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A welcome breeze washed over Rose, cooling her. She handed the children water bottles before quenching her own thirst.
“You can see the harbor and the boats.” Nefeli pointed.
“And Mykonos,” said Mr. P.
“I can see why the people wanted to build a temple here. This is probably the best view on all of the island.”
“I guess that means it’s all downhill from here,” Stavros joked.
Rose laughed. They’d climbed the slope to the top, making his statement literally true.
“This is also the most peaceful place on the island,” Mr. P said. “Tours don’t come up here. They parade by.”
“Shame,” Rose said. “I’m glad we came.”
They climbed down and went to their next stop.
“The House of Dionysus,” Mr. P said.
On a stone base, carved columns reached to the sky. The group heaved onto the base to see more. The mosaic in the middle of the floor was protected from foot traffic by the ropes around the columns.
Rose cocked her head. “I can’t tell what the picture is.”
“That’s Dionysus riding a tiger,” said Mr. P.
“And what are these?” Adonis pointed behind them at the rectangular stones set in regular intervals in the sand.
“The men’s room.” Stavros smiled.
“That’s their toilet?” Nefeli wrinkled her nose.
“Actually, no,” Stavros explained, “It was a men’s only area where they could talk, play dice, and hang out.”
“Sounds boring,” said Adonis. “I’d rather fight tigers.” He did a karate move.
Rose giggled.
Next they trekked over to the Archaeological Museum. Rose thought she could’ve stayed in the museum longer than they did. She admired the funerary statues, grave stelae, pottery, clay figurines, jewelry, and mosaics.
“There’s so much to see. I don’t think we’ve done it justice,” she said to Stavros as they exited from the air-conditioning to the summer heat.
“Probably not,” he agreed.
They headed to the archaeological site.
“This was the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis,” Mr. P said. “The Ionians made it their religious center. Later the Athenians made it their treasury.” He adjusted his sunglasses. “Amazing how two cultures can view the same thing differently.”
“What kind of treasures?” Adonis asked.
“Probably the usual, gold and gems,” Mr. P said.
“That sounds boring.” Nefeli said.
“What would you put in your treasury?” Stavros asked.
Nefeli thought for a moment. “Books and art.”
“Naturally,” Stavros smiled at the girl. “Would anyone like to see lions?”