(Part II of “A tour from Turkey to Greece — Linking Asia to Europe”)
PATMOS ISLAND, Greece — There is some sort of kindred spirit between Filipinos and Greeks. To this, day we remember fondly the popular films of “Zorba the Greek” with Anthony Quinn and “Never on Sunday” featuring the exciting Melina Mercouri. This time we are swept again by the effervescent Broadway show of “Mama Mia” made into a film with Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan.
It was Easter Sunday in the Greek cruise ship ‘Orient Queen’ so the crew mostly Filipinos, had a party after we took our dinner. “Hanggang alas dos ng umaga itong party. Traditional Greek Easter lamb dinner,” they said. The Greek Orthodox Church celebrates Easter Sunday a week after the traditional Easter Sunday. Many of the passengers are elderly Greek couples or Greek families with young children. It took us almost the whole day to reach the Istanbul Sary Pasari harbor from the ancient city of Ephesus, where our five-day Turkish part of the tour concluded at blessed Mother Mary’s house. Our O.B. Montessori staff of 20, boarded the Orient Queen cruise ship to sail through the Greek isles of the Aegean Sea, which divides Turkey and Greece.
What Filipinos have in common with the Greeks
Barely ten percent of the country’s population of just over ten million lives on the islands, and for centuries a large number of Greek islanders have lived abroad: currently, there are over half as many Greeks outside the country as in. The proportion of their income sent back to relatives significantly bolster island economies. Recently there has been a trend for reverse immigration, with expatriate Greeks returning home to influence the architecture and cuisine on many islands. But today, everyday life still operates on networks of personal friendships and official contacts.
Unlike the Philippines though, tourism ranks as the largest currency earner, compensating for the depression in the shipping world and the fact that Mediterranean agriculture products are duplicated now within the European Union (EU). Yet until the 1960s, most of the Aegean islands lacked paved roads and basic utilities. Even larger islands boasted just a few single buses and only a few taxis as transport and emigration either to Athens or overseas increased.
Today, the Orthodox Church is still a powerful force, despite the secularization reforms of the first democratically elected government of 1981-5. Many parish priests recognizable by their black robe and stove-like hats and long beards marry and have a second trade (a custom that helps keep up the numbers of entrants to the church). However, there has also been a renaissance in celibate monastic as a reaction to postwar materialism.
The Jerusalem of Agean Sea - Patmos
Our cruise made two stops at Patmos, part of Dodecanese islands once ruled by Genoese traders and Crusaders and Mykonos of the Cyclades island group ruled once by Venetian traders.
Right after the assumption to heaven of Blessed Mother Mary, her adopted son St. John continued the work of Christian conversion and eventually settled in Patmos, a short boat ride from the port of Ephesus. Mother Mary revealed to St. Catherine Emmerich how she and John resided in Ephesus to do missionary work among the poor and unbelievers until she returned and died in Jerusalem surrounded by the apostles.
Known as the Jerusalem of the Aegean, Patmos’ religious significance dates from St. John’s arrival in AD 95 and the founding of the Monastery of St. John in 1088. Today, Patmos tries to maintain itself as a centre for both pilgrims and tourists. Ferries, yachts and cruise ships dock at Skala, the island’s port and main town, which stretches around a wide sheltered bay. Above Skala lie the ruins of the ancient acropolis at Kastelli. The remains include a Hellenistic wall.
From Skala, an old cobbled pathway leads up to the Monastery of St. John, which crowns Chora, a maze of dazzling white narrow lanes with over 40 monasteries and chapels. Down the path to Skala is the church of Agia Anna. Steps decked with flowers lead down from the path to the church, which is dedicated to the mother of the Virgin Mary. Inside the church is the Holy Cave of the Apocalypse, where St. John saw the vision of fire and brimstone and dictated the book of Revelations to his disciple, Prochoros. The visitor can see the rock where the Revelations were written, and the indents where the saint is said to have rested his head.
