SBS Greek has launched a new series of traditional fairy tales and folk stories. First in our series is the aptly named story "The fairy".
Greek folk stories are full of fairies. Because of these stories we know that nowadays, fairies are seen only by those who believe in their existence but in the olden days they were found everywhere and interacted with the human world, albeit reluctantly, or so the story goes. People feared and respected them.
Folk stories tell us that fairies loved nature and especially water and forests where they bathed or came to play. They were also found in remote places with large trees and heavy shade, bubbling brooks, waterfalls - especially after the rain - old bridges, lakes and rivers. The more beautiful a place was, the more chances it had to be 'home' to fairies. So, people approached those places with reverence and consideration.
In this story, the fairy is tricked into marriage by a young man determined to marry a beautiful lady from the magical world. But the fairy managed to escape and the young man had to undertake an almost impossible task to find her and bring her back.
