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We are pleased to invite you to join us on a travel-study to Athens and Paros or Ithaca. These are the perfect places to learn more about the friendly and warm Greek people, culture, and the wonderful antiquities. Your three courses will review the Golden Age of Greece from the archeological, historical and literary viewpoints. Knowledge of the Greek language is not a requirement of the program. These beautiful locations provide a perfect backdrop for your studies. We have written a Student Guide to provide you with more details about the program in Greece. It includes information about the program, fees, accommodations, curriculum, faculty, and field trips, plus many helpful hints about your travel and stay in Greece. After deciding to join the program and experience Greece first hand, please read through the Student Guide in detail.
To apply for the program, please complete and return the requested forms under Forms and Documents to the Office of Summer Sessions by May 1, 2008 . We look forward to receiving your documents and we are here to assist you with questions you may have in preparing for your trip. We hope your stay in Greece is pleasant and you come back with a better understanding of the rich Greek culture and language.
ATHENS - Cradle of Western Civilization
Imagine walking in the footsteps of the ancients... Surveying Athens from the Acropolis, exploring Hadrian's Arch, testing the acoustics in the Theatre, listening to bouzouki music in a taverna, shopping in the Monastiraki (Flea Market) and visiting the site of the 2004 Olympics, savoring some wonderful Greek food...
The first two weeks of the program will be spent in Athens studying Greek civilization. In Athens, you will be housed in nice, small hotels that line the new, pedestrian walk that takes people through all the major archaeological sites of Athens. Students could be literally doing their homework at some little restaurant and walk to one of the archaeological sites for more details and more inspiration. The place is full of elegant, small restaurants and taverns. People of all ages go sit in these places to eat, talk, and listen to music. Conspicuous among them are the young people not only of Greece but of many other nations; this is a very international place. Instruction will take place in a newly refurbished neo-classical building with a large veranda and a breath-taking view of the Acropolis.
You can enjoy musical and dramatic performances in the Theater of Irodion (Herod Atticus) at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens. See Greek theatre performed in the very structure where it all began. Discover Sounion (Temple of Poseidon) on a field trip and learn the history of Poseidon (Neptune): in Greek mythology he was god of the sea, the son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea, and his siblings were Zeus and Hades.
PAROS - Crossroads of the Aegean
Spend the last four weeks in Paros. Sail away to Paros from the very same port where Alcibiades set out with 100 Athenian triremes on the ill-fated Sicilian campaign in 415 BCE. On the 3-5 hour voyage to Paros, while passing Delos, a vast treasure of antiquities, Prof. Athanassakis will lecture on island natives Apollon and Artemis. Then Paros! Seeing it for the first time is an unearthly vision of gently contoured brown hills crowned by little white churches and highlighted by the interplay of white and blue in the harbor city of Paroikia. You will be caught up in a very busy, pretty island town replete with good food and friendly people. Imagine brilliant white buildings against crystal clear water shading to ultramarine! The approach to Paros is through Paroikia with its ruined Venetian castle and fragrance of geraniums and basil. The entire island has a rich archaic and classical heritage replete with antiquities that range from Neolithic to Byzantine times. Ruminate about life in modern, air-conditioned rooms with private entrances newly created in the Cycladic style. The Aegean Village Hotel is situated in an ancient lemon orchard, an oasis of green and calm in the center of the town, 3 minutes walk to the main port. You'll gather on your own verandah for evening deliberations about a visit to ancient Parian marble quarries, the marble of the Acropolis.
You'll visit colorful Lefkes (literal translation'white village'). Both a traditional village and the old capital of the island, it is located high in the central mountains with beautiful views of the sea. Its traditional architecture shows influences from the Russian and Byzantine. Arts and handicrafts abound from basketry, embroidery, and weaving to ceramics, wood and metal work, and ancient potting methods. There may be trips to fabled Delos and Naxos, where Theseus left Ariadne in the lurch. And of course, the local cuisine is excellent.
ITHACA - Legendary Home of Odysseus
Students who choose to spend their last four weeks in Ithaca will travel by bus from Athens to the Port of Patras and then by boat to Ithaca. As you sail to magical Ithaca, you will be received by two promontories that are shaped like open arms. The water of the bay of Vathi is very deep and very blue. The town of Ithaca seems to be anchored at the head of the bay. Above it rise rather tall mountains. The people of Ithaca are very friendly and eager for company. In modern times, the island has had a great tradition in the maritime adventures of Greece as well as in literature and the arts.
You will stay at the Hotel Mentor in shared rooms, two students to a room, and breakfast is included. The District Governor of the Ionian Islands, the present mayor, and the former mayor will host a welcome banquet and give us a free tour of the island.
We will take a three-day field trip to the coast of Northwestern continental Greece, parallel to Ithaca, which is the cradle of Hellenic religion and mythology. There we will see Dodna, the oldest oracle of the Greeks; Acheron, the river leading to the Underworld; the Oracle of The Dead; and the Acheloos River, which gave birth to the concept of a mythic ocean.
"I am Odysseus son of Laertes, known before all men
for the study of crafty designs, and my fame goes up to the heavens.
I
am at home in sunny Ithaka."
"Some say a troop of horsemen
others a force of men on foot,
yet others a fleet of ships,
is the most beautiful sight
on the black earth,
but I say beauty is what you love."
-Sappho
