Bob here from Athens pre-departure,
We leave for the port of Pireas in a half hour and will sail overnight to Santorini. We have cabins and beds booked though the gang may stay up playing cards because I have told them that less educational content is at stake for the next couple of days. I may even make the ruins on Santorini (Thera) optional so that everyone feels a real sense getting a break.
Some of the students have asked about snorkeling (e.g. Steve etc.) and biking (e.g. Walker etc., pedalling, not motorbikes) there and I realize that I have not discussed such things with the parents. I am guessing that bicycling is no problem but that snorkeling just might be a problem. If anyone objects to either, please let me know by email.
The students deserve a break in part because we had a very good day educationally today. We did manage to sit down at three points within the Agora and have good conversations, do a couple focused readings and gain some sense of the importance of the importance of the developments in the Greek way of thinking. The best of the conversations, in a corner of the Agora that Plato suggests Socrates liked to hang out, we did some reading of Plato's description of Socrates last day (from the Phaedra) and got into a pretty good discussion of what the dialogues of Plato indicate about new priorities and thinking, then what Aristotle added as he diverged from Plato, then how Aristotles student Alexander the Great spread Hellenic thought far and wide. Good Stuff.
Bob

 
Bob here from Athens,
We reshuffled the itinerary a bit to make yesterday an easier day. It was a relaxing morning and then we did the main archeological musuem here and came back to the hostel for another nap. Then in the cool of the evening we went into the Plaka district of Athens (half walked there and half subwayed) and enjoyed a wonderful dinner with live Greek music at tableside and even glasses of wine for most. We were back at the hostel by 10:30 and let folks sleep until 9am so hopefully all are caught up. My major competitor for keeping folks well rested is the urge to play bridge some feel but perhaps that is restful in its own way. Stomachs all seem in good shape now - actually no one ever got truly sick earlier either - and it was great to confidently have leafy green salads with our Greek dinners last night. We are off to the Acropolis and Agora today. I had contemplated doing some readings together while there but that may not fit their mood - perhaps to schoolish - we will see, I am carrying the books... Both Brad and I find ample "teachable moments" while simply strolling from place A to B and answering questions. Brad was particularly good at the Egyptian museum yesterday for the subgroup that took him up on his offer of guided tour on how sculpture pre and post classic Athens reveals what was changing in the minds of the Athenians - and how individuals in our civilization were discovering themselves as citizens and creative participants in their/our civilization. Seeing that rising spirit, plus our own joy at the climate and comforts of Athens has made the last 24 hours a pleasant shift upward and onward. And of course we are all looking forward to the islands...
Bob

 
Bob here from Athens:
In 5 minutes (noon) we are meeting in the hostel lobby so I have time to just say all are alive and well in Athens after a night flight from Amman. This morning they are napping (or internetting) and soon we are off to see Athens! Petra ruins were made all the better because Albanite Patricia Bakai had advised me where to have the guide take us to see her and her husbands current excavations, and then latter in the day after a long hot drive up to Amman she showed us all the workshops etc for the excavations and generally helped us make sense of it all. I relied on her (via Q&A with her) to help the students get to the heart of what Petra and the trade routes of near-Asia and Arabia were all about and what impact they had. The addition of the Jordanian students to our traveling circus worked well - lots of interaction and I don't think any of the students will think about this part of the world quite the same again. It has been grueling in the Egyptian-Arabian heat but things should lighten up in several ways now - especially when we ship out to the islands tomorrow night. I just picked up all our ferry tickets so no problem there except a weakening dollar. More later, gotta run....
Bob

 
Bob footnote:
Next emailing from Athens, none possible tomorrow (Petra/Amman).
Bob

 
Wadi Rum
this is from steve. we arived in aqaba, jordan on tues and met the students we were to stay with for the next 3 days. they were all between the ages of 16 and 18 and very friendly. we took the bus as far as we could, then piled into jeeps to travel the rest of the way to the campsite. we watched the sun go down over the mountains and as the sun went down the instruments came out. they lit a bonfire and we danced to the beat of the traditional arabic drum. then we had an awesome bar-b-que. walker assures me the lamb was fantastic. jacob and i partook in rice and pita.
in the moning we woke to the sound of aproaching camels. their deep throught bone chilling chortles shoke my very soul. we all got on the camles and rode around and then got on jeeps and explored the desert. we looked at 5000 year old graffiti and the place where they filmed lawrence of arabia. we practiced the ancient joranian ritual of linking arms and flying down a 100foot sand dune.
then we we had lunch and free time to explore the camp site. some of us tried climbing the huge sand stone cliffs on missions for the perfect photo.
we got back on the bus and rode up to Wadi Mousa, right outside of the ancient city of Petra.
talk to you all later.
steve.

 
Bob here, from Wadi Mousa/Petra, Tues afternoon 14th.
We are almost all hiding from the heat in an internet cafe this afternoon after starting our day riding camels at sunrise before breakfast in the desert. Walker and Steve will be uploading the news to you shortly. I thought I would add that everyone seems healthy after two nights of camping (foot of Mt. Sinai and Wadi Rum Jordan). When I told the group that I had mentioned on this website that one student felt faint at the end of the Pyramid day, but didn't mention a name, they all immediately knew you would all be worried. Rest assured that I will continue to let parents know personally if anyone is sick - so no news (specifically to you) is good news. Actually this is a very hardy bunch - drinking plenty of water and calibrating their food risk-taking to their proven sensitivity or insensitivity. Walker and Steve will tell you about the past two days. As for the next two we will be going into the ancient ruins of Petra tomorrow morning, early of course - to beat the sun - then going up to the American Center for Oriental Research (ACOR) in Amman tomorrow afternoon. Then we fly out very early on the only flight Amman to Athens for our first full day there. I am encouraging the students to go to nap this afternoon (though internetting won out for most) and go to bed early tonight in a rather good hotel - but they are rooming with Jordanian students and the friendships bloomed quickly so they may be up making music and conversation instead. Steve is having technical difficulties getting you the Wadi Rum report (lost it twice) but will get it to you soon I hope. Bob

 
Walker reporting about the hike up Mt. Sinai - We took an all-day bus from Cairo to the Sinai peninsula. That night, we stayed in a camp with simple rooms where we slept until about 2:00 am, when we left on foot for Mt. Sinai. The Sinai peninsula is a huge desert with giant rock formations and mountains. Mt. Sinai is just one of these. The hike was all in the dark but the moonlight was enough so that one could see the beautiful valleys and mountains as we climbed higher and higher. The experience was a little bit soured by the mass of tourists and pilgrims climbing the same trail, talking loudly, and shining flashlights in our eyes. Also, the frequent stands selling snacks and souveniers, and the onrush of people trying to sell camel rides to the top made it worse. We made it to the summit after about three hours. By this time, a faint light had begun to appear to the East. The view from the summit was incredible. It is one of the highest points in the area (about 7,000 feet) so it was possible to see everything around unobstructed. The sun rose out of the haze, huge and blood red. The airborne sand in the valleys appeared as a kind of low mist that shone in the sun. The sandstone formations around us shone orange-red as the the sun got higher. It was a truly amazing experience. When we arrived back at the bottom, everyone was exhausted.
Walker

 
Dear Bob, thank you so much for all the information you are providing us! If there are health problems (like the person who felt faint and needed rest) that you mention in your posts would you mind e-mailing me if it is our son and mentioning that you've e-mailed the parent of the student, so we won't all worry. The trip sounds very exciting and rewarding and we appreciate all that you are doing!!! Best regards to you and the whole group. Enjoy!!! Shelly