Week 9

Sunday, May 25, 2025 - Day 7

Athens, GR

Today's Bloggers: Josephine & Josiah

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Saturday, May 24, 2025 - Day 6

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Maddie	Hadley
Today was our very last morning in Despotiko! We all got to sleep in on the very peaceful island and then boarded the bus at 9:30 am! Many of us cooked the last of the eggs that were over-bought for our week in Despotiko. We then proceeded to take a short ferry, then another bus ride, then a very long ferry ride, all the way back to Athens. After returning to Athens, most of us spent a restful evening in our very missed apartments and saw our Northern Greece buddies again! Maeve and I even went for a walk in the national gardens to celebrate our return to Athens!	Today, our Northern Greece group had a long bus journey back to Athens from Thessaloniki. On our way, we stopped at the site of the Battle of Thermopylae for a brief lesson from Professor Martin! The battle was the only Persian victory in Greece during the second Persian invasion, but the valiant deaths of Spartan King Leonidas and his 300 soldiers nonetheless sparked universal Greek pride in their effort to combat the Persians. After the lecture, we watched a short 3D movie at the tiny info center/cafe near the site, then re-boarded the bus for another couple hours of driving. We also briefly hopped off the bus to check out a local natural hot spring, from which Thermopylae got its name. Our small group of ten had so much fun exploring Northern Greece together this week! Today was a peaceful end to a wonderful trip!

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Friday, May 23, 2025 - Day 5

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Jack	Josephine
Today marked our last day digging in Despotiko. We finished up various projects around the site, such as washing and drying the hundreds of pottery fragments we unearthed over the week and finishing work on the trench we began digging a few days ago. Other teams continued their restoration work and continued to excavate the archaic wall we discovered. The workday ended with goodbyes to our new friends, such as Yannos and Theodorus, who guided and helped us throughout our dig. We also enjoyed one last group lunch at Mpakas Fish Tavern before splitting off for the night to enjoy the beach, sunset, and the last of our groceries. Felipe, Maddie, Maeve, and I missed Despotiko so much that we swam the half mile across Episokpi Bay to enjoy the island one last time. All in all, this trip has not only offered hands-on insights into the world of classical archaeology but has also offered a perfect opportunity for quiet self-reflection.	Today the Northern Greece group embarked on a walking tour around Thessaloniki. We made ten stops to appreciate the rich architecture of Greece’s second largest city. The word of the day was “palimpsest” because Thessaloniki uniquely has preserved the many layers of antiquity ranging from the Hellinsitic times up through the Ottoman Empire. Logging over fourteen thousand steps, we first stopped at the Roman Forum and enjoyed a lecture on the broader history of the city under the shade of some lovely trees. Next, we moved on the largest church in Greece, the Ayios Demetrios, and then to the Acheiropoietos Church and Agia Sofia Church. We had the privilege of seeing glittering gold mosaics in situ, (unmoved from their original location) and appreciating the massive dome architecture. After getting some quality church time, we braved the public transport to get to the acropolis where we walked along the edge of the ancient fortification walls overlooking the city. There was a mulberry tree that provided a delicious midday snack. After stopping for some lunch, we continued our tour to the Roman masterpieces of the Rotunda of Galerius, the Arch and Palace before carrying onto the White Tower. Here we basked in the ocean breeze before venturing underground to a metro station that housed an incredible portion of the ancient Roman city. Wrapping up our walking tour, we headed back to the refreshing air conditioning of our hotel and will later embark to a family dinner on our last evening here!

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Thursday, May 22, 2025 - Day 4

