Sunday and beyond...

Sunday was another lazy day with a little bit of shopping thrown in. 

It was also the night of the full moon, which meant the area around the acropolis was absolutely packed. Once a year, on the night of the full moon in August, the museum stays open until midnight with free entrance and live music, and of course a fabulous view of the moonlit Parthenon. It brings a bunch of people out, but a few too many for my tastes. I met up with Jeremy instead and we had a much quieter and more pleasant evening away from the masses at a lovely little cafe.

And then I picked my things up at the hostel and scurried off to the airport...

... And a whole twenty plus hours later made it home in time for sushi dinner. Another summer successfully completed!

Saturday!

Saturday was an entirely lazy day. Sophie and I slept late and got to Athens in the early afternoon. From there I got a bite of lunch and read for a bit. 

The evening was spent with Some lovely people from the dig, having dinner with live music, visiting Bretto's...

and then taking a stroll around the bottom of the acropolis.

(This one's Hadrian's Library though.)

A most lovely night indeed!

Thursday and Friday!

So Wednesday night had a lovely sunset. And we had an impromptu beach party with a little fire and music and everything!

Thursday saw us back to work and miracles of miracles it rained!

And then it hailed and stayed rainy all afternoon! That was a nicely cool evening at least, though.

Friday was our last day and we did a bit of work in the field before retreating to the lab where I got to do a little conservation work, yay! We had one last afternoon on the beach...

And a cloudy sunset...

Before we had dinner at a tiny fish taverna which was most delicious.

We wandered along the beach saying goodbye to people and stopped in to have a farewell drink with those of us still left before bed.

It was a lovely evening all in all! Now I shall be off to Athens in the morning, and homeward bound on Monday. Hope all is well at home!

Tuesday and Wednesday!

More of the same! We worked hard and lounged around in the afternoon before delicious dinners.

Tuesday there were clouds making for some lovely sunset colors.

Wednesday's excitement was a proper thunderstorm. It even hailed!

Only a couple days left now! Hope all is well at home!

Monday

Today was back to work. It was another hot one and rather dusty. (That's not tan, just dust.)

And then a lazy afternoon. Tonight we are going to have a party because it is Marcus', Mariza's husband's, birthday today.

The evening turned out to be quite lovely.

And after dinner there was cake.

And then caipirinha on the beach. (They are Brazilian after all. ^^)

Now to find bed! Hope all is well!

Saturday and Sunday!

This weekend was all about lazy relaxation. There are a few little things to see in this area, but they are mostly difficult to get to without a car, so beach days seemed like a fabulous way to spend the weekend.

Saturday we slept in late then trundled down to the beach to laze around until dinnertime. 

Sunday I got up early and skipped on down to the beach to watch the sun rise.

It was quite lovely and rather peaceful, save for the odd strain if music drifting over from the bar still going at this hour of the morning.

And then I proceeded to stay on the beach for the next 16 hours, through the sunset and to the end of dinner. It was fabulous!

Thursday and Friday!

So these two days were filled with more field work and lab work! Hooray! Other than that there has been beach and food and sun everywhere. We did have a cloudy evening dinner at one night though! We eat right by the beach...

At this place every night:

After dinner on Thursday we went out to this little beach bar with a pretty pool.

This was me and my roommate Sophie:

The owner was very nice and made us shots before we left. Which he set on fire. A whole lake of fire!

Everything is so pretty here, though. This is the view from where we eat lunch...

The lab we work in is two towns over in Helike itself. Helike is a really pretty town.

 

Surrounded by a lovely view of the mountains in just about every direction. 

There are flowers and lovely yards everywhere.

During the day, the gates are opened and water flows through channels down to fields below the town.

The result is that there is the pleasant sound of trickling, moving water throughout the town. It's quite lovely.

Now for a restful beachy weekend. Hope all is well at home!

Tuesday and Wednesday

So it is indeed just the five of us, with one more lady to join us next week. I am the tallest one of the whole bunch. Sometimes by many inches. Actually, usually by many inches which is a little odd and somewhat entertaining. The work has been hot so far, and mostly testing/cleaning up. We're working in a Helladic site at the moment. I am still holding out hope for making it into a conservation lab!

The region here is rather interesting. It was described in the second century AD by Pausanius in his massive Description of Greece. He traveled around the whole country and recorded everything he saw in extensive detail. Including the region around Helike. In 373 there was a massive earthquake and the whole delta here sunk, flooding the early sights and a Helladic town in the process. This cafe even commemorates that date.

So that is what we're looking into here. A range of settlements dating back to the Bronze Age and extending into the Roman period.

The village itself is lovely, as is the sunset.

 

In the evenings we head down to the shore for dinner. It's about a twenty minute walk but is quite nice. There are fields of lemons, lines and grapes.

Olives, blackberries, and chickens.

With their guard of course. And flowers everywhere. We dine with the sun setting in the background and the soft sound of the waves rolling in behind our conversations.

There are adorable tiki roofs everywhere. Thus is a small village and not much frequented by tourists so we are really the only non Greeks in sight.

It's hot, but there's not much else to report, other than this fun detail: only in Greece is the internet so complicated. :)

 Love to all, hope home is well!

Monday

So today was the first day of work at my new dig. It's run by the Helike Project, and centered in fhe little village of Nikolaiikia. It's been a very different experience from my previous dig. I'm the only American here, but that might not be saying too much since there are only five of us volunteers here right now.

I was thinking I would be working in the conservation lab, but it seems like I am actually going to be in the field. And then working in the lab an afternoon or two. 

The beach is lovely at least and much cleaner than the one in Pacheia Ammos.

And though it's a bit warm, there is certainly a pleasant enough breeze to keep that from being too bad.

Hope all is well at home!

Saturday and Sunday

So Saturday was the official last day. We worked hard through the morning and finished everything that we wanted to do. It was strange to say goodbye to everyone, but we've all got plans I meet up again in the future. And we got team shirts!

I even got a final letter ^^

Friday night was our big farewell dinner. 

Lizzy and I made sure we had a plaster girls picture, too.

And then it was a fun night out before the final day of work. Brett and I had a last lunch in Pacheia Ammos before we hopped on the bus with some other people from the dig to head to Heraklion.

There we found the hotel Brett and Gianna were staying in and we went out for dinner. This nifty little thing was in a park right near their hotel.

We had a drink at our favorite little corner bar in Heraklion, and then I picked my stuff up from their room and took a last look at Crete.

And then it was off to catch my ferry. We powered out of the harbor with a last smear of orange and purple still in the west. Crete looks beautiful at night, all lit up with the villages in the mountainsides glittering... I shall miss it. 

This morning I arrived in Piraeus, took the metro into the city to find the KTEL bus station, took a bus to Aigio, and then a cab to the next village over. But I made it! The town I am in now is Nikolaiika, and though I have yet to explore much, it looks like a cute little place. I've still no idea what tomorrow is going to be like, but we'll find out! The view from my room isn't too bad either!