Long Study Tour in Greece: An Annotated Itinerary
When I called home this weekend and told my parents about swimming in the Aegean sea, it took a while to process that I had been swimming in the ocean Odysseus spent 10 years crossing only the day before. My greek epic lasted only 5 days, but was filled with enough memories to fill 24 books in Homeric verse.
I was in Greece last week on my Long Study Tour, an essential part of the DIS experience in which theories learned in the classroom are applied and brought to life in relevant sites. I traveled with my philosophy class to the sites of the birth of the gods and the deaths of the philosophers. We moved between Athens, Delphi, Mykonos and back again. Our goal, according to the study tour packet, was to"gain some lasting visual, auditory, and olfactory impressions of the actual historical sites related to our study of Greek myth and philosophy." In doing so, we visited temples and ruins, looked into the depths of caves and oceans, drove over mountain peaks and through valleys. I have spent the few days since my return scrolling through my photos, reminiscing with friends, and listening to Mamma Mia on loop (in fact I'm listening to it as I write this). It would be safe to say I miss it.
In another attempt to relive it, here is a detailed play by play of the week, with photos to illustrate:
*Note to future students of this class: the itinerary for future trips may change!
SUNDAY, APRIL 15
6:45- Meet at airport and check-in
8:40-12:50- Fly to Athens
14:15- Check in at hotel
At the hotel, the concierge informs us that the sky is grey not because of fog or smog as we'd assumed, but because of a sand storm from the Sahara desert blowing through. We are shocked at the news but the locals seem unfazed. The grey sky serves as a visual reminder of how far south we have traveled from Denmark.
15:30- Hill of the Muses: "Can Greece Still Speak?"
A pigeon circled right over our heads as we read Heidegger, a bad omen for what was to follow: my lip started to swell shortly there after, likely a reaction to the sand storm. We then walked to the Pnyx, the hill on which democracy was founded, and spotted a turtle: a good omen in response to the bad. And yet my lip kept swelling.
Here is the Philopappos Monument on the Hill of the Muses, and professor Brian lecturing about the birth of democracy on the Pnyx. Note can see how hazy the sky was.
17:00- Free time
I headed back to the hotel to take care of my still swelling lip. I'm sparing you pictures but lets just say it looked like a failed lip job.
20:00- Dinner
MONDAY, APRIL 16
9:00- Acropolis and Parthenon: "The Gods Have Fled"
Even though we arrived at the Acropolis only 15 minutes after it opened, it was already crawling with tourists and school groups. This made it hard to, as Heidegger puts it, find an "enriching sojourn" with the temple. In all honestly, I was more impressed with the view of the city from the Acropolis than the remains of Parthenon itself.
View of the city from the top of the Acropolis, under a still grey sky.
12:45-13:30- Ferry ride to Aegina
13:30- Lunch by the harbor
I paid $2.50 for a delicious gyro, pet some cats roaming the harbor, tried some pistachios which the island is known for, and touched the Aegean ocean for the first time, all which made for a great afternoon.
Classmates siting by the pier during our lunch break.
15:00- Temple of Aphaia: “The One Who Does Not Appear”
After busing up the mountain, we spent some time alone with the temple of Aphaia. Having the space to ourselves made it feel much more sacred than the Parthenon had that morning. We sat by the temple and discussed Aletheia, the greek notion of truth, defined as that which reveals itself. This temple built to Goddess Aphaia, the protectress of Aletheia, is a manifestation of greek truth. As we lingered, the sun unconcealed itself and with it appeared the blue sky, shining a new truth onto the temple.
Me in front of the Temple of Aphaia under a now blue sky.
18:15- Ferry ride back to Athens
19:45- Dinner
TUESDAY, APRIL 17
9:00- The Ancient Agora of Athens: "The Death Of Socrates"
We sat by the prison Socrates spent his lasts days in and read Plato's Phaedo out loud, in the presence of a turtle. It felt very special to be reading about Socrates's last moments of life just a few feet from where they took place.
Spot the Acropolis and Parthenon above me, in the shadow of which the Agora was built.
11:00- Free time: Acropolis Museum
In our afternoon off, I went to the Acropolis with Laurel, in search of some of the fragments of the Parthenon removed and displayed here for preservation and safe keeping. Seeing these stunning statues up close and personal was exciting for an art history fan like me, and more impactful than the reconstructed temple itself.
