Page 63 of All You Need is Greece

‘You knew about that?’ Tania’s mouth falls open.

‘Of course I knew.’ She grins. ‘Every time someone mentioned it, you kind of took them to one side. I figured it out when I tossed something into the bin in the kitchen, and there was my cheesecake. Well, what was left of it anyway.’ She raises an eyebrow. ‘And don’t think I didn’t notice when Nicos kept topping up my wine glass. Not that I minded that! But don’t worry, I forgive you.’

‘Oh, Doll, I’m so sorry. I’m afraid dogs will be dogs, especially the big daft Vizsla. And that is kind of why I made this, to try and make up for it. I will admit, yours looked even better, though.’

‘I don’t know about that, but thank you,’ says Doll.

‘I know someone who was devastated to have missed out on your cheesecake,’ says Hannah. ‘I bet he can’t wait to sink his teeth into that.’

‘You are right about that,’ says Panos, who appears at that very moment to clear away some plates.

‘Maybe we have some together,’ he says to Hannah, who visibly brightens.

The drinks flow and the night progresses and I notice Helena’s mum slowly come out of her shell, joining in the conversation and singing along to some music that is playing in the background. Soon enough, talk turns to Judith’s upcoming nuptials.

‘Did you ever think you would marry again?’ asks Doll, moving away from the patio heater Helena has lit.

‘Never. I thought Ray was my one and only, but it seems fate had other ideas.’

‘And we are so happy for you,’ says Yolanda, raising her glass. ‘But now, can we have a little lively dance music.’ She stands up and points to her feet. ‘Especially as the dance shoes have finally come out this evening.’

Everyone laughs, and when Helena selects some songs guaranteed to get the party started, everyone is on their feet. We dance and laugh, stopping occasionally to have a drink and draw breath, and I marvel at the scene. Woman of all ages and backgrounds, some with limited English, are having the time of their life dancing and listening to the music, despite any language barrier.

‘How about a little hokey pokey!’ says Yolanda, raising her glass in the air.

‘Do you mean the hokey-cokey?’ asks Tania, bursting out into laughter.

‘Okey cokey, hokey pokey, what does it matter?’ says Yolanda. ‘As long as we go in and out, like this.’ She moves backwards and forwards, holding on to the glass of ouzo in her hand for dear life as she moves.

There’s a flurry of movement, and after placing our drinks safely on the table out of the way, we are all doing as Yolanda suggested, putting our left foot in, left foot out before rushing to the centre of the circle, singing at the tops of our voices, to hilarious effect. When we finally sit down, I struggle to remember an evening when I have had so much fun. Not like this – throwing our heads back and feeling like a child. It’s a far cry from doing a bit of a dance at a bar back home, shuffling around a tiny dance floor.

‘I can’t cope, I think I might spontaneously combust,’ says Doll, flopping down onto a chair and gulping down some iced water, followed by a long swig of wine.

As we all get our breath back, Panos approaches Hannah with two helpings of cheesecake on blue plates, and I watch them drift off together to sit at a small table beneath a lemon tree.

‘Oh, what a night,’ says Judith, taking her shoes off, and rubbing her feet.

Taking our cue from Panos, the rest of us dive into the wonderful cheesecake, and a brief silence descends on the group.

‘Tania, that was amazing.’ I wipe my mouth with a napkin, fit to burst.

‘It was. In fact, it was better than mine,’ says Doll. ‘Or at least as good as.’ She winks.

When we think the evening is winding down a little, Helena announces she has a surprise for us. Hannah rejoins the table then, as Panos appears to have gone off somewhere.

‘All okay?’ I mouth to her, and she nods.

‘This evening, I would like to present you with a traditional Greek dancing show,’ says Helena, and Judith claps her hands in delight.

A familiar Greek tune can be heard then, and three young men, dressed in traditional Greek costume, assemble in the middle of the flagged floor of the bar. It takes me a moment to realise that one of the young men is Panos. They lace their arms around each other, before slowly moving along to the music, as the rest of us clap along. As the music gets a little faster, Panos pulls Hannah to her feet, and is quickly followed by Yolanda, who gives a delighted ‘Opa’. As the music reaches its crescendo, we are all on our feet once more, laughing and loving life.

‘That was just wonderful,’ says Tania and as we all break into applause, the Greek dancers give a little bow.

‘That took me back to my first holiday to Greece,’ I say to Judith. ‘I remember dancing like that, then being invited to smash plates.’ I recall the excursion from Kavos to a mountain village restaurant, to watch a traditional Greek floor show.

‘I bet you don’t see any plate smashing these days,’ says Doll. ‘Not in a global recession.’

‘It is true,’ agrees Helena. ‘No plate smashing, please.’

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