Adventures, Aegina, ATV's, and Ancient Ruins

Sorry it's been a while since I last updated this but it's been a busy week and a half. So bear with me it's going to be a long posting...

Last time I posted an update was two Thursdays ago (2/21) so I will start with the adventure that took place that evening and go from there.

After the typical Thursday classes the group decided to go out Thursday night and celebrate the beginning of our usual long weekend. One of the girls, who is into techno-club-house music knew about this club and really wanted to go hear a specific DJ. We found the street name and knew the area that the club was in so we all decided to go with her. We went to Liquid first to see our favorite bartender, Demetri, then we headed off in search of Club Motel.

Once we had walked for a while we started to get the feeling that we were lost, or at least getting there. We had left the usual area of the clubs and bars near us, Psiri, and things were starting to look a little less familiar. We kept walking and asked a couple of people along the way and they were pointing us in the direction we were going so we thought we had everything under control. As things started to get a little more "sketchy" we suddenly realized that we were in/around Omonia. This isn't the best place to be in Athens, especially at night. However when we realized where we were we looked down the street and saw the reason that they tell us not to go to Omonia. On the corner in front of us were a good handful of prostitutes. With a group of 20 or so people we started walking down the street and because it's their job they approached us and tried to get our business. We walked quickly through them and one of the guys in the front of the group turned back and started yelling "Oxi! Oxi! Oxi!" (no! no! no!) at them and we made it through without any harm. Looking back on it we can't help but laugh and realize it's times like these that are the fun stories to tell. A little scary while you're in the situation but quite amusing after the fact.

To put this story into perspective I will try and outline the group for you. We were about 20 or so people like I mentioned earlier. But we were all in little groups of 3 or 4, some of us further behind than others. When we had been at Liquid we found the "balloon man," literally a man that walks up and down the street with big aluminum balloons in all different shapes, sizes, and characters. We ended up with a Minnie Mouse balloon, so while we are walking through the hookers, Diego (one of the guys) is walking through the crowd with a Minnie Mouse balloon tied to his wrist. Quite an entertaining site to turn around and see that. No worries though we all survived and now we can all say that we lived through a night in Omonia, however I would not advise anyone to go through there at night, we know that we will never do it again.

Ok so after we got through Omonia we realized that we went to where the original Club Motel was. Turns out it had moved and no one that we had asked for directions realized this. So after a good 20 minutes of walking we ended up nowhere. We ran into some Greeks who spoke very good English, and actually lived in the States for a while. They knew where Motel was so they offered to take us. So we start off again on our adventure to Motel and after walking for what seemed like miles over a cobblestone street we started to recognize things and places. When we finally got to Gazi (the area where Motel is located) we looked around and almost gave up on finding it, but after a few more blocks we finally ended up in front of the club.

However, to our dismay it was a 20 euro cover charge ($30 - and that was the discounted price). We stood outside and debated for a while then half of us just decided to go home because we didn't feel that it would be worth it, also some of the group was leaving at 5 am to go skiing in the morning and by this point it was already close to 2 am. On the way home we found a gelato place still open (gotta love finding a place open at 2 am with ice cream, it's kind of like CookOut in Athens) and so in an attempt to up for the failed night we got gelato and found a cab back home. The ones that stayed said that Motel was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience but I think that personally the trip there was its own once-in-a-lifetime experience.

After a long night of walking we woke up Friday and laughed some more about our adventure the night before and recapped some of the highlights, especially as we looked up at our kitchen ceiling and noticed Minnie Mouse looking over us. She is still there today, although she has deflated quite a bit.

We did a little shopping on Friday and braved the crowds because it was nearing the last days of sale season here in Greece. They only have sales about once a year here and we happened to be here for the best parts of the sales - lucky us! I'm trying to break out of my J.Crew prep look and blend into the European fashions - it isn't really working out but I did manage to find a few things I liked well enough. And they were all on sale so that's always a good thing!

Friday night we laid low and stayed in, we needed to relax after the previous night, and prepare for our day trip to Aegina, the island closest to Athens, the next day.

