Finding Ithaka

by Anna Harvey

  She was thinking quickly. The topography made sense: the gentle swell of Paliki conspicuous during the drive. Certainly it was the furthest west of the islands. There were no steep cliffs as in the main part of the island or most of the Greek islands she had visited. But Mount Neriton baffled her. There was higher land in the background but it was hardly a mountain. But Mount Oenos on the main part of the island, that seemed to make sense. It loomed large above the whole island and would have been a welcome landmark for ancient mariners at sea. Now a national park, it was covered in natural woodland. Thea turned to an earlier excerpt, where she had picked out the phrase upo neriou. Upo, the unaspirated word usually meant under or below, so would translate as under Mount Neriton. But what if Homer meant across from, so opposite the mountain, which seemed to fit better. By the time the two men returned, Thea was fully immersed in her new theory, her fingers flicking between the different passages.

  “Okay, we’re done,” said Rob, opening the car door, the sudden sound startling her. She hadn’t noticed their return. “I hope you’ve managed to occupy yourself. At least the rain has eased off.”

  A glance at Thea’s watch told her that a whole hour had past. “Yes, I’ve been fine,” she re-assured him, looking up. It felt hard to pull herself away from this new line of thought. Somehow being close to the actual physical places felt so real and a different experience from reading about it in the comfort of her London flat. She glanced at Matthew, who looked slightly pitiful in his sodden clothes, whereas Rob just seemed to throw off the rainwater like water running off the back of a water fowl.

  “We’ll probably be in Kalodia within the next half hour,” Rob said, starting the ignition. The vehicle set off, bouncing down the dirt track until it reached the low coastal plain. Through the rain and misted windows, it was hard to make out any signs of an ancient landslide. Eventually, they turned off the main road climbing up a steep hillside for several kilometres. The narrow lane snaked its way around sharp hairpin bends and narrow village passages, until at last a sign for Kalodia appeared. On the outskirts of the village, Rob pulled the car into a covered parking bay, overshadowed by a tall modern residence standing on its own. The sound of the car must have announced their arrival as instantly Sophie and Daniel came to greet them.

  “We weren’t sure what time you would get here.”

  “Hi Sophe”, said Matthew, tossing his bag out of the back of the car. “How’s it going?” A shy glance passed between the two younger people and Thea realised that a definite attachment was blossoming.

  “Fine,” Sophie replied.” It’s been a bit of a quiet day as the rain has confined us to barracks. The field work got cancelled. Daniel was planning to do a blog about the survey until he realised we don’t have an internet connection.” Daniel looked up briefly at the sound of his name, forcing a smile that faded quickly. From his grim mood, it was clear that the imposed disconnection from the world did not sit comfortably with him.

  “And how is the injured leg?” Thea enquired turning her attention back to Sophie.

  “It’s healing really well. I can walk on it now without any pain. Whatever you put on it was miracle stuff!”

  “It can work wonders sometimes.”

  They followed Sophie into the house, where the entrance opened into a huge hallway with wooden stairs leading to the floor above. “This is massive, Sophe. Does anyone else stay here?” exclaimed Matthew, sizing up the dimensions of the building.

  “No, just us. It’s huge. We even have our own housekeeper who does the cooking.” They had now entered a living room where some of the others had congregated to pass the time, dressed in several warm layers of clothing. Richard was there too. Even he had had to make a concession to the weather, discarding his usual pale light-weight suit in favour of a casual sweater. His extrovert unflappable manner was unchanged.

  “Here you all are! You found us in our village hide-out!” he greeted them affably. Already Richard had a full glass of red wine in his hand, although it was only mid-morning. It reminded Thea of the gentlemen’s club of archaeologists from the last century. Richard wouldn’t have looked out of place in his usual white linen suit and Panama hat excavating the palace of Knossos with Arthur Evans.

  Mark appeared round the door. “Hello everyone.” He glanced at Thea. “Are you joining us for lunch? I can ask our housekeeper Mrs Florakis to set some extra places.”

