A Journey to Crete!

      There are so many stories I could share about my time in Crete, I don’t know where to begin! I’ll warn you right away: this is going to be a long post! To start off, I’ll just mention a few things about the island itself and about the cities I traveled to while I was there. Crete is the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean and the largest of all the Greek islands. It has been under the control of many civilizations and empires over the course of its history and its art and architecture reflect these many cultural influences. Therefore, not only did I get to see the very oldest Bronze Age Minoan ruins but also Venetian and Ottoman structures and art work.  Over the course of five days, our group visited three of Crete’s major cities: Heraklio, Rethymno and Chania. Each of these cities is along the northern coast of Crete and contains a beautiful mix of mountain and sea views. In order to arrive on Crete, our group left the port of Piraeus in Athens and traveled by ferry (overnight) to the port at Heraklio. The ferry ride itself was a new experience for me so I was already so excited to begin the trip! We arrived on Crete early in the morning on Tuesday and launched right in to our busy schedule.

                                                                     On the Ferry!

 Day one began at the Minoan palace and city of Malia. Although it is difficult to picture now, Malia was once a thriving town during the Bronze Age. It was initially built around 1900 BC and was rebuilt several times only to be devestated once and for all in 1450 BC. I still get chills every time I step on a walk-way where I know people stood some four thousand years ago. After visiting the site of Malia our group continued to a second Bronze Age city, that of Gournia. This site, much like Malia, contained many of the standard features of a Minoan city such as a central court. Below are a few pictures from both archaeological sties.

                                                                   A giant Pithos!

                                      

                                                                The view from Gournia!

                         

                                                          The Mediterranean!

    After a long ferry ride and two hikes around Malia and Gournia, our group was ready for some relaxtion. We headed to the small (modern) town of Pacheia Ammos where we stopped for a late lunch and a swim in the Mediterannean! There is just nothing like floating in the clear blue water of the Mediterannean while taking in the beautiful mountain views. 

   Day two of our Cretan journey centered around a visit to the most famous Minoan palace: Knossos! Having learned the most about this particular site, I was so thrilled to be able to see it for myself. In addition to walking around the enormous palace complex, we also visited the Archaeological Museum where I got to see the Leaping Bull mosaic that I studied in my very first art history class at Tufts (see pic below). Much of the original archaeological site of Knossos was reconstructed by the archaeologist Arthur Evens so many of the pictures I took include views of his reconstructed columns and mosaics. The original columns were made of wood and thus do not survive.

                                                                    Knossos!

After seeing many Minoan palaces and cities, our group spent much of the last two days of our trip visiting more recently built structures. These included two Venetian Fortetsa castles, one in Rethymno and one in Chania, as well as a Venetian monastery. The Venetians occupied Crete during the 12th-17th c. AD and were eventually ousted by the Ottomans during the 17th century. It is still possible to see traces of both Venetian and Ottoman occupation on Crete. One example of this can be found on the original Venetian fortetsa in Rethymno where a church was converted by the Ottomans into a mosque. Evidence of traditional Turkish bath houses, called Hammams, can also be seen in Chania.

                                        Venetian fortress (above)/ Venetian church (below)
                                                    

                                  Another Venetian fortress (above)/ Church turned mosque (below)

                                                        

                           Church at the Arkadi Monastery (above)/ Turkish hammam (below)

It would be impossible to recount all of my experiences in Crete, but I’ll leave you with a few of my favorites: walking down 4,000 year old steps, swimming in the Mediterannean, visting the only remaining synagogue on Crete, holding a 3,500 year old pomegrante, seeing a reconstruction of a Minoan ship...and many many more!

Hope you enjoy!

Sam 

Syntagma, Acropolis, Plaka...and more!

            A lot has happened since the last time I posted! Most notably, I just finished up my first week of classes here in Athens. The four courses I am taking this semester are Ancient Greek (Lysias), Latin (Seneca), The Near East during the Hellenistic Period, and Bronze Age Art and Archaeology. It is just as amazing as I thought it would be to read Ancient Greek and learn about the Bronze Age in Greece itself! I have even had a class on site at the National Archaeological Museum already!

            Before classes started, I spent last Sunday exploring Syntagma Square. In addition to finding a store where we could buy school supplies, my friends and I also wandered up to the Parliament building. We happened to arrive right before the changing of the gaurd ceremony in front of the tomb of the unknown soldier. It was enthralling to watch the regimented and precise steps of the two gaurds and two soldiers.

            Right next to Parliament is the Syntagma Square metro stop inside of which is a mini-museum. All around the underground station are samples of Ancient Greek pottery, sculptures, and even an exposed section of the underground earthen layers with ancient roadways and even burials! My friends and I had to take a picture next to the full skeleton in the subway station, although I’m not sure it came up clearly in the picture.  