Bright and early Saturday morning (6:30 am to be exact, yes we do get up early sometimes) we got up and ready and made it to Pireaus (the port of Athens) by 8:45. We got to the Hellenic Seaways building and walked inside to buy our tickets for the ferry. When the woman asked where we wanted to go one of the girls, Courtney, responded "We want to go to Pireaus!" After a few seconds and she realized what she was saying and corrected herself. The rest of us in the group cut her some slack because it was so early, but we still found it pretty amusing. The woman directed us to the correct gate and informed us that it was easier to purchase our tickets right in front of the ferries.

We found the ticket counter for Aegina and after explaining to the woman that our school was "in Athens" and not in the United States she gave us the student rate and 6 euros later we were on a ferry headed to Aegina. We thought we could tough out the upper deck of the ferry but once we started to move we realized it was colder than we thought, so we headed downstairs to have some caffeine in the form of a frappe. Nothing than Greek ferry boats that have completely stocked bars and coffee shops right on deck. And couches to lay on too. After coffee and naps we went onto the deck of the ferry to take pictures of the island as we approached the dock.

Aegina is famous for pistachios and is one of the largest producers of pistachios in Greece. So immediately as you get off the ferry you are bombarded with kiosks with nothing but pistachios. After we each bought a bag (or two), Tim (one of the guys) said he found a place where we could rent scooters and go around the island on them. I was a little apprehensive about this because I know how crazy Greek people drive and I wasn't so sure that we would be safe on scooters, especially since we would be sharing the road with Greeks driving. When we found the store where we could rent them from we asked the guy, a young typical Greek guy who spoke decent English, about renting scooters his reply was, "Don't do it for your money and your life." After this warning we reconsidered our original plans and then he suggested ATV's. We all agreed that those sounded safer. We had 11 people so two per ATV and then one guy knew how to drive a scooter so he got a scooter by himself. We snapped on our helmets and set off to explore the island. We went to get gas and the gas attendant spoke Spanish to us, also he was dressed in a blue and red shirt and blue overalls so we deemed him Mario for the rest of the trip. We filled up and hit the road.

First we stopped at Agios Nektarios, the famous monastery on the island. We went into the main sanctuary and Rena (the other Greek girl) and I lit candles and explained some of the Orthodox basics to the rest of the group. Then we climbed the stairs up to the monastery and went to see the relics of St. Nektarios. We continued to explain to the group about St. Nektarios and about the "agiasmo" (holy water) that we got from the monastery. It was truly one of the most beautiful and picturesque sites I have ever seen.

After the monastery we got onto our ATV's and tried to set off on the open road again, but Diego & Courtney's ATV wouldn't start. They had one that wasn't electric so it took a lot more than just turning a key to start it. After several failed attempts we called the guy who rented them to us but as soon as we called him it started so we hung up the phone and took off.

We drove around the island and when we all realized we were starving we drove along the north coast of the island and headed towards Agia Marina, one of the beach towns on the island. We got into the main area of the town and everything was deserted. It is still off-season on most of the islands so a lot of places were closed or under repair. We found a restaurant that had a beautiful view of the beach and the Sarconic gulf so some of us sat down and enjoyed a delicious meal and a couple of glasses of white wine to go with the beachy atmosphere. It was wonderful, except for the tzatiki, which was probably the worst we have had since we have been it, it was pretty much pure garlic. But the calamari definitely made up for the tzatiki and with our stomachs full we set off for the Temple of Aphaia.

The Temple of Aphaia is the temple on the island that is dedicated to Zeus' daughter. We got in for free with our student ID cards, they have really saved us some money, and started exploring. It is on top of the island so we had a great view of the island and of Athens from across the water. We spent a good bit of time taking pictures and reading the various plaques about the Temple. We met a girl that is also studying in Athens and who was visiting a few of the islands with her grandparents who came to visit her.

After the Temple we started driving trying to find another temple and the archaeological site surrounding it. However we ended up getting lost and went down a one way street that took us into some people's driveway. All of a sudden we heard this loud noise and realized that this Greek kid on his moped was trying to show off so he came tearing through the driveway (which was all gravel) and tried to do a doughnut but fell over. We all looked at each other and then as he drove off we died laughing. It was so random, and then we continued to see him around the island, I guess he was following us around.

