class, many times react uncivilized, they are selfish beyond doubt and also careless, boring, crude and definitely they do not know how to treat a lady.
5. They always feel offended.
Greek men can easily be offended, so do not try to make fun of them. If he asks your opinion on something, be sure to agree with him and voice any different ideas very subtly and with great caution. You should avoid also any comment that might threaten his ego at all costs! You don’t want to ignite the third world war. He is always right, he is the best and he knows everything. Of course, if you want to date one there are some selfless sacrifices you need to make.
6. He cares too much about food but he is afraid of the doc.
If you want to date a Greek man yourself despite all the facts above, make sure to train yourself in two things “cooking” and ”first aid”.
To most Greek men, a woman’s place is in the kitchen and if you can find the key to his stomach, you will have no problem unlocking the key to his heart. He constantly thinks about food and what he will eat next. And better to know how cook greek, although it goes without saying that your cooking will never match up to his mother’s culinary skills. Do not forget to wash the dishes afterwards! The favorite expression all the Greek men use to belittle you when you do something you shouldn’t because you are a woman is “Go and wash dishes ma’m (aka you do not belong here)”.
Secondly, you should know that “hypochondria” originates from the Greek language. So it goes without saying that most Greek men are massive hypochondriacs. They act macho but with the slightest cold or accident they turn to the most vulnerable creatures and the worst patients as well. One sniffle and they are convinced that they are dying. This is when they expect to see your tender, loving side so ensure that you make a fuss over him even if he has just 37.5 C temperature. Of course, his mom knows best, but you have to be an effective 24/7 nurse in any case she lives far and she can’t actually come over and camp in your house for as long as her baby needs her.
On the other hand, he will never visit the doctor even when he really needs one unless you hit him with a bat on the head and drag him there. Apparently, men know better what they have and almost always it is nothing and can be treated at home. That actually means you will be nursing him. So either they are qualified doctors that’s why they know first-hand or they actually afraid to go to the doctor in the first place. I think the second option is most probably the case. Mighty Greek men fainting in the sight of a needle!
Last but not least, and this is totally based on a personal point of view, I believe that because of all the above, the way I won’t be able to date a Greek man, he would also hate dating me. So it is mutual. I do not feel offended because I couldn’t care less. And he will hate me for many reasons. I am an arrogant feminist, an independent strong woman- as my friend Priya puts it all the time and makes me laugh- who does not expect a man to pay the bill. I am a woman who has an opinion and can raise healthy arguments. I am well-educated, incredibly well-read and updated on current affairs. I am annoyingly frank and speak my mind. I have sarcastic humor and I am not afraid to laugh really loud.
I am a tomboy that likes football and can basically kick your arse - if I can still remember at least the basic from my 7 years in tae know do. Handball could help as well. I did that for 3 years and it is considered a quite tough sport, not actually suitable for little girls at least in Greece. I can be transformed to a lady on high heels with a sexy little black dress and red lipstick, but I mainly wear jeans and trainers to the day and suits with brogues at work- sometimes ties as well. My mom totally hates me for that. I am a scout and no I didn’t learn how to bake cookies. I repeat I am a scout – not a guide, American cinema has distorted almost everything in your minds- and I love outdoor activities so I don’t go for comfort.
I do not think that my main objective in life because I am a woman, is to get married and make babies. I am career oriented and I live to enjoy life and fulfill my big dreams with or without a partner. And by big dreams I do not necessarily mean to make money, but travel, volunteer, maybe adopt, be useful and leave my print onto this world. Not to mention that I am a pesceterian, so my eating preferences are not consistent with the typical greek eating lifestyle, but there are also not respected or welcomed.
After all you read about the Greek men and myself what makes you possibly think that we could ever date without ending up killing each other? So for all the above and for more others, a Greek man will hate me as much I will hate him for his mentality. I could also inspire hate or intimidation to other nationalities as well, but that’s another story. In this post, I was just dealing with my “own species” and I hope I made it clear why do not date Greek boys. I am sorry but men are actually boys and will always stay as ones regardless their nationality or age. One thing I have to admit is that,” Greek men are definitely hot”!
Thank you for reading
La Petite Grecque
June 2015
I have chosen to make this comeback today and talk about Greek men. With this post I will try to answer the question that has been buzzing my ears for years. Everyone has openly been wondering, -once I am Greek myself: “Why I don’t date Greek men... “Not like I have a better luck with other nationalities but this post it’s just about my personal preference or I should say my personal resentment.
Greek men were never my cup of tea or coffee or any other beverage. I choose to go “exotic” and by exotic I would mean any other nationality but Greeks. Apart from the facts that we speak the same language, we have similar childhood memories and we understand similar jokes, I feel nothing else in common with the Greek guys. I feel I have a different mentality. I do love my country, but I am not particularly proud of many modern Greek habits and let’s say minds.
