Spetses
Sunday, March 28, 2010
N
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Alex Stone comes to Greece by Kimberly Lesher
I know I know it has been SO long. I am truly sorry. I have not had much motivation to write lately. I just finished up what is called my Teacher Work Sample for my student teaching course and I think it took every ounce of motivation out of me to write anything. Anyway you haven't missed much except for a few trips. Alex came over and we spent a few days in Nafplion. Nafplion is the most gorgeous town in Greece I think. It is located in the Peloponnese part of Greece, about 2 hours away from Athens. We took the train so it took us a little longer. Nafplion is an old city and was the site of the first Capital it has some amazing views, shops, food and the people are super friendly. In Nafplion there is a giant castle called Palamidi on top of the two hills in the city it has a pretty interesting history. It played a major role in the Greek war of Independence. I am not going to go on and on about it but if you would like to look it up on Wikipedia I recommend it. It was pretty rainy and cloudy there while we were there but there was still plenty to see. When we first arrived we decided we needed to climb to the top of the "hill" that Palamidi is on. Don't let the label of hill fool you. It is quite the climb. It is more than 2000 steps to reach the top of the fortress. We got to the admission gate and were disappointed to find that the fortress closed in 10 minutes. We decided not to waste our Euros and to return another day, as we took our shaking legs back down the hill we got quite a spectacular view of the city and the coast. We then headed to the beach and the cliff walk. It was the first time I had ever seen anything resembling a tide pool. Although the Mediterranean does not really experience much in the way of tides things still get washed up in the rock pools and it was interesting to see the little crabs and urchins. There were a few people that ventured a swim but neither Alex or I was looking for that type of rush on that particular day. There is another section of the castle separate from the one on the hill that is open to explore at your own will that we ventured up to as we were making our way around. There wasn't a whole lot to see but it was still really humbling to be standing in such a big place were people once conducted their daily lives.
On Tuesday we went to an Island by the name of Spetses. Our hotel conscierge had told us it should only take us an hour to get there by bus and then just a few minutes by fairy. He was wrong. We spent most of our day on the bus it took a little more than 2 hours to get there, and I got terribly car sick winding our way through the hills and valleys. Worst of all we really struggled to communicate with the people in the small towns that we had to stop and change buses in. All I could say was we want to go to Spetses and they would point to the bus we were to get on and wag their head. Just when I was about to give up we arrive at the coast and saw the shining island across the way. We took the fairy and the water was beautiful just like what you see in the movies. Bright blue with red and green islands with white houses all around. I felt like we could make a post card. We got off the fairy and began walking around the city. The walk ways were incredible pieces. They were made up of white and dark stones and laid out in decorative patterns. I can't imagine the work that must have gone into constructing them. We had lunch on the island and then because it took us so long to get there we had to head back fairly quickly. We took a water taxi back to the main land just as a storm began to roll in. Bringing the rain once again. We rode back in style on our Mercedes Benz bus and I had found some Dramamine by that time so I was good to go. The trip back took half the time. You wouldn't believe how our big touring bus fit though some of the narrow village streets. These drivers are real pros. We had a coffee and later pizza that night and decided to peruze the shopping sections of the old town, stopping at a couple of the many Icecream shops that are around the town.
On our final day we went back up to the castle. It was really foggy that day and we couldn't see much of the town. I think we spent the whole day walking around in the rain cloud. We were both soaked but the castle had so many parts to explore and things to see neither of us noticed how soaked we were. We stayed warm by hiking all over the the grounds. It was again really surreal to imagine what it must have been like to live in such a place. It was incredibly exciting to see the dwellings and prisons and churches in the castle. While there are places where grass covers much of the ground you can tell that at one point it was a significant place to be by the buildings architecture. After we came back down we got on the train and headed back. Not before hitting up a few more Ice cream shops of course we needed sustenance for the trip back.
