Final Entry

This will be the final entry of out trip to Greece.  As I reviewed the people and places we visited I wanted to include some things that weren't included in the day by day blog. The first picture below is of an oregano plant.  These plants grew wild along the side of the road.

This second picture is of a small chapel.  Private citizens are allowed to build them without having them belong to an organized religion. You see them in city neighborhoods and in the country throughout Greece.

The next picture is of the Canal of Corinth.  This man-made canal is 4 miles long and connects the Aegean sea with the Ionian Sea.

The next picture was taken at Delos (see "A Walk Through Time" in this blog).  The picture is taken in a residential neighborhood of this ancient city.  The columns indicate that this house was owned by a wethy resident.  The full size sculptures (with heads missing) were  the likely owners who have been standing guard over their home for hundreds of centuries.

I want to express my appreciation to those of you who have followed this blog of  HVCC's trip to Greece. The experience for the singers was exceptional.

Our Last Day in Greece

We are leaving Greece on a high note.  Today most of us traveled to the town of Corinth, ancient town that Paul visited.  As with all 2,000 year old towns in Greece, the old Corinth is in ruins.  However one could not help but think that, in the time of Christ, Paul had been to this place to plant the seed of Christianity in Greece. The picture below is of the market area Paul walked while in Corinth.

Of course the Romans occupied Greece during the time of Christ and so Roman and Greek statues have been discovered on this site.  One of the interesting things we learned was how to tell a Greek statue from a Roman one. Roman statues usually depicted the current caesar.  So a full size statue was carved out of stone with a hole in the body where the head sits.  The head would be carved separately and place into the hole.  That way when a new caesar was crown all that needed to be replaced was the head!  The statue below is Roman.

 We also visited the Acropolis today.  It's hard to walk this area without realizing how LONG Greek civilization has existed.  The Parthenon has kept watch over the city of Athens for over 2,500 years.  Throughout the 3,000 years that Greek culture has existed, it has adapted and changed in many amazing ways.  Greece is the birthplace of things that we Americans take for granted such as democracy, theater, sporting events, and a judicial system.  In learning about Greece, we have realized that we are really learning about ourselves and our own roots.

Tomorrow we will travel back to the U.S.  We have found the Greek people to be a hard working, fun loving people. While the country has had some economic trouble in recent years, we have found the spirit of the Greek people is alive and well.  It is a quality that has suited them well for over 3,000 years.

Back to Athens

Today was spent taking a ride back to Athens by ferry.  Once in Athens we had our grand tour dinner at a restaurant in the Plaka.

A band played traditional Greek music and there were dancers dancing traditional Greek dances.  Oh, and there was belly dancing, which of course the singers had to join in!

As is the tradition, the adults sing a song for the choir that recaps the events of the trip.  The words are sung to the Greek Folk Song "Pera Stous"
 
                 Greece Tour Folk Song
We’re on the way to Athens.  It takes us just a day.
But then we spend another one just looking round the place.
And then we take a ferry ride, the ferry deck is heaving,
We get to Faros very tired, late into the evening.

We practice every morning with the kids from Tennessee,
John Rutter, he is dancing.    Now THAT is fun to see.
Our favorite is Zoey with heels so we can see her,
She loved the folk songs sung in Greek right there on the plateia.

LA  LA LALALA

We’re off to have our breakfast of cheese and bread and meat
We loved it when the menu changed to cheese and bread and meat.
My phone is getting WiFi, I’ll check on Insta-Gram
No, WAIT, the net has dropped me, this net’s not worth a BEEP!

The French kids were so cool, they all went radioactive,
The soprano wrongly thinks that her voice is attractive.
We love the way that meat is served, it’s always on a stick
Azolimnos beach and restaurants really are a kick.

LA  LA LALALA

There’s lots more to remember, like jumping of the rock
Or dropping your new VISA card right at the Delos dock.
The yoga classes that were done just as the sun was rising,
And the careless way in which the crazy Greeks are driving.