  “I’m easy with that, if you are happy Thea,” said Rob, deferring the decision to her.

  “That would be good,” Thea replied. There was still plenty of time left in the day and she welcomed the opportunity for company after her enforced solitude. ”Provided we won’t be an inconvenience?”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Sophie quickly reassured her. “Mrs Florakis has developed a soft spot for Mark.”

  “Then we’d love to,” Thea replied. She could imagine the Greek housekeeper fussing around Mark, wondering why such an eligible man didn’t have a wife and children.

  ************************************************

  “Do you have time to take a look around, Thea?” enquired Mark. The lunch pots had been cleared away. Most of the team had melted away, Elizabeth and Alistair quickly returning to their work after limited conversation. Thea glanced across at Rob, who was in deep discussion with Richard.

  “Sure, I’d be interested to see how you all live here.”

  “I’d be most happy to show you around, if you wish,” offered Mark smiling.

  The house proved to be enormous and well furnished, but it was the garden that impressed Thea the most, with its overhanging foliage, pots of geraniums and intimate secret corners. “It’s lovely out here,” Thea remarked. “You must be out here all the time.”

  “Not at the moment,” Mark shrugged. “The weather hasn’t been up to it and we’ve been full on with the project.”

  “At least the warmer weather will be arriving soon,” Thea offered encouragingly.

  “And here is the “Find Shed”,” said Mark pointing to an open air covered work area, where a large table had been set up and open shelving stacked neatly with numerous boxes. Each had been meticulously labelled in a neat uniform handwriting with a date and a sequence of numbers. Elizabeth was bent over the table, focusing on several small earth-covered objects scattered in front of her. Each find was being recorded in a large moleskin bound book. Alistair had set up a makeshift studio on the side bench and was photographing a small find. At their entrance, Alistair gave a cursory nod, but Elizabeth didn’t glance up. Although unspoken, their presence felt an unwanted incursion so they chose not to linger.

  “So how’s the survey going?” Thea asked, seizing the opportunity to speak with Mark privately. “I understand that it hasn’t turned up anything of significance yet?”

  “Yes, that’s right. To be honest Thea, it’s an absolute nightmare to survey. There are a lot of closed properties around here, as you may have noticed. So we haven’t been able to work out who are the landowners to approach to get permission. So what we have tends to be small holdings, heavily cultivated with vines or that have been left to go wild. A lot are really badly overgrown with brambles and undergrowth. And then we also have to look out for the wildlife.”

  “You mean snakes?” Thea shuddered thinking of the small silver vipers, difficult to spot but highly poisonous.

  “They’re attracted to the vines. So not the best of starts. I think Richard is already feeling the pressure. I have wondered why this spot was chosen and whether we ought to be looking elsewhere.”

  “It’s strange, isn’t it.” Remembering her conversation with Vassiliki, Thea chose not to be drawn. “So very quiet around here,” she said suddenly, shifting the conversation and refusing to allow her thoughts to dwell on Dimitri Kampitsis. “I haven’t heard a single car since we arrived.”

  “So you’ve noticed. We don’t see many people, just a couple of the locals. There is a sense of the pied piper about the place. All the young people and
anyone under fifty years old has been lured away by the attractions of city living.”

  “Isn’t there a taverna or a kafeneion in the village where there is a bit of village life?”

  Mark sighed. “There used to be but that closed down a few years ago. The nearest eating place is now two villages away and only open at weekends. After the earthquake, even the church has been closed and is still in a state of disrepair.”

  “So lots of time to read and contemplate.” It was hard imagining Mark, a man who enjoyed his urban living and city amenities being available twenty-four seven, settling for the rural country life.

  Mark looked across at Thea, concern written across his face. “You know I worry about you. You’ve not seemed yourself since you arrived what with the fainting fit and then leaving dinner early. Is something else going on I should know about? ”

  “Don’t worry about me,” Thea replied, trying to enthuse her voice with conviction. Though she trusted Mark absolutely, it was too long and complicated a story to explain at that moment. “I’m perhaps just over tired. You know what it is like in the run up to the end of term” she said brushing off the concern.