On Thursday we had another nice day so Alex and I headed to where else? The Acropolis of course. There was a strike on all forms of Public transportation that day so we had to take a cab to get there. We had a great time exploring the city and I took Alex to St. Paul's rock which is one of my favorite places. After that walked to the Greek Agora and had dinner in Monistiriki. We had the meat sampler platter which included all the great fast foods of Greece but surprisingly no fish or Lamb. There were some classic sausages, pork and chicken. It was all really great food. We wrapped up the last of the day light hours with the Roman Agora, the Gate of Athena, The Roman Toilets and The Tower of the Winds. Which is also one of my favorite parts of Athens. We hiked up Philopappou Hill to watch the sun set over the sea, ending an almost perfect day.
Friday Alex thought we should stick with our hiking up really large hills theme of the week and take on Lycavitos also posted previously as Mount Lycabettus. (both are correct) we started the hill from an unfamiliar place and ended up winding through a park which was much more enjoyable than all of the steps that I had take before. When we reach the summit the church was open and we went inside. They didn't allow us to take pictures unfortunately but on every surface of the walls there were paintings. One half had stories from the New Testament the other half had depictions from the Old Testament. The paintings were backed by dark blue colors and there was gold framing each depiction on the ceiling and walls. After I had take my fill we headed up to the Olympic Stadium. It is spectacular viewing it from the train, unfortunately it has fallen into a bit of disrepair. The grounds are unkempt and there is not much to see there but the pool was open and there were people using it for practice. It was really exciting to be in the pool you could almost feel the energy that was there during the Olympics with some of the flags hung and the hot tub whirling.We met friends for coffee that afternoon and then later that evening we went to several of the hot spots around Athens for night life. Kolonike is one of the posh neighborhoods that we visited first after we made our way down to Panormue which is considered a sort of boho or artistic place to be. We shared some drinks with friends and headed home at around 4 in the morning. Most Mediterranean bars don't really get going until 12 o'clock or later so nights end up being much later. But the scene is fairly similar to any other bar you see in the US. Maybe even less dancing then in the states. Saturday was spent just meandering around Dafni where I live and enjoying the last hours of any homeyness Alex brought with him. We got up at 3:30 Sunday morning and I took Alex back to the Airport and came home. There is more of course to tell from after he left but I will save that for another post a month from now. Just kidding. Be looking pictures and Part II some time this week.
I miss you all VERY MUCH!
Yassas
On Tuesday we went to an Island by the name of Spetses. Our hotel conscierge had told us it should only take us an hour to get there by bus and then just a few minutes by fairy. He was wrong. We spent most of our day on the bus it took a little more than 2 hours to get there, and I got terribly car sick winding our way through the hills and valleys. Worst of all we really struggled to communicate with the people in the small towns that we had to stop and change buses in. All I could say was we want to go to Spetses and they would point to the bus we were to get on and wag their head. Just when I was about to give up we arrive at the coast and saw the shining island across the way. We took the fairy and the water was beautiful just like what you see in the movies. Bright blue with red and green islands with white houses all around. I felt like we could make a post card. We got off the fairy and began walking around the city. The walk ways were incredible pieces. They were made up of white and dark stones and laid out in decorative patterns. I can't imagine the work that must have gone into constructing them. We had lunch on the island and then because it took us so long to get there we had to head back fairly quickly. We took a water taxi back to the main land just as a storm began to roll in. Bringing the rain once again. We rode back in style on our Mercedes Benz bus and I had found some Dramamine by that time so I was good to go. The trip back took half the time. You wouldn't believe how our big touring bus fit though some of the narrow village streets. These drivers are real pros. We had a coffee and later pizza that night and decided to peruze the shopping sections of the old town, stopping at a couple of the many Icecream shops that are around the town.
