Eat, Drink and be Greek!

By Taressa Ishimi

Lines, lines, and more lines! That would sum up the 30th Annual Greek Festival. Whether you were waiting in line for food, sitting in a row with other festival attendees, or holding hands with a complete stranger while taking your turn at a traditional Greek dance performed while in a...you guessed it, line, the Greek Festival was a wonderful series of lines.

Amongst the lines that one could peruse were a series of food stands which included gyros, Ouzo flavored sorbet, Greek salad, meat kabobs, and eight different kinds of dessert. Although the dessert stand had set up two counters, there were still lines leading up to each that provided many patrons with thirty minute waits. But believe me, the dessert was well worth the wait. And based on the turnout, it is safe to say that many would agree with me, considering that about halfway through the first day they had sold out of four of the eight desserts.

There were even lines of people standing to watch the Greek dancers perform as the seats filled for the second performance of the day. There were three sets of dancers performing twice on Saturday, who wore imported Greek outfits adding to the tone of the festivities.

But despite the lines, the sense of community was never lost on anyone in attendance. As the day went on, the rouses of “Opa” grew louder, the number of people volunteering to perform Greek dances seemed to triple, and the feeling of celebration and good will beamed from McCoy Pavilion.

So will there be another Greek Festival to look forward to next year? It’s hard to say but if you’re interested in showing your support and volunteering to help with baking for another festival (under the supervision of those who helped to cook for this year’s festival) you can contact Saints Constantine and Helen’s Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Pacific by calling (808) 521-7220, or by visiting www.ssconhelhi.goarch.org. At their website you can also learn about other events being put on through the church, including Modern Greek language classes and lectures about the Orthodox religion and the church itself.