Day 5 - SMUS Service links Canada & Greece

After a morning of cycling 3km through the Elia Forest to a beautiful spot on the beach, (400m from the River Neda delta),  SMUS contributed a large portion of their evening to painting the railings of the NOKY training facility to help out the club and community to get their facility back to its original state. Earlier this season the NOKY club dedicated an hour each night after training to scooping out the thick layer of silt and dirt at the bottom of the Olympic sized swimming pool. The kids of the club ages 4-14 all pitched in without one sigh of complaint...goes to show the significance and crucial importance this club and facility have within this community of Kyparissia. and  The local newspaper showed up to run a story on how these two communities became linked.
It has been a neat experience participating in aspects of the triathlon club, which is no doubt a key part of his town. The SMUS students have been given a taste of the triathlon training and has definitely added value in regards to the cultural exchange aspect of this trip. 

Next up is Temple of Apollo and the River Neda walk with waterfalls and caves.

Patrick and Cindy finished off the mural, looks fantastic!

SMUS helped to paint the railings of the facility fence to make it look sharp and new again.

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Day 4 - Ancient Olympia & Triathlon 101

SMUS did some time travelling today all the way back thousands of years ago to the year 776BC when the first Olympic Games were held. We entered the UNESCO site of Olympia and toured the old grounds walking the same sacred path the Ancient Olympians once did...beginning at the gymnasium then past Zeus' temple, Hera's temple, where the Olympic flame is lit and finally by the hall of victors and the hall of shame and into the Olympic stadium.

The most outstanding building would have to be the 5th Century Temple of Zeus, which contained the 12 meter high statue by Phideas, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, (removed to Constantinople by Theodocious & destroyed in a fire).

We entered the stadium as SMU-LYMPIANS, (play on the word SMUS and Olympians), and entered ourselves in the shortest running event of the Ancient Olympics... 1 length of the stadium. Matthew.V was the victor and unfortunately had to settle for a prize of a bagged lunch and a Hi-five instead of an olive wreath.

Fun fact:
There were not only atheletic events, (foot races, wrestling, discus, javelin, long-jump, horse and chariot racing, and a type of boxing called pancratium), but also writing, poetry and history readings, plus business transactions and treaties were made between leaders of city-states.

After a quick lunch break we continued on to the museum across the road which contains the 4th Century BC statue of Hermes by Praxiteles, plus a number of other finds from the excavations including the Nike of Victory  by Paeonios. According to Olympic legend she used to come down from the sky to hand a palm leaf to the winners.

After the museum we hopped back on the bus to kyparissia, (1hr long), walked up to the village for an ice cream challenge and some explore time. We have not made it up to the old town yet but are hoping to do so soon.

Our evening began with a triathlon training session with the NOKY club, 5:30-7:00pm. So proud of the students they went into it with open minds (only needed a tiny bit of coaxing) and 150% rose to the challenge...a few were convinced the training was done after the warm up, which was followed by a short swim lesson and race of chosen distance, (in the ionian sea), a 20min bike, and a 10min run. So impressed with the effort by all of them as was Yannis, (the triathlon coach). He gave major cudos to a few of the students.
Cindy rocked the swim, her competitive swimming days may be coming back!

New skills learnt:
Abby rode a bike solo! Yannis gave her another short lesson and next thing you know there goes Abby with no assistance:) way to persevere Abby! 

We enjoyed another delicious dinner overlooking the ionian sea, which included some zumba music in the near background...Our dinner reflection conversations often involved pauses for "a bust a move" at the table moment.

The students all had a post dinner card match of cheat which after an hour evolved into some arm wrestling...It was uplifting to see the laughter and the enjoyment they were having in each other's company, (both the SMUS and Vincent's).

Tomorrow begins with a trip to Elia forest for a cycle and some beach/water sports in the ocean, and a service afternoon painting the NOKY pool to get it back to its original condition. There is also a mural to be painted, (already designed and sketched on the wall), which entails both the SMUS and NOKY crest with hands linking them. This is going on one of the main pool walls and has been designed by Patrick Woodgate, (one of the local Greece trip planners).

Posts tomorrow will be by some of the students so stay tuned!

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Day 3 - Turtles part two

Today was a Continuation of the sea turtle project, we helped the Archelon volunteers locate and protect new turtle nests. We learned what goes into the process and how thorough it is. We assisted in identifying turtle tracks, determining which way they walked up to their nest and back down to the ocean, (you can tell because their fins make smiley face shapes in the sand, happy means up sad means down), measuring the distance to the ocean,  relocating the nest, (only the boys group got the opportunity to do this), protecting the nest by building a bamboo fence that secures a metal grid over the nest to keep predators away and finally tagging it for identification.

