Boat to Paradise

Today's the day! After lunch we'll take a boat to Alexandropoulos, where I will catch the evening flight to Athens. I'm excited to come home! It's been a very long trip -- although I suppose it isn't over until after Angola.

Yesterday, Genevieve and I caught a boat tour around the island. The greens and golds of the fields looked so beautiful from the water, and the peak of Mt. Fengari was shrouded in misty grey clouds. It was stunning. But THEN the boat dropped us at the most beautiful beach. The water was a perfect azure, and the light grey rocks plunged from their peaks directly into the sea. There were little coves to swim in and explore -- and one cove that you could swim through from our little sandy beach. On the other side was a protected little pool dotted with further coves and large tawny rocks 20 feet below your feet. Stunning! We could not believe our luck. I wish I could post photos! I will when I get home. It was the perfect end to our amazing Grecian summer.

Last Days!

When Ryan left after lunch today we began the final countdown: many of us leave after lunch on Monday, so there are exactly two days left! I went for a last run on the coast, hiked up to the ancient city, and started the laundry/packing process. So here's my ode to Samothrace -- Things I'll Really Miss:

-Living 200 feet from the ocean -- seeing it as soon as I wake up, just before I go to sleep, and on early morning trips for a glass of water

- The warm smell of olive trees in the breeze -Someone cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and even making the bed for little old me

- Sitting after dinner with some wonderful people, with no TV. It is so much more fun to talk and play games

-The preponderance of goats and the sound of their bells in the evening

- Delicious Greek food -- although, living in Astoria, there's a chance I could find that at home

- Did I mention that I live on the beach? Yeah. Awesome.

- Total outdoor living -- every meal is served on the porch, and my room is only closed from the hallway by a screen door.

- Yoga in an ancient site

- Running on the coast

Things I will NOT miss? Leading the list are: the bugs; the incredible amount of ground beef and white simple starches served at most meals; the lack of all privacy; scary Greek food with raw eggs hiding in it; and, not speaking the language. All in all, I think the pluses outweigh the minuses!

Tired Kids

So we did it! We worked until 3 AM, ate one pizza, two chocolate bars, many bags of chips, a few drinks and too many gummy worms. (The trip to pick up the pizza was really fun -- the pizza man treated my friend Genevieve and I to a glass of red wine while we waited for a ride. We were both pretty excited at the compliment, since we haven't been able to flirt with anyone in at least 6 weeks.) Believe it or not, we had fun working all night. And we got to sleep "late" -- 8AM! Yay! The night concluded with drinks on the porch while watching two fisherman scream at each other about where to throw the nets.

At work today, Professor Wescoat had us join in on searching for pieces of the steps to a building on the site. It was the first time that our own looking and measuring helped to reconstruct the way the building was put together. That was really cool.

Tonight is Ryan’s last night. We’re celebrating with vodka tonics at the beach – let’s hope we can all stay up past 9:30!

So one more day of work, one more beach day, and then we're off!

Charrette

Today the realization hit Professor Wescoat hard -- we're leaving Monday! So tonight, the architects will have a charrette. This apparently means a workaholic all-nighter to get drawings done. Mr. McCredie explained that the term comes from the French word for cart -- because architects at the École des Beaux-Arts used to rush to complete their drawings before the cart came to take the drawings away. So, it seems we will be working until the wee hours. I'm not sure what this means for us non-architects. I think I will be scanning all night. With good music, maybe some pizza, and the whole gang, though, I'm sure it won't be so bad.

However, the prospect of a night on the computer made me delay work on my thesis yet again. It was a GREAT beach day. I even have a minor TAN!!! For me, anyway.

Don't worry, pretty soon I won't be able to rub it in anymore!

Hump Day

As you may have noticed, today is Wednesday. This is not usually a big deal here, since our weekend doesn't start on Friday night. But this week, we have only a few days left on the island. Today everyone starting talking about winding down the work, picking up boat tickets, and otherwise getting ready to go. My response? Skipping out on the thesis and spending our break on the beach! There is really nothing quite like finishing a lunch that someone else made (and will clean up, too!) throwing on your suit and walking to the shore.

This is the life.

That said, I'm really happy to come home next week! DC folks, please mark your calendars for drinks on Thursday at 8 or 8:30. Anand suggested Chi-Cha lounge. Yay!

Lightening and Games

Last night we had lightening without the torrential storms. It was beautiful to see the flashes over the ocean while we ate dessert and drank too much retsina. Retsina is a white wine with pine pitch in it -- it's much better than that sounds. As a date exclaimed on my last trip, horrified when I ordered a glass, "you know that's the stuff that's too bad to sell abroad, right? That's why we stick pine pitch in it -- to cover the smell!" Whatever, we think it's fine.


