Date: May 22
Partners for the day: Kinsey Stewart (text) Lizz Sigler (images)
Site(s):
Museum(s): Paros Museum, Mykonos Museum
Principal Buildings/Monuments:
Time Spent on Each Site: from ca. 9 a.m. to ca. 3 p.m. [6 hours]
Weather: Overcast, humid, light drizzle
Another grey day in the supposedly-sunny Cyclades has passed, and our parkas continue to get more exercise than our sunglasses (practical or ridiculously European). Our FSP seems to be cursed with poor weather these past few days, no doubt a direct result of our continued failure to offer the proper sacrifices at the plethora of temples we visit. Should any of the blog readers feel so inclined as to offer up a hecatomb to the gods asking for sunny days and cool breezes on our behalf we would be most appreciative, as we foolishly forgot to pack a spare hundred oxen or so with our luggage.
As we continue our island hopping, our schedule has been dictated in equal parts by the weather and by oft-unreliable boat schedules. Witnessing the great hubbub involved in getting from one island to another with the modern ferry system Greece is so reliant upon makes one wonder at how things would have worked in antiquity. As radically different as the two would have been, on certain basic levels very little has changed. In the tightly-clustered Cyclades, ferry routes tend to hug shore as they move from island to island rather than boldly striking out into open ocean, and while the “speedjet” we boarded for our 40-minute cruise from Paros to Mykonos was full of modern conveniences, something in the galley-like arrangement of the passenger seating made it apparent that should the engines come to an unexpected halt, oars would be handed out and we would be rowing into port trireme-style. It is doubtful, however, that ancient Greek marauders would have played tinny, ice-cream van versions of “The Blue Danube” over terracotta loudspeakers to warn passengers that the boat was pulling away from the dock.
The question of exactly how and when the Greek islands were settled and populated is one that is still heavily and enthusiastically debated, as the answer may prove key to understanding early human movement by boat in other parts of the world. On display in the museum at the port city of Paros are finds from the earliest Neolithic settlement in the Cyclades. What is most striking about these artifacts, however, is not their date of origin, but what their forms can tell us about the people who made them, as many of the pottery shapes find their closest contemporary analogs not in the Greek mainland but in south-western Turkey.
Standing on the shore and looking out over the water to the low mountain ridge that marks the next island over, it is easy to understand how the human need to push on, to explore, could have been cultivated in a place like this. Standing on the deck of a ship, feeling the wind, the spray of water, and the sudden, intimate knowledge of the immense nature of the sea and one’s own relative smallness and insignificance in the face of its unfeeling power, it is hard not to marvel at the guts of the first homo sapiens who hollowed out a tree trunk and intentionally pushed forward on such a voyage.
Despite Poseidon’s rumblings and the worrisome grey cast to the sea and sky, we made it to our final port of call in one piece. We will need all of our human sense of exploration if we are to safely navigate the streets of our latest destination, however. Mykonos is a mad maze of white-washed buildings, blue shutters, and faux-cobblestone streets. Trees covered with blooming pink and white blossoms stand guard over this labyrinth, haunted more by tourists than by Minotaurs. Making our way back from the museum on the shore up the hill to our hotel was a tentatively-partaken adventure full of wrong turns and desperate glances to the side for landmarks. Most of us have made it back, but the organizing of search parties is not yet out of the question. Further sacrifices may be required to ensure the safe return of those addled by the liquid entertainment of Mykonos’s famed beach and club scene.
Leaving the Hotel Francisco, Kinsey is attracted to the rental ATVs and reminisces about riding them back in Arkansas. In the background a cruise liner to Mykonos pulls out of the harbor.
The Paros harbor is filled with fishing boats. Watching the local fishermen making nets and taking care of there equipment is an everyday sight for local Greeks, but pretty intriguing to us.
At the Paros museum, Chris takes a picture of a geometric pot discovered in the main cemetery of ancient Paros. This pot, along with the one behind it, is from the 8th century BCE and contained the ashes of dead warriors. The unique scenes of mounted fighters are of particular interest because they may be evidence that warfare on Paros, and perhaps on other Cycladic islands, was different than we originally perceived.
Battle of the acroterial sculpture! In the middle of the 6th century BCE, experimentation in the iconography used for acroterial sculpture was taken. The Gorgon and the Nike faced off, with Kyle and Nick each picking a side. In the end, the Nike won and became one of the common acroterial decorations along with the tripod, disc, and floral ornamentation. Sorry, Kyle, there is no way you could defeat that angelic face. Nice try though.
