Tuesday, September 30, 2003
I hate Thucydides.
With that said.....
I'm doing ok, just tired. We got back from Crete on Saturday morning at 6:30 am, I got to my room at 8am and proceeded to sleep the weekend away....Crete was wonderful, I'll try to give you a blow by blow account....
Tuesday: we arrived in Heraklion, Crete about 7am. No rest for the wicked, uh, weary, so it was drop your bags, get on the bus and go to Knossos (we couldn't even check in our rooms - WHO'S GOT THE COFFEE????)... Knossos was like a mad house, so many tourists, i've never ever seen so many old guys in shorts, kneesocks and sunhats in my life - LOL. I tell ya, live in a tourist town long enough, and they couldn't be anymore obvious if they had a sign around thier neck that said "I am a tourist" - LOL. Anyway, I thought Knossos was a bit disappointing, a lot of places were closed off for reconstruction (which I don't think I necessarily agree with...I mean the stuff they already reconstructed looks so fake...I think it overshadows the actual 'ruins')...Plus, we only had about 3.5 hours at the site, which is not nearly enough time to see everything there nevermind try to absorb and appreciate the site...As one of the girls here said, it will give me an excuse to go back someday...Oh yeah, did I mention that the sun was BLAZING overhead??? It was hotter than the hinges of you-know-where, and no shade either....
Then we headed off to the national archaeological museum, where I saw a lot of amazing artifacts (of which I have tons of pics, which I will upload soon). Everything from frescoes, pottery, jewelry (they have this beautiful gold Minoan bee pendant, which I bought a copy of at a jewelry store, which is also in my pics..). But alas, there were tons of people there also, so we didn't get to really browse through all the artifacts....We then had some free time, where i then proceeded to take a shower, eat and crash ;)
Wed - we went to Malia, another palace site, which was thankfully nowhere near as crowded as Knossos...And nothing was reconstructed either, so you got to see a lot of remains in situ, which was nice...Then we went to the village of Archanes for lunch - where I had a yummy yummu gyro - these things are my new favorite food! Basically it's a grilled pita, stuffed with meat, onions, peppers, fried potatoes/french fries, and topped with tzaziki, which is a yogurt, cucumber and garlic topping...And they're cheap too! You can get them for as little as one and a half euro (which is like $1.50 !!).
We then went to the site of Phourni, which is basically an ancient Minoan cemetary...And it's at a perfect place too: on top of this giantic hill!!! It was real convienient, people walked up there, dropped dead from exhaustion, and were rolled right into the graves! LOL LOL I thought I was gonna die myself, I was puffing on my inhaler like a chain smoker - LOL. But once we got there we sat down and chilled for a bit before walking around the site. I saw my first Tholos tomb! It was very cool...Basically it is a stone tomb with a beehive roof (it'll be in the pics). And we got to go inside too...
Of course, then we had to go back downhill, where I was praying to God I wouldn't slip and go tumbling down the hill and take everyone with me - LOL....Then we took a bus to Chania and had some free time to walk around the city and get dinner/ do some shopping...
Thursday was my birthday (if you didn't get the subtle hint in my last post - LOL)...It actually kind of stunk, I was feeling a little down and missin my peeps...But in the morning we went to a monastery, which was beautiful...But the day got better in the afternoon cause I ditched the tour group and went off to the beach by myself! We were walking around the city and I was like "screw this, it's my birthday, i'm goin to the beach" - So I waited till I was the last person in the group and turned around and booked it toward the beach - LOL LOL LOL.. Bad Dawnie. But it was worth it, I mean a sure cure for the blues is some chocolate and some blue water (in that order!). I did get some bad news when I got back, they wouldn't let me hike the gorge because of my asthma, I was so mad!!! But they did say that I wasn't the only one who wasn't hiking the gorge, and that we could have the whole day Friday to ourselves to make up for it...
So, as everyone was getting up at the a.c. of dawn, i was sleeping ;p I got up Friday morning, met the rest of the CYA people that weren't hiking the gorge (which happened to be some people I knew and got along with, which was nice), so we all went to the beach for the day....Then we came back and got on the boat, which left at 9pm, and we got to Piraeus at 6am Saturday (where I proceeded to sleep the entire weekend away, except for Sat nite, but that's another story for another post!)...
I know I must be forgetting stuff, but I gotta run and do HW...I want to travel to Santorini this weekend, so I have to stay on top of my work...Will write again soon...
love,
Dawn
With that said.....
I'm doing ok, just tired. We got back from Crete on Saturday morning at 6:30 am, I got to my room at 8am and proceeded to sleep the weekend away....Crete was wonderful, I'll try to give you a blow by blow account....
Tuesday: we arrived in Heraklion, Crete about 7am. No rest for the wicked, uh, weary, so it was drop your bags, get on the bus and go to Knossos (we couldn't even check in our rooms - WHO'S GOT THE COFFEE????)... Knossos was like a mad house, so many tourists, i've never ever seen so many old guys in shorts, kneesocks and sunhats in my life - LOL. I tell ya, live in a tourist town long enough, and they couldn't be anymore obvious if they had a sign around thier neck that said "I am a tourist" - LOL. Anyway, I thought Knossos was a bit disappointing, a lot of places were closed off for reconstruction (which I don't think I necessarily agree with...I mean the stuff they already reconstructed looks so fake...I think it overshadows the actual 'ruins')...Plus, we only had about 3.5 hours at the site, which is not nearly enough time to see everything there nevermind try to absorb and appreciate the site...As one of the girls here said, it will give me an excuse to go back someday...Oh yeah, did I mention that the sun was BLAZING overhead??? It was hotter than the hinges of you-know-where, and no shade either....
Then we headed off to the national archaeological museum, where I saw a lot of amazing artifacts (of which I have tons of pics, which I will upload soon). Everything from frescoes, pottery, jewelry (they have this beautiful gold Minoan bee pendant, which I bought a copy of at a jewelry store, which is also in my pics..). But alas, there were tons of people there also, so we didn't get to really browse through all the artifacts....We then had some free time, where i then proceeded to take a shower, eat and crash ;)
Wed - we went to Malia, another palace site, which was thankfully nowhere near as crowded as Knossos...And nothing was reconstructed either, so you got to see a lot of remains in situ, which was nice...Then we went to the village of Archanes for lunch - where I had a yummy yummu gyro - these things are my new favorite food! Basically it's a grilled pita, stuffed with meat, onions, peppers, fried potatoes/french fries, and topped with tzaziki, which is a yogurt, cucumber and garlic topping...And they're cheap too! You can get them for as little as one and a half euro (which is like $1.50 !!).
We then went to the site of Phourni, which is basically an ancient Minoan cemetary...And it's at a perfect place too: on top of this giantic hill!!! It was real convienient, people walked up there, dropped dead from exhaustion, and were rolled right into the graves! LOL LOL I thought I was gonna die myself, I was puffing on my inhaler like a chain smoker - LOL. But once we got there we sat down and chilled for a bit before walking around the site. I saw my first Tholos tomb! It was very cool...Basically it is a stone tomb with a beehive roof (it'll be in the pics). And we got to go inside too...
Of course, then we had to go back downhill, where I was praying to God I wouldn't slip and go tumbling down the hill and take everyone with me - LOL....Then we took a bus to Chania and had some free time to walk around the city and get dinner/ do some shopping...
Thursday was my birthday (if you didn't get the subtle hint in my last post - LOL)...It actually kind of stunk, I was feeling a little down and missin my peeps...But in the morning we went to a monastery, which was beautiful...But the day got better in the afternoon cause I ditched the tour group and went off to the beach by myself! We were walking around the city and I was like "screw this, it's my birthday, i'm goin to the beach" - So I waited till I was the last person in the group and turned around and booked it toward the beach - LOL LOL LOL.. Bad Dawnie. But it was worth it, I mean a sure cure for the blues is some chocolate and some blue water (in that order!). I did get some bad news when I got back, they wouldn't let me hike the gorge because of my asthma, I was so mad!!! But they did say that I wasn't the only one who wasn't hiking the gorge, and that we could have the whole day Friday to ourselves to make up for it...
