MY FIRST TWO DAYS

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Well, I finally made it to Greece after six months of waiting, wondering, and fantasizing about what it would be like. Of course it is nothing like I imagined (in a good way though). In all honesty I am kind of surprised that I even got here. My last two weeks at home were filled with one mishap after the other. Two weeks before my departure I realized that my passport had been accidently thrown away as I moved out of my old apartment. Around the same time I also realized that my FBI background check, which is needed to obtain a visa, was going to take an extra 2 weeks to be finished and returned to me. Add this to the 12 weeks I had already spent waiting (the FBI website and it's operators will assure you 8-10 weeks is the MAXIMUM wait time) and needless to say I am not on good terms with those people. As a result I was unable to secure the student visa I need to stay in Greece more than 90 days. Then my old landlord decided it was a good time to falsify claims of unpaid gas bills and criminal investigations, as well as withhold our deposit far longer than he should have. To add to the stress, two nights before my scheduled departure I discovered that my STA Travel information was incorrect and my name had been misspelled on my airline tickets. Add two flat tires to the equation and this all made my last week in Chicago one of the most hectic and stressful of my life. Oh, and just incase I thought it was all over once we were in the air, British Airways made sure they got in on that action and as a result of delays we missed our connecting fight to Greece from London. Did I mention it was my birthday? Nothing like spending your 21st in foreign airports super tired and semi-buzzed from plane wine and Strongbow, let me tell you. If you haven’t tried it you are missing out! So when we finally did get to Athens, it was about 8:30pm local time and about 7 hours later than we had planned. But, I’m here now and aside from the visa issue (kind of a big deal) none of that matters I suppose.

Our first two days here were filled with nothing but sort of awkward and totally forced social interaction situations, in which all 125 or so of us had no choice but to participate. I hate stuff like that, so for me it consisted of a lot of handshakes and introductions but nothing substantial. I prefer meeting people at my own pace and getting to know them outside of forced school outings. On a positive note, the staff at CYA has been very accommodating and helpful. I spent what little of the first night I had left after our late arrival here getting settled and then over in the apartment across the street from mine, were some very cool and friendly people live (Mike too). I have had the most fun so far just exploring the city with some other students. It is such a different place than anywhere I have ever been, yet so amazing at the same time. In my first week I went grocery shopping, cooked a few meals, sampled some local Taverna’s and bars, and spent entirely too much time at the local gyro shops. I have yet to try spending some time at a local cafe, which is a favorite pastime of the Greeks I am told. I have also sunk a large portion of my weekly budget into bakeries, which can be found no more than 100 yards apart from each other lining every street in Pangrati. Pangrati is the name of the neighborhood my apartment is located in. They house the students here in two different neighborhoods, the other is named Kolonaki. While Kolonaki is the much ritzier of the two, the Lincoln Park of Athens, it is also a 20 minute walk from campus. With this in mind I am glad to be living where I am, one block away from all of my classes and daily free lunch.

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