Archelon Turtle Facebook page

After our turtle morning we heading to the main beach for our first swim in the Ionian sea, followed by a lunch in the village.

The afternoon was a quiet one that involved swimming and then giving the Vincent's, (future SMUS students and the family I taught last year), a warm welcome when they arrived to join our group. After they got settled we did a name game activity before dinner, enjoyed a great meal and then Owen, (one of the Vincent children), showed the group his drone which we used to take some incredible group photos and he got some great footage of the area from a birdseye view. Soon to be posted to the blog.

Off to Ancient Olympia next to the birthplace of the Olympics!

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Day 2 - Sea Turtle 101

Day 2 in Kyparissia began with a 7:30 wake up... or for those hit by jet lag a 4:30am wake up. Breakfast was at 8 am and was a great spread, something for everyone.

Our first event of the day was spending the morning at the Agiannakis Environmental Station with the Archelon group who are volunteers who dedicate their time to saving the endangered Loggerhead turtles. It's important to this area because Kyparissia is the second largest breeding ground for these turtles. We received a presentation concerning the sea turtles and the work done here in Kyparissiakos Bay. We were joined by NOKY club, (the community school club triathlon team), the German teacher from the local school and the Woodgate's. 

A few highlights of new things learned:

-Mothers lay 80-120 eggs

-You never assist baby turtles in making their journey to the ocean, it's a crucial part of their development as it's the only time the learn to walk. 

-The loggerhead turtle is considered the last living dinosaur!!

We had a picnic lunch, (fresh figs included) with the Greek children while listening to the sounds of the cicada bug. Patrick informed us about the incredible lifecycle of this bug and how they make sound.

We collected bamboo in the afternoon for the volunteers of Archelon to use to make nest protections when the mother turtles lay their eggs. Another task we had was to clear the path of bamboo from the nest to the ocean.

The afternoon involved some beach and town explore time before we went to check out NOKY training facilities, which have come a long way!! My students last year contributed means to getting the pool back in working condition and it is so cool to see the impact it had on this part of the community. 

We rode our bikes, (SMUS has their own set of bikes...generous contribution from the Vincent's), through town and along the seaside before a brief Greek dancing lesson and then and another delicious Greek meal of lamb and potatoes. 

Fun Fact:

We are known as the "Canadians", pronounced (Kaann-ad-ians)...

Gold Star:

Abby for attempting to ride a bike. Yannis was great with her and is convinced she will learn!

Early 5am wakeup tomorrow to help with the turtle nesting survey, and the Vincent's arrive in the evening :)  

 

Picture credits go to Mr. Abrioux

Day 1 - SMUS is in Kyparissia!

After 30 hours of travel we have arrived safe and sound in the town of Kyparissia. We were greeted with a lovely coach driver, ( SMUS sign and all), at the airport who took us on the final 3.5 hr leg of the trip. The crossing of the Corinth canal was a highlight of the drive as well as submarine sightings, military planes and a pit stop for some delicious baked goods.

The students were absolute troopers throughout the trip, and managed to make it all the way to our welcome dinner tonight. The locals were beyond welcoming and the hotel staff went above and beyond to make us feel welcome.

We checked in, settled into our rooms and then headed out for a quick explore of the town. The hotel is right in the heart of the village and backs onto one of the main beaches.

Both country's flags were represented at our dinner table, and the dining patio was decorated with colored balloon bunches representing both Canada and Greece. The food was DELICIOUS! Greek salad, fresh bread, potatoes, a juicy lamb steak and watermelon for dessert.

The students crashed mid-dinner just before we were joined by the Woodgates, (Family in Greece who has been our main contact in planning/organizing this trip), Local teachers and students for a brief social/welcome. It was a bit of a dance when conversing as there were an array of languages contributing to the conversation. A young boy had hand picked Basal for Xavier and myself as a gift, so thoughtful! ! The Mayor was called to Athens for a crisis meeting, so we will meet him later this week.

What an incredible start to this adventure of building International relations and experiencing all that the town of Kyparissia has to offer.

Turtle Day tomorrow, we get to learn about this endangered species and assist with the nesting/hatching process with the mother turtles :)

Fun fact: Kyparissia is the second largest breeding ground for this type of Sea Turtle, and the new Mayor, (who began last year), wants to develop the unspoiled beach where they live and nest. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Picture credits go to Mr. Abrioux