Meteora

So, I apologize for being out of touch for so long. It's been pretty busy around here in Greece, and the internet at my apartment has been patchy at best. Last week, shortly after I last wrote, the BCA program students took a two day trip to Meteora. My parents had told me that it was wonderful, because they went during a trip back in the early 1980s, but I didn't quite expect it to be quite as wonderful as it was! We had about a 5 hour bus ride, but a couple of good friends, and my iPod (and some brief naps) made it quite a bearable trip! We arrived at the hotel where Aphrodite had arranged for us to stay, which was very nice, clean and comfortable. I appreciated very much the fact that you couldn't feel the springs in the bed (as opposed to the beds in my apartment). Aphrodite hired a tour guide named Stella to guide us around the monasteries, because obviously she couldn't do it with a broken leg. We were impressed by her bravery even to come. So Stella took us to the first monastery, that of St. Athanasios or the transfiguration, which is obviously high above everything else. Meteora is the name of a group of monasteries built up on the extremities of rock formations. Pillars of rock literally shoot up from the ground, creating a marvelous and unusual sensation. I was struck with awe at how difficult it must have been to construct these beautiful churches hundreds of feet above the ground, when stairs were only introduced recently. It was magnificent. The first monastery was truly beautiful, and I felt as though every direction I turned I wanted to take another picture! Which I did, usually :) After this, our very impressive bus driver took us down to a scenic lookout point, where we took more photos, and climbed on some of the rocks. I never cease to be amazed when I am in Europe at the more relaxed attitude about guard rails or fences. I have the sense that in America, I never would have been allowed to climb up on the top of one of these rocks, and stand around a foot from the edge of a several hundred foot drop! Which was very exciting and very fun... but felt distinctly un-American! We were sent down a flight of steps that was so long I sent up a thank you to God that I didn't have to hike UP the flight of stairs to reach the top of the rocks, and we came to another smaller monastery, which I unfortunately do not know the name of. After more pictures of the flowers and the rope ladders, we trekked down to the bottom of the stairs, where Stella and the bus were waiting for us. We had dinner at the hotel, and decided to take a walk after to enjoy the town of Kalambaka, where our hotel was located. Many students got ice cream, but I avoided... the dinner had been so large and filling. It was great because all of the cafes were filled with Greek men of various ages, watching a football (soccer) game on the TVs. Because it's already the beginning of October, the tourist season seems to be winding down at least a little, which means it's slightly easier to get the "feel" of the community. Obviously without living there, one can't really get the sense of that, but I felt as though we were treated at least to a small taste of what life in Kalambaka might be like, at least on the night of a football game!

The next morning Stella, (who reminds me a little of the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding with her enthusiasm in pointing out the Greek origins of MANY English words, and also calls us all her "little darlings" or "dear little ones") took us to two more monasteries, that of Varlaam, (a saint about whom apparently practically nothing is known) and the nunnery of Saint Stephen. Both were beautiful, and many more pictures were taken at both places. I was shocked to find that when I loaded these photos onto my computer when we returned, I had taken over 200 photos. Beware if you ask to see my pictures when I get home, everyone!

So after these two monasteries, we returned to the hotel, picked up Aphrodite, and drove the 5 hours back to Athens. The trip was marvelous, and Greece just keeps getting better and better! I will be writing again soon to catch you up on things after Meteora... but want to keep everything organized in regards to the posts! Miss you all! Ya sas!