The schedule is so grueling, don’t change plans we beseech,
Yet for the bus we wait an hour there at Vari beach.
Gelato is delicious, we love the Grecian gyro
But hate the noon day heat that feels like
Fahrenheit 9 zero.

LALALA
LA  LA LALALA

Tomorrow our group splits, part stays in Athens for sightseeing a part goes to Corinth, ancient city where the apostle Paul stayed.  It will be our last day exploring Greece.

Paradise Lost

Today was our last day on the island of Syros and the little piece of paradise we have called home for the last 11 days,  Carol went to "the rock" (see picture below) and actually donned her bathing guit and jumped!

As with other days we spent our last day at the edge of the Aegean either swimming or having our favorite Greek dish at a beach-side restaurant.  There was a little weather and the wind blew hard enough that it brought something we hadn't seen before to Azolimnos beach - wind surfers

Tomorrow we leave Faros Village hotel and head back to Athens.  We will all miss this place.

The Island of Syros

The Cyclades, (Greek for circle) are a group of islands off the south coast of Greece that (roughly) form a circle.  Delos, the ancient city we visited last week is (roughly) the center of this circle of islands and our island Syros, is near Delos.  This is a long way of saying that Hermopolis is the capital city of the Cyclades.  Today we took a tour of the island which is surprisingly small.  Our first stop was Anos Syros, the "Old Syros" which literally hangs on a steep hill just outside the present city.  It is a walled city that was built back in medieval times, with narrow walkways (no streets) and a church perched at the very top of the hill.

Here is a typical street in Anos Syros...

And here's the view of the "new" city from the old city...

The island of Syros is about 50% Catholic and 50% Orthodox and of course many couples are a mixture off both.  A marriage is held at one church, and then, an hour later is held at the other!  But the children will usually follow the religion of the father. The kids had an impromptu sing at a 16th century church within the old city.

We also visited many beach towns around the island including Vari where the singers got to swim.

And here are the intrepid travelers at the end of the day, waiting for the but so carry us back to Faros Village Hotel.

Our Final Concert

Last night was our final "Concert Under the Stars" in the Plateia (main  plaza) in Hermopolis.  The Festival of the Aegean, of which we are part, is actually several weeks of cultural events.  HVCC has performed in three of these events over the last 10 days. At any rate, with the municipal building as the back drop  a collection of professional performers and choirs performed excerpts from famous operas.

Here is a small portion of the show for your listening pleasure....

But the "Concert Under the Stars" was not the only event last night.  The main street along the harbor was partially closed and televisions were placed every 30 feet in the outdoor cafes for people to watch the World Cup final.  For  us, it was early Monday morning when Germany scored the winning goal in the second extended time period.

Monday we spend the day taking a day tour of the island of Syros.

This Is Not Sturgis!

Every year Sturgis Montana hosts a BIG motorcycle convention.  We are NOT in Sturgis but it feels and sounds like it. There are motorcycles EVERYWHERE!  And because today was an "all day" rehearsal day I have decided to devote this days blog to the Greek motorcycle and the crazy people who ride them...

Look to see if you can find the family of 4, the pizza delivery man, motorcycle grandma and other motorcycle anomalies.

 

This is, by no means, a complete chronicle of the complex motorcycle society of Greece.  My apologies to you animal lovers as there were many four legged riders (with their owners driving) as well.  However these pairings were usually by before I could get a picture.  My guess is that in 2,000 years when archeologists come to this place to unearth the ruins they will wisely surmise that this people were slaves to Vespa, the god of movement.

Concert at St. Nicholas

Today we gave a concert at St. Nickolas Orthodox Church in Hermopolis.  The church was built in the late 1800s at the top of one of the hills of the city. The blue colored dome is clearly visible as you come into the harbor. Here's what the dome looks like on the inside...

