Blogs

Blogs

Session Two: Day 17

The bus slowly winds through early morning Athens—the bustle of Greeks starting their day and hurrying to work. Store fronts opening their doors and the honking of impatient drivers, blasting their radios with the news or other Greek classics.

We sail along towards the port of Piraeus to begin another wonderful adventure. The campers are sleepy and the bus is quiet as we slowly approach the water. Piraeus, the biggest port in all of Greece and one of the largest in the Mediterranean, is just beginning its long day. The coast guards run across the docks, yelling to each other and directing ferries as they pull in. The scent of sea salt drifts through the air.

By the time the sun has stretched its golden arms further into the sky, we have arrived. Aegina. The home of Agios Nektarios, the patron saint of cancer. The Holy Trinity Monastery contains the miracle which brings people from all corners of the earth: the tomb of the walking saint himself. Upon resting your ear against it, you can hear the saint’s footsteps, although he has been laid to rest for years.

Campers light candles and slowly file into the area where the tomb rests, quietly pressing their ears against it. Tears upon their faces, as they pray with open hearts in hopes of hearing the Saint’s steps.

Lunch after was delicious fresh fish by the sea,its water  blue and beckoning. A glimmering pool of bliss, of dreams, of summer in Greece. Late afternoon included shopping the harbor of Aegina to purchase the island’s famous pistachios and a have cool ice cream treat before boarding the ferry once again.

Watching the sun turn golden pink at a tavern in Glyfada that evening, we sing “Happy Birthday” (IV style) to a staff member as she blows out the sparklers and candles on her cake and enjoy one of our last nights together as an Ionian Village family.