After dinner, we played the Weather Game. This is where you pick a few categories and then describe one of your companions. Then everyone has to guess. I thought this had hurt feelings written all over it, but everyone has been nice about their descriptions. Last time it was harder, but now that we've spent 24/7 with each other for five weeks, everyone guessed on the first try. Here's mine, courtesy of Genevieve:
Person: Reese Witherspoon. Place: Midtown. Verb: Enterprising. Mixed Drink: Gin Fizz. Shoe: Open toed strappy sandal.

What would you be?

Lights out for Samothrace

Yesterday was another glorious 26-hour weekend -- a great meal on Saturday (I have learned to actually enjoy fish), drinks at a seaside club, and then a full day at Chipos on Sunday. I am turning into a stronger, albeit ungainly, swimmer. I even managed to swim to the private beach at Chipos without a flotation device! Olympic team, here I come. Ha.

Since it was such a beautiful day at the beach, about 20 kilometers from the hotel, we were very surprised to return to an overcast gray sky and a beach that looked more like the steely shores of Brighton than our usual pretty Greek beach. By dinner, a veritable monsoon hit, forcing us to eat in the museum and drenching our hallway, laundry and rooms. Actually, I liked it -- 6 weeks without rain seems so odd. Too bad there wasn't a lightening storm to watch.

The down side of the storm is that it knocked out power from the mainland, and by extension, for us. Everything is back to normal now, though. Just another sunny, cool day in paradise.

Wonderful and not so Wonderful

Last night we rented a car early. As you may recall, our weekend starts Saturday night at 6, but this week we decided to pick up the car on Friday. After dinner, we all headed out to the beach at Chipos, on the edge of the island closest to Turkey. It was amazing -- the water is full of phosphorescent algae, like little shining stars around your arms and legs when you swim. Before the moon rose, the stars were so clear that you could see the cloudiness of the Milky Way. Stunning. Genevieve made up constellation stories for us and I successfully drove our car around a herd of goats sleeping in the road -- it was a great night.

This morning, however, my computer power cord died. I feel bereft! That computer is my phone, my TV, my workday tool, the repository of my papers... I will stop short of saying my best friend. But I do love my little Toshiba. Hopefully a new power cord next week will do the trick. Wish me luck!

I love mail

Here's a shout-out to Sarah Heaton, world's best postcard-sender, and my parents, who sent me a box of goodies this week. We opened it up yesterday as soon as it arrived -- 4 waterguns, two blow-up sea animals (a dolphin and a killer whale, we think) 2 bags of Doritos, and 4 pairs of children's sunglasses. So fun! We took the blow-up dolphins out in the water yesterday -- they make wavejumping a blast, and they double as bolster pillows when doing the IHT crossword. We certainly got a lot of attention carrying them across the street to and from the beach! When I got back, Evangelia's husband and son, Nasos and Lucas, discovered the water guns... Lucas is in the army, so it wasn't really a fair fight.



Here's a photo of Eliza, Genevieve and me about to crack into the yummy Doritos at ouzo hour. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Greece is trying to kill me

Okay, so i spent yesterday morning in the clinic again treating an allergic reaction to raw eggs. I have succcessfully avoided my personal kryptonite for 22 years, and then in Greece I have two awful encounters within four weeks! What is going on here? I ate a piece of spanikopita, something I indulge in frequently in the States -- heck, I even make it at home a few times a month! It is a BAKED snack! So what was the problem? The Greek doctor and our hotel manager say that they don't bake it very long here in order to keep it 'moist.' Huh.

I'm pretty sure this was cooked, though, so now I'm a little concerned that I may be allergic to something unknown -- how can you avoid the unknown?

Grrrr. I feel gross and my dig-mates are pretty disgusted at the amount of raw egg we consume every day. For the first time this trip, I REALLY want to go home.

The Sea and Me

In case you couldn’t tell from the stunning photos of the view from my front door, the waterfalls or the beaches, Samothrace is a beautiful natural patchwork of green olive trees, rugged pebbly beaches and tawny, sun-soaked fields. Above all, it is the pristine sea that frames every view, the perfect water absolutely clear to depths of at least 20 feet.

