Two weeks of immersive ancient Greek spent on the island of Samos will teach you to speak, read, and write the language of Plato and St. Paul.
Two weeks of immersive spoken ancient Greek will provide an opportunity to speak, hear, read, and write the language of Plato and St. Paul. Set in Limnionas Bay on the Island of Samos, these intensive two weeks of study will balance the beauty of Greece with excursions to historic sites such as the Tunnel of Eupalinos, the Pythagoras' cave, Patmos, Ephesus, and the sanctuary of Hera.
Students will be encouraged to live Greek through meals, conversation, direct encounters with texts in the places they were written, through the wellspring of nature, and through the continuous culture and language of Greece.
After checking into your apartment you’ll be free to swim or relax by the beach until 5:00 pm when you’ll meet your Greek instructors and fellow students for an orientation to the following two weeks of immersive study.
Dinner this evening will follow the structure of the symposium with further introduction to Samos and the language of Homer through toasts and conversation. Until the final night dinner, this will be the only meal where English may be spoken.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
7:15 - 8:30 pm Dinner (over spoken Greek)
Before the first full day of language study, all program participants will sign a contract to speak only Ancient Greek. Between today’s rigorous class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
1:30 - 2:30 pm Ancient Greek
3:00 - 9:00 pm Excursion followed by dinner (over spoken Greek)
After today's classes you'll hop into four-wheel drive vehicles and cars and head towards the Western point of the island, towards the town of Kalithea, or beautiful-view, where you'll continue up one of the old dirt roads of Samos to the foot of the mountain and the beginning of the path to the church of Panagia Makrini, or Faraway Maria.
After today's hike and ancient Greek discussion in the cave of Makrini, you'll descend to Kalithea for dinner in town and continued conversation.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
7:15 - 9:00 pm aFree Dinner (over spoken Greek)
Between today’s rigorous class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
1:30 - 2:30 pm Ancient Greek
3:00 - 9:00 pm Excursion followed by dinner (over spoken Greek)
After today's final Ancient Greek class, you'll head towards the nearby, but remote, cave of Pythagoras. Just twenty-minutes away by car, you'll arrive at the foot of the cliffside where the first philosopher retreated from the world and held his classes. Another twenty-to-thirty-minute hike up the mountain will bring you to the entrance of Pythagoras' Cave.
Here, you'll read fragments while learning about the secret school of the man whose love of wisdom shaped the trajectory of history.
Following your visit to the cave, you'll head to the nearby town of Ormos for another spoken-Greek dinner.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
5:30 pm Free evening
Between today’s rigorous class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
8:00 amDeparture
9:15 am Excursion to the Tunnel of Eupalinos
10:30 am Visit to the sanctuary and birthplace of Hera
11:45 - 4:30 pm Sailing the Aegean in a traditional Greek boat
5:00 - 8:30 pm Free dinner in Pythagorio followed by a return to Limnionas Bay
In lieu of Greek classes today, you'll visit some of the most important sites of ancient Greece and sail the Aegean. Your first stop today will be one of the great engineering feats of antiquity, the Tunnel of Eupalinos. Constructed under the tyrant Polycrates, this aqueduct protected the city in case of siege and functioned for more than a thousand years.
Your next stop will be the Heraion, although little now remains, this was once one of the greatest temples of the ancient world. Renowned as the birthplace of Hera, your visit here will be guided by the Greek understanding of virtue and the matriarch of hellenic households.
In the late morning or early afternoon, you'll arrive at the port of Pythagoreio where you'll board a traditional wooden boat now converted to comfortably explore the coast. Always immersed in ancient Greek, you'll have lunch on the boat and take time to swim along the coast in view of Turkey where the Athenians and Persians once waged a naval battle.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
7:15 - 8:30 pm Dinner (over spoken Greek)
Between today’s full class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
5:30 pm [Free evening
Between classes, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
6:30 am Depart Limnionas for the port of Pythagorio
8:30 am Ferry departs for Kusadasi
11:00 am Arrive in Turkey and head towards the ancient archeological city of Ephesus
5:30 pm Depart Turkey and return to Samos
7:00 pm Dinner in Pythagoreio
8:30 pm Depart Pythagoreio for Limnionas Bay
You'll depart Limnionas Bay in the early morning and return to Pythagoreio where you'll embark by ferry for Turkey.
Arriving at the archeological site of Ephesus in the late morning, you'll read excerpts from Paul's letters to the Ephesians, see the agora where he was accused of stirring up the city, and one of the greatest libraries of the ancient world: Celcus.
After lunch, and time-permitting, you'll visit the Basilica of St. John, constructed by the emperor Justinian before returning to Samos by ferry.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 am Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
7:15 - 8:30 pm Dinner (over spoken Greek)
Between today’s rigorous class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
8:00 - 9:30 am Ancient Greek
9:45 - 11:00 am Ancient Greek
11:15 - 12:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
12:30 - 1:15 pm Lunch (over spoken Greek)
2:30 - 4:00 pm Ancient Greek
4:15 - 5:30 pm Conversation & Tutorial
5:30 pm Free evening
Between today’s rigorous class schedule, you’ll have time to swim in the bay, stroll through the olive trees, and contemplate the sea of Homer when you bring your study materials to the beach.
7:00 am Depart Limnionas for Patmos
9:30 am Arrive in Patmos and visit the Cave of the Revelation
11:00 am Visit the Monastery of St. John
1:00 pm Free time for lunch and exploration in Skala
3:30 pm Return to Samos by ferry
7:30 pm Farewell dinner in Limnionas Bay
Departing Limnionas Bay in the early morning, you'll catch the ferry from Pythagoreio to Patmos, the island where the beloved apostle was exiled in the first century b.c.
Your study of Greek will culminate at Cave of the Apocalypse where you'll read the Greek of St. John and spend time in the cave where the Revelation was revealed. Mid-morning you'll continue to the Monastery of St. John to visit the Byzantine church and library and, time-permitting, converse with the monks. After free time for lunch in Skala, you'll return to Samos.
Returning to Limnionas Bay this evening, you'll celebrate your final evening on Samos with a symposium structured dinner of toasts and conversation, in Ancient Greek.
There are no structured activities today. Your Ancient Greek instructors will be available throughout the morning to answer linguistic questions and to help with the logistics of departing from Samos.
Situated on the remote, southwest side of Samos, your classroom and apartments will overlook the sea. You'll stay in individual or shared apartments with basic kitchen facilities. Limnionas is the perfect place for reflection and adventure. Swim across the bay, explore caves, walk to hidden coves.
For further questions don't hesitate to reach out to us directly.
No knowledge of Ancient Greek is necessary before signing up. Familiarity with at least one second language is recommended though entirely optional.
The Erasmian pronunciation will be the standard but spoken modern Greek will also be encouraged.
Alithea staff will help to coordinate booking taxis. For those arriving early, consider renting a car for ease of transport before the program starts.
Class time and excursions are variable and certain excursions, such as the trip to Patmos, are subject to ferry timetables and may change.
You can either fly into the airport of Samos (SMI) or take the ferry from Athens to Karlovasi. If arriving internationally, consider flying into Athens at least one day before the program starts.
Expect basic conversational fluency with other ancient Greek and native Greek speakers.
