The last week of the Journey has ended!
For those who were not on the trip, and I am assuming if you are reading this you were not, arriving back in Athens and stepping off the boat yielded a great sigh of relief from many of the Journey to Greece students. The easyLife was over for the students who waved goodbye to their cruise ship, which is also aptly named easyLife, and set off with fond memories of the Greek islands…and Turkey = /. Walking through the port gave time for the students to realize that the trip was almost over, no more classes, no more friends, no more frappe'! Regardless the students did not get to sulk for long as they were whisked away on Monday to Sounion by the Glyfada Daughters of Penelope chapter. The bus ride took its toll on some of the students, there were heads back on chairs with mouths agape. Waking up and walking off the bus the students came face to face with a hotel, not something you normally would expect when you think of Sounion but nonetheless inviting. The hotel butted right up to the beach that was just under the Temple of Poseidon, it was refreshing to take a dive into the water and enjoy the view provided. After the beach party, students piled into the busses to head to the Temple of Poseidon; the temple stands alone on the top of a cliff where it has apparently become "illegal" to throw rocks off (a tradition started with Journey to Greece 2006). Amidst the confusion of returning students, a tour guide gave the history of the temple as well as the myth attached to the construction of the temple (a competition between Athena and Poseidon over the capital city of Greece, bet you can guess who won…) and finally wrapped up with Lord Byron's inscription. The rest of the time was spent enjoying the views from the Temple and taking pictures with the sunset falling through the columns of the Temple.
Tuesday allowed the students a unique taste of Greek Orthodoxy with a visit to the Archbishop Theophilos, Exarch of the Patriarch of Jerusalem in Athens. The students were invited to tour the monastery in Athens as well as the small museum that is housed within the structure. It was very informative with the Journey students asking deep questions about their religion and religious traditions. Archbishop Theophilos took the students upstairs to a small museum and removed some of the religious artifacts for the students while he explained their significance to the Orthodox Church. Archbishop Theophilos was very jovial through the entire visit offering unique and realistic views of our religion bring many things into perspective for the Journey students. After posing with the Archbishop, students exited the building and walked back to the school and onto the Metro to the embassy. Walking up the street to the embassy and realizing that we were passing by struck the students as awkward. The students were actually going to the Ambassador's residence that lies just behind the embassy. Upon arrival, armed guards (the usual for an embassy) and tight security to which they presented their passports and were escorted into the residence, greeted students. Once inside the Journey students enjoyed Fanta and Pepsi before heading into the common room of the house where Clark Price, Deputy Chief of Mission spoke. Mr. Price greeted students with a small background on US and Greek relations and then opted for a Question and Answer session where students posed questions to the FYROM issue as well as the topic of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. As the session ended, students were moved out of the house and out to the lawn for pictures with the Deputy Chief of Mission. From there students left the residence and took the metro back to Syntagma square to eat dinner.
The rest of the week passed by with students pulling "all nighters "to write their final papers and to prepare for their respective finals. The coursework was tough but everyone banded together through study groups and made it happen. For the Greek class it was an oral presentation, for the Greeks in America class it consisted of an essay and PowerPoint, Art and Architecture had a final test, and Philosophy had six essays due on Thursday; it was a busy week for everyone.
Friday was the last day students were in Athens and meant everyone was packing for their flight home. That night the University of Indianapolis in conjunction in AHEPA threw a farewell reception for students with food from the local taverna. Spanakopita, Keftethes, and Souvlaki lined a buffet that made your mouth water; some students ate so much that they went back for thirds and fourths! During the reception there were speeches made about the program's continuation and the history of the program with words added about the pleasant time the students had during this Journey to Greece 2008 term. All in all the reception left everyone feeling good about what they had just been a part of and allowed one last formal meeting of all the Journey students. That night many of the students went out to celebrate the end of the trip, some went to meet with family, and others spent the night in preparation for the long flight ahead.
Saturday was met with tears from many; it would be the last time students would see each other for an extended duration. The trip to the airport seemed sullen as students were feeling a cloud of depression slowly descend. The transition at the airport went smoothly, students found their planes and had time to eat something before embarking, but this was not before many tear-filled good-byes' and lots of "I will call you"s. As to quote the Blue Oyster Cult, "Airplanes make strangers of us all, give us distance much too easily". As the planes departed the Journey to Greece program ended for the 2008 year and the students arrived in their homes to see the smiling faces of those who missed them.