We finally found the temple, well it was one column standing upright, but the site was closed. We found a man who was building wooden boats so we stopped and watched him for a while then decided to return the ATV's and walk around the area next to the port for the remainder of our time. We braved the local traffic in the center of the city and got the ATV's back to the owner. Then we walked around to see one of the local churches right on the water then Leah, Courtney, and I sat at a coffee shop, Yes! Cafe, that was in one of our tour books, while the rest of the group went to watch the sunset from the port. We sat outside and got some hot Nescafe (Greek instant coffee - not nearly as good as what we drink at home but it does the trick) and watched the sunset from the cafe. We got to talking and all of a sudden we looked up to where the ferry boat had been and realized it wasn't there anymore. We still had about 25 minutes until we were supposed to leave but we started to get a little nervous. Then another ferry docked and we realized that we hadn't been left on the island after all.

We met up with the rest of the group and boarded the ferry. While we were on the ferry we saw this group of kids playing with each other. There were two brothers playing with two sisters, so Rena and I started throwing their stuffed animal with them. We spoke some Greek to them and then the boy's mom started talking to us and asking where we were from. When she realized that we were Greek Americans she got excited and even gave us her phone number and told us to call her so that we could come to her house and have dinner one night and even help the boys with their English lessons. We haven't been in touch yet but maybe sometime in the next couple of weeks. We got back home and all watched a movie and passed out early. Sunday we got up and the rest of the apartment went to the Acropolis. Courtney & Tim had a friend visiting from London all weekend so they wanted to take her up to see the Acropolis. I hung around and cleaned and did laundry and enjoyed the peace and quiet. We went to dinner together in Thissio, another area nearby with a lot of outdoor restaurants that all have great views of the Acropolis. We tried to attempt to eat outside but we couldn't stand the chilly weather so we moved inside. We had a typical Greek meal complete with lamb, pastichio, mousaka, and more.

After dinner we went to a nearby Hookah Bar and introduced several group members to hookah. We had about 20 people and we all split 4 different flavors (peach, mint, strawberry, and apple). It was a lot of fun and a very relaxing way to end a busy weekend.

Last week was pretty typical so instead of boring you with day to day descriptions I thought I'd give you highlights about life in Athens. The main question I have been hounded with is what are we eating? We actually have been eating very well and we pretty much have made dinner every night the past couple of weeks. The weekends we splurge a little but during the week we are pretty good about staying in. There is a small grocery store, Bazaar, that is nearby so we go there several times a week. It is very common to go to the store every day or every other day here. Also we have figured out the places to go to get specific things. We don't buy our fruits and vegetables at Bazaar because they are much cheaper and fresher at the little markets all around us. But certain ones have better quality things, so one place we go for fruit another place we go for spinach and greens and then we go to another place for eggs. It is kind of a pain but once you get used to it you realize that you really don't over buy things. Back home you could go to the grocery store and spend way too much money but here you only buy the things you need for a couple of days. It's wonderful because everything is so fresh. There is an open air market in Omonia (it's not so bad during the day) that has everything, meat, fish, fruits, veggies, etc. for very cheap. It is about a 20 minute walk so I haven't made it over there but hopefully this week I'll venture out there.

Sometimes though when we aren't in the mood to cook we venture into Plaka (the area of Athens we are in) and get a gyro or souvlaki from one of the stands. They are only about 1.70 euros which is about $3, so they are perfect to grab on the run. We have also discovered all the gelato places around us as well. Gelato is actually more expensive than gyro's but they are a pretty good combination for dinner.

As far as laundry goes we only have a washing machine so the drying is left up to the drying racks that we have outside. However for the girls out there that know how much we like our jeans to shrink in the dryer it has been an obstacle. Last week I decided to try out the dry cleaners that also functions as a laundry-mat and it was definitely worth having my jeans fit. I also got my coat dry cleaned and it wasn't that expensive. They also give us a nice discount since we are with the school and it is right down the road from the school. It is definitely a nice place to have close by.