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Sabriel & Ryker	Zander
Today was our 4th day excavating. We took the boat to despotiko at 7:30am while carrying 3 litres of water to be used for washing pottery. Most of us were excavating a square where a kouroi statue had previously been found. Others were working on restoring the walls of a building that had already been excavated, excavating an archaic wall that our group uncovered. Safe to say our pickaxing technique has greatly improved over the course of the week but we were still no match for Theodorise who was an absolute machine. We managed to get into a very good rhythm and made significant progress by the end of the day. After moving countless tons of dirt and acquiring new blisters, we took a hike to explore the rest of the island until we found our way to the beach. The beach was completely empty and, to quote Margaret, “I feel like I’m on another planet.” It was truly one of the post surreal places I have ever been to. The water was warm and the waves were calm. We played an intense game of jackpot and I also attempted to learn how to do the butterfly stroke but looked like I was drowning instead. The boat came to pick us up from the beach and took us to visit some beautiful sea caves. We then headed back to our hotels to recharge for the next day.	After making our way up to Thessaloniki, we began our first day in the second largest city in Greece with breakfast. We arrived at the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki at 11am. With a guided tour, we learned about the history of Jews in the city. For much of history, the Jewish community thrived in Thessaloniki, but things changed in the 20th century. After a great fire in 1917, the Jewish community was stripped of much of their property. Then, in the Holocaust, the population of the city which was around 40% Jewish was basically exterminated. Out tour guide was knowledgeable, and the museum contained many artifacts from the thriving Jewish community as well as jarring displays of the Holocaust, including a powerful memorial with the thousands of victims just from Thessaloniki. We got to reflect on our experience there, a rare modern museum in our survey of the ancient world. After a break for lunch, we returned to the ancient world at the Archaeological Museum. We spent time examining the beautiful Derveni krater–one of the most ornate and impressive pieces of metalwork from the Greek world. We wrote a close analysis of the artifact in the museum cafe and walked around the rest of the museum. The day ended with quick dinners and rest as some of the group ailed in their hotel rooms. Luckily Tori, Josephine, Jamie, and I were healthy enough to get on a pirate ship around the harbor–a nice way to end the day and see the city at night.

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Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - Day 3

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Josiah	Angie & Tori
Today was another day hard at work on the island of Despotiko. After a few days out in the sun, it was a little bit harder for everyone to get up, but we all made it to the dock by 7:30. Today, most everyone was digging. A portion of us (Josiah, Jack and Ben) worked on a wall near the water of an unidentified building. It was important to be careful will working efficiently because pottery shards found at the site are crucial in the dating process. In ancient times, styles of pottery changed quickly, meaning pottery experts are able to diagnose the time period through the specific style. After the dig, we had a big lunch and took a lazy afternoon on the beach. Then, a lot of the group enjoyed a nice sunset view from one of the hotel porches! Given the long day of hard work, we didn’t stay up late, and all turned in early to get ready for another day on the island.	While the despotiko crew is busy digging up dirt, the Northern Greece crew has been living in luxury. Our day started bright and early at 7am. We gathered for a scrumptious hotel breakfast with pancakes, croissants, and fresh fruit. From there, we set off for our day. We first visited Pella, where we saw the ruins of an ancient agora as well as pebble mosaics. After visiting its respective museum, we set off to see some of the most well preserved Macedonian tombs. Let me say— it was amazing. We so often see online 3D reconstructions of ancient temples with color, but as a group we haven’t ever seen a well enough color preserved structure with our own eyes. The first tomb we visited— the tomb of Judgements— beared some of the only preserved Greek wall art. We then walked to another tomb which was equally as impressive and ornate. From there, we headed off to the Museum of the Royal Tombs at Aigai in order to see more Macedonian tombs, including the grave of Philip the II. I honestly think this was one of the most well done museums i’ve been to on this trip. The tombs were located in situ within the actual exhibits, so you didn’t have to go to a separate archeological site and museum, something i’ve never personally seen before. Afterwards we headed to an additional museum in Aigai in where Josephine lost her earrings but coincidentally found it on a path walking back to the bus. I call that a win. We also got yelled at as a group for trying to take a picture in front of a museum. A security guard said “Only pictures, no posing!” and none of us knew what to do because we were in full posing stance. Eek! But overall it was a great day and we are excited for what Northern Greece brings us next!

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Tuesday, May 20, 2025 - Day 2

