In August 2015 Katerina Stefatos and
Dimitris Papadopoulos spent a few weeks
(August 4-20) on the Greek island of
Lesvos in what was initially planned as a
trip to visit family and friends. Their trip
quickly morphed into an impromptu
ethnographic fieldwork at the three main
refugee camps in Mytilini, the island’s
major town. This paper is based on some
first ethnographic notes from the field
drawing on interviews and discussions
with refugees, locals, and volunteers at
these camps in an attempt to unfold the
refugees’ tumultuous and often deadly
journey to an imagined Europe but also
to explore the political tensions and
contestations within the local community
against the background of a parallel
Greek financial and socio-political crisis.
Chloe Howe Haralambous spent her
summer (June to August) on Lesvos,
primarily in the north-east part of the
island (at Kleió, Tsónia, Sykaminiá,
Mólyvos), working closely with refugees,
volunteers, NGOs, and helping organizing
makeshift dwellings for the refugees or
coordinating their transfer to medical
centers and to the port of Mytilini. The
text has been updated based on recent
developments on the island and our
ongoing personal communication with
some of the refugees, volunteers and
locals.