Making the Most of Samos

We spent a week in Samos, a Greek island right off the coast of Turkey. It holds a long history of greatness and prosperity during the Hellenistic period. So it has lots of ruins scattered under all the dirt of later civilizations. We went to a museum and saw just a magnificent stone statue of a young athlete that was over 15' tall. Incredible. It is by far the biggest articulated statue I have ever seen. The statue makes Michelangelo's David look like a miniature in size. Most of the statue is still intact which is also amazing that it has survived so many years. Originally there were two statues, but not much is left of the second one. It is hard to believe that they were carved around 500 BC.

We stayed long enough in the little port city to get to know some of the people in the town. That connection always seems to be more important then the local tourist attractions. The boat was tied up right on the quay in the center of town. At this port we were the biggest sailboat. People would walk by, take pictures, and peer in to get a closer look. Many stopped to chat and ask us where in America we were from. We got to know a few of the locals. I knew we were the talk of the town when I went to the gas station to arrange some diesel to be delivered to the boat. He asked for the name of the boat and I told him the catamaran on the quay, he stopped writing and said, of course, I know the boat. I will deliver the gas at 1pm.

Two guys invited us to lunch at their home. One was from Iraq. His brother was assigned to protect the judge that sentenced Sadam Hussein to death. It ended up also being a death sentence to his entire family. All murdered by those that are fighting against the occupation. So he fled the country and has been wandering around without a country and without a family for the past 6 years. It was very touching as he proudly showed us photos of his brother. The other guy is half Jewish, half Palestine and grew up in Algeria. He spoke 4 languages, but English was not one of them. There was a lot of back and forth as his friend interpreted his friends life story. They both avoid politics and just live their lives generously sharing it with others. We were the recipients of that generosity eating oversized helpings of pasta and hot dogs. A humble meal but one they made sure we had more than we could possibly eat. The next day, Robert, a friend from Munich joins us and we are off again for new adventures.