Remarkable, like everyone else. The Greek Way of Life: Humble Wisdom, Lasting Influence

A deeper look at how Greece has quietly shaped the world — and our hearts.

There’s a line I once heard in an Italian movie. Not the first time I watched it. Not even the second. But the third. It said:

“Extraordinari, come i tutti altri.”

Extraordinary, like everyone else.

At first, it just sounded poetic. But it stayed with me… and the more I thought about it, the more it felt Greek in spirit. Not in language — but in soul.

Gytheio

Greece, the quiet origin

Long before the Renaissance filled Italy with marble statues and luminous ideas, Southern Italy was Greek. Literally.

The region known as Magna Graecia — Greater Greece — included parts of today’s Calabria, Apulia, Campania, and Sicily. From the 8th century BC, Greek settlers established colonies there, bringing with them not just architecture and trade, but a way of thinking — rooted in philosophy, human dignity, balance, and belonging.

These values seeped into local customs, language, and even the Italian worldview. So when you hear a phrase like “Extraordinari, come i tutti altri” in a movie filmed in Tuscany, it may sound Italian… but its essence? Deeply Greek.

Greece: the teacher of empires

Greek influence extended far beyond Southern Italy. It reached the very heart of the Roman Empire — and shaped its soul. Many Roman emperors were educated by Greek philosophers. Some even lived in Greece, not for power, but for wisdom.

Hadrian, the emperor who built Rome’s iconic Pantheon, loved Athens deeply. He restored monuments, supported Greek culture, and was called Graeculus — “the little Greek” — in his youth.

Marcus Aurelius, remembered as the philosopher-emperor, drew his entire Stoic worldview from Greek thought, quoting Epictetus and practicing inner virtue until his death.

The universal languages of philosophy, medicine, art, and astronomy across the Roman Empire? Largely Greek in origin.

Even as Rome expanded through conquest, it looked to Greece for guidance on how to live, think, and rule.

A culture of meaning, not performance

In Greek culture, there’s no rush to be the best. No obsession with comparison. Instead, you’re reminded — sometimes silently — to just be who you are. To move through life at your own rhythm, with grace.

That Italian phrase I heard? In Greek, it might sound like this:

“Σπουδαίοι, όπως όλοι οι άλλοι.”

Remarkable, like everybody else.

At first, it may seem like a contradiction. How can we all be remarkable?

But here’s the beauty: the word σπουδαίοι comes from σπουδή — meaning study, care, depth, dedication. So being “remarkable” in Greek isn’t about being better than others. It’s about being present, living with meaning, and moving through life with purpose.

The Greek way: individuality with inclusion

Greek culture doesn’t erase the self. But it also doesn’t idolize it.

It makes room for both the individual and the whole. You don’t have to shine brighter than others to matter. You just have to show up — as you are.

Even “όπως όλοι οι άλλοι” — “like everyone else” — isn’t meant to diminish you. It’s meant to include you. To remind you that you belong — not in spite of your humanity, but because of it.

There’s no pressure to perform. Just an invitation to live with presence, with dignity, and with depth.

Influence in both directions

Just as Greece quietly shaped Southern Italy, Western Greece and the Peloponnese carry strong Venetian influences — a reminder that culture flows both ways.

From Epirus to Nafpaktos to the Ionian Islands, echoes of Venice can be seen in architecture, language, and trade. But rather than canceling each other out, these influences co-exist — proof that Greece has never been isolated, but always open.

It’s a crossroads. A conversation between worlds. And that, too, is part of its beauty.

Why this matters to us

We’re not historians. Just people who fell in love — slowly, deeply — with this land and the wisdom it carries. Everything you’ve just read is filtered through our own reflections. Not a general truth. Not an academic thesis. Just the connections we’ve come to see, the more we learn and the more we listen.

We don’t speak for Greece. But we hope to speak with it — to share what it has quietly taught us: that beauty doesn’t always shout, and that meaning often lives in the ordinary.

This is why we’re building Orama Oikos.

Not just to offer rooms. But to offer a way of being.

To help others experience Greece not just as a destination, but as a presence. To invite people into the values that still shape this land: depth, belonging, simplicity. The extraordinary… found in the everyday.

We believe Greece offers more than beaches and sunsets. (Though those are breathtaking, too.)

We want to connect you with its soul — with its ancient rhythm, its quiet dignity, and its reminder that:

You don’t have to be special to be worthy.

You already are.

And maybe that’s the most Greek thing of all.