I am absolutely enjoying it – but also suffering from massive Catholic guilt. What am I doing to preserve this cleanliness and beauty? How am I doing on my stewardship of this gift for the next generation, or the one after? These thoughts are feeing my addiction to the No Impact Man blog, a website written by a New York Times columnist who has sworn off all impact-causing behavior for a year. In Manhattan. With a two-year-old and a Prada-loving wife. I’m absolutely fascinated by his progress – he intends to try absolutely everything and then see how much of it his family will retain at the end of the year. Check it out here: www.noimpactman.typepad.com

His experiment poses big questions: if I am worried about greenhouse gases, am I worried enough to keep red worms in a box in my kitchen to compost our vegetables and other organic waste? (Good luck convincing Courtney on that!!!) Am I ready to stop freezing things for storage or to spend an extra 25% of my already strained budget on organic local groceries? Must we city-dwellers stop patting ourselves on the back for taking the subway and not bagging our fruit at the grocery store? How sustainable are any changes I make? Yes, I have taken to the good-for-the-earth showers – rinse, turn off water while you soap up, rinse, exit. But can I keep this up in a New York winter in an apartment with a drafty bathroom? Even if I do, without millions of others doing the same, will the few gallons saved each day make any difference at all? Or should I luxuriate in the hot water and plan to go down with the ship?

Whatchya think? Should we all live like we have a personal tie to keeping the water clean, the air breathable, the landfills smaller? Any mini-tips out there on how to be green? Any reactions to No Impact Man?

26 Hour Weekend

It's the end of another 26-hour weekend. We went back to the restaurant with the amazing chicken-in-a-bag and delicious saganiki, a spicy melted feta-and-tomato dish. Yum! I will try to learn to make both of these so I can replicate it at home for anyone brave enough to take the subway to Astoria. On Sunday, Amy and I had a coffee in the port town with Lucas, the hotelier's son. I smiled and nodded as they spoke in Greek. So far, I'm afraid I only know a few words -- please, thank you, this one, just a little, big and helicopter. Helicopter -- a totally useful addition to my vocabulary.

For the rest of the afternoon we lazed by the waterfalls. I edited my thesis and read a book while nude and semi-nude hippies swarmed all over the pools. One group sat in front of me at about five -- they had been swimming ALL DAY and they STILL smelled awful, so I packed up and went home.

Our group is slowly shrinking -- Professor Wescoat's son, Hugh, leaves today. Cindy is safely in NYC. And Amy leaves on Sunday. But I'm still hoping to get in some Samothracian Olympics and a few good game nights before we all head back to the US!

Jumanji

During the still weather last week, the many tiny residents of the island invaded our hotel. Overnight, like a biblical plague, we were attacked by ants, mosquitoes, gnats and spiders. We were already living with huge crickets that jump towards you, not away, when they're scared. They share the bathroom, shower and hall with us, and Ryan has one as a bedmate. Due to a crack in the foundation, and another under the window, I had ants all over my pillow and throughout my thesis documents a few days ago. When I dragged the sheets out and sprayed all sorts of chemicals on my bed, our hotel manager, Evangelia, just laughed at me.

One of our dig mates, Eliza, coined a new adjective -- the island has 'gone Jumanji' on us. YUCK. As you likely all know, I HATE bugs. This is a learning experience.

Since bugs are gross, here are some photos of me measuring columns this morning with Yong, the architect, and other teammates.

Festival, Cindy and the Simpsons

Yesterday we went to the Saints day festival. The evening before we heard bells ringing from the burnt-out church. The congregation had gathered in lawn chairs on the porch and in the parking lot. I saw the priest and cantor there from the church I go to in Chora, although I'm not really sure what everyone was doing. On Thursday morning at 10, we heard more church bells and a few hours later the breeze carried the strains of Greek guitar. After lunch, Yong, Hugh and I went down to hear the music, sample some roasted goat, and raise a glass with the locals. What a resilient group! Here is a photo of Zora, an archeologist at another site, and one of the museum guards enjoying the music. It's possible that I got in on the Greek dancing.

In other news, my roommate Cindy departed yesterday. She was in the middle of buying an apartment in New York when she left and had to go home to sort out the details. Real estate in New York is never easy, I suppose! I'll miss her. She was nice enough to lend me another dress. Maybe this one will fit!

Finally, I am very happy in Samothrace and do not really miss home too much -- but today is the Simpson's premiere! And you can buy Simpson's themed foods in select convenience stores in the DC area made to look like a Kwik-E-Mart! This is one element of pop culture I am sad to miss. Any reviews or news on the movie would be welcomed!

Last weekend

It occurs to me that I have not made you all jealous about last weekend. I would like to make everyone jealous today, myself included, because I am on my 9th day of data entry in a sticky 90 degree office with bugs -- fabulous beach pictures will help me remember the many benefits of working in Greece this summer.

So here's a photo of the crystal clear water. Here is a photo of Chipos, a pebbly beach that is just beautiful. We spent the day in the shade of a rocky outcrop. You can swim around the side of this cliff and find little covces and a private beach. So beautiful!