I would like though to make clear here that I am not writing this post to target all Greek men because there are also diamonds out there. You just need to be lucky to meet them. Additionally, it is just my personal opinion, so my main objective writing this, is not to offend my fellow Greeks or judge anyone, but to present facts about the greek mentality and lifestyle that I do not personally like. Being Greek myself, gave me the opportunity to grow up in that society surrounded by those particular male role models, I will present in this post. And I had one of those in my own house: my daddy.
1. They are mommy’s boys literally. And they stay like ones forever.
They say behind every great man, there is a great woman. Well, behind every Greek man is his mother. And those mothers are the roots of everything “evil” linked to this man and his mind or attitude. Why? It’s the way they bring them up and treat them from the day they are born (and for the rest of their lives). How? Basically, like they are kings and like there are no others. They are spoilt beyond belief. It’s rare that you find a Greek guy, who knows how to survive without his mommy by his side or behind his back. That’s because those wonderful Greek mothers -and grandmothers for the matter- taught them from a young age that it’s not manly for them to do any housework and that it’s totally normal that all women in his life should serve them. After all those years this becomes part of their DNA and it’s something you can’t judge or question. You will never see a proper Greek guy cleaning, cooking, ironing or anything like that. They were never bothered to learn because it’s inappropriate – why we have women for, right?
So a greek bachelor cannot actually be independent because he leaves from his mommy’s nest and goes to his wife’s arms. He expects everything in his hands because his mom was treating him like this and therefore you have to do the same. It’s when you request for a fair help and they will start either a fight or they will make fun of you asking for their help in the first place. If they will decide to help you out they don’t know how and they always end up messing everything or in a worst case scenario, they will help you while pulling grumpy faces for having to do women stuff. And the best excuses you can always hear are: “I don’t know how to…” or “I didn’t know I was supposed to clean that –name it-or wash the dishes”. Right, it takes a rocket science degree to know how or to understand that the mountain of dishes that are piling up in the sink need to be washed! Well, yeah all the other times, they were washed themselves by magic.
As another by-result of their highly controlled upbringing, Greek men are very fussy. This fuss may be created over their appearance, their health, their home, their food or their car. And while he may be allowed to throw his dirty underwear around and he will do it because his mama was always around to pick it up, you should be always the goddess of cleanliness. And for this very future reason your mom has been training you from a young age along with your granny on how to cook or serve the pasha aka your husband to be, because of course you are obliged to. So do not forget: Greek men are notoriously close to their mothers so be careful what you are saying. You should also be aware that those mommies love getting involved in your lives as hell and they have a say to everything.
2. They have complexes embedded on their DNA
They have complexes that are linked to their upbringing and their general greek mentality. Modern greek mentality to be correct. Which is a combination of thousands of years of history blowing up their egos and the 400 years of the Ottoman occupation that added that Middle Eastern flavor to our way of thinking and culture! Explosive combination if you are asking me. It blows your brain away…. literally!
A Greek male is a complex creature full of contradictions, hyperboles and oxymoron. You can probably never have a proper argue with them because they think they are always right and as single-minded, they tend to sway from wonderful, cultured, caring beings to arrogant buffoons who believe that their word -and don’t forget their mother’s one- is law.
Many times I have been bullied because of my gender regardless the country, but not as much I have been by Greek men. I have also live examples from close non Greek girlfriends. Despite all this modern talk about equality, Greek men tend to be very traditional and at the end of the day, the man is the head, the woman only the neck, blah, blah, blah. So they are dominative and authoritarian and they think they know everything. Because they are Greeks and because they are men on top of that. Greeks are the best right? No question about that.
So Greeks want a woman who will tend to them, love them, praise them, look after their children, cook them nice meals and keep their bed warm. They don’t want a woman who shows she can outdo a man, which happens anyway because in the end you run the house, you raise the kids, you have a great career and he depends on you as well. So whatever…. I am no willing to put the nunchucks away, hide my presidential electoral speech and don an apron just because he feels intimidated and threaten by me. It’s not my fault I am better than him. Next time let him ask his mom why this is happening after all.
4. They are chauvinists and intolerant to anything different.
I have to blame the mentality once again on these ones. Their hard shell is not easy to break. Even by living abroad they never change. You expect that by living abroad along with other nationalities that it will broaden their minds and that they will become more tolerant. Unfortunately it does not happen. I do not see any progress myself here in London. They still come across as chauvinists, racists and sexists.