Yowzers! Caleb gives quite the stare as he fans out the money he’s collected from the group. We each had to pay for our hotel rooms individually. When we first arrived on Paros we hotel hunted and found the place ourselves. Let me tell you, collecting money from 16 students and 1 professor is not an easy task.
Since the Cyclades has decided to be nonconformist this year, giving us inclement weather instead of the usual bright, sunny skies, Kitlas soaks up the only rays he can find by the pool. The beautiful sunset is almost an adequate substitute for the real thing.
A storms a brewing. Nick gives his usual hokey wave in front of the windmill at the Paros harbor as we board the ferry. Behind him clouds gather and we all pray to Zeus that the rain will avoid us so we can go to the beach.
On the boat we are all forced to sit in our assigned seats, despite the fact that we seem to be the only ones on board. Caleb, Ray, and Ben get saucy as I try and take a picture.
Beautiful Mykonos! The glorious island we’ve been hearing about since the trip began, yields nothing but clouds and a light rain shower. Here groups of people huddle together under umbrellas in the harbor.
Gahl and Kyle play volleyball with their rainbow bouncy ball while we wait for our ride to the hotel. Oh, you zany kids, quit making a scene.
What’s that strange creature! A pelican lands on a nearby truck and our T.A. freaks out a little. Lucky we snapped a picture before it flew off.
Aw, Mike, you look so happy to be here. The beautiful Mykonos landscape stretches behind Mike as he sits on the wall in front of our hotel.
At the Mykonos Museum, Ben, Kyle, Kinsey, and Kelsey look at the famous Mykonos pithos portraying the Trojan War. The neck of the amphora contains a scene of the Greeks within the Trojan horse and the body contains scenes of Greeks doing terrible things to Trojan women and children. Nothing brightens your day like pictures of people being impaled.
Oh my God! Guys, get out of the Trojan horse. Who do you think you are?
Usually I comment on the on-site signage, but today we found bizarre signs on the boat, the streets, and in the hotels instead. Starting from the center and moving clockwise we see a “Removal of Signs” sign; a shackling “Passengers Stay Seated” sign from the ferry; a “I Don’t Know What the Heck This Ferry Sign is About” sign; a “Hard Guy” sign from the hotel lobby; a “Pretty Unsubtle” sign from a local Mykonos club, a “B-side Hotel” sign from our hotel; an “Drink and Sail” sign from the ferry; and, finally, an “Embarkation Station” sign.
On a more serious note, Kristina had to go to the hospital today and was diagnosed with a respiratory infection. Thankfully she came back to us safe and sound with a cool party favor, an x-ray of her lungs. Here, she gives us a look at her innards. Ew!
It’s the end of the day and time for the beach. Several people need to stay behind at the hotel to give oral presentations, but roughly a third of the FSPers make it to Paradise Beach. As you can see, the name aptly describes the location.
Brooks, Mike, Kitlas, and Blankenship arrive and stake their claim in a couple of lounge chairs.
Although the beach is hopping, the boys decide it’s a good idea to work on their journals before they go swimming or fall asleep in the sun. With plenty of 20-something girls around, this is a difficult task indeed.
A beautiful end to a beautiful day. The sun sets over Mykonos as the FSPers prepare to go out to dinner. A feast of plenty awaits them, for Mexican, Chinese, and Italian restaurants are abundant here. We are all pretty sick of the monotonous menus we’ve been finding elsewhere.
FINAL COMMENTS:
Along with our plague of bad weather, The Plague and a barrage of other illnesses and minor injuries have caught up with our FSP. Shy now of the finish line by just under two weeks and with our second ISP week looming before us, Murphy and his accursed law seem to be having his way with us. Scalps have been burned, feet have been bitten by spiders, fluids have been booted, and blood has been coughed. The last one resulted in a chest x-ray for Kristina, who has fortunately been given the all-clear by the Mykonos public health system, who did the exam and x-ray for free. Thumbs up to them from Kristina. The rest of the afflicted continue to eschew island cuisine in favor of soup in order to facilitate the healing process. On the plus side, as the day faded (and after much of this blog was written) the sun came out again, promising glorious days on the beach to come.