So, as everyone was getting up at the a.c. of dawn, i was sleeping ;p I got up Friday morning, met the rest of the CYA people that weren't hiking the gorge (which happened to be some people I knew and got along with, which was nice), so we all went to the beach for the day....Then we came back and got on the boat, which left at 9pm, and we got to Piraeus at 6am Saturday (where I proceeded to sleep the entire weekend away, except for Sat nite, but that's another story for another post!)...
I know I must be forgetting stuff, but I gotta run and do HW...I want to travel to Santorini this weekend, so I have to stay on top of my work...Will write again soon...
love,
Dawn
Thursday, September 18, 2003
http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b32f856084b7¬ag=1
link to my pics - if you didn't get the email...
Enjoy!
link to my pics - if you didn't get the email...
Enjoy!
Kalispera!
I just got out of my last class for the day, it's 7pm. Unfortunatley we have class tomorrow because of our trip to Crete, which kinda sucks, but it's only 2 classes and i'm out by noon time. But I wanted to finish my updates because I won't be at the computer till I get back, and God knows i'll have much to talk about then!
So classes are well, The ancient Greek is kicking my ass but it's ok. My new class (the one that took the place of adv latin) is awesome. Its called "The Emergence and Development of Athenian Democracy through ancient sources". The teacher is an epigrapher by trade (that is, a person who studies inscriptions), and she is going to teach us how to approach the inscriptions in a scholarly way - as in how to properly note them in footnotes, what to do with corrupted and/or incomplete text - which I really really need to learn for the future. Plus we'll be going to ancient sites to check out inscriptions and stuff, and you know I love that kind of thing. Also, she works with the American School of Classical Studies, so you never know what kind of contact/reference I can cultivate out of the class.
My workload is intense but i'm doin ok. I have tons of homework but i'm gonna take my books and go somewhere for the weekend....I refuse to lock myself in my room and not see any of Greece....I haven't decided where yet, the archaeologist half of me wants to go to Sparta, the lazy ass vacation loving side of me wants to go to the beach - LOL. I'll figure it out tonight and look through my lonely planet guide....
I'm loving the city, by the way. I realize I haven't said much about it. I mean, it's so much like a normal city - the traffic (people drive like nuts here! it makes New York look like Driving Miss Daisy - SERIOUSLY!), the crowds of people, the buildings, stores, supermarkets, restaurants and such...But then it can be so different. The tavernas (outdoor restaurants/cafes) are on every street, and people just hang around and people watch. The other day I was in my room and I heard accordion music, I looked out the window and there was this guy just walking down the street playing the accordion - LOL LOL. I thought that was so cool! Hey, any country that still practices siesta is ok in my book. For those who know of the North End, this is a bigger version of it - but full of Greeks, not Italians - LOL.
The city is such a mix of old and new - you can walk by an archaeological site one minute and 5 minutes later walk by a new modern building. The fact that they are still dedicated to preserving some of thier old culture is wonderful. For example, in front of the president's house, they have ceremonial guards called evenzones who are in ceremonial dress who patrol up and down the street the building is on. On the weekends when I get up in the morning I can see the older women on the balconies, sweeping and washing (i've even seen people sweep the street in front of thier house! Something I haven't seen since all the old Italian ladies left my area of East Boston! And of course if you go to the islands, there are some people who still live in the same way of life as in the old days.
One thing that does really bother me is all the stray animals. I mean there are TONS of dogs and cats. You definitely can see a dog (or three) on every street, and cats too. Oh my God the other day I saw 3 kittens - so cute!!! I wanted to snatch them up and put them in my apt. But I do have to say in Athens they are pretty well taken care of: a) they are being fed - usually the tavera owners will feed them scraps, or people will put out cans of food for them and b) there's plenty of shelter for them and the climate is pretty stable so they are comfortable. I know there are organizations out there (one is called "friends of the cat" that goes around and feeds the animals and I thinks sponsors spay and neuter programs. But unfortunatley I don't think this goes for all of Greece, but from what the people tell me here, the Greeks are really starting to move towards bettering the welfare of animals - it's been a slow process, but people are starting to become aware that this is a serious issue. Anyway, I try to not let it bother me too much, and do what I can - if I have food with me i'll feed it to them or something like that...The only thing that's kinda gross is all the dog and cat poop everywhere. I went down near the Acropolis the other day, and I went to go into this sanded area where there was some monuments, and it looked like a kitty litter box, it was really kinda gross. But what can you do?
Anyway, I think that's it! The language barrier is getting better, I have enough survival Greek (and a handy phrasebook) to get me through....I've been so caught up in adjusting to my first two weeks of class I haven't done much, but that will change very soon (starting tomorrow, in fact!) - and I'll have more to report! All in all, while i'm a bit lonely at times (it's hard to be 28 in a crowd of 20 year olds!), i'm loving it here...
Love you all,
Dawn
I just got out of my last class for the day, it's 7pm. Unfortunatley we have class tomorrow because of our trip to Crete, which kinda sucks, but it's only 2 classes and i'm out by noon time. But I wanted to finish my updates because I won't be at the computer till I get back, and God knows i'll have much to talk about then!
So classes are well, The ancient Greek is kicking my ass but it's ok. My new class (the one that took the place of adv latin) is awesome. Its called "The Emergence and Development of Athenian Democracy through ancient sources". The teacher is an epigrapher by trade (that is, a person who studies inscriptions), and she is going to teach us how to approach the inscriptions in a scholarly way - as in how to properly note them in footnotes, what to do with corrupted and/or incomplete text - which I really really need to learn for the future. Plus we'll be going to ancient sites to check out inscriptions and stuff, and you know I love that kind of thing. Also, she works with the American School of Classical Studies, so you never know what kind of contact/reference I can cultivate out of the class.
My workload is intense but i'm doin ok. I have tons of homework but i'm gonna take my books and go somewhere for the weekend....I refuse to lock myself in my room and not see any of Greece....I haven't decided where yet, the archaeologist half of me wants to go to Sparta, the lazy ass vacation loving side of me wants to go to the beach - LOL. I'll figure it out tonight and look through my lonely planet guide....
I'm loving the city, by the way. I realize I haven't said much about it. I mean, it's so much like a normal city - the traffic (people drive like nuts here! it makes New York look like Driving Miss Daisy - SERIOUSLY!), the crowds of people, the buildings, stores, supermarkets, restaurants and such...But then it can be so different. The tavernas (outdoor restaurants/cafes) are on every street, and people just hang around and people watch. The other day I was in my room and I heard accordion music, I looked out the window and there was this guy just walking down the street playing the accordion - LOL LOL. I thought that was so cool! Hey, any country that still practices siesta is ok in my book. For those who know of the North End, this is a bigger version of it - but full of Greeks, not Italians - LOL.
The city is such a mix of old and new - you can walk by an archaeological site one minute and 5 minutes later walk by a new modern building. The fact that they are still dedicated to preserving some of thier old culture is wonderful. For example, in front of the president's house, they have ceremonial guards called evenzones who are in ceremonial dress who patrol up and down the street the building is on. On the weekends when I get up in the morning I can see the older women on the balconies, sweeping and washing (i've even seen people sweep the street in front of thier house! Something I haven't seen since all the old Italian ladies left my area of East Boston! And of course if you go to the islands, there are some people who still live in the same way of life as in the old days.
One thing that does really bother me is all the stray animals. I mean there are TONS of dogs and cats. You definitely can see a dog (or three) on every street, and cats too. Oh my God the other day I saw 3 kittens - so cute!!! I wanted to snatch them up and put them in my apt. But I do have to say in Athens they are pretty well taken care of: a) they are being fed - usually the tavera owners will feed them scraps, or people will put out cans of food for them and b) there's plenty of shelter for them and the climate is pretty stable so they are comfortable. I know there are organizations out there (one is called "friends of the cat" that goes around and feeds the animals and I thinks sponsors spay and neuter programs. But unfortunatley I don't think this goes for all of Greece, but from what the people tell me here, the Greeks are really starting to move towards bettering the welfare of animals - it's been a slow process, but people are starting to become aware that this is a serious issue. Anyway, I try to not let it bother me too much, and do what I can - if I have food with me i'll feed it to them or something like that...The only thing that's kinda gross is all the dog and cat poop everywhere. I went down near the Acropolis the other day, and I went to go into this sanded area where there was some monuments, and it looked like a kitty litter box, it was really kinda gross. But what can you do?
