Blogs from Glyfa, Athens, Attica, Greece, Europe

During the weekends that we are in Athens with no trips planned, my roommates and I have been trying to come up with things to do so that we can get out of our apartment, see the city, and experience Greek culture. Of the many many museums in Athens, so far I have been to the Byzantine Art Museum (allows one to see the progression of Jesus’ figure from a blob to having a sculpted six pack and muscular arms and legs), Agora Museum (has all of the money/pottery/artwork found in the ancient Roman agora below the Acropolis), and the War Museum (loads of guns, artifacts, Nazi paraphernalia, and crazy Greek military outfits). The best part about these is that most of them are free to students or have student discounts. Also, anyone can get into ... read more

I finally know how Toula felt when she had to go to Greek school… My first day of classes at City Unity College was very interesting… My very first class was Astronomy, but I had some confusion as to when I was suppose to take it. There are 2 sections of this class, and the second section conflicts with another class I have, so I logically deduced that I must be in the first section. Well little did I know, the first section of Astronomy was in all Greek…let that sink in a bit. I walked into class and the was rambling on in Greek and I had no idea what to do. She asked me my name in Greek and I just looked at her with a blank stare…the other Astronomy was the English one. ... read more

Throughout the city of Athens and all of the archeological sites, many stray animals are present. The mayor of Athens actually provides food and collars for some of the stray dogs in the city. Stray cats are more prominent in the rural country settings, such as Delphi and Mycenae. Some of the strays appear to be healthy though, kind of like they belong to a town or city; they seem like the collective responsibility of everyone who comes in contact. Since most of these places are heavily visited by tourists as well as having a regular staff, these animals seem to have found the proper place to scavenge for food. Others, however, are not as lucky but seem get along. If you are friends with me on Facebook, this is why I have so many random ... read more

Yia su! Usually there is some sort of demonstration going on in Athens due to the current nature of current economic policy in Greece, but today was the first day the demonstrations affected how I spent my day. All of the public transportation workers went on strike, causing the metro, bus lines and trams to shut down; bright yellow taxi cabs were also nonexistent in the daily traffic. The police force was out with shields, tear gas, and machine guns, but most of this is strictly precautionary. Greeks usually (almost always) protest with nonviolence. Even though a chunk of the population owns automobiles, much of the population is dependent on public transportation, causing people to be late/unable to get to work/school, etc. This strike is a result of the austerity measures put into place by the ... read more

Kalimera! Friday I was finally able to be a tourist (even though I do technically live in Greece) and visit the antiquities of the ancient agora and Acropolis in Athens. Words or pictures cannot really describe what it is like to view the remains of the beginning of civilizations. The buildings and temples are of a much larger magnitude than I have ever imagined...I felt small in comparison. I stood in awe of these buildings as I tried to envision the ancient civilization in its glory. I wondered just who stood in the same places I did many centuries ago. Saturday I got to visit Dephi, and the antiquities relating to the Oracle of Delphi and Apollo's temple. The landscape was absolutely breathtaking. It actually was so beautiful I almost teared up. I think it is ... read more

Herete! (Hello) Today I had my first Greek lesson! I'm glad I finally learned some manners because I felt very ignorant walking around speaking in English and asking for things...the Greeks are much more helpful when one at least tries to use their language. Here is a short list of manners/phrases which are necessary: KalimEra: good day KalispAra: good afternoon KalinIKHta: good night (sounds kind of German...) HeREte: hi, hello, good bye Yia sou: hello (familiar) Yia sas: hello (formal) AdiO sas: good bye Ti kanEte: How are you? (formal) POli kAla: very well Eucaristw (ef-kal-ri-STOL) thank you Ke sas: And you? Pos sas lanEy: What's your name? Me lanEy: My name is... Para kalO: please/you're welcome Oxi: no nE :yes * Don't quote my spelling...most of it is phonetic, with the capital letter being the ... read more

Hello! After a day of flying, I was finally able to land in Athens at approximately 9 am. It was crazy to leave at 4 pm one day and show up somewhere else at 9 am the next day, with a loss of 7 hours. Also, jet lag is terrible. Every time I sit for more than 10 minutes, I start to doze off...that's not very polite to do during an instructional lecture in a foreign city whose native language sounds like gibberish. My survival Greek classes are later this week, but hopefully I pick up some manners beforehand, so I can at least be polite about my American ignorance. The sights, sounds, and smells of Athens are typical of any major city--some are pleasant, some are questionable, and others make you want to walk with ... read more

Every now and again we have clear out, where we strip everything out clean and repack. After a while things get misplaced and it helps have a reorganise, as we have gained things along the way, the lounger for instance. It has been pointed out to us on occasion ‘have we won the lottery’ . Sadly no, although travelling this distance seems extravagant we are working to a budget. Our largest expense is Diesel and accommodation. Diesel we can’t get around the costs. Most expensive? Switzerland and Albania cheapest so far, Montenegro. As for accomodation – We had budgeted for between £25=30 for camping per night. While travelling in Austria several people said ‘have you got your ACSI card?’ Well we hadn’t but promptly had one sent out to our next destination in Switzerland. This is ... read more