EC Eastern Mediterranean Security Studies Program 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
You Will Always Be A Piece of My Heart
Zoe wasn't the only one to get this tired. |
The island never stopped being beautiful. |
Sistahood 4 Lyfe |
It wasn't all work. There was some play involved. |
Just before our fair well dinner. |
Bronze Bros |
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Closing of EC EMSS 2012 Program
Excursion to the pirate stronghold of Gramvousa |
We continued to travel around this corner of the island, interact locally, and take in some beach time and shopping.
Students put in long long hours finishing projects and writing papers as well as participate in a number of activities. The 9 students who studied in the immersion Greek program had a marathon 4-hour Friday class, which included face to face conversation. On Friday night the Institute of Cretan Studies reenacted a summer solstice traditional celebration which coincides with the birthdate of St. John the Baptist's birthday celebrated in the Orthodox calendar on June 24th. All the Emmanuel students actively participated, some re-enacting, others dancing, or jumping over fires, or even in the telling of Cretan rhymes (Mantinades).
Mary Gilcoyne's rendition was by far the best. Mandinades were written and performed for the program and the students individually.
Left to Right: Jack Davidson, Kelsey Ryan, Mary Gilcoyne, Tom Saade at Gramvousa |
Left to Right: Rachael Montville, Kayleigh Weston, Becca Day, Erika Desrochers on the boat to Balos |
Kelsey Ryan preparing her policy paper |
A painful policy paper workshop |
Back Row: Tom, Mary, Rachael, Erika, Gretchen, Leo Front Row: Jack, Kelsey, Kayleigh, Malora, Julia, and Becca |
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Even though we have been hard at work this week we still have managed to squeeze in a little adventure time. We took a stroll down to a local bee farm to check out how honey was made by a local farmer. The 12 of us scooted around the fascinating machinery while avoiding the bees that were causally bouncing by. After, we were allowed to sample some of the pure honey and boy was it delicious. To help us digest such a wonderful snack, the group decided to go for a walk through the local farms to see the locally grown fruit. The next day we had the pleasure of lounging on a new beach that had big waves and big rocks to match. We ended the day by exploring the local town and giggling over afternoon coffee. I must say these days will be sorely missed when Sunday rolls around...
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
This past Sunday was quite adventurous! The class decided to take a cruise to a local island and check our Crete's neighbors. We sailed to a small island that had a castle at the top. We hiked up and was almost blown off the top by strong winds. The view below was gorgeous and revealed Greece's beauty ... and a sunken ship! We then proceed to chase a white rabbit down the mountain before going for a quick swim in the water. Over all, a really great day!
Monday, June 18, 2012
The Stretch Drive....
Mr. Malandrakis, Mayor of
Platanias.
|
Attentively listening to lecture, given by the mayor. |
It is hard to believe that we are in the final week of a very exciting and demanding EC Mediterranean and Security Studies program, which is hard to summarize in a few lines. Last week beyond the 6 hours per day of in-class instruction, including 2 hours of Greek every day, we met the mayor of the local municipality, took a tour of the firing range of the NATO base on the island, went to the beach every afternoon, had a Cretan night celebration in honor of the Emmanuel faculty and students. The students have been great, and I believe that it will take some time before they fully appreciate what they are experiencing in these last two weeks.
Presenting Mr. Malandrakis |
The weekends have been equally full, fun and exhausting. Last week we crossed the 18 km Samaria Gorge on Saturday, while we visited the beach of Falasarna and the lovely seaside town of Sfinari on Sunday. This past Saturday we visited the Minoan ruins of Knosos, took a tour of the city of Heraklion and went to the beach and shopped at the lovely Venetian harbor of Rethymnon. On election day Sunday we celebrated Fathers' Day by taking a cruise to the pirates' stronghold of Gramvousa and swam in the lagoon of Balos. (many pictures to follow)
One of the highlights of last week was the Cretan Evening celebration, that the Institute of Cretan Studies organized in honor of the Emmanuel College students and faculty. Faculty and students danced and the celebrations lasted into the early morning hours.
Although, I could be writing for a long time and sharing many stories of the last two weeks, an impressive evolution is the level of Greek that the students have learned in a matter of a couple of weeks. At the end of this week as part of their overall evaluation, the students will be visiting local stores and will be evaluated on their exchanges with the store owners.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Today we went to Knossos, the birth place of the legends of the Minotaur and Labyrinth. We learned about the ancient civilization of the Minoans and their powerful navy. They dominated trade routes and were feared by all. Surprisingly, the ruins show no evidence of barriers meaning that they were very secure in their homes. Trey actually were a peaceful people who were never challenged by others. They were so strong that they stood for thousands of years and eventually fell to natural disasters. We then stood on the oldest road Europe and followed it to explore the neighborhood.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)