On our final day we went back up to the castle. It was really foggy that day and we couldn't see much of the town. I think we spent the whole day walking around in the rain cloud. We were both soaked but the castle had so many parts to explore and things to see neither of us noticed how soaked we were. We stayed warm by hiking all over the the grounds. It was again really surreal to imagine what it must have been like to live in such a place. It was incredibly exciting to see the dwellings and prisons and churches in the castle. While there are places where grass covers much of the ground you can tell that at one point it was a significant place to be by the buildings architecture. After we came back down we got on the train and headed back. Not before hitting up a few more Ice cream shops of course we needed sustenance for the trip back.
On Thursday we had another nice day so Alex and I headed to where else? The Acropolis of course. There was a strike on all forms of Public transportation that day so we had to take a cab to get there. We had a great time exploring the city and I took Alex to St. Paul's rock which is one of my favorite places. After that walked to the Greek Agora and had dinner in Monistiriki. We had the meat sampler platter which included all the great fast foods of Greece but surprisingly no fish or Lamb. There were some classic sausages, pork and chicken. It was all really great food. We wrapped up the last of the day light hours with the Roman Agora, the Gate of Athena, The Roman Toilets and The Tower of the Winds. Which is also one of my favorite parts of Athens. We hiked up Philopappou Hill to watch the sun set over the sea, ending an almost perfect day.
Friday Alex thought we should stick with our hiking up really large hills theme of the week and take on Lycavitos also posted previously as Mount Lycabettus. (both are correct) we started the hill from an unfamiliar place and ended up winding through a park which was much more enjoyable than all of the steps that I had take before. When we reach the summit the church was open and we went inside. They didn't allow us to take pictures unfortunately but on every surface of the walls there were paintings. One half had stories from the New Testament the other half had depictions from the Old Testament. The paintings were backed by dark blue colors and there was gold framing each depiction on the ceiling and walls. After I had take my fill we headed up to the Olympic Stadium. It is spectacular viewing it from the train, unfortunately it has fallen into a bit of disrepair. The grounds are unkempt and there is not much to see there but the pool was open and there were people using it for practice. It was really exciting to be in the pool you could almost feel the energy that was there during the Olympics with some of the flags hung and the hot tub whirling.We met friends for coffee that afternoon and then later that evening we went to several of the hot spots around Athens for night life. Kolonike is one of the posh neighborhoods that we visited first after we made our way down to Panormue which is considered a sort of boho or artistic place to be. We shared some drinks with friends and headed home at around 4 in the morning. Most Mediterranean bars don't really get going until 12 o'clock or later so nights end up being much later. But the scene is fairly similar to any other bar you see in the US. Maybe even less dancing then in the states. Saturday was spent just meandering around Dafni where I live and enjoying the last hours of any homeyness Alex brought with him. We got up at 3:30 Sunday morning and I took Alex back to the Airport and came home. There is more of course to tell from after he left but I will save that for another post a month from now. Just kidding. Be looking pictures and Part II some time this week.
I miss you all VERY MUCH!
Yassas
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Pictures
Carnival Days
Ancient Agora
On Aries Rock. The Acropolis in the background. This is one of my favorite places in the entire city. You can see every part of the city from here except what is behind the mountains. It is where St. Paul came to give his sermons. There are ancient steps up to the rock and a sitting area that has been made up.
The village and the sea. I loved the sea even though it was gray outside I could have spent the entire day there. The village was in the Peloponnese area the climate was unimaginably damp. I when I got dressed for the day it felt like my cloths had just come out of the washing machine. After I had warmed them up it was better but the dampness never let up. They use a wood stove to keep the house warm in the village. The houses are made of cement or stone. It was the really cold and damp.
The gypsy man played music for me for a few hours I felt really bad for him because he just wanted to eat but he made really good money that night. On the right is a Soulvaika. It was sooooo good! They serve it with lemon they marinate it with lemon olive oil and salt and oregano. Delicious!
Carnival Costumes I actually had the cow girl stuff with me. The picture in the middle has two of the girls I work with at the School the one in the middle is Angela and the one on the right is Victoria. Victoria is a Greek American and Angela is Greek British. Angela is a drama teacher she was a super nerd. Victoria is a 5th grade teacher she was a Native American. The other two girls were new acquaintances their costumes were white trash, and Frida Kahlo.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Sorry for the Delay
Hi there, I am sorry I haven't been able to write at all lately. All of my time has been taken up with teaching and writing.
