Naxos Archaeological Museum

Saturday.
Naxos archaeological museum
Some lighting on; some lighting switched on and off before and after us as we moved around the museum. I wondered if the darkness at the lost property office at the airport was because the chaps were snoozing, or because of economies.
I haven’t seen any sun since I’ve been in Greece (I am writing this on a Monday morning; the last time I saw the sun was sunset near Heathrow last Thursday]. But in Naxos museum I noticed the different lighting conditions, and the difference a change in lighting made to a stone carving of a face. Fully lit, the face would have been far less impressive. Perhaps it was a movement of the cloud, but the appearanbce of thius face visibily changed whsilAt I was at the museum.
I thought back over the years since I first saw the "old friends" in the museum. I first was on a boat that called at Naxos in 1981. I first landed on Naxos in 1985, the year I first went to Amorgos.
　
Above all I think of the lives of the people who made these things, these exhibits in the museum. Could they have imagined that 4000, 5000 years later there artefacts would be exhibited in a museum? And what of all the similar items that have not survived, and the people who created them. If I pondered too far down this route I would soon get very philosophical.
The acorn shaped glass.
The cat head on a gold ring.
The pearl-like sheen on old glass.
Plank chested figures [chest, bot breast]
Red clay animal – a frog
A shiny red human figurre, with a Samian type glaze.
A fragment of pottery showing a horse’s head. Other poterry in similar colours and appears to be from the same piece of pot. Pne fragment has this lettering
ΑΦΣΕΜ
Melon shaped vase
Large lion’s head.
Bust of large male figure. Small lady (no head, arms or legs) on his hand. She was smnaller than thre cahp’s hand. I wondered at the symbolism of this statue.
Violin shaped figures.
Some black clay pots
And of course the Cycladic figures.
And a pottery pig.
So many more notes and noit yet listed.
I think over what has happened in my life since my first rites of passage in this museum. [the last letter only partially survived, but did look like an M.

Posing Naxos Cats

There is a glass display case outside a fishmongers on Naxos. Is it just dumped, or is it ever used for fish? There is a glass front, but the case is open ast the back. Once when I passed there were two cats sitting smugly, and drily, behind the glass of the case.

In a Naxos Cafe

Friday
Three large TV screens on the wall of the covered outside sitting area. There was a different programme on each screen, and the sound coming through the speakers did not go with any of the three programmes. On other nights when a football match was being shown, all three screens were tuned in to the football match, as well as the sound.
At a taverna in Naxos, there is only one TV screen, but it regularly shows a different programme to that the sound relates to. Trying to cater to different tastes? But football is a majority taste?
　
I noticed that the roof of the café now looks solid. I thought back to one really wet night when rain had seeped through a previous incarnation of the roof.
I thought of other "wet" events in outdoor eating and drinking areas.
And the time when rain dripped into my hotel bedroom on Antiparos.

Losing her cool?

Greek woman shouting loudly at security staff. Her bag was being searched. Then she was taken to a booth, the size of a Tardis style police box. The sound of voices emerged. Then the door opened and she strutted away. She had sounded really annoyed, as though she was losing her cool. But the way she later strutted calmly away suggested that she was just making as point.

I thought back to the time I was in a Greek taverna. Raised voices amongst the regulars. I asked a friend who lived on the island what the loud discussion (argument?) was about. "They are talking about fish", he said!

Trouser Belts

Watching people emerging through the security area. Chaps putting on trouser belts. Never have I before seen so many chaps putting on trouser belts!

Rain, rain, rain

Waiting for the Naxos flight, I noticed that people working oin the runway were wearing yellow waterproof jackets. And that trains of luggage trolleys were covered in large sheets of heavy duty plastic, flapping about in the wind. My luggage was dry when it reached Naxos.

Stale news

Some time ago I was reading the International Herald Tribune (a paper I buy in Greece as it includes some Greek news in the Ekathimerini in English supplement). I read about the result of a general election in England. I was puzzled, as when I left England there was no hint in the news that a general election was in the offing. And I had been keeping abreast of the news whilst I was away, and again no mention of an election. Puzzled. Then I spotted that I was reading what happened many years ago, 50 or 60, on the same date!

