"There was thick choking smoke and fire everywhere. Three- and four-story buildings were burning and crumbling to the ground. Hell couldn't have looked worse. Thousands of women and children were flocking to the harbor in an effort to escape the holocaust and the pursuing Turkish soldiers. There were several large ships in the harbor, all bearing different flags, but none came to help. They chose to stay away from the docks."
"The murky waters of the harbor did not stop me from jumping in to swim toward one of the huge ships―the one I believed was flying the flag of the United States. Most of the people who swam alongside me toward the ships were met with misfortune: They were injured by the ships' propellers or poked with sticks from the sailors above as they clung to the anchor chains."
"The rage and destruction went on for days. In some places the flames rose as high as thirty meters, resembling an erupting volcano. I learned later that over a hundred thousand Greeks were massacred throughout the entire region. Although my extended family all perished in the holocaust, my mother and sisters managed to escape to the island of Lesbos. Later, they traveled to Athens, where we were eventually reunited at the home of my mother's brother, who lived there."
"You are probably wondering how I was so lucky to escape… I was taken with other refugees aboard the American ship to the island of Chios. Then I went to Piraeus, the
Port of Athens."
"Listen to me, after a couple of drinks of raki my tongue loses control. You know
Yanni ... I feel like I have let go of a ton of lead that was on my chest. I guess I needed to talk about what happened to me and my family."
The wind had calmed down now. The sun had lost its hold on the day. Darkness would soon take its place. The boat moved at a fast pace and the fresh Mediterranean salt air soothed the men's faces as they both stood by the steering wheel.
"Oh my captain ... My dear captain, what hell you have been through," said Yanni, in a low voice. "I should get on my knees and thank God that it didn't happen to me and my family."
"Yanni," interrupted Nikolas, "I've spent more than my share of talking. Why don't you tell us a little about yourself?"
"Okay, okay. Well, I guess I can," said Yanni. "I'm a simple man. I love the sea and everything to do with it. I just want to live on it, and when my time comes, to die on it."