TRADITIONS

Corfiots are very famous throughout Greece for their hospitality. According to the Homer's epic "Odissey", this hospitality tradition was started back in the prehistoric times by King Alkinoos and has survived to these days.

The visitors to the house are always welcomed, no need for a phone call. When they Corfiots meet or leave, they hug and kiss each other once on each cheek (When I come back to Australia after a holiday to Greece I keep up the custom for a short while, then it wears out.)
Visitors bring a present - cookies, sweets or a bottle of drink and the hosts make available the best of their products. Greeks are very proud of the produce made in-house.
Greek people eat, drink and dance till late. Usually they stay up till very late. Most music and dance centres open at midnight and go till late morning. Even children stay up with the grown- ups.

During dinner people discuss the stock market (a hot subject since nearly everybody plays it with a lot of them losing big money), politics (they could get very excited about that), then gossip about neighbours, friends and relatives.

When the visitor leaves, the hosts will offer gifts, wine, oil, cheese, a rooster, eggs.
Most people smoke. They smoke in offices, at the banks, in the supermarkets. There aren't any 'no smoking' signs displayed and even if there is one everybody ignores it.
Greek village men are very dominant in the household. Women are treated as servants. Do not be offended by this, it is what they grow up to believe, although you won't see this male dominance in the large cities as the younger generation has now minimised this unfair treatment of women.