Page 50 - The Gonzaga Record 1994
P. 50
or any of the other great statesmen who
guided the world’s first democracy. With
all confidence in Mr O'Sullivan’s sense of
direction gone, I volunteered to guide the
group back. Hubris indeed. Mr O’Connor
gave me a map of the city with the hotel
circled so I carefully studied the route
before leading my charges on the worst two
hours of the trip. When I turned what
should have been the last corner and saw
the city’s cathedral in front of me and not
the familiar edifice of our hotel 1 knew
something was wrong. However I feigned
confidence and proceeded to lead the group
past a certain small church no less than
three times before I was rudely relieved.
With the map in the capable hands of Eoin
Lawless we were soon on the right track
and three quarters of an hour later we
finally reached our hotel. Not surprisingly 1
was relegated to the campbed for the rest of
the trip.
The next morning we got up for Mass
and split into two groups. Half of us went
John Feeney studies form to the Orthodox church with Mr O’Connor
while Mr O’Sullivan brought the others to
was here that Apollo's oracle the Pythian the Catholic cathedral. The service was
priestess pronounced the ambiguous certainly fascinating but the test of
prophesies which were a key part of Greek endurance was too much for most of us so
politics for hundreds of years. Its after an hour all but a few had withdrawn
geography eminently suited its purpose; to a taverna where we waited for the others,
seated on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, at over a cup of espresso. That afternoon we
the feet of towering cliffs it possesses such went to the National Archaeological
natural grandeur that it is no surprise that Museum but by this stage we were so
the ancients saw divinity in it. Above the exhausted that, far from enjoying it, we
dedications of the Greek cities is the were only longing to get out. When we
Temple of Apollo; further up again is finally escaped, we retired to the hotel for
Delphi’s theatre and then the stadium the rest of the day.
which once held the great pythian games Monday was another early morning as we
but which now provided the pitch for a set off for the Peloponnese. We visited the
soccer match. After a visit to the Delphi ruins of Corinth, the great trading city
museum we returned to the bus and headed which at its height was larger than Athens
for home, only to be stopped by our second ever was. Then we visited the great city of
puncture of the day. Mycenae, home of Agamemnon, whose
When we eventually got back to the hotel brother’s wife, Helen was abducted by
and finished our dinner, Mr O’Sullivan Paris. The city with its huge walls and
decided that we would walk to the Pnyx, dominating position has a raw grandeur to
the hill on which the ancient Athenian it which is very different from the classical
Assembly met. After he got us temporarily buildings of Athens. We then visited its
but thoroughly lost in the Athenian sister-city Tiryns whose walls are called
backstreets, we finally reached the hill. ‘cyclopaean’ because of their size. Our
Unfortunately, it was something of a next stop was for lunch at Nauplion, the
disappointment. Nothing remained to site of a great Venetian fortress. It is a
remind us of Pericles, Cleon. Demosthenes lovely sea-side town and most of us were
42
guided the world’s first democracy. With
all confidence in Mr O'Sullivan’s sense of
direction gone, I volunteered to guide the
group back. Hubris indeed. Mr O’Connor
gave me a map of the city with the hotel
circled so I carefully studied the route
before leading my charges on the worst two
hours of the trip. When I turned what
should have been the last corner and saw
the city’s cathedral in front of me and not
the familiar edifice of our hotel 1 knew
something was wrong. However I feigned
confidence and proceeded to lead the group
past a certain small church no less than
three times before I was rudely relieved.
With the map in the capable hands of Eoin
Lawless we were soon on the right track
and three quarters of an hour later we
finally reached our hotel. Not surprisingly 1
was relegated to the campbed for the rest of
the trip.
The next morning we got up for Mass
and split into two groups. Half of us went
John Feeney studies form to the Orthodox church with Mr O’Connor
while Mr O’Sullivan brought the others to
was here that Apollo's oracle the Pythian the Catholic cathedral. The service was
priestess pronounced the ambiguous certainly fascinating but the test of
prophesies which were a key part of Greek endurance was too much for most of us so
politics for hundreds of years. Its after an hour all but a few had withdrawn
geography eminently suited its purpose; to a taverna where we waited for the others,
seated on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, at over a cup of espresso. That afternoon we
the feet of towering cliffs it possesses such went to the National Archaeological
natural grandeur that it is no surprise that Museum but by this stage we were so
the ancients saw divinity in it. Above the exhausted that, far from enjoying it, we
dedications of the Greek cities is the were only longing to get out. When we
Temple of Apollo; further up again is finally escaped, we retired to the hotel for
Delphi’s theatre and then the stadium the rest of the day.
which once held the great pythian games Monday was another early morning as we
but which now provided the pitch for a set off for the Peloponnese. We visited the
soccer match. After a visit to the Delphi ruins of Corinth, the great trading city
museum we returned to the bus and headed which at its height was larger than Athens
for home, only to be stopped by our second ever was. Then we visited the great city of
puncture of the day. Mycenae, home of Agamemnon, whose
When we eventually got back to the hotel brother’s wife, Helen was abducted by
and finished our dinner, Mr O’Sullivan Paris. The city with its huge walls and
decided that we would walk to the Pnyx, dominating position has a raw grandeur to
the hill on which the ancient Athenian it which is very different from the classical
Assembly met. After he got us temporarily buildings of Athens. We then visited its
but thoroughly lost in the Athenian sister-city Tiryns whose walls are called
backstreets, we finally reached the hill. ‘cyclopaean’ because of their size. Our
Unfortunately, it was something of a next stop was for lunch at Nauplion, the
disappointment. Nothing remained to site of a great Venetian fortress. It is a
remind us of Pericles, Cleon. Demosthenes lovely sea-side town and most of us were
42
