Assos, Turkey

We spent our first five nights in Assos, Turkey at the Kervansaray Assos hotel. This was a wonderful location on the Aegean, and the hotel is a converted fortress. The view from our room was beautiful, with water and distant mountains in every direction. Louisa and I were on the second floor, and since a first floor addition was built to the back of the hotel, our window opened onto the roof of this addition. We loved spending time on the roof and reading or just taking in the scenery. Just as this roof allowed for such enjoyment, it also caused a tremendous fright during our second to last night in Assos. There was torrential rain and terrible thunderstorms this night, and I woke from my sleep to the loudest and most bizarre wailing I had ever heard. I at first thought it was part of my dream, but it became so real that I woke up to see a screeching cat in our room. I freaked out, yelled at Louisa, and jumped towards the cat so that it wouldn’t jump from the window ledge onto my bed, as it looked like it was about to do. I must have made a point because the cat quickly leapt out of the room, but it frightened us so that I still shudder when I think about its wailing. Louisa’s reaction was priceless. She groggily uttered, “well, that’s creepy.” :)

While in Assos, we spent almost the entire time reading the Iliad. We even read parts of it aloud as it is meant to be read. On our last day in Assos we saw the ancient temple and theatre there. This was beautiful and, like most classical temples, in an inspiring location on top of a hill overlooking water and mountains. Along the road that we took from the hotel to these sites (which was an incredibly long and steep climb that I, wrongly, thought I could run up!), we passed many loose sheep and cows. We also spent time relaxing in the theater, and some students put on little performances. Wheat rapped to “Ice Ice Baby,” and Mary and Louisa sang the lollipop guild song from The Wizard of Oz.

Thessaloniki and Xanthi

Monday, February 2nd, was somewhat of a failed adventure but also a wonderful day. The group was exhausted and getting weary since we had not had a true free day since January 19th in Egypt. We drove from Makrynitsa to Olynthos, but the museum there was closed. Then all restaurants were closed (because it was a Monday) until we reached Thessaloniki. Immediately after unloading at the hotel, we explored for restaurants and found a delicious pita gyro shop called Luigi’s. (It was very late in the afternoon by this point). They had delicious pita gyros. Then Allie, Louisa and I decided to explore Thessaloniki by taking a walk to the water. We went for what turned out to be a six-mile walk until dusk. We found the famous white tower on the water and then walked along an exercise path until we reached the end of the dock. It was an amazing walk, and we had wonderful conversation so that we all got to know each other more deeply. We agreed and disagreed on many things, but the conversation was inspiring for me since we were able to share beliefs without getting offended or confrontational. On the way back to the hotel, we lost our way and had to awkwardly consult Greek-speaking passers-by and a large map we had from the hotel. Once we found the street we should be on, we celebrated by each getting a little treat at a local bakery. That night, we ate at a crêpe restaurant that we had found on our walk and had delicious crêpes! They were different than ones I had had in the past because they were thicker, and the ingredients were different. I ordered one with many thick toppings – salami, potatoes, tomatoes, and cheese.

On Tuesday, we visited Vergina and saw the tumulus thought to contain the tomb of Philip II, Alexander the Great’s father. The site is literally a huge burial mound, and the museum is built inside the mound. Walking into the museum, you walk through a long dark tunnel under a huge mound of earth. The museum was one of my favorites because it was dark and almost mysterious, and the descriptions were thorough. I also find it so mysterious and interesting how much was put in people’s tombs for storage or preparation for the afterlife. It certainly is a foreign concept to us. Philip II’s tomb house, if you will, (what is thought to be his tomb; there is not universal consensus on this) was beautiful. It was in a large building (9.5 x 5.6 m) with the tumulus built around it, and is remarkably well-preserved. In preparation for our visit to Vergina, we read sources on Philip II’s assassination. Pausanius, the assassin, fled the site and was killed before anyone could ask him questions about his motives, so there are countless theories it.

On Wednesday, as we drove from Thessaloniki to Xanthi, we stopped in Philippi, the site of the first Christian community in Europe. Saint Paul traveled there in 50 A.D., and he wrote the epistle to the Philippians based on the community in Philippi. In addition to seeing the remains of the city with its church, market, and Roman agora, we especially enjoyed seeing the bathroom. Look up the ancient toilets at Philippi to picture this, because this is another idea that is completely foreign to us. We all sat on the toilets (and with 17 of us there were many to spare), and we sat about a foot away from the person next to us.

