The favorite food of locals and a slight hiccup

            This past week, or more accurately two weeks, have not been the best for me. There’s been lots of drama in my life, homesickness, confusion with next semester, and some pretty rough midterms (at least biology). But, it was all going to be alright once it was Saturday and I was on my flight to Dubrovnik, Croatia. Croatia was in my top two trips I wanted to take while abroad. However, as I was grabbing my bag and last few things for the airport, I realized something terrible: I did not have my passport.

            I turned my entire room upside down, checking every single drawer, bag, under radiators and dressers and then I began looking in kitchen cabinets. It was not in my room. At this point, I told everyone to leave for the airport without me, and if I found it I would meet up with them. In all this frustration, I woke my mom up trying to get some advice. After calling about twenty different numbers at the airport to see if I could board with photocopies of my passport, my mom said I should just go and find out in person. I wasn’t going to because I thought it would be a waste of money and a let-down, but then I knew it would always wonder “what if” and regret not trying.

            I called a taxi, while my friends had taken a train, and made it the airport at the same time as them. I ran up to the check in desk and the woman basically laughed in my face when I asked if I could use photocopies. I had to turn around and head back to my apartment while all my friends hopped on a plane. When I got back, I found out that the US embassy was closed on weekends, as was my school in Greece, and my study abroad advisor was out of the office.

I was able to figure out how to get an emergency temporary passport and file a lost passport report. Then, first thing Monday morning I went to the embassy. I was surprised to see how many people were there, many of whom were also Americans who lost their passport. A few of the people there did not want to give me an emergency passport because I wasn’t coming back to America in December, but then I showed them my stack of upcoming itineraries and their minds changed. I wound up being given the emergency passport that day. This was very lucky since I have a flight on Friday. This whole situation stressed me out so much and then had such a great ending that I decided to celebrate with a classic Greek food: a gyro.

A gyro is one of the most iconic foods when thinking of Greek cuisine. It is loved by both locals and foreigners alike and can be served several different ways. The typical Greek way to eat a gyro is with pork, tzatziki, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, and potatoes all wrapped in a freshly salted pita. The potatoes are similar to French fries, but more oval shaped and thick. However, this isn’t the only way to have gyros.

Another very common way to have a gyro prepared is with chicken. This is personally my favorite. Every place makes them differently, so it may have the same ingredients as the pork gyro. My favorite place to get a gyro actually do not put onions in it and instead of tzatziki, they use their signature sauce. I eat the chicken gyros way more frequently than I should, and I have no idea what kind of sauce it actually is.

Two other types of meat you may find in a gyro are lamb and beef, but these are not as common in Greece. I found it interesting because in American, they advertise gyros being stuffed with lamb, not pork or chicken. In fact, when my dad visited, he kept trying to tell me that it was lamb and not pork that's super popular in Greece. Depending if you ask for a gyro in a pita or a souvlaki in a pita, you can get a different type of meat. For instance, the chicken can either from a kabob, so the pieces are more rectangular, or it could be shaved and then they are thin pieces. I personally like the shaved chicken better, but I am still nervous to order because I mix up with is actually the gyro style versus the souvlaki style. Besides meat, there are also vegetarian options like putting in falafel or eggplant. 

Gyros are very easy to get. Every Greek restaurant sells them and they are very cheap. A gyro is typically three euros or less and it completely fills you up. My roommate and I often stop by our favorite gyro place after our night class. Lucky for us the restaurant is right down the street from our school and our dorm. It is smack in the middle of the two. All the employees know us by face, and usually order, because we go so often. They are also prepared very quickly. I’ve never ever had to wait longer two minutes if I was ordering to go.

There is nothing like taking the first bite of a gyro and having your mouth be flooded by the distant and fresh flavors of the spices and sauce. They are always warm and haven’t yet failed to impress me. I didn’t know if I would like gyros, but I have been more than pleasantly surprised. I believe I would try any traditional Greek dish. This would help me to learn more about the culture. I also love trying new things. Ultimately though, the local’s favorite, the gyro, is one of my favorites too. After my difficult week, I was glad to savor salty pita bread stuffed with fresh tomato and lettuce, perfectly seasoned chicken, and the famous secret sauce of my favorite gyro restaurant.