Our seminar’s weekend excursions have taken us to centuries-old monasteries, to Mount Olympus, and to the gold and sapphire of Corfu’s beaches.  But perhaps the most unique experience I’ve had was our overnight stop in the rather unassuming city of Komotini en route to Edirne, Turkey.

Mosques were lit for Ramadan.

We were also close to the border with Bulgaria.

The salt breeze washes over my classmates and me, as we commute to our first week of classes. We know little of our host city, and we certainly do not expect to find a companion snoozing by the waterfront. A mass of caramel brown hair unfolds itself from around a lamppost and weaves among us. Nervous laughter bubbles from the group, mingled with calls to close ranks. Around halfway through our walk, we dash across the street in hopes of evading our canine escort. He responds by trotting past us, only to return with a friend to help him keep his flock (us) in check.

Later that day, a waitress informs us that many of the stray dogs in Thessaloniki were turned out of their homes when the economic crisis hit. While their owners parted with them due to inability to feed their bellies, the animals now hunger for human company. It is common for homeless canines to accompany walkers, showing them around their city in exchange for a few crumbs of compassion.

Over the next six weeks, most our class warms to the strays of Thessaloniki, hiring them as our unofficial tour guides. We adopt a mid-sized mutt when we tour the West city villas, dubbing him “Truman Doctrine” and calling after him whenever he darts into the street. Although they lead us through a city faced with financial crisis, Thessaloniki’s canines have acquainted GLS 319 with a thriving economy of kindness.

“So, have you ever been to Greece before?”

“Actually, I was born here.”

Wait, what?

When I arrived in Thessaloniki, all I knew about my roommate Hana was that she was a rising junior who danced with PUB. After about thirty minutes of exploring the waterfront on our first night in Greece, I knew that she spent her first five years on the island of Tinos. And after five weeks, I know her incredible thoughtfulness, her stories about her family, her humor that comes out of nowhere and leaves me gasping for breath. All things that, if it weren’t for Thessaloniki, I probably would never have known.

Thanks to this Global Seminar, I’ve had the opportunity to immerse myself in a part of Greece that most people don’t ever see. But the treasure of this trip has been the opportunity to meet fourteen incredibly accomplished, hilarious, fascinating Princetonians, people who I just don’t cross paths with during the hectic school year.

In Thessaloniki, the Princeton experience pauses. We’re not all rushing from one place to next, we’re not defined by our major or extracurriculars or eating club. Here, somewhere in between the long bus rides, late-night conversations, massive Greek meals and endless coffee runs, we become a group of friends who will carry these memories and bonds back to Princeton in September and beyond. We’ll leave Thessaloniki having learned as much about each other as about the city we’re here to study, and with the knowledge that no matter what happens during the rest of our time at Princeton, we’ll always have Greece.

We came to this city to study history. We will leave having witnessed it.

Over the past month, we have grown intimately acquainted with Thessaloniki. The city has been a pivotal crossroads under various empires for the last 2,000 years, and while we have spent a large portion of our time learning its history, it seems as though we have accidentally stumbled into a decisive moment for the newest world power with influence over the region—the Eurozone.

The Flags at the Heart of the Issue

When we arrived here, I expected to see the effects of the Greek financial crisis everywhere. Yet, in Thessaloniki, I did not notice much out of the ordinary. There was graffiti, political rallies, homelessness, and other signs of trouble, but the ominous international reports did not seem to match up with the local atmosphere, and life went on as usual.

Then, on the weekend of June 26^th, the crisis suddenly emerged in plain sight. Banks closed, ATM lines grew dozens deep, capital controls went into effect, taxi radios played political speeches, and people became much more anxious.

An ATM in Aristotle Square With Fresh Graffiti

On July 5^th, the Greek nation overwhelmingly voted “Oxi” (No) to bailout terms offered by European creditors in a national referendum that had been announced just a week prior, sending the country down an uncertain path. Banks remained (and still remain) closed, but many gathered at the White Tower—the city’s preeminent landmark—and celebrated what they considered to be a victory for the Greek people, and the first step towards a revitalized society.

“Oxi” Supporters Celebrate at the White Tower

The Post-Referendum Rally

Another Scene from the Rally

Though through all of these events our class has continued mostly unaffected, it has been fascinating to wake up to  international newspaper headlines about what is happening in our own neighborhood. Ahead of Sunday’s “ultimatum” from the Eurozone, the future of this country still hangs very much in the balance, and only time will tell how the history of these events will be written.

Bazaar

Selimiye Mosque

From July 4^th to July 5^th, the Thessaloniki Global Seminar visited Edirne, Turkey for a weekend excursion. The idea of the excursion from an academic point of view was to get an idea of Ottoman past in a city under Turkish rule and contrast mosques serving as monuments or exhibits in Thessaloniki and as functioning mosques in Edirne.

As soon as we crossed the border there were certain differences that immediately caught the eye. Women were veiled (although a decent number were wearing western attires), people were drinking Turkish tea outside of kiosks instead of coffee like in Thessaloniki, Souflaki eateries were replaced by Donor Kebab vendors and the chime of the bell from the Church was substituted by the Azaan from the mosque.

Selimiye Mosque was the first Mosque that we visited followed by the Eski Camii Mosque and the Üç Serefeli. All the mosques were significant historically and architecturally in their respective ways but the Selmiye Mosque was a personal favorite. A towering mosque surrounded by four tall minarets, the Selimiye Mosque made an impression on all of the students. What fascinated me about the mosque was that it was made in competition to the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople by the son of the Suleiman the Magnificent, Selim II as a way of living up to the legacy of his father.

Soon after the tour, the students set off for the much-anticipated Turkish Hammam experience. Men and women were separated and taken to different sections. The experience was definitely a unique one for all the students and consisted of four stages: sauna, shower, massage and sauna again. Worth mentioning is that the shower and massage was carried out by another stranger who scrubbed us and basically gave us a shower one by one. Everyone was refreshed after the bath and departed for a stroll through a bazaar in central Edirne.

To wrap up our day, we went to the city center for dinner that coincided with Iftaar and all the Muslims were in the city to break their fast. Crowds moved towards restaurants and took up places, readying themselves for food and murmuring prayers. The siren went off, marking sunset, the city in unison started eating and so did we.