Anyway, I think that's it! The language barrier is getting better, I have enough survival Greek (and a handy phrasebook) to get me through....I've been so caught up in adjusting to my first two weeks of class I haven't done much, but that will change very soon (starting tomorrow, in fact!) - and I'll have more to report! All in all, while i'm a bit lonely at times (it's hard to be 28 in a crowd of 20 year olds!), i'm loving it here...
Love you all,
Dawn
Kalimera!
Hope you are all doing well...This week has been hectic and tiring, but i'm taking it in stride. Tuesday we had a Pot Luck dinner (all dishes had to be Greek), I made a simple Greek salad - but other people were more adventerous. There was Tzaziki (which is a cucumber and yogurt dip - very delish!), stuffed tomatoes and peppers (stuffed with rice and ground burger), stuffed vine leaves (stuffed with rice), fried zucchini, a beef & veggie dish (kind of like beef ragout) and some cakes and desserts. The turnout was amazing, and we were all impressed by the quality of the food.
Wednesday we had a town meeting/ info session about Crete. Man, talk about all my hopes being dashed! Here I thought it would be a relaxing week in Crete, swimming in the ocean and laying on the beach......NOT.....Here is the official itinerary for the week:
Monday:
7:00 pm - Bus departs from Academic Center to the port of Piraeus (which is about a 20 min ride)
9:00 pm - Board ship for Herakleion, Crete
Over night on Boat (thank God it's an actual cruise ship - not a huge one like Carnival, but something with more amenities than a hammock and a chamber pot! LOL)
Tuesday:
6:00 am - Disembark boat - aka, stumble sleepily off ramp and pray to God you don't fall off into the water
7:00 am - Arrival at Herakleion to the hotel Irene. Breakfast at hotel. (They give us free breakfast the whole week, thank God - and from what I hear it's a good one - Eggs, Cereal, Pancakes....)
8:30 - Bus Departs for Knossos
After lunch - Archaeological Museum
Evening free (dinner, then sleepy time cause i'm old)
Wednesday:
8:00 am - Breakfast, check out of hotel, load onto bus
8:30 am - Bus leaves for Malia
Lunch - travel to the village of Archanes for lunch
Afternoon - Bus leaves for Chania
PM - Arrive at Chania, check in hotel Arkadhi
Evening Free (dinner and party, cause i'm not that old)
Thursday:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR DAWNIEEEEEEEEEE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
(In leu of gifts you may send a check to the "Poor Ass Dawnie" fund: c/o CYA, 5 Plateia Stadiou, Athens Greece.)
8:00 am Breakfast at Hotel
8:30 Walking tour in the old town of Chania, then to the Archaeological Musuem.
Late morning - Board bus to the Monastery of Agia Triada
Lunch - return to Chania for lunch
7:00 pm - Samaria Gorge meeting at hotel lobby (will explain more in a sec)
Evening free (sleepy time, you'll see why in the next line)
Friday:
5:30am - Wake up call (aka "The ass crack of dawn" - no, not my personal ass crack, although I imagine that's how i'll look at 5:30 in the morning)
6:00am - Breakfast, load bus
6:30 - depart for Samaria Gorge
8:00 am - arrive and enter Samaria Gorge
3:45 pm - Boat leaves from Aghia Roumeli to Sfakia
5:00 pm - Disembark and connect by bus to Souda
9:00 pm - Leave from Souda via Boat back to Piraeus
Saturday:
7:00 am - Arrival at Piraeus, board bus back to Academic center
Oh, let me say about Samaria Gorge - it's a gorge in Crete we'll be hiking Friday morning. it's not a mandatory but I chose to do it because a) from what I hear it is supposedly gorgeous with breathtaking views, and b) it's not a terribly hard hike, mostly down hill. God knows i'm used to walking everywhere under the sun, plus frm the workout i've gotten from walking up the hill to my apt everyday, I don't think it will be a problem....
But please don't think I am complaining - Despite the early hours and lack of free time, I am really looking forward to it..The Classical Archaeologist in me is loving all the time at arch sites, and I know I will see some amazing places and sites....It's gonna be an experience of a lifetime...
ok, gotta run, will write more tomorrow, I have so much more to talk about!
Love, Dawn
Hope you are all doing well...This week has been hectic and tiring, but i'm taking it in stride. Tuesday we had a Pot Luck dinner (all dishes had to be Greek), I made a simple Greek salad - but other people were more adventerous. There was Tzaziki (which is a cucumber and yogurt dip - very delish!), stuffed tomatoes and peppers (stuffed with rice and ground burger), stuffed vine leaves (stuffed with rice), fried zucchini, a beef & veggie dish (kind of like beef ragout) and some cakes and desserts. The turnout was amazing, and we were all impressed by the quality of the food.
Wednesday we had a town meeting/ info session about Crete. Man, talk about all my hopes being dashed! Here I thought it would be a relaxing week in Crete, swimming in the ocean and laying on the beach......NOT.....Here is the official itinerary for the week:
Monday:
7:00 pm - Bus departs from Academic Center to the port of Piraeus (which is about a 20 min ride)
9:00 pm - Board ship for Herakleion, Crete
Over night on Boat (thank God it's an actual cruise ship - not a huge one like Carnival, but something with more amenities than a hammock and a chamber pot! LOL)
Tuesday:
6:00 am - Disembark boat - aka, stumble sleepily off ramp and pray to God you don't fall off into the water
7:00 am - Arrival at Herakleion to the hotel Irene. Breakfast at hotel. (They give us free breakfast the whole week, thank God - and from what I hear it's a good one - Eggs, Cereal, Pancakes....)
8:30 - Bus Departs for Knossos
After lunch - Archaeological Museum
Evening free (dinner, then sleepy time cause i'm old)
Wednesday:
8:00 am - Breakfast, check out of hotel, load onto bus
8:30 am - Bus leaves for Malia
Lunch - travel to the village of Archanes for lunch
Afternoon - Bus leaves for Chania
PM - Arrive at Chania, check in hotel Arkadhi
Evening Free (dinner and party, cause i'm not that old)
Thursday:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR DAWNIEEEEEEEEEE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
(In leu of gifts you may send a check to the "Poor Ass Dawnie" fund: c/o CYA, 5 Plateia Stadiou, Athens Greece.)
8:00 am Breakfast at Hotel
8:30 Walking tour in the old town of Chania, then to the Archaeological Musuem.
Late morning - Board bus to the Monastery of Agia Triada
Lunch - return to Chania for lunch
7:00 pm - Samaria Gorge meeting at hotel lobby (will explain more in a sec)
Evening free (sleepy time, you'll see why in the next line)
Friday:
5:30am - Wake up call (aka "The ass crack of dawn" - no, not my personal ass crack, although I imagine that's how i'll look at 5:30 in the morning)
6:00am - Breakfast, load bus
6:30 - depart for Samaria Gorge
8:00 am - arrive and enter Samaria Gorge
3:45 pm - Boat leaves from Aghia Roumeli to Sfakia
5:00 pm - Disembark and connect by bus to Souda
9:00 pm - Leave from Souda via Boat back to Piraeus
Saturday:
7:00 am - Arrival at Piraeus, board bus back to Academic center
Oh, let me say about Samaria Gorge - it's a gorge in Crete we'll be hiking Friday morning. it's not a mandatory but I chose to do it because a) from what I hear it is supposedly gorgeous with breathtaking views, and b) it's not a terribly hard hike, mostly down hill. God knows i'm used to walking everywhere under the sun, plus frm the workout i've gotten from walking up the hill to my apt everyday, I don't think it will be a problem....
But please don't think I am complaining - Despite the early hours and lack of free time, I am really looking forward to it..The Classical Archaeologist in me is loving all the time at arch sites, and I know I will see some amazing places and sites....It's gonna be an experience of a lifetime...
ok, gotta run, will write more tomorrow, I have so much more to talk about!
Love, Dawn
Tuesday, September 16, 2003
MUST
HAVE
SUGAR
CAN'T
GO
ON
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Friggin 8:30am classes, whoever thought of having classes that early in the morning should be shot. In non lethal places. As to obtain the maximum pain possible.