It has been an exciting few weeks. In addition to the work I have spent a little bit of time participating in the festival activities that have been going on. Monday marked the beginning of the fasting time for the Greek Orthodox faith. Majority of the population participates in this fast. That same majority also participates fully in the carnival period, which is approximately a week after Christmas to clean Monday. Carnival time is a time of big eating, of course, and costumes. On any given weekend but especially when you get closer to clean Monday. People have festival parties and children are always dressed up in costumes. There is no real timing of the costumes they just wear them whenever they want. I went to a festival party with a few teachers from my school and it was really fun. It was fairly popular to go as the opposite sex that night. I was surprised by how similar costumes were to the costumes from the US I guess I was hoping to see something kind of Greek but no such luck I did meet Frida Kahlo which I must say I have never met at an American party. There were celebrations going on everywhere. I went to Monastariki square which is where the flea market is, and there was a carnival band people were dancing and singing. It was really contagious and fun to be a part of. You could hear the music all over the down town. From the square I went to the street of tombs. I was heading for the Agora but it was not open for some reason. There are not many stones marking the graves anymore because they were moved to the museum to preserve them. Most of the tombs are from the 4 century B.C. and are covered in soft grasses. The tomb of Dionysois is in the cemetery it is one of the only marked tombs in the area. The walk leads straight up to the Acropolis and to Aries rock. Where Saint Paul gave his sermons it is a beautiful view in the night and the day. Also during my walking I visited the sight of the Tower of the Winds, it is part of the Agora. I could only take pictures of the outside of it but it was really beautiful. They Tower of the winds was built in the 1st 2nd century BC and was used as weather vane and water clock It has eight sides signifying the 8 directions of the wind. Each side of the building has a different sculpture on it signifying the characteristics of the wind from that direction North is Boreas and he blows the cold North wind through a conch shell, to the East is Apeliotes and he is young in age, he brings fruits and corn form the warm winds South is Notos and he is the bearer of rain. He is portrayed pouring out a pitcher of water. Finally is the West Zephyros and he is the youngest figure pictured scattering flowers. The North and west walls have small windows in the top of them to let in the light because it is completely closed off. It is rumored to be either a school or prison of Socrates during the middle ages and was later used as a monastery in the 18 century by Muslims ascetics as place for whirling dervishes or sema. Inside there is also a set up of ancient canal piping for the water clock. I didn’t get to see inside but I will go back sometime. It was a captivating building. The sun was on its way down by the time I reached the area and the marble gleamed against the bright blue sky that came to visit for a day.
The weather had been very rainy and cold the days before and after that day. It is winter here which means it rains most days and the temperature hovers around 45 degrees. It has gotten substancially warmer in these late February weeks but last week while visiting the village I thought I was going to remain damp and cold for the rest of my stay. We went to Ana and Angela’s village for the celebration of Carnival and clean Monday. The village was a very damp place but it was beautiful and green. Village is actually the size of a small city probably close to the size of Des Moines but they think it is very small it was a bit funny calling it the village. Life was simple in the town people were very friendly and incredibly interested in me. We went to the most amazing souvlaki shop while we were there. Souvlaki is a meat kebab usually pork but you can get chicken goat or lamb in some places. While we were at the shop half of the village came to meet me. The governor even toasted me. They all ordered things to go for the evening but they all somehow managed to wander their way over to our table. As the night went on people bought us wine and we danced until the early morning. Two gypsies came in to eat and were commissioned for half of the night to play music for me the rest of the party. The local men sang along with the music and Ana danced with the governor in a traditional style. They tried teaching me some of the dances but I didn’t really have a rhythm for them. I had 5 marriage proposals that night ranging from 2 lamas to 3 thousand Euro and a herd of goats. Thankfully my father was not in the shop or I might have been sold off right there. Arranged marriages are still part of some of the more traditional families and it is not uncommon for them to occur in very small villages. The village was very quiet outside of the souvlaki shop I spent some time at the beach which was beautiful. I have only been to the Hudson bay before. The water was crystal blue but the sky reflected back a lot of gray in the photographs so they are not the spectacular blue they can really get to on a clear day.
