Living Abroad

You will probably find my entries fewer and farther between. I'm down to the nitty gritty daily academic life now. I like my classes so far. Two more to go. I hope I like them as well. I have to wonder about a Byzantine history class meeting at the McDonald's in Sygtama Square though. I'm sure there is a site of significance nearby. I haven't done my research.

Speaking of Sygtama Square, I walked there last night. By myself. It was a wonderful walk the light and cooling rain. I stopped in Sygtama and ordered a frappe at Everest. Walking away I was approached by a Greek gentleman who was insistent on teaching me Greek, Italian, Japanese, and any other language he could speak. We chatted for a while. He gave me his phone number. I know more about Angelo than I know about anyone in Greece at the moment; not that I asked, he just told. I told him I was married. Happily married. He just wants to talk he says. I somehow doubt that. Or us Americans are suspicious of everyone's motives. My husband joked that I now have a Greek paramour. I love my teddy bear of a husband. I miss him. I wish he were here. Walking in the Athens rain with him would make my life complete.

I’m back from Tzia/Kea. The island has two names. Pick one and it will be correct. I mostly saw Kea used on the island though. It was a beautiful place to spend the weekend, although a bit too hot for my comfort. I survived with lots of water. I was short on the sunscreen though and my neck got terrible sunburn. But let’s concentrate on what was good! Kea is a small island about an hours ferry ride from Lavrio, which is an hour-long bus ride from Athens. Thank goodness the bus was air-conditioned and there was a good breeze on the ferry. Of course little did I know Kea’s heat would be brutal! The ferry ride was rather cool though!

View leaving Lavrio

Coming up on Kea

We arrived on Kea around 5:30. The port town is really neat. A few shops, a church, cafes. Just a nice little town.

Karissia port

We were assigned rooms in several different hotels and then everyone scattered for the evening until the beach party that had been arranged for us at a beach bar. Everyone was pretty excited about the beach party. Me? It was ok, but not the highlight of my trip by any means. I did swim in the Mediterranean for the first time though. That was awesome and amazing and I would have done so again if someone did not steal my towel. A small group of us left the party around midnight but I’m sure it went on much longer into the night. I was tired and wanted to be refreshed for the walking I knew we would do the next day.

Saturday morning I had the pleasure of my husband Tim being my wake up call. I think I sounded rather groggy. I hope he doesn't think I was not excited to hear from him. That was the first time I truly felt the overwhelming feeling of being homesick. I think if someone would have offered me a ticket home Saturday morning I may very well have considered it. It took me a while to shake the homesick feeling. I think being in large groups (and we have a very large group) doesn’t help me. In fact, I found that my homesick feeling finally subsided only when the large group broke down into much smaller groups.

After breakfast we took the bus to the village of Ioulida. Ioulida is one of those picture perfect quaint hillside villages comprised of whitewashed buildings and colorful shutters.

View of Loulida from the footpath

Getting a decent photo was difficult, however, because we have such a large group. Yet the walk was nice (and hot) and we ended up at what is considered a pretty old square far from the village. Water is available from a tap there and we all filled our bottles. Yes, we were assured it was drinkable. So far I have felt no ill effects. A local came up the footpath to give his donkey water. This is what I love to see! It's the real culture.

After a nice rest in the shade of a large tree (a tree that I tried to climb with Ryan but was unsuccessful. Ryan is determind I am going to climb a tree in Greece though), we headed back down so we could see the lion that had been carved into the bedrock. Again, good pictures were tough to come by because we had such a large group. The story behind the lion is pretty ambiguous. Nobody is sure when it was carved but it is believed to be from ancient times.

Back in the village we explored the exhibits at the archeological museum. I enjoyed those from the classical period best. All the artifacts had been excavated from Kea. We spent about 45 minutes at the museum and then everyone rushed to get the bus, so about ten of us decided to stay behind and eat lunch at one of the cafes. A good choice. We were in the shade and the breeze was welcome. It was a wonderful lunch! We ordered a local dish of fava beans, garlic, and olive oil to share. All I can say is it took me back to Turkiye and lentil soup! Delicious! I finally had a true Greek salad.

The best.

Louis Pappas watch out. You can’t touch this.

The feta cheese here is amazing as are the olive oil, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We tried to order some of the local white cheese, ksino, but they never brought it and thankfully we weren’t charged. Several cats kept us company while we dined. I feel so sad for cats begging the way they do. I want to take them all with me.

After our leisurely lunch we headed toward the bus stop. We waited. And waited. And waited. We eventually learned that one of the buses had broken down so they were running every two hours instead of one. It finally came and we hopped on and made our way down to Voukari and Ozias. Only three of us decided to go as far as Ozias. The adventurers we were. We ended up walking away from Ozias on a quest to find some caves. The caves never appeared but we did get some amazing views.

We also got hot, dehydrated, and I got blisters. Not sure if I want to even mention the garbage dump. I came to Greece to enjoy the beautiful sites, the ancient sites, the food, and the water, not the local landfill. But after deciding to take a dirt road that ran the coast back (my idea and I’m sure many of you aren’t surprised if you know me) we discovered that it ran right through the landfill.

So that’s what that sign meant? I guess I should learn more Greek. No matter, the views outside the landfill were gorgeous and we all had a good laugh.

We made it back to Voukari just in time for the sunset over the water and then grabbed some dinner at a café.

Dinner was followed by some wading at the beach and eventually back to the hotel to shower and get some sleep. My feet were hurting! A dip in the cool Mediterranean was just the ticket!

This morning we met for breakfast and then, probably against my better judgment, made the trek to the Karissia lighthouse.