  Apparently convinced, Mark glanced towards the director and scientist, who were standing on the porch deep in conversation.

  “You know I googled him?” said Mark, speaking in a conspiratorial undertone his eyes lingering on the shorter thick-set man.

  “Who do you mean?”

  “Rob of course. The man’s the real deal. He’s a string of publications as long as your arm and sits as a climate expert on several governmental and international panels. I can’t believe he‘s helping us with our small little project.”

  “I think the two of them go back a long way,” replied Thea. Inadvertently, her eyes rested on Rob, trying measure him up and hang this new piece of information on the unassuming appearance. From the corner of his eye, Rob caught Thea’s gaze and hurriedly broke off his conversation, clapping Richard on the back.

  “I’ve been delaying you,” Rob said attentively, an apologetic expression on his face. “Do we need to be leaving?” They said their farewells quickly and had started towards the car, when Richard caught Thea’s arm, taking her by surprise.

  “Would it be possible to have a quick word Thea? “ The words were lightly spoken but the hand grip was insistent.

  “Of course,” Thea replied.

  Thea followed Richard into a quiet corner of the garden where they could talk without being overheard. The sun had started to shine giving the foliage around them a feel of freshness. But at once, she sensed something was coming and that she wouldn’t like it.

  “Stelios rang me this morning, about setting up a meeting with Mr Kampitsis, next week. He’s heard a lot about you and is really keen to meet with you in person. I can’t stress to you how important this is as we’re seeking further funding and our negotiations are at a delicate stage.” He paused and took a deep cough to clear his throat. “I know that you are working hard on the research, but I want you to be at that meeting.” There was a steely look on Richard’s face giving his words more weight.

  Thea felt her body lurch, as if hit by an invisible hand. Despite her best avoidance tactics, she had underestimated Stelios’ persistence. She searched quickly in the corners of her mind for an escape but could only draw a blank. “Okay,” Thea agreed reluctantly, “I’ll be there.”

  ************************************************

  Thea sat in silence on the drive over to Mousatoi, all the joy sucked out of the day. The village straddled a hill and Rob parked the car in a quiet square opposite an old church. Despite the cluster of houses, the village seemed deserted. It was clear that some of the homes were still closed up for the winter by absent owners or simply abandoned, left standing shabby and neglected.

  “Are you okay?” asked Rob, looking at her quizzically sensing her subdued mood.

  She was aware Rob was doing her a favour and she needed to snap out of this dread. “I’m fine,” Thea replied, tight-lipped. “Can we walk around the village and see what we find.”

  “Alright.” They were both equipped with walking boots and rain coats, though the sun was starting to shine brightly through a gap in the clouds.

  From their elevated spot, they could see a panoramic view of the bay across to the main part of the island, with the faint outline of Zakynthos visible in the grey distance. In the foreground, the view opened up to reveal a fertile green valley, with vines, olive groves and fields for growing wheat.

  “Whoever lived here, really did control the land,” commented Rob.

  “And it’s perfect for Mycenean agriculture,“ Thea said, noting to her satisfaction the view of Mount Oenos opposite. It seemed to confirm her earlier theory. They walked on past gardens where the bougainvillea and pink floribunda roses were just coming into bloom. Before their neglect, the garden plots had been well cultivated by the owners. Grapevines had been carefully trained to provide a canopy of shade from the summer heat.

  “Let’s explore down this way,“ Rob suggested, his face now animated. He was pointing at an old farm track, which descended sharply away from the village and led out onto open land. He was striding ahead, humming to himself. Thea followed, trying to focus her mind away from the conversation with Richard. After a couple of minutes walking, it became clear that the old track was twisting its way across to meet the distant shoreline. And then Porto Katsiki beyond.