Thinking of old news, sometimes towards the end of the holiday season, when newsagents in Greece are no longer stocking new copies of foreign language papers, the old copies can remain on sale for some time. Like a two week old copy of the Sunday Times!

Voulis

Voulis, the road leading to the Hotel Adonis and the Hotel Acroplis House in the Plaka area of Athens.
In café at airport a picture map of Athens. Hellenic Oarliament House. In Greek ΒΟΥΛΗ. [I looked for Greek script in character map – then saw that the script I was using – Arial - had Greek script]
Is Voulis the street from the same origin? Something to check up on later.

Arrival on Amorgos

We arrived on Amorgos early this afternoon (28/02/2011).  I was catching up on arriving notes on the ferry coming over here - but they are not yet on this blog as the COSMOTE signal was not good (which is not surprising) between islands.

A grey day, brightened up for us by being back on Amorgos.  The islanders are always very pleasant, but even so so many welcomes.  Tourists in February are a little unusual!  The chap behind the bar on the ferry said we were the first tourists of the season!  Perhaps a slight exaggeration, but it made me feel a little like a rare type of migratory bird.

Universal Coffee

We were drinking coffee at Athens airport, waiting for the flight to Naxos. the coffee shop was a Ritazza. There is a branch of the same chain at Peterborough railway station. It's a small world.

http://www.flytoday.gr/

A site recommneded in "Athens News" for finding cheap flights  -  http://www.flytoday.gr/.  Only in Greek.  Booking flights to get here, my finger slipped and I found I was searching for flights to Abu Dhabi - and that was on a website in English.  How would I get on using a web site in Greek!

John Ebdon's books about Greece, and the wave in Greece

I haven't looked at these books for ages.  They came to mind when I was reading about the gestures made in the Balkan - a nod means no, a shake means yes.  In one of his books John  Ebdon described meeting an old Greek man riding a donkey.  John Ebdon waved a friendly greeting at the elderly Greek chap, whi in reponse turned on him ferociously.  Greeks these days are used to gestures froim elsewhere.  But showing the palm of your hand is a very offensive gesture in Greece.   And when you give someone a friendly wave what do you do - show them the palm of your hand.  Sometime in Greece I do give a wave, and when I realise what I am doing, I rapidly turn the palm of my hand so that it faces me - which must look odd in itself!

Bulgari Leopard Cub

There was a Bulgari advert in the Olympic Magazine.  The advert failed for me as an advert, as this is not a product that I would ever buy.  But the cub was adorable!

The Yellow Brick Road in Sofia, Bulgaria

I don't usually have time to read a magazine from cover to cover.  But I did read the Olympic Air magazine on the plane - I was a captive audience!

The article on Sofia reminded me of my day in Sofia quite a few years ago.  I cxan't remember much about the museums and galleries I visited.  But I do remember the yellow brick road, a stripe of yellow paint on the roads linking the various places of cultural interest.

Sun? I've forgotten what the sun looks like!

I must find a photo of the sun, to remind myself what it looks like.  It's now Sunday morning.  The last time I saw the sun was a sunset near Heathrow last Thursday.  Are skies perpetually grey, or are they sometimes blue as well?  The view from the window is almost monochrome, grey sky, grey sea - the only splash of colour is the cream wall of the building next door.  Oh, and the bright yellow of the waterproofs so many people are wearing.  At Athens airport so many people were wearing yellow waterproofs, I hadn't realised rthere could be so many in Greece.  And the trains of  luggage trailers running to and from the planes were coverd in sheets of thick plastic, flapping in the wind, meant to keep the luggage dry.

It was sunny on Thursday when, still in England, I checked the weather in Greece.  Not a glimmer of sun mentioned in the Greek forecast.  There was a severe weather warning in Greece - snow in the mountains and other places, including the Cyclades.  And hail forecast for Naxos.  I haven't seen snow or hail yet.  And, yesterday at least, the ferries were still running.