I can’t help it; I’m a lighthouse fanatic. It was a good 45-minute walk I’m sure. And it was hot. Brutally hot. I could have made tea in my water by the time I was finished. The view was almost worth it.

My feet disagree. I was glad to get back to the hotel and just sit, talk, drink water, and rest. I was even happier to board the ferry and feel the sea breeze.

That says Marmari Express. Yes, I can read it. Even in Greek.

Being back at the apartment is welcome after a long hot weekend in the hot island sun. A cold shower was the best ending to the weekend. Now I have to gear myself up to start classes this week. I’m thinking “Classes? What did I get myself into?”

First things first. I am free of TB. I can stay in Greece. That is a good thing.

We will hop on a bus this afternoon, then take a boat to the Island of Tzia (Kea) this weekend and won't be back until Sunday. Yes I'll take my Dramamine. I've decided to leave my computer behind so there will be no regular updates. I imagine once classes start my updates will not come as often either. Hopefully I'll have a good collection of photos when I return. What better weekend could you ask for than to spend it on a Greek island?

Enjoy your weekend!

I promised some photos. These are not absolutely, stunningly beautiful photos. These are my daily life photos. Be assured I am not basking on beautiful Mediterranean beaches on a daily basis. I am here to learn both about the culture, the language, and the history. Let’s start with the daily culture. The Greek people are very community oriented. People are always on the street chatting, shopping, or drinking coffee. It seems like nobody, not even the children are wasting their days away watching television or playing video games. It is refreshing.

The neighborhood I live in is a working to middle class neighborhood. There are people of all ages here. I’m guessing a school must be just over on the other block since I can hear children playing loudly as I sit here. I didn’t expect to see as many cars as I do. The streets are full. I’m guessing each family only has one car since street parking is the only option. What I’m pleased to see, although not surprised, is a large number of these:

The Smart Car.

It’s tiny. I suspect most Americans would turn their noses up at the minuteness of it. They would feel unsafe. I’ve been here for almost 5 days, in a very busy part of the city and I’ve not seen or heard one accident. I’ve also not seen one oversized SUV. I think Americans could learn a lot from the Europeans to be honest. In addition to Smart cars there are a lot of motorcycles and scooters. Water heaters are turned on only when needed. People walk when they can. There is no AC in most living spaces and even in many stores. People shop locally. Neighborhoods seem like true communities. I like that.

Ok, admittedly the apartment living is something to get use to. The bathroom and kitchen are small.

The bedrooms are a good size though and once the nights cool off a bit more I think I will sleep better.

At least there is a balcony door. It's either a blessing or a curse depending on how you look at it. It lets in a wonderful breeze and daylight. With that breeze comes noise and the streetlight at night.

A window too!

Storage is not so great, but I’m only here for 3 months. There are no screens on the windows, something we would never dream of in the US because of insects. I’ve so far only seen one mosquito and very few flies. Thankfully the pigeons have not tried to come in.

What I love best so far is the yogurt I mentioned. I think I could live in it the rest of my life.

Lastly, I just had to post this photo. Only in Europe would you find someone playing accordion music at McDonalds.

I'm not sure what is going on with me.

I've been in Athens for a full 4 days now and I have hardly taken a photo. I think it could be because I realize I have so much time here. It seems there is plenty of time for photos. But what if I missed that one photographic opportunity? Actually, I don't think I have missed the photographic opportunity but I have missed several. Like the dog jumping into the fountain today, the hospital we visited for our TB tests, a few skinny cats I've seen walking the streets, and numerous other insignificant things I would probably have loved to document.

Oh well, I can't win them all. Trying to adjust to a new environment has been enough. Lugging my camera around the streets of Athens would have just made me even more tired I'd guess.

Don't fret. Photos will come. You know me.

Now, speaking of that hospital, that was quite interesting. I felt as if I was being inducted into the military. Hurry up and wait. Wait some more. Now wait some more. In all it took about 2 hours just to get a TB test and a chest x-ray. The TB test wasn't bad. I felt nothing. The doctor told me to not be afraid. I wasn't. Luckily I got a woman technician for my chest x-ray. "You have baby?" she said as she patted my belly. "No baby," I said. So she proceeded. I wonder if she asked everyone that or if I just looked pregnant with my little pudge! Once we were finished with the hospital business we took the trolley back to the neighborhood. I stopped at a little market just down from my apartment and bought tomatoes and feta. Some of the best tomatoes and feta I have ever had. Did I say some? No, the best feta I have ever had. I'm sure even better can be found here!

(Speaking of the best of food, the yogurt is the most amazing stuff I have ever had. I have been having it each morning with some apricot jam. So creamy. So smooth. It's almost like dessert!)

Following a mandatory contract meeting two other students and I took a the trolley to a plaza we found yesterday and walked around checking out shops, people watching, and dog watching. We finally made our way to Syntagma square and then on to the National Gardens. Walking through the National Gardens was a nice break from the busy streets of Athens. An uphill walk to our apartments brought me home just in time to change shoes, grab my notebook and head to Greek language classes. I'm feeling a bit frustrated that I am not picking up the Greek as well as I'd like. On a positive note, several of us went to dinner tonight and managed to read several things on the menu as well as order our dinner in Greek. Now that's progress! It was a nice relaxing evening. Sitting in the sidewalk cafe watching people go by and just chatting. One important lesson we did learn - two appetizers and a 50cm pizza is too much for 6 people. Delicious though it was we couldn't finish the pizza. It was a bargain at 38 euros for 6 of us to eat and get full!

It is a beautiful night in Athens. Many more should follow.