25 hrs, 5 modes of transportation and 1 hurricane later, I have arrived in GREECE! man, my journey leading up to this was quite the adventure and I'm grateful for the lessons it has taught me. For one, don't be friendly to the Syrian guy who uses the phrases 'estas bonita' on the airplane. Or don't meet up with friends from your program who say they live on a hill that takes 25 minutes to climb. And my favorite, try the local drink Ouzo, but don't feel obligated to try it more that once. All that and I've only been in Europe for a day and a half! I'm excited for all the lessons I will learn while here.
The time it took to get here was ridiculously long and tiring, but I was able to meet my first classmate, Anna. We're pretty much the best of friends already. It's unfortunate we don't live together, but she's only a 5 minute walk away. She goes to Wheaton and we're already planning trips to visit each other when we get back to the states. We were literally the last students to arrive to our program. I found comfort in knowing I wasn't the absolute only one. We quickly jumped into save money mode and opted for the bus instead of a taxi to drive us to our program. We paid € 2.5 instead of € 35 and man were we stoked on that. Plus, we got to learn a little more of the bus system. The walk to find our intended location came with a little difficulty, but it was a time to test our gully (as my brother Rhoan would say). Alas we found it and were given a super fast intro to everything.
Once we were given our packets, they took us to our apartments. Mine is located in Pangrati- literally 2 min walk from my school. score! I live in a quad and within the quad, I live in the double. It's nicer and bigger than Bowdoin doubles, so I'm happy. The apt overall is snug, but cute. Here are some pictures.
Anna and I were super hungry so needed some food. There's a darling place right next to our apts that sold the tasiest baguettes and cheese. Yay for first meal in Europe and Greece! Soon enough it was time for a dinner at the president's house- Garden Style! His house was insanely gorgeous and we all sat in the garden. SO awesome. The food was amazing and the wine here is incredible. LOVE IT! A few hours there went by then a bunch of us wanted to go out in the city. After deciding we found a sweet bar outside where we learned more about each other and had a wonderful time. I didn't get home until 3- way different from Bowdoin where everything is done by 1. I slept 13 hours before I woke up the next day at 4p.m. but never left my bed until 8p.m. Talk about jet lag! We had a dinner at the most wonderful roof top. They gave us a sweet college deal that meant we had about 7 different dishes for € 10. I was so content and everything I tried was delicious. Some dishes were pork, spring rolls, potatoes, beans and the most tasty watermelon! Gah, I love the food here. It's better than most things I've had back home.
After a 4 hour dinner- even long for a Bowdoin student- we headed to a bar called Absinthe. I stayed away from drinking tonight, but my roomies went for the Absinthe. That stuff is no joke. I tried a baby sip and it burned my lips. Yeah, I shall be staying away from that stuff. I've already tried Ouzo and that's gross enough for me. Hey, I've tried and now know I don't like it in the least. Tomorrow I think I'm going to do some grocery shopping and exploring the area. I really love where I'm living and it's so fun getting to know people from schools all over America.
The time it took to get here was ridiculously long and tiring, but I was able to meet my first classmate, Anna. We're pretty much the best of friends already. It's unfortunate we don't live together, but she's only a 5 minute walk away. She goes to Wheaton and we're already planning trips to visit each other when we get back to the states. We were literally the last students to arrive to our program. I found comfort in knowing I wasn't the absolute only one. We quickly jumped into save money mode and opted for the bus instead of a taxi to drive us to our program. We paid € 2.5 instead of € 35 and man were we stoked on that. Plus, we got to learn a little more of the bus system. The walk to find our intended location came with a little difficulty, but it was a time to test our gully (as my brother Rhoan would say). Alas we found it and were given a super fast intro to everything.
Once we were given our packets, they took us to our apartments. Mine is located in Pangrati- literally 2 min walk from my school. score! I live in a quad and within the quad, I live in the double. It's nicer and bigger than Bowdoin doubles, so I'm happy. The apt overall is snug, but cute. Here are some pictures.
Anna and I were super hungry so needed some food. There's a darling place right next to our apts that sold the tasiest baguettes and cheese. Yay for first meal in Europe and Greece! Soon enough it was time for a dinner at the president's house- Garden Style! His house was insanely gorgeous and we all sat in the garden. SO awesome. The food was amazing and the wine here is incredible. LOVE IT! A few hours there went by then a bunch of us wanted to go out in the city. After deciding we found a sweet bar outside where we learned more about each other and had a wonderful time. I didn't get home until 3- way different from Bowdoin where everything is done by 1. I slept 13 hours before I woke up the next day at 4p.m. but never left my bed until 8p.m. Talk about jet lag! We had a dinner at the most wonderful roof top. They gave us a sweet college deal that meant we had about 7 different dishes for € 10. I was so content and everything I tried was delicious. Some dishes were pork, spring rolls, potatoes, beans and the most tasty watermelon! Gah, I love the food here. It's better than most things I've had back home.
After a 4 hour dinner- even long for a Bowdoin student- we headed to a bar called Absinthe. I stayed away from drinking tonight, but my roomies went for the Absinthe. That stuff is no joke. I tried a baby sip and it burned my lips. Yeah, I shall be staying away from that stuff. I've already tried Ouzo and that's gross enough for me. Hey, I've tried and now know I don't like it in the least. Tomorrow I think I'm going to do some grocery shopping and exploring the area. I really love where I'm living and it's so fun getting to know people from schools all over America.
wow that bathroom is sick. and don't drink absinthe. icky. glad you're finding some great bargains. it's weird how similar our experiences are with the food!
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