The sad thing is, it's only 12:30pm. *sigh*
Anyways, i'm doing well - classes are busy (whoever said that study abroad classes were easy should also be shot) but i'm doing ok - I really enjoy my classes and I have great teachers so that helps a lot...Today is a little chilly and rainy (just like home - LOL)... Speaking of weather - I hear that the East Coast is looking at the possibility of a hurricane - a pretty bad one at that - for those who live on the coast, please take care of yourselves ok - you'll be on my mind....Now God knows the meteorologists can't tell thier ass from thier elbow half the time, but just be careful, just in case they decide to be right for the first time in thier lives....
Working on uploading my pictures (it's taking longer than originally thought, sorry!), I hope to have them done soon...Tonight is a pot luck dinner at the school, i'm making Greek Salad (easy enough!), tomorrow we are having a town meeting then having "Cretan Night". No, not that kind of Cretan (LOL). Basically they'll be preparing us for our trip to Crete on Monday and showing us some slides and telling us a little bit about the culture....
ok, must go do homework...I got a case of good old Mt. Holyoke guilt and decided to stay with Ancient Greek ("What do you mean you have an easy courseload??? None of that, you're a Mt. Holyoke student dammit! If your courseload doesn't induce hypertension stress levels and multiple nervous breakdowns, then you're a LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"). LOL LOL LOL LOL My MoHo friends know EXACTLY what I am talking about...I did drop the Latin though, that was way too much (even for an obsessive work-freak like me).
Actually today will be the final test, if I can make it through todays Ancient Greek class and make even the tiniest bit of sense, i'll stay in the class. If not, i'm dropping that too...But we'll see.....
Anyway I gotta eat, need sugar and carbs to stay awake, my next class isn't till 5pm....
much love,
dawn
HAVE
SUGAR
CAN'T
GO
ON
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Friggin 8:30am classes, whoever thought of having classes that early in the morning should be shot. In non lethal places. As to obtain the maximum pain possible.
The sad thing is, it's only 12:30pm. *sigh*
Anyways, i'm doing well - classes are busy (whoever said that study abroad classes were easy should also be shot) but i'm doing ok - I really enjoy my classes and I have great teachers so that helps a lot...Today is a little chilly and rainy (just like home - LOL)... Speaking of weather - I hear that the East Coast is looking at the possibility of a hurricane - a pretty bad one at that - for those who live on the coast, please take care of yourselves ok - you'll be on my mind....Now God knows the meteorologists can't tell thier ass from thier elbow half the time, but just be careful, just in case they decide to be right for the first time in thier lives....
Working on uploading my pictures (it's taking longer than originally thought, sorry!), I hope to have them done soon...Tonight is a pot luck dinner at the school, i'm making Greek Salad (easy enough!), tomorrow we are having a town meeting then having "Cretan Night". No, not that kind of Cretan (LOL). Basically they'll be preparing us for our trip to Crete on Monday and showing us some slides and telling us a little bit about the culture....
ok, must go do homework...I got a case of good old Mt. Holyoke guilt and decided to stay with Ancient Greek ("What do you mean you have an easy courseload??? None of that, you're a Mt. Holyoke student dammit! If your courseload doesn't induce hypertension stress levels and multiple nervous breakdowns, then you're a LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"). LOL LOL LOL LOL My MoHo friends know EXACTLY what I am talking about...I did drop the Latin though, that was way too much (even for an obsessive work-freak like me).
Actually today will be the final test, if I can make it through todays Ancient Greek class and make even the tiniest bit of sense, i'll stay in the class. If not, i'm dropping that too...But we'll see.....
Anyway I gotta eat, need sugar and carbs to stay awake, my next class isn't till 5pm....
much love,
dawn
Monday, September 15, 2003
Kalispera!
It's 5:40 pm....I had a wonderful weekend! The weather has been beautiful so far and has only rained once! According to what I hear, it will be nice until the end of October! Jeez, I think I may have to move here...LOL
Friday I went to the open air produce market, which is conveniently located on my street. They set up every Friday at 6am and close up about 2pm (it's like the North End one - for those who live in Boston). I got a huge bag of groceries - like a shopping bag full - for about 20 euro (which is about 20 bucks). I got some bay leaf, carrots, tomatoes, green beans, melon, bananas, grapes, onions, garlic, peppers, potatoes and cauliflower. I guess one of the ladies who work at the school said the later you go the cheaper it is because they want to get rid of it all. Next time I go i'll go a bit later and see if it does make a difference...Then I went to one of the archaeological sites here in Athens called the Temple of Olympian Zeus (which I have pictures for), it was amazing! I've seen pictures and slides, but nothing can prepare you for how immense these temples are! Put it this way, Standing next to it, I only came to the top of the stylobate (which is the base the columns stand on)! So basically i'm about as high as the floor is! LOL Unfortunatley the temple is not intact, but several columns are still standing. The site also has remains of a bath and some smaller temples. Plus some of the peices of the fallen columns still remain, while it's sad that they have fallen, its nice to get the opportunity to see the tops of the columns up close and see thier decoration...Then I headed to the base of the Acropolis and took some pictures of the outside of the theater I went to for the Oedipus play (Theater of Herodus Atticus), then I walked through the Plaka and went back home.
Saturday I went with a friend to ancient Corinth. It's about a 2 hr train ride to modern Corinth, then a 15 min bus ride to the ancient site. The ancient site overlooks the water, and of course the water is a beautiful shade of blue...The site is the remains of an ancient city with a bath, shops, a fountain, shrines, a stoa (market/meeting place) and several temples. It was a Classics nerd's dream! LOL The shops now hold the pieces of the other fallen buildings. Some of the stones still had inscriptions on them, and lots of them had decorations on them. The fountain was incredible, it wasn't a "fountain" as we would think of it. It was a building built around a natural spring in the rock, and you can still hear water running under it...Two statues were still standing as well (but headless - LOL). Wait till you see the pictures, you'll get an idea of what I am talking about, it's so hard to describe... I bought a beautiful olive wood cross pendant, only 5 euro! Then we had dinner and walked around and went home that night.
Sunday I stayed around the house and did homework. I took most of the vegetables I bought and made a nice soup (it actually came out good - I'm so proud of myself!).
Ok, i'm in the process of getting the pictures uploaded, should have that soon! I need to get some homework done so I'll write more later!
Love, Dawn
It's 5:40 pm....I had a wonderful weekend! The weather has been beautiful so far and has only rained once! According to what I hear, it will be nice until the end of October! Jeez, I think I may have to move here...LOL
Friday I went to the open air produce market, which is conveniently located on my street. They set up every Friday at 6am and close up about 2pm (it's like the North End one - for those who live in Boston). I got a huge bag of groceries - like a shopping bag full - for about 20 euro (which is about 20 bucks). I got some bay leaf, carrots, tomatoes, green beans, melon, bananas, grapes, onions, garlic, peppers, potatoes and cauliflower. I guess one of the ladies who work at the school said the later you go the cheaper it is because they want to get rid of it all. Next time I go i'll go a bit later and see if it does make a difference...Then I went to one of the archaeological sites here in Athens called the Temple of Olympian Zeus (which I have pictures for), it was amazing! I've seen pictures and slides, but nothing can prepare you for how immense these temples are! Put it this way, Standing next to it, I only came to the top of the stylobate (which is the base the columns stand on)! So basically i'm about as high as the floor is! LOL Unfortunatley the temple is not intact, but several columns are still standing. The site also has remains of a bath and some smaller temples. Plus some of the peices of the fallen columns still remain, while it's sad that they have fallen, its nice to get the opportunity to see the tops of the columns up close and see thier decoration...Then I headed to the base of the Acropolis and took some pictures of the outside of the theater I went to for the Oedipus play (Theater of Herodus Atticus), then I walked through the Plaka and went back home.
Saturday I went with a friend to ancient Corinth. It's about a 2 hr train ride to modern Corinth, then a 15 min bus ride to the ancient site. The ancient site overlooks the water, and of course the water is a beautiful shade of blue...The site is the remains of an ancient city with a bath, shops, a fountain, shrines, a stoa (market/meeting place) and several temples. It was a Classics nerd's dream! LOL The shops now hold the pieces of the other fallen buildings. Some of the stones still had inscriptions on them, and lots of them had decorations on them. The fountain was incredible, it wasn't a "fountain" as we would think of it. It was a building built around a natural spring in the rock, and you can still hear water running under it...Two statues were still standing as well (but headless - LOL). Wait till you see the pictures, you'll get an idea of what I am talking about, it's so hard to describe... I bought a beautiful olive wood cross pendant, only 5 euro! Then we had dinner and walked around and went home that night.
