Meet our new friend Spyros. He is a man of many talents. He owns a chandlery on Aegina that seems to contain an endless treasure trove of nautical supplies. Mark and I often call his store “Aladdin’s Cave”. It’s bursting with anything a sailor could wish for. And if there’s something you need that you can’t find, he has it at his neighboring store that just a few steps down the lane that’s bursting with even more treasures. And if he doesn’t have it, he’ll make it appear within three to five working days.
But even more impressive than that, Spyros seems to be a philosopher full of wisdom: he gave us a really profound perspective on parenthood one afternoon, another day we learned a much needed Greek language lesson, and once, when a local woman walked into his store leaving the most impressively beguiling scent in her wake, he knew the exact name of her perfume. Of course, Spyros had the answer!
All of this is just the beginning—Spyros is also a gifted and artistic storyteller. He creates spectacular scenes in his store window that unfold the endless ideas going on in his head which he artistically brings to life in his window. He is the Warhol of windows, his canvas is set behind the glass storefront of his chandlery.
His latest window was a work of art which when we asked about it, he explained in great detail, unraveling the mysteries of his design. All made by his own creative hands. And every piece, including each grain of colored rice and its placement has meaning. Each of the chess pieces were ingeniously assembled from nuts and bolts to replicate knights, horses, pawns, kings, and queens. It was something to see.
About every month he changes the window. It’s had a disco ball and a live DJ once, and so many other amusing, instructive, or thought provoking scenes.
Mark’s great-grandfather was a window dresser so it made us pause, when we turned the corner on a little Greek street and found deliberate craftsmanship displayed inside a window casement.
It seems there’s no end to the magic Spyros can do. But if you’ve just come for three wishes on your boat to-do list from his treasure-filled chandlery, you just may miss all his sage advise and the brilliant scenes behind his storefront window…not to mention the name of an excellent perfume.
