Annie Thoe's Feldenkrais Blog

June 17, 2008

TUE 17 JUN

Week Two in Greece By Annie Rachel Thoe

Hello Again,
I'm sitting at an internet cafe (of course) in Patmos, with the Aegean sea just 15 steps from my chair.  Pretty amazing place to be writing to you all.  A large ferry is arriving in this little habor, dwarfing the small fishing and sailboats moared here.  There are rickety, old-style moorages made from scraps of wood, old recycled pipes and odds and ends, put to use for the far end of town where the locals have their boats.  Of course, the big yaghts are lined up in front of the tourist restaurants (tavernas).  Children are swimming in front of me and it's surreal to think of Seattle in this moment.

I have been drinking in the "Patmosphere" here.  It's a very sacred island and I spent the morning visiting the apocalypse cave where the Apostle John had spent much time and wrote about his experience there.  Pretty amazing cave, rough black rock with big crystals imbedded in the rock.  To preserve it's sacredness, they made it an enclosed shrine with all kinds of old orthodox art and relics.  However, before they did this, the cave must have had a stellar view which is still obvious from the small windows they left in the shrine.  No wonder John had such an experience there.

Actually, the monastery is also very old, sacred and famous.  Very old and probably built on temples for other gods-- remnants remain of statues from these gods in the monastery.  Many people make a pilgramage here to this monastery and when I arrived, I was so moved from the "patmosphere" that made me well up with emotion. My friend I met from Wales in Kos told me I must come here to experience this and he was right... Pretty amazing place.  The monks were singing while I went through a museum up in the monastery and it was quite beautiful.


(at the Monastery in Patmos)

It's also such a small island, everyone gets around on scooters which is a pure delight on these windy, hilly roads that hug the ocean.  I feel like a seagull and envy the local birds here.  Though, they have a dangerous life with all the ferral cats on these islands.  It's much like Hawaii.  Ferral cats everywhere.  Still, I got to pet a little kitten the other day.  Not quite like holding my cousin's newborn baby, but pretty darn sweet to hold such a new life in my hands.

Each island has brought me in touch with very interesting people.  N., the geologist from Kos was very kind to invite me to dinner with his friends in downtown Kos and drink the local wine, eat local food and talk philosophy.  Some of my favorite things to do!  I keep finding people to talk philosophy here with and it's pure delight for me-- the locals know a lot more than most of my philosophy cronies in college.  I am humbled and jealous that the American culture doesn't have this kind of knowledge. 

In Patmos, I have the pleasure of enjoying the company of N, a world-travelling journalist from Denmark.  He has written many articles about Greece and knows a lot of history and philosophy.  If colleges could design a learning program like this, students would be inspired to read and research what is in front of them!

So, tonight at midnight I take the ferry back to Pireaus in order to catch another ferry to Santorini, the volcanic island that shaped much of the islands of Greece and according to my geologist friend or is it my journalist friend?, this explosion could have wiped out Crete's earlier civilization....  I hope to see Crete if time allows....the oldest civilization in Greece. 

Hello to J.F.-- my muse.  Hope you and your mom are reading.  Please write hello if you have...  And to all of you friends, family and folks reading this for the first time.  Sending you light and happy vibes from the loving Greek islands....
Annie