First Day in Greece

I arrived last night in Corfu with another girl who will be working at The Silva Project until July 1. We hopped in the car with Mrs. Steen, the founder of the Silva Project, and began our journey to her home. Since it was dark, I could only see things as they passed in front of the car headlights. Trees. Ancient Chapels. Walls. Villas. Graffiti. Driveways. It was only a dream-like glimpse of what comprises the town that surrounds The Silva Project, and I hope to see more of it on the weekends when I venture out with the other volunteers.

On the drive, Mrs. Steen began talking about The Silva Project and its goals. She spent most of her life working with special-needs children and serving as a leader on many boards that dealt with problems in Greece such as animal control. Because of her civic engagement within the community, almost providentially, a man one day approached her and showed her three things which needed to be addressed within the Greek community. One was an environmental-related organization, one was a community center, and one was a tiny horse. I can imagine that Silvia asked herself: “Which do I pick? Door 1, door 2, or door 3?” However, having a place in her heart for animals, she chose door number 3, and thus saved an entire species of horse of which there were less than 90 left in the entire world. This place in her animal-loving heart can be heard, smelled, and seen 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In the house there are over 4 cats and maybe 20 dogs. One dog has only 2 legs, and about 4 have three legs. Just a few months ago, Sylvia rescued a female dog whose entire back half had been crushed by a car. After nurturing it and vaccinating it, the dog gave birth to three healthy and adorable puppies, who are a delight. But, her love for animals extends beyond dogs and cats. I would say there are a good 20 horses at the farm, all of which are happy and healthy. Part of my work as a volunteer will be to find practical uses for the Skyrian horses that live here, because, as Mrs. Steen said, “No one wants an animal that cannot be used in some way.” Already, Mrs. Steen has sold Skyrian horses to places in Edinburg, Ireland, and Skyros in Greece, where new organizations are being set up to breed them and use them for introductory riding lessons.

As if dogs, cats, and horses were not enough, Sylvia also collects a wide array of birds and a few other mammals, which I was not aware of until last night and this morning. As I stood speaking to Sylvia before bed, I heard a husky sound that sounded like snoring. I asked her if there was a person sleeping nearby with a serious snoring problem and she said, “Oh, no. I forgot to tell you this, I keep about 4 barn owls in the living room, and that is the sound they make.” Barn owls? The line is not drawn there. On the front porch, there is a raven-type bird, throughout the house are canaries and finches, by the barn are hens, roosters, and ducks, and behind the house is a heron that she rescued only last week.

As anyone could imagine, there are many interesting smells that fill the air around this house and within the house, which is over 200 years old. As I sit here writing now, I can smell the aroma of cooked cabbage, litter boxes, and lemon trees. I also hear 10 dogs barking, roosters crowing, horses whinnying and a blender running in the kitchen. The house itself is in a state of ruin, of greater glories gone by. Windows will not shut, doors will not close, the house moans at night under the weight of years and years of age. But it does not lack in charm, and I’m sure I will discover even more of its personality in my stay here.

The land on which the house is situated has belonged to Sylvia’s family for over 50 years, and she has kept it preserved, trying to touch as little of it as possible, because she sees the virtue in letting some of the planet earth remain unexplored. The estate itself is slightly reminiscent of “The Secret Garden” in the way that man-made items are mixed and overgrown with natural items, giving me a sense of child-like wonder about what lies underneath an ivy-covered column or what the rusty spickets and mysterious frames of structures were used for in their prime. Like the rich history of the city that I perceived in Turkey, the rich history of the land is an ever-present enigma here. Just outside my window is a fichus tree that Sylvia tells me is over 1000 years old, and a few steps down the driveway reveal the only eucalyptus tree in Greece (pictured below), which is over 700 years old.

Overall, I feel out-of-my-element here because of the smells, the sounds, and the people. When I arrived last night, I felt extremely tired and homesick, and when I went to bed in my 6 foot by 6 foot room that may or may not have a flea problem, I was feeling pretty low. However, upon waking and seeing some of the glories of the place, I’m sure I will get used to it in time, and I truly look forward to my stay here for the sake of learning about the organization and learning how to serve it to the best of my ability.