It has been a great couple weeks. It is going to probably be a few more weeks until I get around to posting again. Hope all of you are well. Yeea sas!
It has been an exciting few weeks. In addition to the work I have spent a little bit of time participating in the festival activities that have been going on. Monday marked the beginning of the fasting time for the Greek Orthodox faith. Majority of the population participates in this fast. That same majority also participates fully in the carnival period, which is approximately a week after Christmas to clean Monday. Carnival time is a time of big eating, of course, and costumes. On any given weekend but especially when you get closer to clean Monday. People have festival parties and children are always dressed up in costumes. There is no real timing of the costumes they just wear them whenever they want. I went to a festival party with a few teachers from my school and it was really fun. It was fairly popular to go as the opposite sex that night. I was surprised by how similar costumes were to the costumes from the US I guess I was hoping to see something kind of Greek but no such luck I did meet Frida Kahlo which I must say I have never met at an American party. There were celebrations going on everywhere. I went to Monastariki square which is where the flea market is, and there was a carnival band people were dancing and singing. It was really contagious and fun to be a part of. You could hear the music all over the down town. From the square I went to the street of tombs. I was heading for the Agora but it was not open for some reason. There are not many stones marking the graves anymore because they were moved to the museum to preserve them. Most of the tombs are from the 4 century B.C. and are covered in soft grasses. The tomb of Dionysois is in the cemetery it is one of the only marked tombs in the area. The walk leads straight up to the Acropolis and to Aries rock. Where Saint Paul gave his sermons it is a beautiful view in the night and the day. Also during my walking I visited the sight of the Tower of the Winds, it is part of the Agora. I could only take pictures of the outside of it but it was really beautiful. They Tower of the winds was built in the 1st 2nd century BC and was used as weather vane and water clock It has eight sides signifying the 8 directions of the wind. Each side of the building has a different sculpture on it signifying the characteristics of the wind from that direction North is Boreas and he blows the cold North wind through a conch shell, to the East is Apeliotes and he is young in age, he brings fruits and corn form the warm winds South is Notos and he is the bearer of rain. He is portrayed pouring out a pitcher of water. Finally is the West Zephyros and he is the youngest figure pictured scattering flowers. The North and west walls have small windows in the top of them to let in the light because it is completely closed off. It is rumored to be either a school or prison of Socrates during the middle ages and was later used as a monastery in the 18 century by Muslims ascetics as place for whirling dervishes or sema. Inside there is also a set up of ancient canal piping for the water clock. I didn’t get to see inside but I will go back sometime. It was a captivating building. The sun was on its way down by the time I reached the area and the marble gleamed against the bright blue sky that came to visit for a day.
The weather had been very rainy and cold the days before and after that day. It is winter here which means it rains most days and the temperature hovers around 45 degrees. It has gotten substancially warmer in these late February weeks but last week while visiting the village I thought I was going to remain damp and cold for the rest of my stay. We went to Ana and Angela’s village for the celebration of Carnival and clean Monday. The village was a very damp place but it was beautiful and green. Village is actually the size of a small city probably close to the size of Des Moines but they think it is very small it was a bit funny calling it the village. Life was simple in the town people were very friendly and incredibly interested in me. We went to the most amazing souvlaki shop while we were there. Souvlaki is a meat kebab usually pork but you can get chicken goat or lamb in some places. While we were at the shop half of the village came to meet me. The governor even toasted me. They all ordered things to go for the evening but they all somehow managed to wander their way over to our table. As the night went on people bought us wine and we danced until the early morning. Two gypsies came in to eat and were commissioned for half of the night to play music for me the rest of the party. The local men sang along with the music and Ana danced with the governor in a traditional style. They tried teaching me some of the dances but I didn’t really have a rhythm for them. I had 5 marriage proposals that night ranging from 2 lamas to 3 thousand Euro and a herd of goats. Thankfully my father was not in the shop or I might have been sold off right there. Arranged marriages are still part of some of the more traditional families and it is not uncommon for them to occur in very small villages. The village was very quiet outside of the souvlaki shop I spent some time at the beach which was beautiful. I have only been to the Hudson bay before. The water was crystal blue but the sky reflected back a lot of gray in the photographs so they are not the spectacular blue they can really get to on a clear day.