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Tanaz	Erika
Today was our second day of working on Despotiko!! And drumroll…also our first day of actually excavating! Niz, Ben, Josiah, and Jack started the day on Building MN with the lovely task of removing the infinite weeds from the structure. Lots of fun conversation and a beautiful view kept us going through what seemed like a Herculean task. Others worked on chiseling away cement from marble and clearing up Building Zeta. After our snack break we were split up to begin digging! A big group headed down to extend trenches and try to find hidden remains of archaic walls. Ryker and Jordan were pros at pickaxing. We headed back to Antiparos after a long days work and had a great seaside lunch. Then we went straight to the beach. Gracie, Margaret, Maeve, Maddie, Felipe, Sab, and Jordan had a nice beach nap/read while Ben and Niz tried (and failed) to play volleyball. Niz was buried (pictured below). Ryker went for a run and found some pretty coves. And then we all went back home to make dinner and enjoy each others company in the shade! Overall a pretty awesome day. Can’t wait to keep working on the dig!!!	Today, our group explored the breathtaking rock formations and historic monasteries of Meteora. From the bus ride to Meteora, we could already point out the unique rock boulders jutting out from the valley. Once we got there, we were slightly intimidated by the ‘strenuous hike’ but we were so ready to reach the top! Luckily, the hike ended up being much shorter than expected and we were in awe of the beautiful natural surroundings. We visited three monasteries, each perched high atop towering cliffs and offering unforgettable views of the valley below. We thought that spring was the perfect time to visit because the colorful flowers were in bloom and the green plants stood out wonderfully against the grey and black stone! Inside the monasteries, we were struck by the rich iconography, fragrant incense, and peaceful atmosphere that made it easy to lose track of time. From gold-leafed frescoes to blooming monastery gardens, the blend of nature and spiritual history was truly one-of-a-kind. Many of us had powerful, reflective experiences as we sat inside the gold-covered naves and thought about how monks have lived in such a beautiful place for hundreds of years. After our monastery visits, we enjoyed a scenic bus ride through the mountains and arrived in Thessaloniki, where we’ll spend the next four nights exploring Greece’s second-largest city!

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Monday, May 19, 2025 - Day 1

Despotiko	Northern Greece
Ben & Felipe	Sophia
Today marked our first day of excavating on Despotiko! We boarded a boat at 7:30 in the morning that brought us from our rural sleepy town on Antiparos across the bay to Despotiko. The lead archeologist, an indomitable whirlwind of a man named Yannos, gave us an enthusiastic crash course of the site. Despotiko houses the archaic Sanctuary of Apollo, and has the usual hallmarks of a Greek religious sanctuary - an altar, an enclosing peribolos wall, a space to house a cult statue, etc. - but is, in many ways, a unique structure to which we haven’t encountered anything similar. For instance, the altar is semicircular instead of circular, the triglyphs lack the usual guttae, there were likely two cult statues present here for the worship of two gods (presumably Apollo and Artemis), there was a dining structure directly attached to the rooms housing the cult statues, among other oddities. The site also features an intricate cistern and channel system for the store and transport of water. We worked until 2 in the afternoon, at which point the Europeans decided enough was enough and broke for the day. Since this was the first working day on the site in six months, most of the work consisted of cleaning the site and getting it ready for further excavation. The group spent the majority of its time picking weeds and scraping dirt, and the nature of the work greatly resembled something a mother might ask her unwitting child to do in her garden - but we did it with the biggest smiles on our faces, because we literally signed up for this. Those of us who finished cleaning their section early were put to work chipping concrete off a wall. The story is thus: ancient stone walls are often capped in concrete by archeologists to aid in their preservation. The concrete used to cap off this wall was, for whatever reason, wrong, and so needed to be removed and redone. Luckily for Yannos and co., they had recently been blessed with legions of young free labor. After a hard day’s work, we took the boat right back across the bay and ate lunch at the local taverna. For the rest of the afternoon, most of the group established themselves on the beach directly facing the Sanctuary of Apollo across the water. Some napped, some read, some swam, some snorkeled, some played with a ball, and some played with a very friendly local dog. As the sun began setting, we were treated to an amazing dinner at a local restaurant by a visiting Dartmouth alum. After sunset, the clear skies and lack of light pollution allowed for great stargazing opportunities. The group largely went to bed early in anticipation of another full day tomorrow.	Today we started off the day nice and early. We ate breakfast and were out the door by 7:40. At 8, we were entering the Delphi Museum and had some lectures from Professor Martin, Joyce, Tori, and Hadley. We looked at pediments, statues, and other pieces of art. Then, we boarded back onto the bus for a 3 hour drive to Trikala. We stopped halfway through for a nice, 40 minute lunch break. The rest stops are much better than those in the states and we had chicken, stuffed tomatoes, rice, and sandwiches for lunch. Then, we finished the rest of our ride and went to the Byzantine Castle in Trikala. Unfortunately the gates were closed to go into the castle but we did get to see the outside. Then, we had a 5 minute drive to the hotel. For the rest of the night we are finishing up our homework assignments and readings, and then wandering into the town to go find food and explore.