Spetses Island—25 Years Later
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| Roof of the Hotel Faros |
Our
fearsome threesome became “fantastic thirteensome” with the arrival of my
sister Dyan, husband Stuart, and twins Zoe and Lydia; Dyan’s friend and
daughter, Bonnie and Anna; and our dear old Athens friends Thanasi and Koula (our best man and wife),
and Akis and daughter Lydia. The group of them met us on Spetses for the celebration of our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.
Opa!
We’re
all staying at the Faros Hotel on Spetses, which is owned and operated by
my uncles Kyriakos and Yianni Argeitis e Yamaris.
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With Uncle Kyriakos--our host since 1979/1992
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I have been their frequent and grateful
guest since 1979, when I was a student of the classics and archaeology in Athens.
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| Cannonade surrounding the Dapia Haror--keeping those Turks at Bay! |
For
me and my kids, and for Dyan and her kids, Spetses runs through our bloodlines.
Over the past forty years, I’ve established long and enduring friendships with
my many family members here—their island is my island, as it were. And so now
we have the chance to share this very special place with our friends and family
for a very special occasion.
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| Another day on Agia Anagiri Beach...on the path to the sea cave |
We
were married at the monastery-church of Ayio Nikolas (St. Nicholas) back on
July 5, 1992.
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| St. Nicholars monastery-church |
As they say in Greek,
Πως περναει ο καιρός…How the time passes! We have such fond memories of
that day twenty-five years ago, and now we are here to celebrate those many
years of love and devotion—ups and downs, but almost always “ups” in the end! Our daughter, Evyenia, who is named after my Spetsioti great-grandmother, has met many of her third cousins--whose great-grandparents were siblings.
Yesterday
the thirteen of us traveled by bus to Caique Beach for a “warm-up” for today
and tonight’s celebration—a swim in the ocean, some παρεια (company), and
then a glorious night out on the town. The group walked along the
waterfront to the Παλαιο Λιμάνι (Old Harbor),
settling into an elegant seaside restaurant in a converted nineteeth-century
olive press factory.
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| Grinding wheels at Litrivio, old olive press turned restaurant |
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| Old stone grinding wheels |
The food at
Το Λιτριβιο (The Olive Press) defied our expectations. We learned as
the night wore on that we have a famiy relationship with the restaurant, as our
great uncle Panayiotis—the youngest brother of our Spetses grandmother—worked
in the old olive press until its closure in 1958.
Our
night ended early, at 1:45 a.m., so that we might save our energy for today and
tonight’s celebration, which included a return to Αγιο Ανάργυρη (St Anagiri) beach, on the unpopulated side of the
island.
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| Cousin Power: Nia, Zoe, and Lydia at Agia Anagiri Beach |
While there we swam, cliff-jumped, and had a fanastic noontime meal on
the beach. A group of us swam into the cave, where the light and water turn your skin a luminescent blue color--a truly amazing place.
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| Inside the sea cave |
Tonight
we will take horse-drawn carriages to “our” church for a blessing and on to the
Old Port, where we have made arrangements with the restaurant Εξεδρα (Exedra) to host more than thirty friends
and family—our way of saying “thank you” to our family and friends, who have
been so kind to us over the years.
The Cliff Jump--by Jonathan and Nia
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