Sunday I stayed around the house and did homework. I took most of the vegetables I bought and made a nice soup (it actually came out good - I'm so proud of myself!).
Ok, i'm in the process of getting the pictures uploaded, should have that soon! I need to get some homework done so I'll write more later!
Love, Dawn
Thursday, September 11, 2003
Kalispera! (Good Evening)
Its 8:05pm, and i'm beat! But I have a lot to tell you all! First of all, this was the first week of classes, which was a little rough. I decided to drop Advanced Greek and Advanced Latin - don't all faint in shock at once! I came to this conclusion for several reasons: Advanced Greek is waaaay too intense and way too fast - and i'm not that good yet ;). Also, all my classes were on Tues-Thurs, which made my life a little difficult because I had to have ALL my translation done in practically one day (since I don't get out of class till 6:30pm on Tues). I could have just dropped the Greek and kept Latin, but I realized that I didn't want to do that either - LOL. I figured I'm in Greece, for cryin out loud! Locking myself in a room all day to do translation when I can be out at a site doing research doesn't make sense to me. I mean, I can pick up the languages when I get home - I have to for grad school.
Anyway, I picked up some really great classes instead - The History of Byzantium and Studying the Emergence and Development of Athenian Democracy through Ancient Sources. I have never taken a Byzantine class before, and in the Athenian Democracy class we'll be going to archaeological sites and museums -which is more up my alley....I feel much better about it....Plus, now my classes are spread out during the week - Mon & Wed i'll have a class at 10:45 and 1:30 (i'm done by 3pm) and on tues & thurs I have a class at 8:30 and 10:45 (and i'm done at 12:30!)...
Let's see, what else...OMG! Yesterday I went to the theater to see the Oedipus Cycle (which is the three Oedipus Plays - Oedipus Rex, Oedipus the King and Antigone). It was at the Theater of Herodus Atticus - which is an actual open-air ancient theater used in classical times. It obviously is not as grand as it once was, but the theater is well preserved enough to be able to hold performances in there. It's right at the base of the Acropolis, so when you look up you can see the Parthenon - it was amazing....It was blowing my mind, sitting there on the marble benches were a classical Greek sat thousands of years ago....
Anyway, the play was interesting. They stayed faithful to the story, but put an African twist to it. From the cast, to the set, the costumes, the music, the choreography, to the chorus - which were a group of African dancers instead of the traditional Greek chorus. I loved it, I thought it was great. And guess who played Oedipus? Avery Brooks! Better known to the young'uns as the captain on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. But to us older folk, he's known as Hawk from Spenser for Hire!!!!! How freakin cool is that? All the younger kids were like - Dawn, what's "Spenser for Hire"? - HEATHENS! LOL LOL He was an AMAZING Oedipus, he's a wonderful actor. Adding to my sheer excitment was the actor who played Tiresias (a prophet) - who also played the grandfather from the Cosby Show!!! It was like flashback to the past...Anyway, the acting was great, I really enjoyed myself. Unfortunatley I couldn't bring a camera into the theater (copyright issues and all), but i'm gonna go back when ther is not a production and take pictures of the inside...
So it's the weekend - woo hoo! I"m gonna head out to the islands for the weekend. I think Santorini...Sorry the pics aren't up, I had all the drama with my classes going on...Will do that when I get back...Will update soon on the island and my new classes!
Love you all!
Dawn
Its 8:05pm, and i'm beat! But I have a lot to tell you all! First of all, this was the first week of classes, which was a little rough. I decided to drop Advanced Greek and Advanced Latin - don't all faint in shock at once! I came to this conclusion for several reasons: Advanced Greek is waaaay too intense and way too fast - and i'm not that good yet ;). Also, all my classes were on Tues-Thurs, which made my life a little difficult because I had to have ALL my translation done in practically one day (since I don't get out of class till 6:30pm on Tues). I could have just dropped the Greek and kept Latin, but I realized that I didn't want to do that either - LOL. I figured I'm in Greece, for cryin out loud! Locking myself in a room all day to do translation when I can be out at a site doing research doesn't make sense to me. I mean, I can pick up the languages when I get home - I have to for grad school.
Anyway, I picked up some really great classes instead - The History of Byzantium and Studying the Emergence and Development of Athenian Democracy through Ancient Sources. I have never taken a Byzantine class before, and in the Athenian Democracy class we'll be going to archaeological sites and museums -which is more up my alley....I feel much better about it....Plus, now my classes are spread out during the week - Mon & Wed i'll have a class at 10:45 and 1:30 (i'm done by 3pm) and on tues & thurs I have a class at 8:30 and 10:45 (and i'm done at 12:30!)...
Let's see, what else...OMG! Yesterday I went to the theater to see the Oedipus Cycle (which is the three Oedipus Plays - Oedipus Rex, Oedipus the King and Antigone). It was at the Theater of Herodus Atticus - which is an actual open-air ancient theater used in classical times. It obviously is not as grand as it once was, but the theater is well preserved enough to be able to hold performances in there. It's right at the base of the Acropolis, so when you look up you can see the Parthenon - it was amazing....It was blowing my mind, sitting there on the marble benches were a classical Greek sat thousands of years ago....
Anyway, the play was interesting. They stayed faithful to the story, but put an African twist to it. From the cast, to the set, the costumes, the music, the choreography, to the chorus - which were a group of African dancers instead of the traditional Greek chorus. I loved it, I thought it was great. And guess who played Oedipus? Avery Brooks! Better known to the young'uns as the captain on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. But to us older folk, he's known as Hawk from Spenser for Hire!!!!! How freakin cool is that? All the younger kids were like - Dawn, what's "Spenser for Hire"? - HEATHENS! LOL LOL He was an AMAZING Oedipus, he's a wonderful actor. Adding to my sheer excitment was the actor who played Tiresias (a prophet) - who also played the grandfather from the Cosby Show!!! It was like flashback to the past...Anyway, the acting was great, I really enjoyed myself. Unfortunatley I couldn't bring a camera into the theater (copyright issues and all), but i'm gonna go back when ther is not a production and take pictures of the inside...
So it's the weekend - woo hoo! I"m gonna head out to the islands for the weekend. I think Santorini...Sorry the pics aren't up, I had all the drama with my classes going on...Will do that when I get back...Will update soon on the island and my new classes!
Love you all!
Dawn
[ Tue Sep 09, 01:46:01 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Yassou!
It's 1:20pm - first day of school! I just finished two of my classes - it's gonna be so cool! My sites and monuments of ancient athens class is gonna be incredible - starting the first week in October all of our classes will be onsite...So if the professor is lecturing on the Acropolis - we'll go to the Acropolis...From reading the syllabus - we'll be going to the Acropolis, the Agora, the Kerameikos, the Sanctuary of Dionysus (which is on the slope of the Acropolis) - and a few other places I can't remember... My other class, Aegean Prehistory is great too, since we'll be traveling to Crete for a week (the whole school, not just our class) we'll have some classes on site there too...I have a break between 12:15 and 3:15, then I have my Greek and Latin classes...Which I hate to say i'm not looking forward too, but it's a necessary evil....
Still trying to get my laundry done - I have it all washed, but there is something wrong with the dryer, every time you turn it on it blows the fuse (FUN!)..So Poppy (who is the Bldg Supervisor) is calling the electrician...I don't know if I mentioned this, but the washer and dryer is in the academic center, which is about a half hour walk from my apt in Kolonaki. Going to my class is not a big deal - it's all down hill, it's going back up the hill that's a bitch...So i'm praying the dryer gets fixed, i'm not looking forward to trudging uphill with a huge bag of wet clothes....urg.....
I haven't been anywhere special...Sunday I was exhausted and Monday I got bit by a dog...Oh yes, bit by a friggin dog...That's why I'm a damn cat person - LOL. I guess it has never happened to a CYA student before - the dogs are usually always very friendly (leave it up to me to be the first)...Anyway, to make a long story short, I walked over to it (it seemed friendly, it was wagging it's tail and such - not in a threatening way...) and as I passed it, it reached out and snapped at my finger. As a reflex action I pulled my hand back, which made it worse, cause that caused a nice big gash down my left forefinger...But it's fine (there are no rabies in Greece - I didn't know that!), but all my shots are up to date anyway...The doctor gave me some antibiotics and bacitracin, and i'm watching it closely...It looks ok today, it's just a little sore - it will heal in no time....
