Going Greek

So it's time to begin this blog about my trip to Greece--but where to begin? I think I'll start with a little background info and then go day by day. I traveled to Greece with 2 other girls in my group, Ali and Sam. If you've been reading my blog, you've probably seen their names a lot, as they have become really good friends of mine since I've been in Spain. We were able to travel to Greece because we had a long weekend--no classes on Friday or Monday due to holidays. We traveled in Athens and also went on a day trip to Delphi--so here is the full rundown on the trip. Maybe grab a cup of coffee or a little snack...this may take a while to read. :)


Wednesday October 7th-Thursday October 8th

We depart Valencia at 8 pm on a bus to Barcelona, arriving in Barcelona at 12:30 am. From the bus station, we take a taxi to the airport where we wait out the night for our 6:25 am flight. We sat in a café at the airport, talking and playing cards until we were able to go to the gate. We flew from Barcelona to Rome. All three of us were asleep before the plane took off. After landing in Rome, we had a quick connection and then departed for Athens. We arrived in Athens around noon, and from the airport we took a taxi to our hostel, Athens Backpackers (www.backpackers.gr). We arrived at the hostel but couldn't check in, so we went to grab some lunch. We meandered through the street, soaking up the sun and the sights around us. We ate lunch in the Placa near the Acropolis, which was very close to the hostel. After lunch, we browsed in a few shops, before returning the hostel to check in. At the hostel, they told us we had been "upgraded" to the studios down the street that they also run (it was only a 2 minute walk), and that instead of sharing a 6 person dorm--we would have a 3 person room to ourselves! YAY! The studio was very nice and simple. 3 beds, a little kitchenette, and a bathroom. We crashed for an hour or so before heading out to explore. We were going to go to the Acropolis that night (it was around 5 pm), but when we arrived after walking through all the little streets, it was closing. So we took some pictures, kept walking and ended up at the Acropolis Museum. The museum was pretty awesome. Outside the museum, the floors were glass, and there were ruins under the glass, it was neat. The museum was filled with artifacts--statues, parts of buildings, pottery, etc. The entire time I was in the museum, I kept thinking how much my Dad would enjoy it, since he loves Greek and Roman mythology. All the artifacts were related to the Greek gods and the myths surrounding them.

After the museum, we went back to the hostel to go to the rooftop bar. We watched the sunset from the top of the bar and saw the Acropolis light up when it was dark. We also met some interesting people while we were there. We met people from Canada who were taking a semester off university, 2 guys from Australia who were taking a year off university, a married couple from Australia who had just visited Egypt, and a group of Australians in their late 30s who were doing a 2 month trip in Europe. In Australia, it's typical that people go out on a trip to explore the world once they reach a certain age. It was great talking with everyone. Then we went to dinner near the hostel. Sam and Ali both had Greek Salads, and I tried chicken soulvaki. There were 2 guys serenading the diners (both older gentlemen), and one of them loved Ali. He kept waving at us after songs, and then invited her up to sit with him while he sang. It was very funny. There is a photo in my album--plus a video of it may be on the way if I can figure it out. After finishing off some baklava with ice cream, we headed off to bed.


Friday October 9th

We woke up pretty early Friday morning, as we wanted to go to the Acropolis before going on a walking tour that was available at the hostel. We grabbed a quick breakfast and walked over to the Acropolis. Once we made it up to the Acropolis, it was really neat, but there were a lot of tourists--more than I expected at 8 am. Walking around in the Acropolis can prove to be a little difficult because the marble is very slippery--Sam, Ali, and I had a few moments where we almost fell. The Parthenon was impressive, but I wish I could see it without the scaffolding. They started this restoration in 1983 and the majority of the building had scaffolding on it. It didn't make for great pictures, but it was still a striking place. There are many buildings in the Acropolis complex, and I really enjoyed looking at the Erechtheum. I liked being able to see a building without scaffolding on it. After visiting the Acropolis, we went on a walking tour with our hostel. Our tour guide's name was Zoe, and she is half British, half Greek--born in the U.K. but has lived in Greece her whole life. She took us to the Temple of the Olympian Zeus, Parliament, the first Olympic Stadium, the markets, and a few other neat places. We didn't go inside them--but we were able to get some information about each place and then could come back if we wanted. After the tour, we went for lunch. Sam and Ali ordered kebabs, which were made of lamb and beef. I ordered 2 small things off the appetizer menu: cheese pie (self explanatory) and tzatziki, which is Greek yogurt mixed with spices and with lots of cucumber in it--you put it on bread. We shared the tzatziki, and I ate my cheese pie--plus Sam and Ali gave me parts of their kebabs. So I ate lamb AND beef--I think this will be shocking to some--and it wasn't half bad. We did some shopping in the markets after lunch, picked up some small things for my family. I think the most unique souvenir I bought was for myself. It is a bowl type thing made of olive wood and the bottom is engraved with my name in Greek. It's pretty cool, and I'm using it to hold my jewelry at night.

