The Saronic Gulf: Final Days

The krisis—the
economic crisis that prevails in Europe generally and in Greece specifically—remains
a constant undercurrent and source of enormous anxiety. Last month’s national
elections (the second in a month) resulted, barely, in a pro-austerity
government. As our friend Tom often says,
this simply “kicks the can down the road,” and this is a sentiment shared by
many. Greece clearly is unable to repay its debts to foreign lenders, despite
huge sacrafices that are now in their in their fifth year, and the end story is
yet to be written. Should Greece leave the euro zone, which would be
unprecedented, and return to the drachma, the result could be catastrophic. The
new currency would devalued overnight and this proud country would become
victim to predators from the north (the Germans and the Dutch) and the east
(the Russians)—or so goes the argument.

We are fortunate indeed to be here. The international media
has done an enormous disservice to Greece, which relies so heavily on tourism,
by suggesting that this place is somehow “unsafe,” that whole ball of wax will
soon unfold.

Our twentieth wedding
anniversary

We were married on this beautiful island, at the cathedral
of Saint Nicholas (where Jonathan’s grandmother was baptized in 1899), twenty
years ago: on 5 July 1992 to be precise. So today is our wedding anniversary.

A few days earlier Manny and Jonathan rented small
motorbikes and toured the island (with Lucia on the back of Jonathan’s
machine), meeting Ann and Evyenia at the beach of Agia Anayiros, one of the
glorious, pine-clad beaches on the west side of the island. Along the way we
stopped at several other special places: Xylorizo, Agia Paraskevi, Zogeria. The
photos below offer a glimpse of unparalleled beauty of this small Mediterranean
island. They also show the enormous wealth that has been drawn here over recent
years, manifested by oversized villas and super yachts.

Hydra

The nearby island of Hydra, also located in the Saronic
Gulf, was our destination yesterday. We woke the children at 5 a.m. and caught
the first hydrofoil there and spent the day hiking in the mountains, visiting a
nunnery that dates from 1865, the home to two elderly nuns. On the way up the
mountain we saw three distance runners approaching, winding their way up the
steep donkey paths. Jonathan struck up a conversation with them at our common
destination. Kosta and Andreas, taverna owners in the village, were joined by a
Christo (Christian) a Norwegian friend. We shared stories of our “running life.”
In recent years, more and more Greeks have taken to running, among other
healthy activities. Years earlier, Jonathan would be viewed as an oddity,
seemingly a lone runner in a country of non-athletes.

Hydra, unlike Spetses, is truly roadless. All transportation
is accomplished by mule trains, including the construction of houses. The
island most famous foreign resident in Leonard Cohen, the Canadian singer
songwriter, who most people now from over the years.

We descended from a 1500-foot rock edifice and worked our
way down to Mandraki Bay for a swim and some resfreshements, then followed the
coastal road back to the main town.

Filoxenia

As explained in earlier posts, the notion of filoxenia (simply put, “hospitality”) is
found throughout Greece. In traditional villages it is taken to another level.

Last night we were treated to an incredible meal at the home
of Yianni and Anna, Jonathan’s mother’s first cousin. Jonathan can count a half
dozen such relatives; their children are Jonathan’s second cousins; and their children’s
children are third cousins to Manny, Lucia, and Evyenia. Making such
connections is so important to us.

Everyone treats us with incredible kindness and love—the “lost”
branch of the family from America.

Our last day

This is our last day in Spetses before heading off to
ancient Epidauros on the mainland. It would a major oversight not to see
Epidauros, which is the best preserved theater from the ancient world and is
still used to day for summertime performances. The acoustics are so perfect
that one can hear a paper crumbled in the center from the top steps –with no
amplication.

From Epidauros we will dash to Athens, return our rental
car, and join our friend Lambros for a week of cruising aboard his sailboat in
a group of islands called the Sporades.

Now we have reached the center point of our six week
Hellenic journey.