It has been a great couple weeks. It is going to probably be a few more weeks until I get around to posting again. Hope all of you are well. Yeea sas!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
I found north.
Okay sorry it took me so long to update this. I haven't been particularly busy, but like I said before I am very good at procrastinating. Things have been very good these last few weeks full of lots of work and fun activities. My friends from Luther college came back into town and I got to do some adventuring with them. I also went to Parliament and the Beach with George last weekend. I am feeling more and more confident in the city. I even got my barrings down and can tell you which way is North. That's right. As long as I can stay close to the metro and it is not to late at night I am perfectly capable of making my way around the city.
I learned of my abilities in a rather shady environment unfortunately. As I said before my friends came back and we ended up going out looking for a place to dance. There were some St. Olaf students that were doing the same so we all ended up going together. Big groups are more fun and definitely more safe when you are wandering. The St. Olaf students had a map and knew the general direction we were to be going so we got on the train together and set out for the dance club. There were two men leading the group with the map. I knew the general area we were in and it was very close to a neighborhood called Omonia I was advised by numerous people that you should not even visit during the day. As we walked straight into this neighborhood I insisted we turn around but they wanted to keep going. As we passed a few men on the sidewalk snorting cocaine I decided that we had gone to far and turned the lug heads around. They then proceeded to drag the group down the darkest side street where we ran into drug dealers pimps and prostitutes. I had tried to not be the one telling everyone what to do but decided that we were going to go back to the neighborhood we came from and find someplace safer to be. I knew from what my teacher had told me before that there were a few clubs in the area. We made our way down some well lit streets and found a Hookah bar and a dance club. To appease the masses. It turned out to be a fantastic night. I felt like quite the navigator and ever since I have been able to tell you exactly what direction north is.
Last Sunday was an exciting day as well. George took me to parliament where we saw the tomb of the unknown soilder. There were two guards on duty and they came out every half an hour to do their routine. It was very interesting to watch them march around. They were wearing traditional Military uniforms and they walked very deliberately kicking and swinging their arms in perfect synchronization. They would hold out their arms and legs which I am sure had some significance but I am not sure what. A few interesting facts about these gentle men is that historically they were recruited from the mountain villages they don't come strictly from that location anylonger but it is an immense honor to be able to guard the tomb. To be part of this guard batalion you must be 6ft tall at least. Which is not so common among Greek men. After the tomb we took the tram down to the beach. The tram took forever. If you are ever in Athens and feel you need a scenic tour of some of the side streets take it however if you are in any hurry and do not want to spend your entire trip on the train avoid it like the plague. Once we got to the beach I enjoyed my time. It was a beautiful day but very cold. The water was bright and the air smelled clean. The small waves lapped up on the shore we were in a little cove on the coast so there wasn't much in the way of turbulent waters. The sand was fine and very light in color where the waves stopped on the beach there was a great wall of rocks like the sea picks them up and dumps them there. As I walked on the beach I came across several swimmers. These people had to be crazy it was only about 38 degrees out that day but they were in there getting their exercise.