I do not only blame this to their hard shell and narrow-mindness but also to the fact that they tend to socialize only with their own species and they do not like mingling and exploring new cultures and civilizations. Why is that? Because we Greeks are the best? I do think there is also another reason as well. The Greeks are afraid of rejection or failure. They only understand their greek life, their greek jokes and sometimes their language skills might not be the best. They always like to be the centre of the world. And they are not confident enough to be part of a group they can’t excel in!
It’s also funny the fact that since I have started using online dating apps every single time I don’t reply back to a Greek guy he texts me again and rudely asks me why I don’t reply back or he simply swears at me! Am I obliged to reply back to him because we are both Greeks or what? It never happens with any other nationality! Greeks have to have the last word, right? Even if it is a swear one! They have attitude, no class, many times react uncivilized, they are selfish beyond doubt and also careless, boring, crude and definitely they do not know how to treat a lady.
5. They always feel offended.
Greek men can easily be offended, so do not try to make fun of them. If he asks your opinion on something, be sure to agree with him and voice any different ideas very subtly and with great caution. You should avoid also any comment that might threaten his ego at all costs! You don’t want to ignite the third world war. He is always right, he is the best and he knows everything. Of course, if you want to date one there are some selfless sacrifices you need to make.
6. He cares too much about food but he is afraid of the doc.
If you want to date a Greek man yourself despite all the facts above, make sure to train yourself in two things “cooking” and ”first aid”.
To most Greek men, a woman’s place is in the kitchen and if you can find the key to his stomach, you will have no problem unlocking the key to his heart. He constantly thinks about food and what he will eat next. And better to know how cook greek, although it goes without saying that your cooking will never match up to his mother’s culinary skills. Do not forget to wash the dishes afterwards! The favorite expression all the Greek men use to belittle you when you do something you shouldn’t because you are a woman is “Go and wash dishes ma’m (aka you do not belong here)”.
Secondly, you should know that “hypochondria” originates from the Greek language. So it goes without saying that most Greek men are massive hypochondriacs. They act macho but with the slightest cold or accident they turn to the most vulnerable creatures and the worst patients as well. One sniffle and they are convinced that they are dying. This is when they expect to see your tender, loving side so ensure that you make a fuss over him even if he has just 37.5 C temperature. Of course, his mom knows best, but you have to be an effective 24/7 nurse in any case she lives far and she can’t actually come over and camp in your house for as long as her baby needs her.
On the other hand, he will never visit the doctor even when he really needs one unless you hit him with a bat on the head and drag him there. Apparently, men know better what they have and almost always it is nothing and can be treated at home. That actually means you will be nursing him. So either they are qualified doctors that’s why they know first-hand or they actually afraid to go to the doctor in the first place. I think the second option is most probably the case. Mighty Greek men fainting in the sight of a needle!
Last but not least, and this is totally based on a personal point of view, I believe that because of all the above, the way I won’t be able to date a Greek man, he would also hate dating me. So it is mutual. I do not feel offended because I couldn’t care less. And he will hate me for many reasons. I am an arrogant feminist, an independent strong woman- as my friend Priya puts it all the time and makes me laugh- who does not expect a man to pay the bill. I am a woman who has an opinion and can raise healthy arguments. I am well-educated, incredibly well-read and updated on current affairs. I am annoyingly frank and speak my mind. I have sarcastic humor and I am not afraid to laugh really loud.
I am a tomboy that likes football and can basically kick your arse - if I can still remember at least the basic from my 7 years in tae know do. Handball could help as well. I did that for 3 years and it is considered a quite tough sport, not actually suitable for little girls at least in Greece. I can be transformed to a lady on high heels with a sexy little black dress and red lipstick, but I mainly wear jeans and trainers to the day and suits with brogues at work- sometimes ties as well. My mom totally hates me for that. I am a scout and no I didn’t learn how to bake cookies. I repeat I am a scout – not a guide, American cinema has distorted almost everything in your minds- and I love outdoor activities so I don’t go for comfort.
I do not think that my main objective in life because I am a woman, is to get married and make babies. I am career oriented and I live to enjoy life and fulfill my big dreams with or without a partner. And by big dreams I do not necessarily mean to make money, but travel, volunteer, maybe adopt, be useful and leave my print onto this world. Not to mention that I am a pesceterian, so my eating preferences are not consistent with the typical greek eating lifestyle, but there are also not respected or welcomed.
After all you read about the Greek men and myself what makes you possibly think that we could ever date without ending up killing each other? So for all the above and for more others, a Greek man will hate me as much I will hate him for his mentality. I could also inspire hate or intimidation to other nationalities as well, but that’s another story. In this post, I was just dealing with my “own species” and I hope I made it clear why do not date Greek boys. I am sorry but men are actually boys and will always stay as ones regardless their nationality or age. One thing I have to admit is that,” Greek men are definitely hot”!
Thank you for reading
La Petite Grecque
June 2015