But no worries about me, i'm doing well - enjoying the food (i've been living on feta, olives, peppers, crusty bread and olive oil, so so gooood!!!! And I hope to travel this weekend...
Anyway, must run to an appt - it's always something!! Pictures coming on Thursday (I hope!!!)...
love, Dawn
Yassou!
It's 1:20pm - first day of school! I just finished two of my classes - it's gonna be so cool! My sites and monuments of ancient athens class is gonna be incredible - starting the first week in October all of our classes will be onsite...So if the professor is lecturing on the Acropolis - we'll go to the Acropolis...From reading the syllabus - we'll be going to the Acropolis, the Agora, the Kerameikos, the Sanctuary of Dionysus (which is on the slope of the Acropolis) - and a few other places I can't remember... My other class, Aegean Prehistory is great too, since we'll be traveling to Crete for a week (the whole school, not just our class) we'll have some classes on site there too...I have a break between 12:15 and 3:15, then I have my Greek and Latin classes...Which I hate to say i'm not looking forward too, but it's a necessary evil....
Still trying to get my laundry done - I have it all washed, but there is something wrong with the dryer, every time you turn it on it blows the fuse (FUN!)..So Poppy (who is the Bldg Supervisor) is calling the electrician...I don't know if I mentioned this, but the washer and dryer is in the academic center, which is about a half hour walk from my apt in Kolonaki. Going to my class is not a big deal - it's all down hill, it's going back up the hill that's a bitch...So i'm praying the dryer gets fixed, i'm not looking forward to trudging uphill with a huge bag of wet clothes....urg.....
I haven't been anywhere special...Sunday I was exhausted and Monday I got bit by a dog...Oh yes, bit by a friggin dog...That's why I'm a damn cat person - LOL. I guess it has never happened to a CYA student before - the dogs are usually always very friendly (leave it up to me to be the first)...Anyway, to make a long story short, I walked over to it (it seemed friendly, it was wagging it's tail and such - not in a threatening way...) and as I passed it, it reached out and snapped at my finger. As a reflex action I pulled my hand back, which made it worse, cause that caused a nice big gash down my left forefinger...But it's fine (there are no rabies in Greece - I didn't know that!), but all my shots are up to date anyway...The doctor gave me some antibiotics and bacitracin, and i'm watching it closely...It looks ok today, it's just a little sore - it will heal in no time....
But no worries about me, i'm doing well - enjoying the food (i've been living on feta, olives, peppers, crusty bread and olive oil, so so gooood!!!! And I hope to travel this weekend...
Anyway, must run to an appt - it's always something!! Pictures coming on Thursday (I hope!!!)...
love, Dawn
Monday, September 08, 2003
[ Mon Sep 08, 02:12:25 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Hey, im back....I just realized that the time on my entries do not reflect the right time here in Greece, so i'm gonna start including the time here....It is now 1:50pm....
So as I was saying, I went to Aegina on Saturday...Sunday I slept in (I was exhausted!), then met a friend and walked around the city - ate dinner and looked around the shops in Monistiraki and the Plaka (2 neighborhoods in Athens)....Today i'm just hanging around, catching up on email - trying to get my laundry done...The academic center has two tiny wash machines - which takes about 1.5 hours to do one load (i'm NOT kidding!)....Right now the damn dryer doesn't work, so i'm waiting till that gets fixed cause i'll be damned if I carry up a bag of wet heavy clothes back up the giantic hill to my apt...Shoot, from now on i'll just wash my clothes in my bath tub ;) I have to go to the grocery store too...I swear I can give on bread, feta and olives :)
Classes start tomorrow, my first class is at 8:30am (oy). Well i think i'll go walk around the city and wait till the dryer gets fixed - the Temple of Olympian Zeus is closeby, i've been meaning to go see it for awhile...The weather is beautiful, so I want to take advantage....I'll bring my lap top down and try loading my pictures into my online album - if it works i'll publish the link from here...
talk to you all soon. much love - dawn
[ Mon Sep 08, 01:06:36 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Kalimera! (Good Morning!)
How are you all doing? I'm doing ok! I had a great weekend - Saturday I went to one of the islands called Aegina, it was sooo beautiful! It was really easy to get there too...The Athens train system is really easy to navigate - it's similar to Boston, they have a Red, Blue and Green Line (but unlike Boston it only cost .70 euro - which is like .70 cents)...The train to the port (which is in the city of Piraeus) took only about 1/2 hour. Then we took a catamaran to the islands, which took only about 45 minutes (and cost 5 euro)...The beaches itself were nothing to write home about (pun intended), but the water was breathtaking - clear but tinted a blue/green color - and the water was nice - cool, but not cold....I didn't get to walk around the island much, there is a well preserved temple there that I wanted to see, but it was on the other side of the island and it was too hot to trek all the way there...I plan to do that in cooler weather....Of course I did hit the shops though ;) ok, i have to run, will write more later!
love
dawn
[ Thu Sep 04, 08:23:41 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Yassou! (hello!)
The jet lag is subsiding a bit, thank god, I still slept till 2pm but I think i'm starting to adjust, I haven't felt tired all day like I have been. Today was the second half of my survival Greek class, then I just walked around the city. I went back to the Plaka (but didn't take any pictures yet, will do that soon!), and promptly spent $45 euros - LOL. It was soooo nice! I walked by some old churches and temples - beautiful...Everywhere you walk there is something to see.
It was a little cool today, but I enjoyed the break, the past few days was around 107 or so! Tomorrow we are going to the beach :) And I just made plans to go to one of the Islands on Saturday - Aegina, I cannot wait for that. Yesterday I went to the travel agent to see about weekend traveling - OMG it's sooo cheap! For 3 days in Santorini (which is another of the Greek Islands) is only $85 euros (which is about $85 dollars) - that includes breakfast, accomodations, and transport! With me having no class on mon-wed, I think it will work out perfectly.
ok all, gotta go, will try to update during the weekend, if not Monday (while I do laundry - did I mention that the laundry stations are inthe academic center, which is a 30 min walk from our apts? - ugh!)
Love,
Dawn
[ Wed Sep 03, 01:57:55 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Hello!
Ok, forget what I said about the jet lag not being bad, it's kickin my ass! I'm tired 24/7, my poor body doesn't know what time it is anymore - LOL. I'm not that hungry either, which is prob a good thing ;)
I went to the Plaka last night - which is near the Acropolis (right in the area of the old Agora, that is, market place). It's basically a huge tourist area with tons of open air shops and tavernas. You can actually see the Acropolis from there - I almost fainted when I saw it the first time, it was AMAZING!! It almost didn't look real to me, i'm so used to seeing it on a tv screen or in a book that I couldn't believe I was actually seeing it!!! We ate at a local taverna, I had my first taste of Greek cuisine! I played it safe and had a chicken souvlaki (which is basically a shish kebob), but it was good :) - next on my list is an authentic Greek salad!
We are going back today after our orientation to take pictures in the daylight...I'm not sure we will be going up the Acropolis today because we still have more orientation stuff to do, but I plan to do that soon as well....
Anyway, I miss you all - it's so good to see your emails, keep em coming - it truly makes my day!
love, Dawn
Hey, im back....I just realized that the time on my entries do not reflect the right time here in Greece, so i'm gonna start including the time here....It is now 1:50pm....
So as I was saying, I went to Aegina on Saturday...Sunday I slept in (I was exhausted!), then met a friend and walked around the city - ate dinner and looked around the shops in Monistiraki and the Plaka (2 neighborhoods in Athens)....Today i'm just hanging around, catching up on email - trying to get my laundry done...The academic center has two tiny wash machines - which takes about 1.5 hours to do one load (i'm NOT kidding!)....Right now the damn dryer doesn't work, so i'm waiting till that gets fixed cause i'll be damned if I carry up a bag of wet heavy clothes back up the giantic hill to my apt...Shoot, from now on i'll just wash my clothes in my bath tub ;) I have to go to the grocery store too...I swear I can give on bread, feta and olives :)
Classes start tomorrow, my first class is at 8:30am (oy). Well i think i'll go walk around the city and wait till the dryer gets fixed - the Temple of Olympian Zeus is closeby, i've been meaning to go see it for awhile...The weather is beautiful, so I want to take advantage....I'll bring my lap top down and try loading my pictures into my online album - if it works i'll publish the link from here...
talk to you all soon. much love - dawn
[ Mon Sep 08, 01:06:36 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Kalimera! (Good Morning!)