Here is Nike Removing Her Sandal, a piece I studied and love, which use to be on the side of the Temple of Nike.
15:00- Depart for Delphi by bus
17:00- Livadea, Cave of Trophonius
Even though this was just a pit stop on the road to Delphi, it felt magical. Everyone was feeling some sort of déjà vu, as if this non-place could be any place. I didn't get any good photographs that encapsulate the beauty of the town and cave, but maybe that is just as well so as to preserve the surprise for next semester's class.
19:00- Check in at hotel
As soon as we put our bags down, we all rushed out onto our adjoining balconies, and shrieked with excitement. Our rooms gave directly onto the beautiful valley, which was nothing short of stunning!
My roommate Wan Yi, classmate Laura, and professor Jacob sticking their heads out over our balconies in awe at the view.
20:00- Dinner
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18
10:30- Temple of Apollo at Delphi
The Temple of Apollo is built into the hill at Delphi at the site where Apollo is said to have slayed the snake of darkness. It houses the Omphalos stone, the belly button of the world. As we walked up the hill to the theater and stadium behind the temple, we pondered a question: does the temple built here in on this beautiful mountain help celebrate the natural beauty of the location or does it distract from it?
View of the ruins of the Theater with the Temple of Apollo below it, and the green valley plunging beyond them both.
My friends Laurel and Maria and I sitting by the theater.
13:00- Lunch
14:45-19:00- Travel to Mykonos
20:30- Check in at hotel
Our concierge welcomes us to the island and gives us a few important travel tips: always bring a jacket because the wind is unpredictable, always walk against the flow of traffic so that the oncoming cars can see you, and always wear closed-toed shoes. Most importantly, he tells the secret reason all the buildings in Mykonos are white: "you are all stars here and so they are painted white so as to better reflect your light!"
21:30- Dinner
I had a dinner of tzatziki, calamari, and more tzatziki at Maria's Traditional Restaurant which I highly recommend to future visitors of the island.
THURSDAY, APRIL 19
10:30- Delos: “On Delos’ rocky isle”
Before we leave for our ferry ride to Delos, ur concierge urges us to as the right question: why there and not here? Delos is the mythical birth place of Apollo. It was once inhabited by 30,000 people, but was then abandoned in a hurry and is now an archeological site. The island is covered with ruins: a whole neighborhood of houses so close to each other their share walls, detailed mosaics still intact on some floors, fragments of statues and columns. Why did they all settle there on the uninviting small rock instead of on Mykonos's wide expanse?
Delos island seen from the ferry as we approached.
Laurel, Maria, and Rachel and I climbed to the very top of the mountain, where we tried to enjoy the view without being knocked over by the strong winds- which you can see proof of in Rachel's hair.
That's me climbing on the artifacts I'm likely not allowed to touch- oops!
13:30- Sail back to Mykonos
If this were the Odysseys, this would be chapter 12, as Odysseus sails past Scylla and Charybdis. The ride there had been bumpy, but the way back was an adventure! The ocean waves rocked the boat and made it feel as if we were on a roller coaster ride, or in the inside of a washing machine. I sat on the deck and loved the whole ride!
Wan Yi and I got drenched in ocean water- or rather baptized by the Aegean Sea.
14:00- Free time on Mykonos
The island is just as beautiful as all the postcards of it make it look- and crawling with sweet stray cats.
Laura was particularly fond of all the cats.
19:30- Flight back to Athens
21:30- Arrive and check in in Souinon
FRIDAY, APRIL 20
7:45- Swim in the Aegean ocean
The whole week I had been waiting to swim, itching to submerge myself in the Aegean, and finally did on our last morning in Greece. The beach was five steps away from the hotel's back door in Souinon. I was up and in the water before 8 am, and it was marvelous!
9:30- Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion: "Have the Gods Fled?"
Our last stop on our odyssey was the Temple of Poseidon. Built on the tip of the Peloponnese, the temple could be seen from islands and ships far away. While the temple itself is pretty, as any old greek temple is, the hill atop which it sits is absolutely stunning. The rocks give way to stunningly clear blue water. With time to kill, we sat on the edge of the cliffs, threw rocks down into the blue water, calling "plouf!" and "ka-blam" after them, as if to test if its perfection could be disturbed. It could not- perfect it remained.
Laura above the beautiful blue waters.
Maria and I on the edge of the cliffs.
END OF STUDY TOUR!
Big thumbs up for Greece!