We had a free day on Thursday in Xanthi, Greece. While Xanthi is a sizeable town, it is small and relatively easily to navigate (though I did manage to get lost here too). On Thursday, I went to a very nice long “lunch”, starting at 3:00 pm, with Dr. Krentz, Emily, Louisa, Allie and Reed. The lunch was with the wife of a Davidson graduate and her two young children. The woman (and I can’t remember her name!) is Greek, and she met her husband in Germany while he was on a Davidson study abroad trip there. She is now a lawyer in Xanthi. Her husband tragically passed away because of a sickness several years ago, and there is a memorial scholarship in his name for Davidson students. We had a really delicious meal with her, and it was a valuable and eye-opening experience for us to meet her and her children. I definitely take my parents’ lives and having a stable two-parent household for granted.

More Greece

We continued on Sunday to the battle site of Thermopylai and the Neolithic settlement at Dimini. We drove through beautiful snow-covered mountains from Delphi. From the distant ground, such as at the monuments of Delphi, it appeared as if only the tips of the distant mountains were snow-covered. However, driving through them, there were long stretches of deep, beautiful snow. Thermopylai is named for the hot springs there, and we saw the steaming water – a huge contrast to the cold weather we were experiencing. We saw two monuments at Thermopylai commemorating the famous battle where the Persians killed a front of 300 Spartans.

We spent Sunday night in Makrynitsa, an adorable tiny town in Greece. Dr. Krentz told us that we needed to pack a small bag for the night because we could not take our suitcases into the hotel. When we arrived in Makrynitsa, the reasons were clear. The town streets are narrow, stone and uneven, and the bus would not have been able to fit through the town. Our hotel was well into the town and atop a narrow uphill stone street/path. Then the hotel itself was probably the most old-fashioned hotel I have ever seen. We called it a hobbit house since everything was miniature – the doors tiny and the ceilings low. The rooms themselves were interesting, and this was the first place where we actually had to share beds. (Going on the trip, I expected to share beds the entire time, but we have always had twin beds except for in Makrynitsa). Our showers also did not have shower curtains (and neither did our next hotel in Thessaloniki).

In addition to appreciating our hotel in Makrynitsa, we all fell in love with the town. It was quaint and authentic, and it had wonderful little shops and a total of two restaurants. We saw several spice shops, and in one of the street spice stores Louisa and I saw a special spice named Louisa. Though spending only one night in Makrynitsa was tiring and involved extra travel and complicated logistics, Dr. Krentz was right. The town was so cool that we were all so glad to be able to spend only one night there.

Delphi, and the Hike!

Friday afternoon, about half of the group and Dr. Krentz hiked up one of the Delphic mountains to a small hut, or lookout on the very top. Our hotel was on the lowest street in Delphi, so before we even started the hike we climbed the public stairs on the hill Delphi is built on. We then climbed the mountain, and this was one of the most fun hikes I have ever been on. We were surrounded by mountains and water, and the view was amazing. I hiked most of the way with Bryce and Liz, and as we “neared” the top we increasingly felt that we were not heading towards the lookout. We were still on a trail, and at a critical turn the trail markers directed us right. Therefore we turned right. Little did we know, the lookout was only a short distance to the left. We ended up far off any trail with no idea how to get to the lookout. We just headed in the direction we thought the hut to be, and I eventually spotted it in the distance. To get there, we bushwhacked, trespassed, followed the goat trails, climbed over recently exposed rocks and even over a low barbed wire fence. It was quite an experience, and we got tired and DIRTY! I was so glad to get to the hut safely and without any broken ankles. After marveling at the scenery, we followed the trail down the mountain and quickly saw the point where we turned awry. We soon met Dr. Krentz and Jensen who were waiting for us on the trail. On the way down, Liz and Bryce talked about how our experience was similar to that of Ephialtes in the movie “300” (which I haven’t seen).

