So, as I alluded to in several of my posts, I was lucky enough to have my mom fly over from the States to spend about a week in Greece with me. We split the time between Athens and Santorini and while we didn’t do quite as many archaeological things as the Summer Session, there were still plenty of site visits. I’m not going to break each day into separate posts, but I’ll toss up some highlights where I can.
On 8/3 I checked out of Loring Hall and headed to the Plaka where I checked into the hotel. Then I met Mom at the exit of the subway station at Syntagma and we got her stuff settled at the hotel as well. The first thing we did was head over into Kolonaki to look at the school and the surrounding neighborhood. Then we met Abi, Asia, Luke, and Amy for lunch at Stick Bar! It was great to see everyone one last time before the program ended.
The group at Stick Bar.
Then Mom and I attempted to go to the Numismatic Museum, but it was closing just as we arrived, sadly. So instead, we decided to hike up Lykabettos. It took a while because it sweltering hot, but we eventually made it to the top to take in the view. We walked down the hill and back to the hotel for an early dinner because we were both pretty exhausted at this point.
Introducing Mom to the most complete meal you can just pick up and hold.
While we were getting gyros for dinner, we saw an Antifa march. It was the first protest I’d seen in Greece. The people marching were really loud and seemed to be well organized. Mom snapped a picture quickly but then put the phone away. This turned out to be the right course of action because one couple that was filming got into a verbal altercation with some of the protesters because they were filming. Fortunately the argument resolved peacefully. over doing that. After dinner we turned in early to get a good jump off the next morning.
The Antifa march.
We woke up early and were at the ticket booth of the Acropolis by 7:40. This turned out to be the right move as the line at 8:00 was super long already. We managed to get up on the Acropolis before almost anyone else and snap some pics before it became a zoo.
An agreeable family snapped picture of us at the east end of the Parthenon.
Once we had seen the major sites up on the Acropolis, we walked down the South Slope through the various buildings and sanctuaries there. I gave my best abridged version of the talks we had heard as we went. Our path ended at the Acropolis Museum, which Mom really liked because of how the Parthenon is represented on the top floor with the same orientation as the real building.
We grabbed lunch off of Monastiraki Square after the museum. The proprietor showed me how to cut off a piece of kebab and pita and then put tzatziki on it. But it didn’t stop there, no, then he fed me the bite and wiped my face with a napkin. It was a weird experience, to say the least. But lunch was tasty and we moved on to the Agora afterwards.
Mom at the northeast corner of the Hephaesteion.
We walked around much of the Agora first, again with me talking about what I remembered from our many lectures with John Camp. We also ducked into the museum in the Stoa of Attalos, where Mom was particularly impressed by the restored ivory figurine. The child’s commode was also amusing.
After we left the Agora, we hit the Roman Agora and the Tower of the Winds. Hadrian’s Library followed directly afterwards. The size of Hadrian’s Library never fails to impress. It’s so monumental that imagining it roofed is a bit of a challenge. It’s also a really cool illustration of how building occurs on top of old structures. There’s an early Christian basilica directly in the middle of the former Library.
On our way from there to the Temple of Olympian Zeus, we went by a kiosk that was selling Pokemon hats, obviously capitalizing on the popularity of Pokemon GO. I swapped my hat for one immediately and we also got a couple for the friends who I played Pokemon with as a kid. The hats are awesome and more than a dozen people remarked on them during the week in Greece.
We hit Hadrian’s Arch the Temple of Zeus next. The toppled column at the Temple of Zeus was particularly interesting to Mom because it illustrated well the size of the column drums used in temples.
Background: Temple of Olympian Zeus. Foreground: Pokemon hat.
For dinner, we went for Indian food at the place I went with Luke, Sally, Abi, Asia, and Melanie late in the program. It was just as good a second time around. Thinking about that godly lamb curry still makes my mouth water. We turned in early again, because we had to get up even earlier for the next day.
We took a cab out to the airport at early o’clock to catch a 0720 flight to Santorini. Aegean Air was amazing. Like seriously just a fantastic flying experience. I had more legroom than I’ve had on any flight before in my life, excepting one time when I got upgraded to first class and when I flew over to Greece with an empty seat next to me.
After the short flight we landed and got our rental car, which was perfect for the island. It was sort of a beater with a lot of scuffs already. A very unassuming sort of vehicle that served us with distinction during our time on the island.
Our little beater Hyundai. It was a champ the whole visit to the island.
Our first stop was Ancient Thera, a site founded around the end of the Iron Age. What remains standing is mostly Hellenistic and Roman. Getting to the site was quite a challenge and required some painstaking switchbacks up the side of a very steep hill. Mom handled them with something resembling the grace of Panayiotis though, so everything went fine. Once we got to the top of hill, we had to walk a little higher to get to the site itself, which is really perched on the peak of the ridge.
The theater at Thera.
While we were up on the hill, I saw a fragmentary sekoma off to the side! It was great being able to identify it. I also got to explain it to some tourists who heard the tail end of what I said and wanted to know more. It was a little self-indulgent but sekomata are awesome, so whatever. We walked around the site, which has pretty good signage. It also has a sanctuary of the Egyptian gods. Seeing gods transplanted that far from home is pretty neat.
The sekoma at Thera. Can't get enough of these things.
We descended the mountain and found lunch at Souvlaki Stop, which made killer gyros and also had amazing Wifi. Then we drove up the coastal road on the east side of the island and found a small quiet beach to relax on.
Looking into Ammoudi Bay from the northwest.
Our final stop of the evening was Oia, and more specifically Ammoudi Bay. It’s basically a designated sunset-watching spot with some restaurants along the sea so you eat and soak up the beautiful view. We walked a ways on the cliffside before returning for a seafood dinner at one of the restaurants. It was one of those places that lets you pick a fish out of a case and then they serve it up and it was quite tasty.
The fantastic sunset at Ammoudi Bay.
After the sunset, we hustled to beat the massive traffic out of town back to the south side of the island where we were staying. It was a fantastic day and the next looked just as promising.
Due to length, the second post will be coming as “Bonus Week: Part Two”.
Thanks for reading.
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