That afternoon we were going to take a bus to Sounio to see the Temple of Poseidon and the Temple of Athena--but the bus company was having a strike or something. Instead, we decided to head to the beach to watch the sunset. We took a tram to the beach, so we were able to see a large chunk of the town while on the tram. We arrived at one beach, took some pics, then hopped back on the tram to pick out a beach to watch the sunset. The sunset was BEAUTIFUL...one of the best I have seen in my life. It's magical watching the sun disappear into the water--plus we could see islands from the shore. It was captivating and just stunning. We ate a restaurant along the beach, and it was just peaceful.


Saturday October 10th

Saturday we took a day trip though our hostel to Delphi. It was a full day trip and everything was included in the cost. Our guide again was Zoe, which was a lot of fun. It was a 3 hour bus ride each way, but it was worth it. We had to stop along the way since the driver noticed something wrong with one of the tires. Luckily he caught it when he did, I don't know what would have happened it the tire blew when we were in the mountains. Delphi was where the most famous oracle was. (If you've seen the movie '300,' Leonidas goes to Delphi to visit the Oracle) It was also considered the 'navel' (belly button) of the Earth. Legend has it that if you touch the navel (there's a rock commemorating the spot), then you will have weird dreams. I touched the navel, and I had weird dreams that night. Slightly random...but neat all the same. Half of the site was closed due to falling rocks a week ago, but we were still able to see most everything, just not as close up. The Temple of Apollo is at Delphi, and that is where the Oracle would give her predictions. Leading up to the Temple of Apollo are many treasuries for city-states in Greece. It is where they held offerings to Apollo, and it was a way to thank the Oracle for her advice. Look it up online for more info about Delphi. There were amazing views from Delphi since it was up in the mountains--it reminded me a little of being in Colorado. We went to the museum at Delphi--very similar to the Acropolis museum. It had lots of artifacts found at Delphi--statues, bronze items, parts of the original buildings. The entire time I was in Greece looking at ruins, I was just in awe at how old everything was. I have never seen anything that old, and it crazy to think of how all the things were built at that time. Most of the places I saw were built in the 4th and 5th centuries BC. ¡Loco!

We had a picnic lunch near Delphi, and then headed into the town near the archaeological site. Arachova was the name of the town, and I guess it is a big skiing town in the winter. Zoe said that if you have money, and want to ski in Greece, it is THE place to be in the winter. The buildings in Arachova were beautiful. There were a few shops, and I picked up some honey. The town is famous for honey, cheese, and rugs. There were also a ton of cafes, but we just stopped at a bakery and got a little dessert. The ride back to Athens was uneventful, I looked through all the pictures I had taken so far and watched the videos too. That night we met up with Tatiana, who is the daughter of Sam's uncle's friend (if that makes sense). She was born in New York but has lived in Athens since age 7. We got drinks with her and just got to talk to her. She was a fascinating person--very 'high society' Greek to say the least. She also took us to a place to get dinner--which was delicious. It was the first restaurant we went to that they didn't speak English--so she ordered for us. After eating, we headed back to the hostel, stopping for dessert at the same restaurant where we were serenaded the first night and had yogurt with honey. It was so delicious and so simple. When we got back, I went to bed since I had an early flight, and Sam and Ali talked with some other people in the hostel. We ended up on different flights back to Barcelona due to some airline trouble that soured Friday night a little for us.

Sunday October 11th

I got up super early to catch my flight--Sam and Ali put me in a cab at 6 am and didn't see me again until 1 am in Barcelona. I took a cab to the station where I could take a bus to the airport. I watched the sunrise in the airport, and wrote in my journal the entire trip to Barcelona, which was direct. I got to our hostel in Barcelona that afternoon and explored a little bit of Barcelona, not too much since I will be there at the end of October with ISA. I went to a park that Gaudí designed, and it was beautiful. There were a ton of people there and lots of people selling items for cheap. There were also 2 people playing guitar, and they were phenomenal. You can hear them in the background of a short video I took of the place. Then I was back at the hostel writing in my journal, when the other people in our room arrived. We were staying in an 8-person dorm. I was so happy to meet them, since they were incredibly friendly. 3 girls who are studying in southwest Spain--and 2 guys who are both traveling independently in Europe. I ended up talking with them for a long time and hung out with them until Sam and Ali arrived. Then we slept and left for Valencia the next day.

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So that's it--all about my trip to Greece. Be sure to look at the pics. I took 450--but didn't put all of them up. More will be going up later this week once I share pics with Sam and Ali. Then there will be more pics of me and Sam and Ali. I'm going to try to make a video with all my videos thus far --so you can get a better idea of everything. All for now.