As far as other everyday living things it isn't really that different. We figured out how to make the movable shower head stay in the holder so our showers are normal now. We had to figure out what the conversion was from Fahrenheit to Celsius for the oven temperature and for the heat as well. It wasn't too bad going from having my own room and bathroom to sharing a room with two people and a bathroom with 3. It is like being at camp, or back to living in a dorm all over again. Most of the girls here still live in on campus housing so they are still used to roommates and shared bathrooms. We had to adjust to not throwing toilet paper down the toilet and not having a dishwasher. But everything is going really smooth in the living department.

On Wednesday (2/27) we decided to check out the roof of the school since we aren't allowed on the roof of our building. We got frappe's to-go from Coffee Break (we have deemed this our new hang out and for those Saved-By-The-Bell fans out there we call it our "Max") and snuck them in the building past the security guard. When we got up to the roof we looked up and right there in front of us is the Acropolis, it still amazes me that everyday I look up and see it in front of me. It is crazy to think that something so old and historic still stands and I have the privilege of witnessing it in my daily life. After being so sneaky and using a paper bag that Dina (our program director) gave us (she is pretty cool for helping us break the rules) we get up to the roof and the wind blows over one of the frappes. So not only are we up there with drinks we even managed to spill them within 2 minutes of being up there. Oh well a few trips to the bathrooms solved that problem and we relaxed for a couple of hours taking in the view.

Thursday (2/28) we went to classes as usual but that night in particular we had something exciting to look forward to. Our university was having a party. Since this isn't a common thing in the states I will explain it to you as it was explained to me. The universities in Greece are mainly commuter institutions, meaning there are no dorms and the students travel from great distances (up to over an hour) to get to school. Therefore they don't have time to socialize with each other like we do in the states from dorm room to dorm room or in dining halls, etc.

Instead the school arranges an "event" with a local club and lets them know that the school is planning on having people show up. The club arranges tables and gives the students a reduced cover charge and this way the students all socialize together.

My last class goes until 9 pm on Thursday nights so after class I went with a few of the students in my class to Coffee Break to have a beer after class. It is so crazy to walk to the bar/coffee shop after class and order a beer without any issues. I sat with a few of the guys who are on the student council that originally took us on one of our walking tours our first couple of days. We chatted about the differences between Greece and the States and some other various topics.

Then I came home to get ready for the big party. We had the party at a club in Psiri (our favorite hot spot) called Salon de Oro. It was decorated pretty fancy and unique so we really enjoyed the atmosphere. There were also pictures of Southern Comfort bottles everywhere, and they had about 100 bottles of it in glass panes under the bar. Interesting to see So.Co. in Greece but kind of made me feel at home. We had a great time and ended up staying out until 4:30 am or so.

Problem with staying out this late (still early for the Greeks - all the American students left way before the Greeks even thought about leaving) was that we had to be on a bus to go on our first excursion at 8 am. So after the walk home and a quick packing of the bag I got to bed and woke up about an hour later. We made it to the bus in time, looking lovely I might add. However the boys weren't awake in time so Owen had to go and wake them up and they got onto the bus looking pretty rough.

We had about an 1 1/2 hour ride before we got to our first stop so the bus was pretty silent for the first leg of the trip. Our first stop was the Isthmus in Corinth. I had already seen this sight (along with several other places on our itinerary) but took a few new pictures for photo albums and scrapbooks.

We got back on the bus, or "our home for the next 3 days" as we called it and drove a short distance to see the ruins at Ancient Corinth. I had never been here so it was pretty interesting to see the remains of an ancient civilization but it is quite hard to pay attention to a tour guide on 1 1/2 hours of sleep.

We got back onto our mobile home and drove towards the Peloponese (the western peninsula of Greece). We stopped at the new cable bridge and took pictures and sat along the water. We stopped in Patras and had lunch, believe it or not it was the same cafe where I stopped the last time I was in Greece with Ionian Village. It is right in front of St. Andrew's church in Patras. So I went inside and was pleasantly surprised to see that the scafolding that once was there had been removed and the dome of the church was finished. After a quick lunch and quick look around the church we got back on the bus and headed towards Olympia.