  All of a sudden Rob halted and stood motionless like a sentry, wearing a strange expression on his face. He didn’t raise his head when Thea approached him.

  “Do you hear that?” he asked.

  There was something about his voice that made Thea look round straining to catch the sound. “Hear what?” Except for the breeze rustling the leaves of the olive trees, she could hear nothing.

  He looked up at her, his eyebrows raised. “I thought I heard lots of shouting and laughter. I could have sworn there was a big party taking place in that olive grove over there.”

  Thea slowly shook her head, her ears pricked up for any sound. “I can’t hear anything.” They were on the village outskirts but no one was around.

  Rob shrugged his shoulders, dismissing the thought, but the perplexed look remained on his face. “I must be imagining things. Do you want to go on?”

  The old farm track was definitely leading them out towards the northern coast but it would require time to explore. It could be a marker that the palace was not far away. “Let’s leave it for now and see if we can locate the tombs,” Thea suggested.

  They retraced their footsteps up the hillside to the main street of the village. It was then a small truck pulled up, the only vehicle they had encountered since their arrival. The driver, his face thick set and rough shaven, wound down the window.

  “What are you doing and where are you from?” the man demanded in Greek, his voice deep and gravelly, suggestive of years of tobacco smoking and ouzo drinking. His age was hard to tell: it could be any number between fifty and seventy years. Rob attempted to take charge of the conversation, struggling with the unfamiliar tongue. A torrent of Greek followed: long sophisticated words delivered in a strong local accent.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t understand”, replied Rob, shrugging his shoulders. “Can you speak more clearly?” He had slowed down the pace of his speech, heavily annunciating his words, as if the man was hard of hearing. “We are archaeologists looking for some archaeological tombs near here. Tombs. Do you know if there is anything in the village?”

  The man’s eyes narrowed and another torrent of Greek emerged, except this time fiercer and more hostile. As he puffed up his chest to square up to Rob, Thea stepped in.

  “He thinks that we’re thieves and have come to steal treasure,” Thea said before switching into Greek, “ochi, den eimaste”, explaining the Odysseus Project. “We heard some Mycenean tombs were discovered by the village. We wondered if you know anything about them?”

  “Archaeologists, you
say?” The man questioned still suspicious.” You’re sure you’re not here to steal. You know the word “klepsia”? How do you say this in English?”

  “Theft,” Thea responded, unperturbed, “but we’re not here to steal.”

  The man appeared partly reassured, a slow smile building on his lips. Already, Thea could see the stranger was mellowing, reassured by hearing his own language. “You know I heard it rumoured there was an excavation here many years ago.” the man said, “About one and a half kilometres from here. Would you like me to take you?”

  “That’s really not necessary,” Thea said, politely declining the offer, anxious not to inconvenience their new acquaintance.

  “Then let me point it out to you,” the man said, jumping out of his truck and from the roadside indicating somewhere in the distance. They grouped round him, following the line of the stretched finger but nothing stood out, only the undulating contours of the fields.

  “Efcharisto gia ti voithea sas.” Thea courteously replied, looking the man squarely in the face, covering her initial disappointment. “Thank you for your help.”

  The man was in no hurry to end the conversation, now confident in the identity of his two new acquaintances. “Can I invite you to my home for coffee?” he asked, his instincts for philoxenia, warm hospitality, kicking in. “My wife and I would be happy to entertain you.”

  “You’re very generous,” Thea replied, tipping her head back, “but we have to decline as we need to leave soon.”

  They exchanged their farewells and the man was about to turn away, when he stopped suddenly. “Your friend?”

  “Yes?” Thea nodded in encouragement. The man was staring at Rob, his mouth falling open.

  “He’s familiar to me but I cannot think where I have met him. He’s not from around these parts?” Thea nodded in agreement. “Please apologise to him if I have treated him discourteously.” The man bowed in slight deference to Rob, who watched on blank and puzzled. Then the older man got in his car and drove away.