The 2026 Cyclades and Crete CIG Summer School has officially begun.

From May 10th to May 29th, students are travelling across Athens, the Cycladic islands, and Crete to study Greek history from the Bronze Age to the present day. This year also marks the first time the program has brought together both Francophone and Anglophone students within the same Summer School.

The first week was spent in Athens, where students attended classes at the Canadian Institute in Greece according to their language of instruction. Lectures focused on archaeology, ancient history, religion, and material culture, providing the historical background needed before heading into the field.

Outside the classroom, the group explored some of the city’s most important museums and archaeological sites, including the National Archaeological Museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Benaki Museum, the Acropolis, and the Athenian Agora. Seeing these objects and monuments in person gave students the opportunity to connect lecture material with the physical remains of the ancient world and sparked further discussion about daily life, trade, religion, and politics in antiquity.

After Athens, the group departed for the Cyclades. For many students, it was their first time travelling by ferry through the Aegean. The first stop was Paros, where the group visited the Archaeological Museum, the village of Lefkes, and the port town of Naoussa while exploring the island’s history and landscape.

From Naoussa, students travelled to Delos, the sanctuary traditionally associated with the birth of Apollo and Artemis. Walking through the site allowed the group to examine the remains of one of the most important religious and commercial centres of the ancient Aegean. A short stop in Mykonos also provided the opportunity to discuss the famous Dionysus mosaic from the House of Dionysus on Delos and the role of mythological imagery within domestic spaces.

As the journey continues through the Aegean, students now move toward another landscape shaped as much by natural forces as by human history.