Since September, I have walked upon the foundations of the temple of Zeus at Olympia, listened to the rustling of the oak leaves at Dodona, ridden in the back of a pick-up truck to reach the remote archaeological site of Azoria, wondered at the stone quarries on Thasos, and encountered more Mycenaean chamber tombs than I can count. During the 2021-2022 academic school year, I have been incredibly fortunate to have participated in the Regular Program at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. My fellowship in Greece had been initially postponed for one year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. But I am pleased to report that the academic programing was able to proceed with great success. The schedule is designed to introduce Ph.D. students to the art and archaeology of ancient Greece, through relevant trips across the country. During the Fall semester, regular members complete four trips under the leadership of experienced scholars in the field: (1) Northern Greece, (2) the Deep Peloponnese, (3) Central Greece, (4) Crete. The winter term addresses the sites and museums of Athens and Attica. Throughout, students regularly give reports regarding the major monuments and objects to be seen in person. I delivered one of my favorite reports in the Valley of the Muses in Boiotia, where Hesiod famously encountered the goddesses who gifted him with his power of song.
While not traveling, the other Regular members and I live in Loring Hall, the School’s residence building situated in Kolonaki, a pleasant residential neighborhood in the heart of Athens. Loring is a special place and has become a home away from home for me. It has been a joy to live and learn beside fellow Ph.D. students from other American Universities, in many of whom I have found lifelong interlocuters and collaborators. Meanwhile, I have enjoyed sharing meals with more senior scholars whose names I had only known previously in print.
My travels have reinvigorated my passion for the study of the past and galvanized my research. The Blegen Library on the School’s campus boasts an extensive collection of volumes related to the study of Classical antiquity. Plus, the School’s strategic location in the urban center encourages frequent visits to local museums and performance spaces. A staging of Euripides’ Bacchae was certainly a sight to see in the Theater of Herodes Atticus at the base of the Athenian acropolis! A number of exhibitions were also dedicated to the commemoration of the start of the Greek revolution in 1821. In this regard, I am thankful for my new Greek friends and colleagues, who have introduced me to the richness of the culture and history of modern Greece, all while so warmly welcoming me into their home.
I will always treasure the memories I’ve made during my adventures abroad. And I look forward to visiting Greece again in years to come. I encourage Cornell graduates to give the program a try! I am grateful to the ASCSA, the Cornell Graduate School, and the Classics Department for all of their support as I pursue my research.
