More moments from Samos

So far, the trip to Samos has been glorious. It is a lush and gorgeous island. The big towns are touristy, although fairly empty at this time of year; while the countryside is full of farms and lots of vineyards. Here are some highlights of our first few days.

Starting off in front of the Vouli in Syntagma Square, on the first walk through downtown Athens. Little sign sign of unrest, although the economy is still in a tailspin.

 We are paying attention to how things have changed since last year. The economy is still in a coma; more shops than ever are closed in our neighborhood (including our favorite ice cream place, wah!). But Greeks seem more resigned--little evidence so far of the political unrest of past years. Either they think things have turned a corner, or this is traditional Greek pessimism reasserting itself.

After the tour, we made our way back to pack, then got on the ferry to Samos.

Chillin' on the ferry to Samos.

 Our first day was a whirlwind tour of the island. We were overwhelmed by its beauty. The first stop was Pythagoreio (ancient Samos town), where we got to walk through the tunnel of Eupalinos, one of the engineering marvels of the Archaic period. Then we got a brief stop in the town center, where we wandered through the acropolis (now a Byz. fort and church), and dip our toes in the water.

Next stop: the Heraion. Lush and overgrown, but well-marked.

After the ancient stuff, the rest of the day was picturesque stops, a nice lunch, and finally some beach time back in Vathy. What a day!

The next day was our trip to Patmos. The ride over was long, but eventful--the first time we've seen dolphins in the Aegean, actually swimming under and around the boat!

The guys chatting with some friendly fellow American tourists.

 The day was taken up by a tour of the Cave of the Apokalypse and the monastery of Ayios Ioannis o Theologos. The tour guide was good, and there was everything you'd want to see: the place in the cave where John laid his head when he slept, skulls in reliquaries, early manuscripts.

The Divine Mr. John.

Exploring the grounds of the monastery.

Fortunately, the world did not end while we were there--although some people (including several Kaplans) might have briefly wished it had, on the boat ride back! Two and a half hours of choppy seas, not fun. Still, we have another (thankfully shorter) trip on the same boat today, to see Ephesus. The first time Leslie will be in Turkey, and Phil's first return to Ephesus in, let's see, twenty three years. We're excited--more on the trip later.