Amanda Summer - 100 Places in Greece Every Woman Should Go

Praise for 100 Places in Greece Every Woman Should Go

OH MY GODS! Amanda Summer lights up the country with magic, history, power, and mystery. Do not go to Greece without this book.though you will definitely be there as you read. She lures you in with sparkling waters, caves, temples, sculptures, foodsand her lively prose and passion will bring you into lives and loves, healings, and an underworld that feels as real as the temples you can touch. Greek mythology, as she passionately and powerfully describes it, is alive and well and still hovering.

Rita Golden Gelman Author of Tales of a Female Nomad, Living at Large in the World

This book makes a perfect traveling companion for any woman discovering Greece, whether shes exploring its ancient ruins or modern life. Pull it out of your bag, open up to your location, and get ready for a fresh perspective, interesting insight or useful informationeverything youd want from a buddy joining you on your odyssey.

Eleni Gage Author of North of Ithaka, The Ladies of Managua and Other Waters

A captivating account of thousands of years of female experience in one of the most enchanting places of the world. Amanda Summer, an archaeologist with an intricate and profound knowledge of Greece, masterfully combines the hard facts of history with the romance and mystery of Greek culture. Her lively, powerful, and intimate writing brings to life not only the ruins, the landscape, and the culture of Greece, but also the connection between the past and the present. The author manages to capture and convey the passion, liveliness, and joie de vivre that define Greek culture and inspire our lives today.

Professor Michael Cosmopoulos Author of Bronze Age Eleusis and the Origins of the Eleusinian Mysteries

OTHER BOOKS IN THE 100 PLACES SERIES

100 Places Every Woman Should Go

100 Places in the USA Every Woman Should Go

100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go

100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go

50 Places in Rome, Florence, & Venice Every Woman Should Go

MORE WOMENS TRAVEL LITERATURE FROM TRAVELERS TALES

The Best Womens Travel Writing series

Gutsy Women

Gutsy Mamas

Her Fork in the Road

Kite Strings of the Southern Cross

A Mile in Her Boots

A Mothers World

Safety and Security for Women Who Travel

Sand in My Bra

More Sand in My Bra

The Thong Also Rises

Unbeaten Tracks in Japan

Whose Panties Are These?

A Womans Asia

A Womans Europe

A Womans Passion for Travel

A Womans Path

A Womans World

A Womans World Again

Women in the Wild

Writing Away

For Phil

Copyright 2016 Amanda Summer. All rights reserved.

Travelers Tales and Solas House are trademarks of Solas House, Inc. 2320 Bowdoin Street, Palo Alto, California 94306. www.travelerstales.com

Art Direction: Kimberly Nelson Coombs

Cover Design: Kimberly Nelson Coombs

Interior Design and Page Layout: Howie Severson/Fortuitous Publishing

Author Photo: Philip Slavin

Production Director: Susan Brady

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Summer, Amanda, author.

Title: 100 places in Greece every woman should go / Amanda Summer.

Other titles: Hundred places in Greece every woman should go | One hundred places in Greece every woman should go

Description: First edition. | Palo Alto : Travelers' Tales, an imprint of Solas House, Inc., 2016.

Identifiers: LCCN 2015041532 | ISBN 978-1-60952-108-0 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Greece--Description and travel. | Women--Travel--Greece. |

Greece--History, Local. | Historic sites--Greece. | Historic buildings--Greece. | Sacred space--Greece. | BISAC: TRAVEL / Reference.

Classification: LCC DF728 .S86 2016 | DDC 919.49504/76--dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015041532

First Edition

Printed in the United States

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Monuments, Parks and Important Sites

Food and Drink

Specialty Shops

From Vathy to Kioni on Odysseuss Island

THE FIRST TIME I SET FOOT on Greek soil, I was an eleven-year-old child on a family vacation. I can still remember the fierceness of the sun, the surreal turquoise sea, and the smell of pines marinating an atmosphere that seemed infused with mystery. I can also remember being mesmerized by the cute Greek waiter who flirted with my older sister at a seaside family dinner one night, and recall that, even at an early age, the tumbled column drums and foundation stones of ancient temples really did seem to speak to me.

As a college student, years later, I felt compelled to return to Greece on a study abroad program. After living in rural Crete with a family to learn the language, I returned to Athens and had an experience one afternoon in a restaurant basement that changed my life. After imbibing my share of golden retsina with a group of girlfriends, I inquired as to the location of the ladies room, and was directed down a spiral staircase that seemed to penetrate the earth itself. Wandering down a dark passageway, my hands fumbling along the damp stone walls for purchase, I heard a voice in the distance. Do you want to see something interesting? it asked. As I drew nearer I saw a figure looming in the distance; upon closer inspection I could make out that it was our waiter. Uh, sure, I answered, not sure at all. In fact, I felt like Persephone, perched at the edge of an abyss, about to be abducted by a real life Hades into the Underworld. You will like it, he grinned, his teeth shining white in the darkness. Come and see, he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me deeper into the cellar. A riot of emotions surged through my body: just as I felt I was about to be kidnapped and no one would know where to find me, we entered into a clearing. My Hades raised his arm and pointedthere in the distance, a slender, white rectangle of marble erupted from the earth. Upon closer inspection, I could see inscriptions engraved onto the face of the stone. Hades spoke, his teeth once again gleaming through the flannel light. You see, he said in a hushed and reverent tone, that is a grave. He paused for a moment, and then released a sentence with the veneration of a priest giving an Easter Sunday benediction, and we are standing in a cemetery.

I stood, silent and awestruck. Hades waited a few moments before interrupting my reverie. You like? he asked, innocently, wondering if my silence meant I was disappointed. Here I was, thirty feet below the modern Athenian street level, cars and buses rumbling above me, knocking dust off the rafters that floated onto my hair in a gritty benediction. Did I like? I was standing in an ancient Roman graveyard! Somewhere in this hazy intersection between ancient and modern, past and present, lay my future. Right then and there, I made up my mind: I wanted to become an archaeologist. Hades was no abductor; in fact, I had to thank him, for he had unlocked the key to my future. I took in a breath and gave him my answer. I like, I said quietly, I like very much.

Ever since that transformational moment in an Athenian restaurant basement, I have been mesmerized, maddened and emboldened by the ancient landscape of Greece. Every time I return, I find a way to channel my inner goddesses. Feeling independent? Artemis is your gal. Ready to take on the big boys and own your feminine power? Let the supremacy of Athena course through your blood. In a sexy mood? Aphrodite is never far away in this sensual and passionate country. Ready to take a plunge into the depths? Allow Persephone, Queen of the Underworld, to guide your way. Remember, the worlds most potent modern divas were born with Greek fire in their blood: Maria Callas, Melina Mercouri, and Irene Papas, and other screen goddesses have tested their artistic chops on this magnificent soil: Meryl Streep, Pauline Collins, Daryl Hannah, Alexis Bledel, and Jacqueline Bisset to name a few. Yet another famous JacquelineJackie Oput Greece on the map after marrying the countrys richest and most infamous shipping tycoon, Aristotle Onassis.