          On Tuesday, after my second day of classes, I finally made it up to the top of the Acropolis! I don’t think there will ever come a time when I am not in awe of the Parthenon and its surrounding buildings.  I made it up the steep marble steps and found myself staring in amazement. Since I went just before dusk the whole city had a warm glow as I looked down on it from the walls of the Acropolis. Additionally, it was a great time of day to visit because there wasn’t a huge mob of tourists crowded around. Instead, I was free to slowly wander around and take everything in. One new thing I noticed was evidence of later Roman and Byzantine occupation of the site, such as a damaged corinthian capital and an engraved cross (see pictures below). It’s easy to forget that other groups saw the significane of the Acropolis and altered the buildings for their use (such as converting the Parthenon into a church). It was such an amazing experience walking amoung these buildings and I can’t wait to go back many more times!

            Since I can’t help gushing over Greece’s food, I have to quickly mention my new favorite lunch/dinner spot in Pangrati: Grill and Pita.  My roommates and I have already gone twice this week for dinner! By far the best thing I’ve eaten in Greece so far has been the chicken gyro from Grill and Pita. It’s a delicious combination of shaved chicken, lettuce, onions, fried potatoes and tzatziki sauce all wrapped in a warm pita. It’s amazing!

            That brings me to today’s adventures which included an extensive shopping trip in Plaka, the area just under the Acropolis.  In addition to browsing the jewelry and leather stores, we made our way to the Poet Sandal Maker, a famous family run leather shoe-making shop. Two of my roommates and I happily purchased a pair of custom made leather sandles which we will always remember came from Athens, Greece! As often seems the case in Greece, we stumbled upon some ruins on the way to the sandle maker! Right across from all of those modern stores stood the site of Hadrian’s Library (the same Hadrian who I talked about in my previous post).  Of course, I was mesmerized so I stopped to take a few pictures.

            I’m sorry if this post was a bit long-winded, but I am so excited to share all of my experiences and pictures. I hope you enjoy the stories and I can’t wait to write all about my trip to Crete when I arrive back in Athens next week!

Sam

Freaks and Greeks, Pt. 3 "Sea Urchins Aren't Nice"

Last Saturday was the first time I've left Athens since arriving in Greece. On a tip from our modern Greek professors, about ten of us took the coastal bus down the winding highways that hug the cliff side to make our way to Cape Sounion at the southern tip of Attica. The ride was supposed to be 90 minutes long but, in true Greek fashion, took an hour longer. I didn't really mind though, because it was my first chance to see the Mediterranean. Its definitely been said before, but you wouldn't believe how magnificently blue the water is. I smiled the entire trip down - I think I may have creeped a few Greeks out. Mission Accomplished, Am I Right?

There were two reasons to go down to Sounion - the ocean and the Temple of Poseidon. The cape is a cliff that juts out into the ocean, and the Ancients chose the spot for a Temple to Poseidon - God of the Sea. It was really breathtaking to walk up the path and see the marble columns juxtaposed against the waves. I'm so sorry, I can't believe I actually just wrote "Juxtaposed." Anyway, the temple is a great example of the Doric order of building (the columns don't have fancy bases), and one can definitely imagine ancient Greek sailors seeing the temple as a welcome sight and a reminder of home after long voyages away from Hellas. 

 There's a great beach in Sounion, but we decided to be adventurous and climb down the rocks to swim in a secluded natural harbor we saw after walking around the paths. The stones formed some natural steps so it was easy to walk down and get to the waves. The water was so refreshing and warm, and I was struck by how salty it was. The wind can be pretty intense at times too, so the sea mist pounding your face adds to the sense of adventure, I suppose.  Despite how clear and blue the water was, none of us noticed the small black sea urchins clutching the sides of the rocks on the bottom. A few missteps changed that - the barbs are like a combination between a bee sting and a splinter - not pleasant. I only got a few in one toe, and I didn't have that bad of a reaction. My roommate, on the other hand, got some welts all down his side that needed an ointment from a local restaurant. Guess sea urchins can be poisonous, or at least people have different allergic reactions to them.

We made our wall to a taverna on top of the cliff after that ordeal, and then made our way down to the (almost urchin free) beach. As the sun started to set we made our way up the hill again to catch a bus back to Athens. While we were waiting we caught a breathtaking view of the area. It doesn't get much better (or much more Greek) than some ancient ruins on top of a cliff catching the light of a fading sun over the sea. I can feel myself falling in love with this place.

Definitely come to Sounion if you're ever in the area. That's an order, not a suggestion.
Anthony

Tavernas and Temples

The past five days have included a mixture of excitement, exhaustion, fear and amazement. One big adjustment (aside from the jet lag) has been learning to adapt to living in a city.  My apartment (see picture below), which is located in the neighborhood of Pangrati, is just about a five-minute walk from the Academic Center. However, my roommates and I quickly discovered that it’s best to leave ourselves at least ten minutes in order to make it across the busy streets of Athens.  Most cars don’t seem too concerned with stopping for pedestrians and numerous motorcycles weave in and out on the tightly packed streets.

