Day 18

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Day 18: Argostoli

I got up at 6:20am this morning, even earlier than a school day!!! But it was worth it because we were going to Argostoli! We met up with everyone (13 of us) at the apartment stairs and headed to the bakery before we walked to the bus stop (less than 10m away from the bakery). One girl went to the ATM to take out money, and we were suppose to meet her at the bakery; but the bus pulled up while we were at the bakery doors, so in a panic we bolted for the bus. We all made it, except for the girl at the bank. At the bus we asked if it went to Argostoli, and the bus driver signaled us to jump in. Fortunately, the bus looped around and made it, as originally planned at the same bus stop at 7:30am; where we picked up the other 4 of our crew who were running late and the girl who was at the bank. We never ended up getting breakfast at the bakery in Poros, but once we disembarked from the bus in Argostoli, we had our pick of bakeries there!

Once in Argostoli, we went into the first bakery we saw. I grabbed a cherry and apricot croissant filled with custard for breakfast. It was delicious and filling, it even makes my mouth water as I think about it now. I tried a bite of this other girl’s cheese and bacon pie (filo pastry filled with bacon slices and cheese) and I instantly knew I wanted it for lunch later. We agreed we’d all come back to that bakery to grab lunch at 1pm before we left for Poros again; it was fairly close to the bus depot so we figured we’d have time for another meal there. After our breakfast break, we started shopping. It was a good sign; the first shop we hit had everything on sale, for less than 30 euro. I bought a grey Beatles tank top, fit for digging or just wearing on causal days, for only 3 EU! About 4 of us got the same top, in different colors, so we’ll match at the excavation site! Once everyone was done, we decided we’d all just meet up at 1pm at the bakery for pastries and a Haagen Daas desert (since some people are faster and slower shoppers than others). I found a nice bathing suit for 15 EU at this one store that had a lot of nice things on sale! But it was a little to stringy and skimpy for my style so I didn’t get it. My friends bought some MC Hammer pants, scarves, onesies etc… As we continued we lost more and more of the group, but we stayed in smaller groups. I ended up shopping with the other Stephanie on our trip; I bought a nice dress for 15 EU, and some cute souvenirs. She bought a new bag because her straps had broken off just then, and some souvenirs for her family too. We bumped into a few others near the end, so we ventured back to the bakery together. We stopped by a pharmacy-type store. Some girls were looking for shamppo, and I was looking for some calamine lotion. During the day I started to notice about 7 mosquito bites on my legs (2), feet (3) and arms (2); I must have gotten them from pottery washing outside yesterday and watching the movie and pizza. We left the doors open and I was only in flip flops, jeans and a tank top. Next washing/movie night I will definitely be bringing a long sleeve, shoes and bug repellant! But I didn’t get any at the pharmacy; the bottle was much too big, so I decided I’d ask Jerry, our personal and Poros-local pharmacist for some. I hope he’s got smaller bottles so I won’t have to bring it home with me later.

So at 1pm everyone was at the bakery grabbing lunch, then we made our way to the Haagen Daas restaurant for icecream. Some girls had fancy crepes, shakes, smoothies and layered deserts with ice cream, but I just had a simple single scoop. It was delicious and all I needed as a sugar pick-me-up; banoffee (banana with toffee/caramel and cookie pieces). We finished around 1:30pm and headed to the bus depot. We were told to get there before 2pm, so we followed those suggestions. We waited for about 25 minutes before our bus pulled up. He said it went to Poros, so we paid our 4.50 EU fare and boarded. He told us later that we had to get off the bus and transfer onto another bus that was waiting behind us. We were in a large enough group that we followed his words and got onto anther bus. Fortunately he was right and we got to Poros in no time! Isabelle and I got off near the post office and bought some groceries for the week (fresh veggies, fruits, meats, cheeses and yogurt! Yummy!). Then we headed back to the apartments and unloaded.

We were suppose to have a scheduled Greek review session, but because our exam date has been pushed back a week, we don’t have an exam next Friday, so we didn’t need a last minute study session with our prof. Instead, we agreed with our prof that we’d just take the night easy and relax. Isabelle and I stopped by a souvenir shop by our apartments to buy a few more things and then we came back home. I put some laundry to soak and washed/hung them before Isabelle, went through some emails, and got ready for dinner. At 7:30pm Isabelle came down and Lisa knocked on my door, asking if she could hang her laundry on my patio since it had started to rain; I offered her my clothes line and patio to dry clothes since mine has a covered ceiling and hers doesn’t. So we hung our laundry to dry, and Lisa joined us for dinner at Kentripos for cheap 2 EU gyros 😊 They were delicious as usual, and we ordered a Fanta to share between Isabelle and I. For desert, since we’re regular customers, the hostess brought us cut cantaloupe and apples with honey as a complimentary desert.

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