And here is a photo of Ryan being SO lazy that he needs to drink his beer out of a straw, so as not to strain his neck. Genevieve and Amy are laughing at him. Actually, all of us are.

Back to data entry!

Goat day at last!

So, GOATS! Here are my encounters with dozens of goats on Sunday alone. Goats are a regular feature of Samothracian life. You can hear their bells on the breeze at night and in the morning. 81.8% of the dig team enjoys this sound – the other 19.2% say it disturbs their sleep. I am actually listening to a bleating goat while I type this – appropriate, because 45.4% of the dig team enjoys eating goat. Here are some photos – the goats waiting by our porch on Sunday. They are near our rental car – you can’t park your car under the trees here, because goats will climb up on in to eat the leaves from the trees. They actually sit in the branches (take THAT, Kevin Owen! Goats can fall from trees! Maybe not camels….) Cindy bought a goat bell as a souvenir before brunch. Then we saw goats at the beach, politely crossing in front of a goat-crossing sign. We also got a shot of a goat from the car – looks like he’s moving fast!

I did not take a photo of the goat roast we have for dinner every Sunday.

In other goat news – my first week, I ran at dawn most days. One morning, a baby goat paced me for half a kilometer! There may be more goats than people here. Last week, I saw an actual shepherd using a crook to put the goats in a pen. Wow. You can buy said crooks near my church.

I’d love your addition to the goat statistics – charming or noisy? Cute or tasty?

Tragedy Strikes Samothrace

I know I promised you goats today. I did take a lot of goat photos and collected interesting facts on the Samothracian goat. However, that will have to wait until tomorrow.

At about 4AM this morning, the Church next to our hotel and worksite went up in flames. One of our dig-mates was up to get a glass of water, saw the flames, and had the hotel manager, Evangelia, call the fire department. The inside of the church is completely destroyed. We smelled the smoke during the night, but I thought it was our mosquito coil and went back to sleep. We are very lucky that it wasn’t the usual windy Samothracian weather, or our hotel would surely have burned.

The smell of smoke is hanging in the air even now, 12 hours later. The wind also carries the cries of sobbing of women just hearing the news or visiting the church. It is a small chapel, only used for private devotion or the annual patron saint’s festival. They had just whitewashed it for the saint’s day, coming up on Thursday.

We all hoped it was an accident, but the main church in the port town was burned this morning at 8 AM. What senseless destruction.

Working, working, working

I know that, from the outset, it sounds like vacation -- Greek island in the middle of nowhere, someone cooking and cleaning for you, a few feet from the ocean, games most evenings, yoga....

wait a minute. It IS pretty vacation-like.

However, this consulting thing is killing my beach time. I'm editing from 5:30 - 6:30, 12:30 - 3:00 and 6:00 to 7 or 7:30. With weighing coins and typing in little data cards in between. I'm really looking forward to being done next week when they submit their proposal!

This is my long excuse for why there are no pictures of goats today. I'm sorry! I will definitely get many photos of goats this weekend, but I ran out of time today. However, I'm not complaining, because I'm pretty sure I'd get no sympathy from the desk bound!

Workin' for the Weekend

So today, we did more work with coins. This is actually very interesting, although I couldn't really sum up for you what I'm learning. But I think I'm learning to LOOK at the coins in a different way, and this will help when I look at Renaissance coins at home.

I am also looking at the goats in a different way, now that I know Shanley loves them. I will do a 'life-cycle of the Samothracian Goat' post tomorrow. Please do stay tuned.

I'm off to do yoga. I hope my roommate will call out the poses to the porch, despite the fact that she got an eye infection and can't really see (no contacts allowed, and her glasses are an out-of-date prescription. poor girl. let's all hope she mends soon.)

Coins, coins, coins.

Today, I typed in information on and looked at more coins. Tiny little bronze coins. Pitted, green corroded coins. Coins in envelopes. Coins in drawers. Coins in fingers, not on the floor!

Okay, clearly the coins are messing with my head.

In other news, my fellow dig-mates think I'm crazy (or they should) because I am having super weird dreams. Last night, I actually got up in the middle of the night and yelled at an 'intruder' I thought I saw in my bedroom. The conversation with this trick of light/figment of sleepiness (that seemed to be a youngish, tall man wearing only a towel) went like this:

umm, who is it?
Hey, hello, who IS it?
HEY! HEY, HELLO-OOOO, GET THE HELL OUT OF MY ROOM!!!
then i touched the wall through this figment and felt really stupid.

Big discussion at the breakfast table by the five people who woke up hearing this. Not that anyone came running, but they claimed to be waiting for the 'scuffle.' Someone pointed out that the only likely intruder would be a goat eating a towel, not a person wearing one!

I better lay off the ouzo before bed!