Another adjustment has been learning to communicate with the Greek people. One part of orientation that was extremely helpful was our survival Modern Greek class that met three times over the course of the week. The pronunciation of Modern and Ancient Greek is very different so it has been helpful to know some key words and phrases. Since I’m excited to have some knowledge of a language that’s not dead, I thought I’d share some important words/phrases with you.

Γεια σου (hello/goodbye)

Συγγνώμη (Sorry)

Ευχαριστώ (Thank you)

Παρακαλώ (Please)

Θελω ένα παγωτό σοκολατά. (I want one chocolate ice cream)

Πώς σε λένε; (What is your name?)

Πού είναι; (Where is it?)

Τι κάνεις; (How are you?)

I’ve found that even if I don’t pronounce every word correctly most people are just happy that I’ve at least tried to speak to them in Greek.

            In addition to my modern Greek class, a few other highlights from this week include visiting the U.S. Embassy, eating at a Greek taverna, and enjoying a garden party held at the home of CYA president Dr. Phylactopoulos. While visiting the Embassy we were able to learn more about the services it provides Americans and even meet the Embassador himself.  The food at both the taverna and at Dr. Phylactopoulos’ home was amazing and I look forward to eating much more of it over the next three months!

            After such a busy first week, I decided to sleep in a little bit this morning and then head out to explore the city.  Below are some pictures from today’s adventures. With a few new friends in tow, I walked through the National Gardens toward the Zappeion. This building was constructed in order to hold indoor events for the first modern Olympic games in 1896. After taking a few pictures we walked to the Temple of Olympian Zeus which was built by the Emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century AD during Rome’s control of Greece. Looking up at the towering corinthian columns it hit me just how lucky I am to be here in Athens. Around the perimeter of the temple are ruins of a Roman bath complex, a neighborhood area, and Hadrian's Arch (also dated to the 2nd century AD).  

        After seeing some later Roman construction, we shifted back to classical Greece as we entered the Acropolis Museum. We spent about two hours here taking in all of the amazing sculptures that have been relocated to the museum from their original location on the Acropolis. Some of what we saw included the caryatids (female figures) from the porch of the maidens on the Erechtheion, the remains of the two pediments from the Parthenon, and many many korai and koroi (archaic statues). Unfortuntely photography was not allowed inside the museum so I don’t have any pictures to share.

            I’m looking forward to heading back out into the city tomorrow to walk around Plaka (near the Acropolis) and Syntagma square. More pictures and stories to follow!

         Sam

Freaks and Greeks, Pt.2 "Orientation"

My perception of time is all over the place right now. We've been in Athens for 4 days, but it already feels like I've lived here for weeks. The days go by very slowly, but they're overflowing with activity once you look back as the sun goes down and the streets cool off.

The majority of our time here so far has been spent getting oriented with the city and our program. We've had crash courses in Survival Greek for the past few days to learn some key phrases to get by. I promptly decided to drop one of my original classes and sign up for a full semester of Greek, because I think it will make my experience here exponentially better. The original Olympic Stadium is right by our school and a 3 minute walk from my apartment, and there's a running path at the top that offers some amazing views of the city. A few of us have started making morning runs a daily occurrence, because the longer the sun is up, the hotter it will assuredly be. Other than that, we've spent a lot of time with (and without) the faculty learning about our neighborhood (Παγκράτι, or Pangrati, as best as I can transliterate). It certainly has a lot of charm. I'm lucky enough to live above a mini-market, and I've already introduced myself to the shopkeeper. She's incredibly nice, and I'm sure she'll have some great advice about the city and the neighborhood.

I FINALLY remembered to start carrying my camera around. A few of us made the trek up to the Acropolis in our free time yesterday - we have free admission with our student IDs, so I'm sure we'll be heading up pretty often. 

The first thing that comes to mind in retrospect is how slippery the marble steps are. Millions of people have been climbing them for thousands of years, so it makes sense that they'd be slick. Note to self: never wears sandals up there again. I made my peace with life a few times at particularly slippery moments near particularly gut wrenching precipices, but that's honestly ok, because the Acropolis is truly stunning. I don't know what I loved more: the buildings or the view from above. The city sprawls out for miles from the central point near the Acropolis, and you can see all of the mountains and the sea in the distance. It makes sense why the ancients would consider it hallowed ground. The Parthenon was breathtaking as well, and it's one of those rare places on Earth where the stunning pictures you look at in books (thinking, there's no way it's that nice) don't lie. The sheer magnitude is astounding, and you barely notice the conservation scaffolding around the building. Fun Fact* - you can see the gouges in the marble columns from the cannonballs. Other Fun Fact* - if you didn't already know, the reason the Parthenon doesn't have a roof and is technically a ruin is because the Turks used it to store gunpowder and a stray Venetian cannonball "accidentally" hit the powder keg when they started their siege in 1687 (and by "if you didn't already know" I mean "Everyone not in the Classics department at Tufts, ie my family. PS Hi Mum!). I can't wait to go back up right before it closes to see Athens at sunset.