How are you all doing? I'm doing ok! I had a great weekend - Saturday I went to one of the islands called Aegina, it was sooo beautiful! It was really easy to get there too...The Athens train system is really easy to navigate - it's similar to Boston, they have a Red, Blue and Green Line (but unlike Boston it only cost .70 euro - which is like .70 cents)...The train to the port (which is in the city of Piraeus) took only about 1/2 hour. Then we took a catamaran to the islands, which took only about 45 minutes (and cost 5 euro)...The beaches itself were nothing to write home about (pun intended), but the water was breathtaking - clear but tinted a blue/green color - and the water was nice - cool, but not cold....I didn't get to walk around the island much, there is a well preserved temple there that I wanted to see, but it was on the other side of the island and it was too hot to trek all the way there...I plan to do that in cooler weather....Of course I did hit the shops though ;) ok, i have to run, will write more later!
love
dawn
[ Thu Sep 04, 08:23:41 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Yassou! (hello!)
The jet lag is subsiding a bit, thank god, I still slept till 2pm but I think i'm starting to adjust, I haven't felt tired all day like I have been. Today was the second half of my survival Greek class, then I just walked around the city. I went back to the Plaka (but didn't take any pictures yet, will do that soon!), and promptly spent $45 euros - LOL. It was soooo nice! I walked by some old churches and temples - beautiful...Everywhere you walk there is something to see.
It was a little cool today, but I enjoyed the break, the past few days was around 107 or so! Tomorrow we are going to the beach :) And I just made plans to go to one of the Islands on Saturday - Aegina, I cannot wait for that. Yesterday I went to the travel agent to see about weekend traveling - OMG it's sooo cheap! For 3 days in Santorini (which is another of the Greek Islands) is only $85 euros (which is about $85 dollars) - that includes breakfast, accomodations, and transport! With me having no class on mon-wed, I think it will work out perfectly.
ok all, gotta go, will try to update during the weekend, if not Monday (while I do laundry - did I mention that the laundry stations are inthe academic center, which is a 30 min walk from our apts? - ugh!)
Love,
Dawn
[ Wed Sep 03, 01:57:55 PM | Dawn Distasio | edit ]
Hello!
Ok, forget what I said about the jet lag not being bad, it's kickin my ass! I'm tired 24/7, my poor body doesn't know what time it is anymore - LOL. I'm not that hungry either, which is prob a good thing ;)
I went to the Plaka last night - which is near the Acropolis (right in the area of the old Agora, that is, market place). It's basically a huge tourist area with tons of open air shops and tavernas. You can actually see the Acropolis from there - I almost fainted when I saw it the first time, it was AMAZING!! It almost didn't look real to me, i'm so used to seeing it on a tv screen or in a book that I couldn't believe I was actually seeing it!!! We ate at a local taverna, I had my first taste of Greek cuisine! I played it safe and had a chicken souvlaki (which is basically a shish kebob), but it was good :) - next on my list is an authentic Greek salad!
We are going back today after our orientation to take pictures in the daylight...I'm not sure we will be going up the Acropolis today because we still have more orientation stuff to do, but I plan to do that soon as well....
Anyway, I miss you all - it's so good to see your emails, keep em coming - it truly makes my day!
love, Dawn
Hey, im back....I just realized that the time on my entries do not reflect the right time here in Greece, so i'm gonna start including the time here....It is now 1:50pm....
So as I was saying, I went to Aegina on Saturday...Sunday I slept in (I was exhausted!), then met a friend and walked around the city - ate dinner and looked around the shops in Monistiraki and the Plaka (2 neighborhoods in Athens)....Today i'm just hanging around, catching up on email - trying to get my laundry done...The academic center has two tiny wash machines - which takes about 1.5 hours to do one load (i'm NOT kidding!)....Right now the damn dryer doesn't work, so i'm waiting till that gets fixed cause i'll be damned if I carry up a bag of wet heavy clothes back up the giantic hill to my apt...Shoot, from now on i'll just wash my clothes in my bath tub ;) I have to go to the grocery store too...I swear I can give on bread, feta and olives :)
Classes start tomorrow, my first class is at 8:30am (oy). Well i think i'll go walk around the city and wait till the dryer gets fixed - the Temple of Olympian Zeus is closeby, i've been meaning to go see it for awhile...The weather is beautiful, so I want to take advantage....I'll bring my lap top down and try loading my pictures into my online album - if it works i'll publish the link from here...
talk to you all soon. much love - dawn
So as I was saying, I went to Aegina on Saturday...Sunday I slept in (I was exhausted!), then met a friend and walked around the city - ate dinner and looked around the shops in Monistiraki and the Plaka (2 neighborhoods in Athens)....Today i'm just hanging around, catching up on email - trying to get my laundry done...The academic center has two tiny wash machines - which takes about 1.5 hours to do one load (i'm NOT kidding!)....Right now the damn dryer doesn't work, so i'm waiting till that gets fixed cause i'll be damned if I carry up a bag of wet heavy clothes back up the giantic hill to my apt...Shoot, from now on i'll just wash my clothes in my bath tub ;) I have to go to the grocery store too...I swear I can give on bread, feta and olives :)
Classes start tomorrow, my first class is at 8:30am (oy). Well i think i'll go walk around the city and wait till the dryer gets fixed - the Temple of Olympian Zeus is closeby, i've been meaning to go see it for awhile...The weather is beautiful, so I want to take advantage....I'll bring my lap top down and try loading my pictures into my online album - if it works i'll publish the link from here...
talk to you all soon. much love - dawn
Kalimera! (Good Morning!)
How are you all doing? I'm doing ok! I had a great weekend - Saturday I went to one of the islands called Aegina, it was sooo beautiful! It was really easy to get there too...The Athens train system is really easy to navigate - it's similar to Boston, they have a Red, Blue and Green Line (but unlike Boston it only cost .70 euro - which is like .70 cents)...The train to the port (which is in the city of Piraeus) took only about 1/2 hour. Then we took a catamaran to the islands, which took only about 45 minutes (and cost 5 euro)...The beaches itself were nothing to write home about (pun intended), but the water was breathtaking - clear but tinted a blue/green color - and the water was nice - cool, but not cold....I didn't get to walk around the island much, there is a well preserved temple there that I wanted to see, but it was on the other side of the island and it was too hot to trek all the way there...I plan to do that in cooler weather....Of course I did hit the shops though ;) ok, i have to run, will write more later!
love
dawn
How are you all doing? I'm doing ok! I had a great weekend - Saturday I went to one of the islands called Aegina, it was sooo beautiful! It was really easy to get there too...The Athens train system is really easy to navigate - it's similar to Boston, they have a Red, Blue and Green Line (but unlike Boston it only cost .70 euro - which is like .70 cents)...The train to the port (which is in the city of Piraeus) took only about 1/2 hour. Then we took a catamaran to the islands, which took only about 45 minutes (and cost 5 euro)...The beaches itself were nothing to write home about (pun intended), but the water was breathtaking - clear but tinted a blue/green color - and the water was nice - cool, but not cold....I didn't get to walk around the island much, there is a well preserved temple there that I wanted to see, but it was on the other side of the island and it was too hot to trek all the way there...I plan to do that in cooler weather....Of course I did hit the shops though ;) ok, i have to run, will write more later!
love
dawn
Thursday, September 04, 2003
Yassou! (hello!)
The jet lag is subsiding a bit, thank god, I still slept till 2pm but I think i'm starting to adjust, I haven't felt tired all day like I have been. Today was the second half of my survival Greek class, then I just walked around the city. I went back to the Plaka (but didn't take any pictures yet, will do that soon!), and promptly spent $45 euros - LOL. It was soooo nice! I walked by some old churches and temples - beautiful...Everywhere you walk there is something to see.
