Velvento 6 - Agoratsiou: Party Of Thirty

We continued on to a very nice restaurant skirting the village and sat down as a party of 30...yes...THIRTY...to have dinner. It's the only time I can remember that I've sat at a table which literally went across the entirety of a restaurant. We ordered plates of chicken cutlet, squid, ribs, chicken filet, peppers, mushrooms, french fries, fish...you get the idea. This family knows how to eat! We also of course had a lot of Tsipporo and wine, and by the end of the three hour dinner, we were all having quite a good time. Upon arrival, my dad had gone to the manager and told him directly: "I want the bill. I want to pay. Bring me the bill at the end". We thought we had finally snuck in the chance to treat all of our family to dinner as they had put us up in their houses, made us endless food, guided us around town, and payed for everything we tried to buy. We were yet again wrong.


When the manager came to bring the bill, my cousin Giannis asked for it. My dad and the manager looked at each other in a moment of "what the heck!" and "I'm sorry!", respectively. He told my dad: "If I give you the bill, they will never come here again. Fifty people is too many to lose for my business"! My sister asked Giannis for the bill and he replied with a laugh. I stuck my hand out as if to ask for it as well and he smacked it away, laughing again. So, in my usual playful nature, I tricked him. I put my hand up for a high-five, and when he bit, I held his hand, and quickly snatched the bill from his other hand. Everyone at the table broke out in laughter as he had been defeated by the little American boy. I then got put in a strangle hold AND and arm lock by two of my other cousins, and barely managed to hand off the bill to my sister before hitting the ground in submission. She was swiftly gobbled up by another cousin as they finally wrestled the bill back (they outnumber us by about 40, so it was a never-ending sea of Greek gladiators ready to claim victory...their prize? A bill of debt for dinner).


At the very end, my mom stood up and successfully named everyone at the table. It was absolutely incredible and they all started to cheer at the end. What a funny moment for all of us, and a perfect cap to the end of our first day in Velvento for part two of the Agoratsiou family reunion.