Please name all the members of your traveling party and their city of residence.
Dr. Manoucher R. Khosrowshahi (Dr. K.), professor of political science at Tyler Junior College, Tyler, Texas and 44 other travelers including students, faculty, staff, community members from all around the U.S.A., a Greek tour guide and bus driver.
Tyler Junior College’s travel/study project mainly focused on the Ancient, Classical Greek civilizations and early Christianity.
Where did you go and for how long, and what inspired you to visit this destination?
The group visited the high points of classical Greece by touring 7 of the 18 UNESCO heritage sites, i.e., Acropolis (Athens), Corinth, Epidaurus, Nafplion, Mycenae, Olympia, and Delphi among many other places. Our group members spent ten glorious days from March 9 - 18, 2017 in Greece.
We were inspired to visit Greece since it has one of the longest histories of any country, and is considered the cradle of Western civilization. It was the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, art, Christianity, medicine, the Olympic Games, Western literature, languages, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western mythology and drama.
We gained a greater depth of understanding and appreciation for the early Christianity by visiting Christian sites. The emphasis was on the cities and places that were visited by the Apostle Paul and his co- workers, as well as sites that had impacted the Biblical text.
What sights or scenes made your eyes pop out of your head?
The Sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi and the Monastery of Hosios Lukas were stunning and breathtaking sites among many others.
The intoxicating view and topography of Delphi (4th century B.C.), the majestic columns of the Doric order, and aesthetics of classical Greek architecture made our eyes pop out. Delphi is one of the iconic images of ancient Greece. The site and the museum collections are un-paralleled anywhere else in the world. The Sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi was the most important sacred site in the Greek world, once home to a legendary Oracle. Delphi played a central role in Greek mythology. The natural setting is exquisite. This place encourages you to slow down and wonder.
Hosios Loukas Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was another eye popping site with the most important monuments of the 11th-century Byzantine architecture and art. The church (or katholikon) was constructed with part brick, part stone, and part marble masonry. It is the earliest example of the domed octagonal form that became the hallmark of late Byzantine church architecture. The interior, walls, and floor were lavishly decorated with the frescoes, murals, mosaics of saints, and Christ. This awe inspiring sacred monastery is a pilgrimage for Greek Orthodox Christians. Views all around the Monastery take ones’ breath away. The natural setting, artistic achievement, and serenity were combined to create a magical place.
Describe a connection you made -- or misfire or disappointment you suffered -- with a person, place or thing.
Many facets of modern American life can be traced back to the innovations and life style of the Greeks and Romans. Eating food, listening to music, intimacy, dancing, performing sports, worshipping, and shopping were among many other activities that connected us to the Greeks. When some of the group members were naturally enticed to race at the Olympia Stadium, when one group member (May Wright) spontaneously sang at the Epidaurus theater and a few other sites, when another group member (Savannah Williams) performed a Sirtaki dance at Taverna (Greek Night Out), when we relaxed in the lovely city of Araxova (Arachova) and had coffee, and when the group went on a shopping spree in the Agora (Acropolis), we realized that “we were all Greeks” and enjoyed the same activities as Greek people did. The connections were made very easily. We learned that events and human behaviors of today are strikingly similar to those of long ago. At times, we couldn’t imagine ourselves in the world of the ancient Greeks: How did they handle child birth, cure illness, cook, stay warm during the winter time, take care of their personal hygiene, write, create such a massive art, etc.?
What experience made you break down in giggles -- or tears?
There were many giggling and crying moments during our Greek visit for ten days. We will only cover two areas of Graffiti and the meat market.
Street art and graffiti in Athens are everywhere, conveying mostly social and political messages and making Athens a new Mecca for artists. Graffiti/drawings blanketed Athens’s city walls, trains, cars, banks, kiosks, and crumbling buildings. Even we saw an unkind (profanity) message of the U.S. president, Donald Trump, on the walls in the Plaka area. We were not sure whether we should consider the street graffiti an act of vandalism or innovative artistic expression: a moment for crying or giggling. It seems that it is human nature to write on the walls from ancient time to modern day Athens’ walls, or the Facebook wall. In fact, the word comes from the Greek graphi which means to write. Athens’ public spaces (walls) can be a powerful venue for political and cultural expression which can make one laugh and/or cry.
A visit to the meat market (the Varvakeios Agora) about five blocks from the Monastiraki square was also a moment to cry and/or laugh. Vegans and vegetarians may cry and meat lovers and hunters may giggle. The smells and aromas in the market made this visit a cultural experience. The red meat market turned into the poultry market which turned into the fish market. Many innocent animals were slaughtered daily. Pig and cattle heads, beef tongues, brains, hearts, and guts were displayed in the open market. There were meat scraps and blood on the floor. For vegans, such as I, it put tears in my eyes. I wondered why people take care and love cats and dogs, yet they slaughter other animals and eat them.
What about this destination, or your experience, took you by surprise?
This was my 1st trip to Greece. I absolutely fell in love with its beauty, culture, and depth of history. After conducting 27 travel/study projects in Turkey in the past, I never thought Greece would match Turkey’s ancient sites. I had a feeling that the natural sites, mountains, and the sea in Greece would be beautiful. It was the archeological treasures of Greece that surprised us the most. The sheer volume and quality of the marble carvings and other antiquities were breathtaking. We wondered how a small population produced such vast treasures of human legacies in Greece, Asia minor (Turkey) and Mediterranean region.
What's the greatest gift -- a souvenir, a memory, an insight -- that you came back with?
While our suitcases were bursting with souvenirs (objects) from Greece, the greatest gift was our digital collection of pictures and videos (our camera memory cards). After ten days of intensive learning about Greece, exploring its rich heritage, diverse culture and people, and performing Yoga in the ancient sites, we returned to our homes, our lives and institutions with a digital library (souvenir) containing over five thousand pictures and over 100 videos. Via our digital treasures, we archived memories from a journey that one can look back on and enjoy for years and recall our Greek experience. Learning about Greece never stopped after our return. The TJC travel/study project in Greece provoked constant learning. The project was an incredible experience (greatest educational gift): intellectually, physically and spiritually rewarding for the rest our lives.
Anyone can go to Greece on his own-- maybe even with a guidebook and survive. But, you will not get the personal touch of Dr. Khosrowshahi's 28 trip experiences and knowledge of Greece, and the Mediterranean world. His many years of traveling and teaching experience enabled him to offer the travelers his deepest understanding of the mysteries of the Greece and world civilizations.
We left Greece with enduring memories. With so much we didn’t see, we long to return.