On Saturday, we visited the Delphi Museum and the site of the Delphic oracle. This was fascinating since the Delphic oracle is one of the most famous sites we will see this trip. It was pouring rain on Saturday, but still great to be there. We saw the site of the oracle, the Athenian treasury, the remains of the Siphnian treasury, and the theatre. Unfortunately the site closed earlier than we had thought, and we were not allowed to continue to the race-track. We returned on Sunday morning to see the stadium and race-track. I loved seeing the race-track, and I especially loved the long, cold, early morning uphill climb that we had to take to get there. I definitely understand how that wakes one up.

Back to Greece

We rode the ferry last night from Crete back to Athens. Thankfully, nobody got sick this time! The ferry docks early, at around 6:00 am, so our day was long. First we saw the site of the burial of the Athenians from the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C. There is a huge burial mound at this site, and it is enclosed by a fence that we could not enter. The Battle of Marathon is listed as one of the most decisive battles in history. The Persians invaded the Athenian plain, and in a shocking victory 192 Athenians died against 6500 Persians deaths. This battle was decisive not because it ended the Persian War but because before this battle, nobody could stand up to the Persians. Dr. Krentz is writing a book on the Battle of Marathon that should be published in Spring, 2010. I look forward to reading it (and obtaining his signature) after hearing so much from him.

We also saw the trope, which was the site where the Persians turned and fled the battle site. A trophy was erected above a large column, and this column was reconstructed for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. We saw the trophy itself at the Museum of Marathon.

On Thursday, January 29th, we visited Eretria, Lefkandi, and Thebes. We first saw the remains of a house in Lefkandi from the Dark Ages. It was an intriguing site, and very little is known about the use of the site and likely builders. In Eretria, we saw the remains of a Greek city, and we visited the Eretrian Museum. Eretria is a Swiss excavation site, and Sylvian Fachard, the head of the Swiss School of Archaeology at Eretria gave us a tour of the museum, sites and acropolis. Sylvian was an excellent guide and a remarkable character. I found his family background especially interesting. He was born in New York and raised in Switzerland, and his mother is Greek. He speaks French, Italian, English and Greek and seemed like an all-round brilliant guy. He joined us for lunch, and I learned a lot by hearing from an active archaeologist. In particular, we learned about all of the paperwork and endless bureaucracy involved in starting a dig. Similar to problems of eminent domain in the U.S., a school must buy a property before digging it, and this often involves forcing a family to sell their home.

We also saw the House of the Mosaics in Eretria. This house, built in 370 B.C. and destroyed by fire in 270 B.C., was probably the residence of a very wealthy family. It has been dubbed “House of the Mosaics” for its beautiful and intricate floor mosaics.

I really enjoyed this meal at a taverna in Eretria with Sylvian. The meal was delicious, and I had pasticcio, a Greek pasta dish. In addition to being able to talk with Sylvian, I got to see a whole other side of Spiros. He does not usually eat with the group, but when he does he does not talk because he only speaks Greek. Well, Spiros sat next to Sylvian, and they had quite the conversation which Sylvian translated for us. The breakfast that morning at our hotel in Thebes was sub-par. Everywhere we have stayed this trip has had complementary breakfasts, and the range in quality has been vast. Thebes was the worst, and even I, and I proudly consider myself not picky, did not enjoy it. We could tell that Spiros was very passionate about whatever he was talking to Sylvian about, and he was using many dramatic hand gestures. He apparently told Sylvian that the breakfast was so bad he wanted to throw it in the hotel staff’s face! He also complained about the elevators which were, it is true, almost too small for one person. But by my estimations the hotel in Thebes was the best we have been to because it had free wireless! I don’t know if I should write this, but the password was wonderful – 1234567890.

On Friday, we visited the site of the Battle of Chaironeia, which occurred in 338 B.C. Philip II, king of the Macedonians, and his son Alexander, defeated the Greeks. This was a decisive battle because it was the end of the free Greek poleis. We then continued the drive into Delphi. More than any of the other Greek towns we have stayed in, Delphi is a vacation spot. It is under and between beautiful snow-covered mountains and is therefore a popular ski resort. Our hotel experience in Delphi was also interesting. It was filled with Greek high school students, and they were LOUD and frisky. We received several prank phone calls during the evening and early morning, and they all came back from the clubs at 5:00 am. This return must have awoken the entire hotel, and Dr. Krentz was not happy the next morning.