Easter in Greece

 We got to celebrate two Easters this year.  One was the Easter that we celebrate in the states and a week later when the Greeks celebrate it based on the Julian calendar.  When we were returning from our trip to Meteora, we saw a big exodus leaving Athens.  Many head for their ancestral homes on the islands or in the countryside when it is Easter.  

Exiting Athens for Easter ...2 hour wait for some

Wanting to experience Easter, we bought the Tsoureki with the red egg from our local bakery.  I thought everything looked yummy.  The Tsoureki is a traditional sweet bread made for Easter.  It was yummy and moist.  The red colored eggs symbolize the blood and sacrifice of Christ on the cross and the egg symbolizes rebirth.  You can buy the eggs colored at the store.  Eggs are not refrigerated in Greece but sit on the shelf like boxed goods. 

When we were walking home from church on the Greek Easter, we saw lambs on spits out on the patios of some apartments.  We saw people gathering to eat.  They have been fasting from meat for Holy week. On Easter Eve, there is mass at midnight with candlelit processions followed by fireworks.  We were too tired to stay up but the younger missionaries went to mass downtown. 

Easter Traditions

One of the things you can do with the red eggs, is hit another person's red egg and see who will have luck for the coming year, if your egg comes out ahead. On Good Friday we heard the mournful ring of the church bells throughout the day signifying Christ's death.  One of our branch member said that after the mass on Easter Eve, she ate Mayiritsa which is an Easter soup signifying the end of fasting.  It is made from goat or lamb intestines, kidneys, other inside parts, rice, herbs, and lemon.  She was not particularly fond of it but she tried it!  

In General Conference Elder Stevenson began with his talk titled: Greatest Story Ever Told.  He talked about how we celebrate Christmas compared with Easter and said, These words of the Prophet Joseph Smith add additional context to the significance of the events surrounding Easter: “The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”  He asked, How do we model the teaching and celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Easter story, with the same balance, fulness, and rich religious tradition of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Christmas story?  He encouraged, "This includes a greater and more thoughtful recognition of Palm Sunday and Good Friday as practiced by some of our Christian cousins."   

I am grateful to have experienced Easter with Greek Orthodox friends and hope that we can plan better next year with our family to celebrate it with more thoughtful traditions that will help us focus on the Atonement of Christ and the Resurrection.  I know that the resurrection has more meaning each day for me as thoughts of our son Bryce are never far away.  I am grateful for that perspective and for the blessing of family.  

Happy 47th Anniversary in Greece!

To celebrate our anniversary, we went to the Davelis cave.  It is a cave in Penteli, a mountain to the north of Athens.  It is an ancient cave in a former marble quarry that was used to build the Parthenon.  It was used as a hideout for thieves, a place for monks and others.  It was built during the Byzantine age directly into the front of the cave. 

 

We walked around and found many places that were quarried for the marble.  We saw a group learning how to rock climb.  We could see the rings ( carabiners) that had been pounded into the marble cliff for rock climbers. 

From there I explored a house made out of rocks that had fallen into disrepair.  It had a rock fireplace and several rooms.  The view of Athens was amazing. 

We then drove to the Holy Monastery of Saint Penteli.  It was a beautiful monastery that had no information written in English and all the doors to the different buildings once you entered the gates were closed.  We did see a priest walking down from the mountain and taking time to visit the sheep that were wandering in the orchard.  

Founded in 1578 by bishop Evripos Timotheos, a local saint of Attica, the all-male Penteli Monastery was built amid the lush greenery at the foot of Mount Penteli.

Devoted to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, the monastery was constructed with financial support from the Degleris family. The number of monks residing at the monastery rose to more than 100 after many who previously lived solitary lives in nearby caves relocated here.

Under Ottoman occupation, the monastery owned large tracts of land in the Penteli area and throughout Attica. Due to its longstanding relationship with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the monastery was granted many privileges by the Ottomans.

With high walls and heavy wooden gates, the monastery’s exterior resembles a castle, while the interior buildings incorporate architectural elements from ancient churches.

From 1778 to 1780, the monastery served as a shelter for residents of Athens fleeing a plague that was ravaging the city. It continued to operate without incident until it was once again pillaged in 1821 by retreating Turkish forces during the Greek War of Independence. The monastery was again renovated and enlarged in 1858. It has remained relatively untouched since.  It was very large and beautiful.

To finish off the day, we went to a restaurant in our neighborhood that we walk past all the time.  It didn’t seem very busy but as we sat there, I could see the delivery motorbikes coming and going and people walking in and getting their phone orders.  We didn’t know what to expect and were pleasantly surprised.  We really like our neighborhood.  We have gone to the barber, the dry cleaners, the shoe repair, the mini market, the street market, several bakeries…there are so many bakeries and grocery stores.  They are all within walking distance by our apartment. 

Grilled Meat platter 

This is a very long entry.  It is very much like a travelogue.  I think one of the thoughts that came to me was how diverse Athens is and that within 30 min. you can go either to the sea or to the mountains and find many places to explore.  We look at each other from time to time and wonder why we were sent to Greece.  There is no answer now but we are grateful to be sent to a place where we can pray for the blessings of heaven to poured out on these people.  They are animated, generous, and big hearted.  What's not to love about that?  We were able to meet with our young missionaries and put together hygiene kits for the homeless with Praksis.  I don't think they were expecting so many of us but they were very grateful for the way we just got it done.  

