File:Greek to Me (1) (86302221).jpg

This was on the back of this 1913 picture of my grandfather. Unfortunately, while several people in my family speak Greek, none of them can read it. I'm posting this here hoping to get a translation. See also here. If anyone reading this can translate it, please let me know!

Update: yanni writes:

I don't think this is your papou writing, when he's a baby on the picture. It is "like if" your papou (Georgios K. Kardakis) is writing this but it's definately another person (his mother?).

On the picture, around his head, you can read "Christos Anesti"..a greeting the Greeks use during Easter.

You probably know that Greeks celebrated their namedays sometimes more than their birthdays. In the first lines the text is a greeting and a wish for your papou's dad (your grand-grandfather) nameday. "For the purpose of your nameday, I wish you, my daddy, many happy years."

(During Easter, the names "Paskalis, Lambros, Anestis, Anastasios and Georgios" are celebrated).

Then the text goes on like: "I, your son Georgios K. Kardakis, kiss your right hand. My daddy, who you are not in Greece and left me as a small child. Now when you'll come back, you'll find a young man."

In the middle upper square: "Come back, my dad".

On the right there is a nice poem, they probably said for those who left Greece. I try to pass the meaning through as good as I can: "My beautiful swallows and doves...if you find my daddy, tell him a few words...tell him that I am handsome, tell him that I grew up...tell him that I'm not used to the trouble he left me."

I couldn't make out all of the words, but the meaning was more or less this. I hope it was helpful.

I'm very indebted to yanni for his translation. It appears that my great-grandfather came over a few years before my great-grandmother and grandfather; I had not known that before. I guess also he originally planned to go back to Greece; that didn't end up happening (my grandfather never went back after he came here at the age of 6).