Abingdonian 2020

12 The Abingdonian Classics Trip to Sicily Located at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, the fertile island of Sicily has enjoyed a rich and complex history. Shaped by a diverse range of cultures, the pivotal role Sicily played in the ancient world made it an ideal destination for this year’s Classics Trip. The week-long tour began at a surprisingly decent hour, with 30 boys and four staff leaving Abingdon by coach at 7 am. The subsequent flight went smoothly and we were greeted by the welcome sight of sunshine and blue skies. Upon arrival, we were transferred by coach to the first of three hotels, via the port of Catania. Our tour guide’s enthusiastic, albeit idiosyncratic talk, provided an entertaining introduction to Sicilian history and culture, especially given his somewhat peculiar fixation on the merits of British public transport and our apparent etiquette at traffic lights. Our first night was spent in a hotel on the outskirts of Catania, which yielded spectacular views of the coast, in particular of the volcanic rock supposedly hurled at Odysseus by the mythical Cyclopes. The next morning, suitably recovered, we visited Syracuse, a city-state which rivalled Athens as the largest and most powerful city of the Greek world. Cicero famously described it as ‘the greatest Greek city and the most beautiful of them all’ and to this day it remains a hugely impressive site. An informative visit to Syracuse archaeological museum was followed by a tour of the Roman amphitheatre and Greek theatre. The spectacular view of the Great Harbour provided a fitting backdrop for a talk by Tristan Tonks on Syracuse’s involvement in the Sicilian Expedition of 415-13 BCE, a pivotal event in the Peloponnesian War and wider history of Greece. A sobering visit to the stone quarries of Syracuse, used as a prison camp for Athenians captured during the expedition, served as a reminder of the brutal reality of war, particularly when viewed in the context of Thucydides’ moving account of the suffering of its prisoners. The ‘Ear of Dionysius’, was a particularly striking site whose strange acoustic properties have given rise to the legend that the tyrant Dionysius I used to eavesdrop on his Athenian captives. The rest of the day was spent exploring Ortygia, the historic centre of Syracuse, with a talk from Tom Phillip about Cicero’s In Verrem followed by a visit to the spectacular cathedral of Syracuse — constructed around a Greek Doric temple. The first of many ice-cream stops concluded the day! Day three began with the much- anticipated trip up Mount Etna, the mythological forge of the Greek blacksmith god Hephaestus. Though we could not get near to the craters themselves, a climb via cable car to around 2000m offered breathtaking views of the surrounding area and provided an incredible setting for a series of talks by our tour guide about previous eruptions and volcanic rock. After making the winding descent to sea-level via coach, we travelled to Taormina. The highlight of this picturesque town was a visit to the Ancient Greek theatre (restored by the Romans) which commanded a stunning location combining panoramic views of the sea and Etna’s imposing peak rising above the clouds. This also provided the perfect opportunity for a fine performance of Plautus by the Upper Sixth which really did the comedy justice, though perhaps the humour has not aged all that well… On the following day, we left our first hotel and made our way west to the Greek settlement of Morgantina. The site contained, amongst other remains, a residential area, agora and well- preserved theatre, offering a valuable insight into the layout of Greek houses and towns. We then travelled on to the Roman villa of Piazza Armerina, famed for its incredible collection of mosaics covering over 2,500 square metres. The villa was unexpectedly uncrowded allowing us to fully take in the impressive range of mosaics. These ranged from an immense hunting spectacle to a charming image of young women playing ball in bikinis! Perhaps most peculiar were the mosaics depicting a chariot race where the chariots were drawn by birds, and a portrayal of the Cyclops Polyphemus with three eyes (which would have rather ruined the myth). After a thoroughly enjoyable day, we arrived at our second hotel. The next day, following an early departure, we made our way to Agrigento. Known as Akragas in Ancient Greek, this settlement was one of Sicily’s most prominent cities, famed for its affluence, strategically-important position, and fair share of psychopathic