Speaking of sunsets, we spent last night broken into small groups with faculty members at local Tavernas for authentic Greek meals. The picture I have doesn't do it justice - it's a shame my camera can't change shutter speeds - but trust me when I say that it was wonderful. The food never stopped coming, and I've yet to have anything that wasn't delicious.

I could keep writing for days, but we have to go to the American Embassy soon to register and I have a feeling that isn't something I should miss.

Anthony

Freaks and Greeks, Pt. 1 "Arrival"

I've been trying to think of a witty title for my posts for ages so that it's easier to distinguish my posts from  Sam's, and "Freaks and Greeks" is the best I can come up with because I absolutely refuse to call it "It's All Greek to Me." There's no malice intended in the name: I just think that it has a nice ring to it.

The past few days have been a hectic and wonderful blur. I always love packing for a new trip - there's something cathartic about choosing only the essential items to take with you, because by the time the suitcase is filled you know that everything that's inside really represents you. In my case, that means too many free Tufts t-shirts that I've accumulated over the years and about 6 unopened cases of special allergenic contact solution for "sensitive eyes." I guess I'll take it. Anyway, the travelling itself was incredibly smooth and as enjoyable as it could be, given the flight times and lay overs. This was only my second intercontinental flight out of Boston (shout out to Tufts in Talloires) but I've already learned a few things about big flights:

1) Take advantage of the free movies (in my case, 21 Jump Street and Dr. Seuss's The Lorax. One was good, and one was terrible. You be the judge)

2) Don't take advantage of the free movies if you haven't slept and your watch reads 2 am Boston time

3) The flight attendants never stop feeding you.

In retrospect, I think I really like those flights, besides the nagging feeling in the back of my head that I'm flying over frigid and unforgiving oceans somewhere near Iceland. I landed in London without any problems and met all 7 Notre Dame students also doing CYA, as well as someone from Pitzer. We all were surpercharged with that unique anxious excitement that comes from new beginnings - like the night before the first day of school growing up. That excitement didn't hold over on the plane into Athens, though, because we all passed out from sheer exhaustion (my watch was reading 5 AM Boston time). It was a good thing that we got that small amount of sleep in, though, because there wasn't much time to waste when we got to Athens itself. 

I was ushered into a taxi and sent with a set of giant and intimidating keys to let myself into my new apartment. The neighborhood is a bit of a convoluted maze of concrete and plants, and I absolutely love it. The lift to get up to my apartment was a little bit on the closet side of things, and it has two sets of doors that need to be closed to ensure you can't just touch the bare wall as you ride up, but other than that it was smooth sailing. I made my way to the Academic Center to pay my apartment deposit and get my Greek cell phone set up before heading out to explore the city with my roommates and new classmates. I'm ashamed to say I already forgot my camera, and was kicking myself as we ate lunch by Hadrian's Arch with the Acropolis on the near horizon. And I mean quite literally kicking myself - the sidewalks are a bit uneven and I have a bad habit of tripping myself. Athens and I are going to be great friends, I can already tell.

Anthony

PS I SWEAR I'll have pictures for the next post. None of that Instagram garbage, though. This city deserves better that that.

The Final Countdown

Now that I’m less than two days away from arriving in Athens (yay!), I thought I’d share some pictures and thoughts about my preparation and the packing process. I still can’t believe that I first started planning and researching the CYA program almost a year ago!  After receiving my acceptance to CYA I started the long (and confusing) process of obtaining a student visa, which is required for anyone planning to stay in Greece for longer than 90 days.  Given that it is the most important step in the preparation process, I was eager to get that student visa in my hands long before I was expected to leave for Athens. After one FBI report, many calls to the Greek consulate, and one trip to New York I finally received my visa in late July.

Although the student visa process wasn’t easy, by far the most difficult part of preparing for my time in Athens has been trying to stuff four months worth of my belongings into two suitcases! If that isn’t hard enough, try keeping those suitcases under fifty pounds! It took two days and one giant pile of rejected clothing (see below), but I now have two successfully packed suitcases sitting in my room ready for my flight tomorrow.

Now that all of the preparation is over, I’m left to anticipate all of the amazing experiences I’m about to have! I can’t wait to see the city that I’ll call home for four months and start what I’m sure is going to be a great adventure. I’m excited to share my pictures and stories with you and I hope you’ll enjoy seeing and reading them! Wish me luck!

Sam