I am thinking of the time when there was snow in Naxos, and I was in a taverna looking at photos of the snow on TV.  Looking at the captions on TV, I wondered where in Greece "Kakokeria" was.  Later I realised that kakokeria was Greek for bad weather!  Here I am in 2011 in Naxos, wondering if I will soon be publishing another book in the "Snow in Naxos" series!

At least it is warm and comfortable indoors.

Citrus Museum, Chios

I read about the Citrus Museum in the Olympic Air Magazine on the flight from London to Athens, and made a note to look at the museum's website.

The website looks interesting, but is testing my Greek to its limits as there is no English version!

A hotel without sheets

When I come to Greece in winter I bring carry a sheet with me.  This is not because I will be staying, as I once did, at a hotel without sheEts, but because I will be dressing up to take part in Naxos carnival.

My laptop - In Greece alone

Going through security at airports you have to take your laptop out of your bag and send it thoruh the X ray machine.  And then in theory you remember to pick your laptop up before you go on your way.

Read on ....................................
On my last trip to Greece I left my laptop in the security screening area of the airport. I hadn’t noticed that the laptop was missing until I found that it was not in my bag when I got home.


I had read that the lost property office at the airport, run by the police, was open 24 hours a day. We went in at about 4 a.m., after landing in the early hours. The lights were out, but were switched on as we entered.
After two months lost property is sent to a different building. Come back at 8 a.m. We went back at 8 a.m. [the Naxos flight was not until 9.30 a.m.. Lucky that we were not catching our usual 7.25 a.m. ferry from Piraeus to Naxos.

At 8 a.m. a different chap behind the desk. The Manager was not there. When would I be back in Greece? Why did I need to see the manager to pick up my laptop? I said I would be back 2 weeks on Sunday. Ring the day before, I was told.

I am glad I was not relying on retrieving that laptop to use in Greece this trip.  Apart from writin g and communication, I use my laptop tro store photos, and listen to music.  A laptop on holiday is now indispensable.

Ding Dong Bell, Pussy's in the Well

It is Saturdxay afternoon.  The bells of Naxos Cathedral are ringing.  The bells are often ringing what sounds like the tune of  "Ding Dong Bell, Pussy's in the Well".

Fougasse

Waiting for the plane at Heathrow, we went to Cafe Rouge and had a "fougasse" with dips and a glass of wined.

Fougasse was described on the menu as a "French Bread", which made me think of a French baguette. But I had heard of "Fougasse" as the name of a cartoonist. I made a note to look up "fougasse".

So I looked at Wikipedia.

As a bread, fougasse is etymologically related to focaccio.

Fougasse was the pen name of the cartoonist Cyril Kenneth Bird (1887-1965) - he took his name from a type of landmine

www.athens-museums.com

I read about this website in the magazine in my seat pocket on the Olympic Air flight. I've only had a quick glance, but it looks a good site.

www.athens-museums.com

This is my favourite small museum in Athens
http://www.athens-museums.com/guide/museums/item/20-museum-of-folk-musical-instruments

I've been to the museum many times, and had never before heard of the classification system made by Von Hornsbostel –Csachs.

Look out for the large tortoises in the museum garden!

In Greece (26/02/2011)

We arrived in Greece on Friday morning, and I am only now catching up with my good intentions of writing a blog. This blog is intended to be about thoughts and sights and anything else prompted by my trip to Greece, and not about life at home in England.

As I'm English, a word about the weather. I hear that England was warm and sunny yesterday. Here on Naxos it is cold, wet, and windy. There are white horses out at sea, and the last weather forecast I saw mentioned Force 8 gales. Ferries are still running, but they usually stop in a Force 8 gale.

To get things moving I'll start by a few headings, and expand more on them later.

Greece Ahoy!

I'm going to Greece tonight and blogging as I go.

Why this time of year? The end of Carnival is approaching, lots of festivities to watch and participate in.

I was hoping for sun, but hail is forecast for Naxos tomorrow. My waterproof and thermal hat are packed.

And I'll be working on my book about Greece - Kalo Taxidi. If the weather is bad I might even finish the book whilst I am in Greece.

Keep in touch!