Sleeping bags, bottled water, wipes, toothpaste and brush, hand sanitizer, Kleenex, and toilet paper. This Sunday I will be teaching Relief Society on President Nelson's talk: Peacemakers Needed. It is my favorite talk of Conference.  He said: “As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are to be examples of how to interact with others — especially when we have differences of opinion,” he said. “One of the easiest ways to identify a true follower of Jesus Christ is how compassionately that person treats other people.”

Meteora, Greece

 

Rock Formations called Meteora 

Picture taken by  President Burdon

Meteora is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The name means "lofty", "elevated", and is etymologically related to meteor As early as the eleventh century, monks occupied the caverns of Meteora. However, monasteries were not built until the fourteenth century, when the monks sought somewhere to hide in the face of an increasing number of Turkish attacks on Greece. At this time, access to the top was via removable ladders or windlass. Access to the monasteries was originally (and deliberately) difficult, requiring either long ladders latched together or large nets used to haul up both goods and people. Until the seventeenth century, the primary means of conveying goods and people from these eyries was by means of baskets and ropes. During World War II the site was bombed. Many art treasures were stolen.

At their peak in the 16th century, there were 24 monasteries at Meteora in Greece. They were created to serve monks and nuns following the teachings of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Much of the architecture of these buildings is Athonite in origin. Today there are six still functioning (four of men, two of women) with each housing fewer than ten individuals., while the remainder are largely in ruin. Perched onto high cliffs, they are now accessible by staircases and pathways cut into the rock formations.

Wikipedia

Meterora was a continuation of our senior missionary retreat.  It was a beautiful place.  We were told by our guide that they get 6,000-7,000 visitors a day during the summer.  We could see where they were building new big roads to accommodate the increase of tourists.  Our guide told us that 80% of the food

 ( produce and meat)sold and served was local.  

Adriatic South Senior Missionaries and Leaders

Sunset from our hotel

Long ago when Kim was working at BYU, we had someone tell us about the monasteries and he showed us pictures of his experiences with students that he had taken to Greece.  I thought it was amazing and never imagined that one day I would actually see these monasteries.  They truly are unique but the best part was learning how they were built.  Our guide said it wasn't the monks but the villagers that worked to build the monasteries. They wanted to serve the monks who removed themselves from the villages and led a life of solitude in the caves and then monasteries.   

President Hinkley reminds us: “May the real meaning of the gospel distill into our hearts that we may realize that our lives, given us by God our Father, are to be used in the service of others.”

We are grateful to the opportunity to focus on others as we serve in Greece and  for the example of all our senior missionaries that have left family, homes, and grandchildren to serve others.  We have felt the blessings and our love for the Greek people continues to grow.  It was a wonderful retreat and experience as we were able to see so much of Greece as we drove through the towns and winding roads.  

The hotel said it had exercise facilities.  This is what we found.  We had a great time listening to the birds, dogs barking, and the bells of the churches ringing as we "worked out".  

 

Ioannina, Greece

 

Rion-Antirion Bridge on the way to Ioannina

It spans the shores across the Gulf of Corinth.  It is one of the world's longest multi-span cable-stayed bridges and the longest of the fully suspended type.  It opened one day before the 2004 Athens Summer Olympic and was used to transport the Olympic flame.  We were surprised to pay $13 euros at the toll booth.  I guess that is how they are paying for it! It was very impressive. 

On Monday, we picked up Cyprus senior missionaries at the airport and headed to Ioannina for a retreat with all the Adriatic South Senior Missionaries. 

Lake Pamvotis--Island of Ioannina

Ioannina is a very interesting city.  It goes all the way back to the 6th Century and has a colorful history.  It is located 255 miles northwest of Athens.  We went through many tunnels and toll booths to get to Ioannina.  The mountain ranges were very big and reminded me of Utah.  Some were capped in snow. 

We took a boat ride to the island where there are 6 monasteries.  

The "island of Ioannina" covers an area of 200 acres. Most of the area is covered with pine trees, while its west side is swampy and had ducks, cranes, and many species of birds. 

The village is built around the northern end of the island and is traditional architecture with stone houses and slate roofs.

We also explored a monastery dedicated to Saint John the Baptist in the area of the Ioannina Castle back on the mainland. 

Ali Pasha

The grave of Ali Pasha is in front of the mosque.  Ali was an Ottoman Albanian ruler.  His court was in Ioannina.  He was considered a rebel in the end and was shot to death in the Monastery of St. Panteleimon on the island.  

I learned that there were 1,950 Jews living in Ioannina during the war. 1,870 were deported to concentration camps.  181 Jews survived.  There has been a Christian, Muslim and Jewish presence. 

Ioannina is known for it's silverwork.  There were many silver shops. We also saw rowing teams on the lake.  There were many bakeries and one in particular that President Burdon took us, where a wonderful, hard working older woman makes bougatsa and sells it.  

Bougatsa

Bougatsa is a Greek breakfast pastry.  It is filled with a sweet custard or cheese. 

I found Ioannina a very interesting city filled with the old and the new.  The streets were still narrow and crowded like most places in Greece but they had walk ways and sections where there were no roads for cars.  We ate delicious food.  

Breakfast was delivered to our room each morning

Stuffed dates, sugar hibiscus flowers....lots of delicacies in a shop nearby

Our hotel is the white building and our room was the first one on the top right.  It had recently been opened and the owner had the bakery next door also.  

Park Sign

We enjoyed this quiet quaint town with many big dogs that would wander through the city.  It was a mixture of old and new buildings and stores.  It was nice to see Greece outside of Athens!

It's not what you look at that matters.  It's what you see. --Henry David Thoreau