Coming into this experience I knew that learning Greek would always be a struggle. I also had heard that most people spoke English so it wouldn’t be a huge deal. While that is true for the most part, I would highly recommend a basic knowledge of the language before visiting. I have only picked up a few words like ‘good day’, ‘hello’, ‘thank you’ and ‘please’ but even these have been hard to commit to memory. Greek is one of those languages where it is impossible to distinguish where words start and end when locals are talking. The other problem is that the words are quite long with complicated pronunciation. I would really like to be able to hold a conversation by the end of this semester but in order to do so I need to make local friends.
In class, when we do group activities, my professors always put the foreigners in one group and the locals in another. This really frustrates me because it is an easy way to make connections especially considering most of the locals I’m around speak Greek to each other so it’s a bit hard to join in.
One exciting part of learning the basics of the language is that the ladies at my supermarket now speak to me in Greek because I have some understanding of what they’re saying. Usually they say hello and then ask if I need a bag and then tell me my total. I’ve just memorised the order so in the off chance they say something else I might be in trouble, but it’s cool to feel a little less foreign sometimes!
Definitely something I’ll get onto in the next week!
Those are all true. However, you would think they would want to make friends with foreigners too so they can experience other places, but that might not be as much as part of their culture. I encourage you to ask your program director, one of your professors, or another staff member and see what they say. They might have a different perspective as someone who is local as well as seen students come and go.
My friends and I have a couple theories, mainly that they don’t want short term friends but also the college in general seems very divided. There’s over 200 study abroad students so I think the Greeks are very used to having foreigners come and go every semester. The other thing I think makes it challenging is that I’m in junior/senior level classes with people who have been in classes together for years now so they already have their set friend groups.
Why do you think they are so resistant to talking? Has anyone mentioned anything about this or shared why they might be like this? I know sometimes they may be a little hesitant since American/foreign students aren't there that long (a semester).
I try to say hello to any local students in my classes but many are quite resistant to talking. My American friends here have also noticed the same thing. I have made a few friends around the place but haven’t gotten to a point where I am comfortable enough to ask to hang out with them. This is something I’m trying to work on and then from there I can ask for help with Greek.