We arrived at our hotel Olympion Asty and found a small futball (soccer) field outside of the rooms. We put our stuff down into our rooms and some of us took a walk down the mountain a little ways while some of the U-Indy boys (they all play soccer for the University of Indianapolis home campus back in IN) picked up a game of soccer with the local Greek boys. While they were playing the rest of us stood on the sidelines and watched and were especially amused by one of the kids who was wearing a soccer player named "Henry's" jersey. He wasn't very good but was saying the funniest things. He told one of the guys that he doesn't drink water when he plays he only smokes cigarettes. He couldn't be more than 16 so this was quite entertaining for us to witness. He also invited us to his house, his exact words, "you, me, my house, big party, Greek music." We never made it to his house but instead we ate dinner at the hotel then watched The Departed in our hotel room, Saturday was another early wake up call.

Bright and early Saturday morning we got up and ate and headed towards Ancient Olympia. I had already been here as well so it was hard for me to pay attention once again to the tour guide who was very informative but told us a few too many details. Like the history of the parking lot where our bus would be parked - yes this is not an exaggeration she did this at the Theatre we saw on Sunday. We walked around Olympia and when we got to the track, Tim struck up a conversation with a couple of Chinese people and he comes running up the track telling us that they have the 2008 Olympic Torch with them.

Turns out that they were a camera crew with a Beijing TV station and they were filming the "road to the Olympic torch." The torch will be lit in Olympia on March 24th and begin its trek to Beijing. They told us that we could hold the torch so we all gathered around and had a photo shoot with the torch. Then they recorded us greeting the Beijing TV viewers, we even learned a new Chinese phrase, "Ni hao Beijing" (Hello Beijing). So who knows maybe when you are watching coverage of the games this summer you might see a group of Americans waving like idiots at the camera.

After Olympia we had lunch at a local restaurant. We were instructed to be at the bus at 1:30 by 2:00 the people at the table started looking at their watches and I had to explain to them that we were on Greek time so this was typical. By 2:45 we were on the buses and ready to go. We drove almost 4 hours to Tolo a seaside town in the Peloponese and arrived at our hotel, John & George Hotel, around 6 pm.

We ate dinner then walked around the town and went out to the beach and stood on the dock for a while. We headed back to the hotel and sat around the pool, a couple of the U-Indy boys actually braved the freezing water and unfiltered pool and jump in. The rest of us sat back and enjoyed our drinks that the bartender made especially for us.

The next morning we got up bright and early again and made our way to the Theatre at Epivadros. The theatre was built with perfect accoustics. We tested it when Clara and a couple of other girls sang while we all stood around the upper rows of the Theater. Amazingly without any microphones or speakers we could hear her perfectly. Then like typical American tourists we defaced the historical monument by singing the theme song to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

We drove a little while to Nafplio, another seaside town, to stop for coffee and pictures. Afterwards we headed towards Mycenae and saw one of the oldest civilizations. It was breathtaking on top of the hill and provided for beautiful pictures.

We loaded the bus after a delicious lunch and finally arrived back at "home" that evening. As we were walking past all the tourist agencies near our apartments one of the men shouted, "Welcome to paradise," since we all looked like "tourists" with our bags and bookbags he just assumed we were here to visit. However Jaclyn corrected him by saying, "we live here."

As we settled back into our apartments we all fell back into our normal routines. Today (Monday 3/3 - and Reece's Birthday!!) we laid out on the roof of the school and got a little sun, it was 75 degrees outside. Had lunch at Coffee Break did a little grocery shopping and made dinner. Typical evening in our apartment. We also booked our hostel in Prague (we leave a week from Wednesday) and looked into our upcoming trip to Italy. To complete the night we went to our favorite gelato place and had a little treat.

Sorry for the novel but like I said the past couple of weeks have been busy. Hope all is well back home. I miss and love you all!! Until next time...

Me agapi (with love),
Yianna