Hillwalking & Homecoming in the Highlands w/ Christos Galanis
On this episode, my guest is Christos Galanis, a friend and scholar who recently completed his PhD in Cultural Geography from The University of Edinburgh where his research centered on themes of displacement and memorial walking practices in the Highlands of Scotland. A child of Greek political refugees on both sides of his family, Christos' work looks at ways in which ceremony and ritual might afford us the capacity to integrate disconnection from place and ancestry. Further, his research into pre-modern Gaelic Highland culture reveals animistic relationship with mountains which disrupt easy definitions of colonialism and indigeneity.
Show Notes
Summoning and Summiting a Doctorate
The British Empire & Everest
The Three Roots of Freedom
Hillwalkers and Homecoming
The Consequences of Staying and Leaving
The Romans Make a Desert and Call it Peace
Farming Emptiness
Landscapes as Mediums
Ritualized Acts of Walking
Homework
Transcript
The transcript is available via Chris's Substack page. You can sign up for free and read along here: https://chrischristou.substack.com/