After we had spent some time at the beach George and I went back home and I spent the rest of the afternoon with the Lutherians climbing Lykavittos Hill. It is a great hill almost right in the middle of Athens. Lykavittos means the path of light. It was believed that this structure was put on the hill by Athena to be a strong hold to guard the Acropolis. On the eve of Easter Sunday a procession of candles is held on the hill for God and for the patron saints of the church on top of the hill. The view from the top of the hill was quite spectacular even in the cloudy rain haze. You could walk to any side of the patio outside the church and see the edges of the city. It was incredible to see the expanse of the city. Spreading out in all directions it disapears into the green mountains on each side and stops at the sea. It was quite the sight. I have attached some of the pictures from my weekends adventures and I am now off to start some new ones. I will try to update sooner.
Love, Kimberly
I learned of my abilities in a rather shady environment unfortunately. As I said before my friends came back and we ended up going out looking for a place to dance. There were some St. Olaf students that were doing the same so we all ended up going together. Big groups are more fun and definitely more safe when you are wandering. The St. Olaf students had a map and knew the general direction we were to be going so we got on the train together and set out for the dance club. There were two men leading the group with the map. I knew the general area we were in and it was very close to a neighborhood called Omonia I was advised by numerous people that you should not even visit during the day. As we walked straight into this neighborhood I insisted we turn around but they wanted to keep going. As we passed a few men on the sidewalk snorting cocaine I decided that we had gone to far and turned the lug heads around. They then proceeded to drag the group down the darkest side street where we ran into drug dealers pimps and prostitutes. I had tried to not be the one telling everyone what to do but decided that we were going to go back to the neighborhood we came from and find someplace safer to be. I knew from what my teacher had told me before that there were a few clubs in the area. We made our way down some well lit streets and found a Hookah bar and a dance club. To appease the masses. It turned out to be a fantastic night. I felt like quite the navigator and ever since I have been able to tell you exactly what direction north is.
Last Sunday was an exciting day as well. George took me to parliament where we saw the tomb of the unknown soilder. There were two guards on duty and they came out every half an hour to do their routine. It was very interesting to watch them march around. They were wearing traditional Military uniforms and they walked very deliberately kicking and swinging their arms in perfect synchronization. They would hold out their arms and legs which I am sure had some significance but I am not sure what. A few interesting facts about these gentle men is that historically they were recruited from the mountain villages they don't come strictly from that location anylonger but it is an immense honor to be able to guard the tomb. To be part of this guard batalion you must be 6ft tall at least. Which is not so common among Greek men. After the tomb we took the tram down to the beach. The tram took forever. If you are ever in Athens and feel you need a scenic tour of some of the side streets take it however if you are in any hurry and do not want to spend your entire trip on the train avoid it like the plague. Once we got to the beach I enjoyed my time. It was a beautiful day but very cold. The water was bright and the air smelled clean. The small waves lapped up on the shore we were in a little cove on the coast so there wasn't much in the way of turbulent waters. The sand was fine and very light in color where the waves stopped on the beach there was a great wall of rocks like the sea picks them up and dumps them there. As I walked on the beach I came across several swimmers. These people had to be crazy it was only about 38 degrees out that day but they were in there getting their exercise.
After we had spent some time at the beach George and I went back home and I spent the rest of the afternoon with the Lutherians climbing Lykavittos Hill. It is a great hill almost right in the middle of Athens. Lykavittos means the path of light. It was believed that this structure was put on the hill by Athena to be a strong hold to guard the Acropolis. On the eve of Easter Sunday a procession of candles is held on the hill for God and for the patron saints of the church on top of the hill. The view from the top of the hill was quite spectacular even in the cloudy rain haze. You could walk to any side of the patio outside the church and see the edges of the city. It was incredible to see the expanse of the city. Spreading out in all directions it disapears into the green mountains on each side and stops at the sea. It was quite the sight. I have attached some of the pictures from my weekends adventures and I am now off to start some new ones. I will try to update sooner.
Love, Kimberly
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About Me
- Kimberly
- I am an elementary Education major that decided to take a trip to Greece to student teach at an international school. I have decided this was crazy but I am okay so far.