In 1088, a monk, Blessed Christodoulos found the Monastery of St. John the Divine. One of the richest and most influential monasteries in Greece, its towers and buttresses make it look like a fairy-tale castle, but were built to protect its trove of religious treasures, which are now the star attraction for the thousands of pilgrims and tourists.
Mykonos, the glitziest island in Greece since the Roman and Hellenistic era
Although Mykonos is dry and barren, its sandy beaches and dynamic nightlife make this island one of the most popular in the Cyclades. Under Venetian rule from 1207, the islanders later set up the Community of Mykonos in 1651 and flourished as a self-sufficient society. Mykonos town (Chora) is the supreme example of a Cycladic village — a tangle of dazzling white alleys and cube-shaped houses. Built in a maze of narrow lanes to defy the wind and pirate raids, the bustling port is one of the most photographed in Greece.
Adjacent to the harbor is Plateia Mavrogenous, dedicated to the revolutionary heroine Manto Mavrogenous. She was awarded the rank of General for her victorious battle against the Turks on Mykonos during the War of Independence in 1821. The Archeological Museum has a large collection of Roman and Hellenistic carvings, 6th and 7th century BC ceramics, jewelry and gravestones. Kastro, is the oldest part of the town. Built on part of the ancient castle wall, is the excellent Folk Museum, one of the best in Greece. It is housed in an elegant sea-captain’s mansion.
The most famous church on the island is the Panagia Paraportiani which is made up of four chapels. From Kastro, the lanes run down into Venetia or Little Venice (Alefkandra), the artists’ quarter. The main square Palateia Alefkandra is the home to the large Orthodox cathedral of the ‘Panagia Pigadiotissa’ (Our Lady of the Little Wells).
Greeks, like Filipinos. never stop eating
Western tourists are struck seeing both Filipinos and Greeks never stop eating. There seem to be snack bars on every street and vendors selling sweet nuts, rolls, seasonal corn at every turn. The traditional Greek and Turkish foods are similar. “Souvlaki” — chunks of meat fish or vegetables, grilled or roasted on a skewer with fresh bread. Gyros — meat from a revolving spit in a pita bread pocket usually wrapped in paper, and eaten on the sidewalk. If you have a sweet tooth, the baker prepares traditional sweet breads, tiny sweet pastries, and a whole variety of fragrant honey cakes, including pistachio filled baklava squares soaked in honey.
The Greek Louise Ship Lines, which we took, is owned by a Cypriot businessman who used to own 14 cruise ships that sail from Italy down to the Middle East and the Black Sea. Today, only five ships are operating, where 60 percent of the crew are Filipinos. Emil Manganaan from Cavite, and Vincent Cabanes from Bicol served us Greek dinner starting with a variety of appetizers called “mezes.” We had a choice of “tzatziki” (yoghurt, cucumber, garlic, and mint), “taramasalata” (salted fish roe and breadcrumbs), and fried calamari with olives. The “boureki” is filo dough filled with minced meat and vegetables. All of us also ordered the popular Greek vegetables salad with feta cheese and olives.
Daniel and JC Roque, served our other table also doing everything to please us, like giving double servings of the main courses: “Symphony of Aegean Sea Food” with lobster sauce and rice pilaf, “Arnaki Psito,” succulent roast lamb shoulder, and “Grilled Pork Chop Lemonato,” marinated with lemon oregano. Some could not resist ordering “Orzo Youvetsi” — orso pasta with tender meat chunks and tomato sauce.
Witnessing the cradles of civilization
Our tour of Turkey and Greece made us, especially our history teacher Ruel Roque, exclaim “Now I realize that the history I have been teaching from textbooks is very much alive and exciting. I have actually stepped into the world of the ancient civilizations and empires of Rome, Greece and Ottoman Turkey. I’m fortunate that this trip has stirred my passion as a history teacher.”