It was a little cool today, but I enjoyed the break, the past few days was around 107 or so! Tomorrow we are going to the beach :) And I just made plans to go to one of the Islands on Saturday - Aegina, I cannot wait for that. Yesterday I went to the travel agent to see about weekend traveling - OMG it's sooo cheap! For 3 days in Santorini (which is another of the Greek Islands) is only $85 euros (which is about $85 dollars) - that includes breakfast, accomodations, and transport! With me having no class on mon-wed, I think it will work out perfectly.
ok all, gotta go, will try to update during the weekend, if not Monday (while I do laundry - did I mention that the laundry stations are inthe academic center, which is a 30 min walk from our apts? - ugh!)
Love,
Dawn
The jet lag is subsiding a bit, thank god, I still slept till 2pm but I think i'm starting to adjust, I haven't felt tired all day like I have been. Today was the second half of my survival Greek class, then I just walked around the city. I went back to the Plaka (but didn't take any pictures yet, will do that soon!), and promptly spent $45 euros - LOL. It was soooo nice! I walked by some old churches and temples - beautiful...Everywhere you walk there is something to see.
It was a little cool today, but I enjoyed the break, the past few days was around 107 or so! Tomorrow we are going to the beach :) And I just made plans to go to one of the Islands on Saturday - Aegina, I cannot wait for that. Yesterday I went to the travel agent to see about weekend traveling - OMG it's sooo cheap! For 3 days in Santorini (which is another of the Greek Islands) is only $85 euros (which is about $85 dollars) - that includes breakfast, accomodations, and transport! With me having no class on mon-wed, I think it will work out perfectly.
ok all, gotta go, will try to update during the weekend, if not Monday (while I do laundry - did I mention that the laundry stations are inthe academic center, which is a 30 min walk from our apts? - ugh!)
Love,
Dawn
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
Hello!
Ok, forget what I said about the jet lag not being bad, it's kickin my ass! I'm tired 24/7, my poor body doesn't know what time it is anymore - LOL. I'm not that hungry either, which is prob a good thing ;)
I went to the Plaka last night - which is near the Acropolis (right in the area of the old Agora, that is, market place). It's basically a huge tourist area with tons of open air shops and tavernas. You can actually see the Acropolis from there - I almost fainted when I saw it the first time, it was AMAZING!! It almost didn't look real to me, i'm so used to seeing it on a tv screen or in a book that I couldn't believe I was actually seeing it!!! We ate at a local taverna, I had my first taste of Greek cuisine! I played it safe and had a chicken souvlaki (which is basically a shish kebob), but it was good :) - next on my list is an authentic Greek salad!
We are going back today after our orientation to take pictures in the daylight...I'm not sure we will be going up the Acropolis today because we still have more orientation stuff to do, but I plan to do that soon as well....
Anyway, I miss you all - it's so good to see your emails, keep em coming - it truly makes my day!
love, Dawn
Ok, forget what I said about the jet lag not being bad, it's kickin my ass! I'm tired 24/7, my poor body doesn't know what time it is anymore - LOL. I'm not that hungry either, which is prob a good thing ;)
I went to the Plaka last night - which is near the Acropolis (right in the area of the old Agora, that is, market place). It's basically a huge tourist area with tons of open air shops and tavernas. You can actually see the Acropolis from there - I almost fainted when I saw it the first time, it was AMAZING!! It almost didn't look real to me, i'm so used to seeing it on a tv screen or in a book that I couldn't believe I was actually seeing it!!! We ate at a local taverna, I had my first taste of Greek cuisine! I played it safe and had a chicken souvlaki (which is basically a shish kebob), but it was good :) - next on my list is an authentic Greek salad!
We are going back today after our orientation to take pictures in the daylight...I'm not sure we will be going up the Acropolis today because we still have more orientation stuff to do, but I plan to do that soon as well....
Anyway, I miss you all - it's so good to see your emails, keep em coming - it truly makes my day!
love, Dawn
Tuesday, September 02, 2003
Hi Everyone!
I'm in here Greece!!! The flight was great, if any of you go overseas, take British Airways! They are the absolute best! I was lucky to get an aisle seat from Boston to London and a window seat from London to Athens...Both flights were smooth and I made my connection with no problems...Lugging my stuff wasn't too bad either, Heatrow had free luggage carts and I didn't have to walk to far from the luggage claim to the taxi station in athens.
God really blessed me with my apartment. I have a single room, which has a bed, a desk, a nightstand, tons of storage space, and a comfy chair (and air conditioning - yes!). There are only two of us in the apt, which is nice. The apt itself has two bedrooms, a small kitchen and a bathroom. We also have a balcony, which is nice...The only thing is that it is almost at the top of Lykavettos Hill, and it's a 30 min walk to the classes! I'm gonna be buff when I get back home! LOL
Classes start Monday...My schedule is great, I'm taking Adv Greek, Adv Latin, Site and Monuments of Athens, and Bronze Age Cultures. The great thing is I only have classes on tues-thurs: a class from 8:30-10:00, then 10:45-12:30, then from 3:15-4:45, then 5:00-6:30. WHich on the one hand its gonna be a long day, but I have a nice break between 12:30-3:15. Plus no class on Mon, Wed, and Fri!
Jet lag is not too bad, I slept till 3pm (Athens time), thinking it was only 8am (Athens is 7 hrs ahead), so i'm a little out of it - LOL - but other than that i'm doing ok. I really haven't had the chance to explore the city, but I will do that soon...
Well, for the next week i'llbe doing Orientation stuff, we have a lot of fun stuff coming up...Today I had a "Survival Greek" class, and later i'll have an Orentation/ Welcoming lecture to go to - "An Introduction to the CYA experience". Tomorrow I have registration and a meeting with the Student Affairs Officer. And another lecture - "An introduction to Greece and the Greeks". Then tomorrow night is a group dinner. Thursday I'll be taking the second half of my Greek class, and in the evening we will be going to an outdoor theater to watch a folk dancing show. Friday we go to the beach! We are going to Schinias Beach, which is on the plain of Marathon. I'll take lots of pics.
Ok, as soon as I get the software for my digital camera up and running, i'll download pics to my photo album....
Will post more soon - email me if you want to know more!
Love, Dawn
I'm in here Greece!!! The flight was great, if any of you go overseas, take British Airways! They are the absolute best! I was lucky to get an aisle seat from Boston to London and a window seat from London to Athens...Both flights were smooth and I made my connection with no problems...Lugging my stuff wasn't too bad either, Heatrow had free luggage carts and I didn't have to walk to far from the luggage claim to the taxi station in athens.
God really blessed me with my apartment. I have a single room, which has a bed, a desk, a nightstand, tons of storage space, and a comfy chair (and air conditioning - yes!). There are only two of us in the apt, which is nice. The apt itself has two bedrooms, a small kitchen and a bathroom. We also have a balcony, which is nice...The only thing is that it is almost at the top of Lykavettos Hill, and it's a 30 min walk to the classes! I'm gonna be buff when I get back home! LOL
Classes start Monday...My schedule is great, I'm taking Adv Greek, Adv Latin, Site and Monuments of Athens, and Bronze Age Cultures. The great thing is I only have classes on tues-thurs: a class from 8:30-10:00, then 10:45-12:30, then from 3:15-4:45, then 5:00-6:30. WHich on the one hand its gonna be a long day, but I have a nice break between 12:30-3:15. Plus no class on Mon, Wed, and Fri!
Jet lag is not too bad, I slept till 3pm (Athens time), thinking it was only 8am (Athens is 7 hrs ahead), so i'm a little out of it - LOL - but other than that i'm doing ok. I really haven't had the chance to explore the city, but I will do that soon...
Well, for the next week i'llbe doing Orientation stuff, we have a lot of fun stuff coming up...Today I had a "Survival Greek" class, and later i'll have an Orentation/ Welcoming lecture to go to - "An Introduction to the CYA experience". Tomorrow I have registration and a meeting with the Student Affairs Officer. And another lecture - "An introduction to Greece and the Greeks". Then tomorrow night is a group dinner. Thursday I'll be taking the second half of my Greek class, and in the evening we will be going to an outdoor theater to watch a folk dancing show. Friday we go to the beach! We are going to Schinias Beach, which is on the plain of Marathon. I'll take lots of pics.
Ok, as soon as I get the software for my digital camera up and running, i'll download pics to my photo album....
Will post more soon - email me if you want to know more!
Love, Dawn