The concert included our choir, a choir from Tennessee, and a children's choir from Paris and went off without a hitch.  But the best part of the evening happened AFTER the concert when our choir went down to the plateia (town plaza) to sing.  The French choir stopped to listen to us sing. By chance, we happened to sing a song that the French kids knew.  So we invited them to sing with us and sang it again!  Here's a picture of us sing with our new found French friends...

Tomorrow we spend all day preparing for our final "Concert Under the Stars" in the plateia on Sunday.  Be sure to look for tomorrow's blog because we have some pictures that you just won't believe!!!!

Play When You Can

This is what you see every morning if you get up early.  It's natures way of saying "I have started your day with something beautiful.  Now go and pass this beauty on to the people you meet".

Today we had lots of rehearsal time in preparation for our concert tomorrow in the downtown plaza in Hermopolis.  But we did have two hours of free time and what else could we do but run to the Aegean for some fun.  Just below the hotel is a small beach and a rocky outcropping, perfect for jumping.  Strict rules were put in place and chaperones were required to be present.  The singers will tell you that it's a thrill to make the jump.

Most all of these singers "took the plunge" including yours truly who did a cannonball and received perfect 10's from the judges!

A singer takes to the air...

A People In A Hurry

As slow and unhurried the pace in Greek restaurants, everywhere else people are in a hurry, and in every way. A good example was our ferry to Mykonos pictured below. I think you can see that the boat is listing heavily to port because the captain is coming into the harbor at 35 knots.  He essentially spun a donut in the harbor to bring the stern of the ship around to it's docking position.

And there are faster ferryboats if you want to get somewhere even faster

On land it is the same story but with a different vehicle, the motorcycle!  Everywhere in Greece, whether the town is big of small the streets are lined with them. With the downturn in the economy Greeks have found the motorcycle to be an inexpensive form of transportation.

We have literally seen every age of "biker" from 16 to 76, families of 3 on scooters, grandma's riding side saddle or revving the throttle on their own. .  And they use every part of the road, zooming between cars or along the curb. And when that doesn't work they will use the sidewalk.  But no matter how fast the pace gets, we always slow ourselves down with singing. Here is a portion of our rehearsal today at a small church close to where we are staying. Do you recognize any of the singers from behind?

A Walk Through Time

After several days of singing and a performance today was a "play day".  While some played at the local beach, others took a day trip to the sacred island of Delos where the Greek gods Apollo and Artemis were born.  It is also in the approximate center of the Cyclades Islands.  Because it was sacred it was a place of sanctuary and cultural for over a thousand years, (it had no army). While most residential buildings we simply rock walled structures, the wealthy could afford to add expensive artistic elements to their homes. Below are columns that made up part of the home of a wealthy resident of Delos.

Our party was broken into two groups for the exploration of the city.  For each group it was a "must" to sing at the ancient (3,000 year old) Delos amphitheater. The Greeks were the first to employ theater as an art form.  And in tribute to these ancients, the choir sang a Greek folk song,

There were ancient things EVERYWHERE!  But what was really important, especially about Delos, is that, even 3,000 years ago (some) people attempted to live in peace.  While most of the civilized world recognized this, it was eventually brought to ruin by a foreign king who, in attacking the defenseless city killed some 20,000 of the inhabitants. As with all the ruins, the silent theater steps are a lasting tribute to an ancient people.

Our First Performance!

Today was our first performance at the Apollo Theater in Ermopolous

Does the inside of the theater look familiar to you? It should. Built in the mid 1800's it was fashioned after La Scala but on a smaller scale.  We performed John Rutter's Mass of the Children, (that's John Rutter conducting), with children's choirs from Paris and Tennessee. The performance came off without a hitch and the crowd was appreciative.

 The city of Hermopolis is a mixture of many nationalities, the greatest influence coming from Italian immigrants.  Most of the landmark buildings in the town show this influence.

Tomorrow we go on a day trip to the island of Mykonos!