The Crop, Zeus, and a little soccer and dancing

Hello again,
It seems like it has been forever since I last updated but I had lots of wi-fi technical difficulties and we have been pretty busy enjoying ourselves too! First of all, Greece is amazing! I feel like I have been overusing that word a lot lately but I can't help it! But right now I will do my best to give a brief overview of all that I have been up to.
On Thursday we just kind of hung around the Plaka area and explored and ate gyros for 2 euros. It was described as "the california burrito of Greece," haha. They are so good and it is nice to save money on a cheap lunch every once in a while. Then we were supposed to go on a bus tour of Athens and then to dinner and a show. Unfortunately, there were protests going on where the bus tour was supposed to go so we had to walk to our Traditional Greek Dinner instead. But none of use minded too much. Dinner was SO MUCH FUN! We didn't have to pay, the food was great, and we got to dance with some Greeks! They invited some girls on stage and a group of us went up there to enjoy the experience! It was great, I personally loved it and went up there for a total of three times!

Dancing at our Traditional Greek dinner on Thursday night...So fun!


Jenay and I dancing and laughing...obviously


Saw this painted on a building on the way to our dinner.


Friday I was still trying to adjust to the 10 hour time change but I ended up waking up at 4am...again. But we took our short trek to the Acropolis.



It is crazy how close our studios are to it. It was breathtaking. I love looking at all of the ruins and the surrounding landscapes and imagining that the Greeks have been seeing a lot of the same things since before Jesus. While experiencing the brilliant, phenomenal structures of the Greeks, I felt like I couldn't even take it all in. The time, brilliance, and energy it took to build all those temples is mind boggling.

The Parthenon....SO amazing, completely breathtaking...like, words cannot describe.





Stairs in the Acropolis leading up to the Parthenon


After the Acropolis, we walked down some stairs and pathways to the ancient agora, which used to be a marketplace area. Both Paul and Socrates spent time there and it was surreal walking where they walked.

Looking up inside the 11th Century Byzantine Church of the Apostles in the Ancient Agora.


Just another view in the Agora


The steps to the Areopagus (Marx Hill) where Paul preached in Acts 17...Look it up!







Theatre of Herodus Atticus where theatrical, musical, and dance performances still take place.


Arches over the Herodus Atticus theatre at the Acropolis


Theatre of Dionysus: Dedicated to the god of wine and fertility, patron of drama, and the liberator of man from his everyday worries, it hosted the City Dionysia festival. Amongst those to have competed are all of the renowned dramatists of the classical era, such as Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes.


After this tour, we got lunch, watched some of the Office, and then met up with the group again to go to the Acropolis Museum. It was full of more artifacts and pieces of the temples.
Ruins under the Acropolis museum

After the museum, me, Jenay, Andy, and Garrett, explored more of the National Gardens park. We took some fun pictures too.

Artsy peace sign flowers picture


We also went to Zeus' temple which is next to the park and that was awesome as well! I was stoked that we decided to go there and was surprised that we were some of the only people there!

Zues' Temple






Later that night, we went to God's restaurant and had a group dinner which was also really fun. The waiters at the restaurant are hilarious, and often a little bit innappropriate...ha. After dinner, we went to the Paris outdoor, rooftop movie theater and watch a Greek movie but it was in English. It was called "Kings of Mykonos" and it was hilarious but the experience of the movie on the rooftop was awesome, we have already made plans to do it again when we get the chance. We all LOVED it!

Saturday, Jenay and I woke up a little early, sat on our balcony and talked and absorbed sunshine, then walked down the way to get some Greek yogurt at a cafe and to journal for a little bit. It was a really nice way to start off the day. Then we went back to the studios and got directions to what has been called "the best farmer's market in Athens." The four of us took the metro to the Monastraki area and find the right street. The market was busy and loud and probably the least tourist-y thing we have done so far. People hardly talked in English with us and many didn't even know English. We all bought some fresh produce for our "family Progressive dinner" on Monday. Jenay and I were in charge of making the Greek salad. One lady asked where we were from and when we answered, "The United States, California," she just laughed and started to walk away. It is eye opening to see how American's are viewed here.
We bought a soccer ball on the way home from the market and then decided to go check out the Olympic Stadium. We paid to get in and each received a headset to listen to as we went through. It was so interesting! Towards the end, we remembered that Andy still had the soccer ball in his backpack, so we figured..."why not play soccer at the olympic stadium right??"

Panathenaic Stadium
A stadium existed on this site from as early as 4th century BC, when it was used for ceremonies in honor of Athen, the patron goddess of the city of Athens. Roman governor Hadrian constructed a stadium at this site where gladiatorial contests were put on for the public. However, we played soccer when we were there for about 20 minutes before we heard them blow the whistle on us. How many people can say that they have played soccer in the original Olympic stadium? It was so great!


Jenay and I just chillin where royalty sat at the stadium


After the stadium, we went back and got ready to go to a Rufus Wainwright concert on Lykebettos Hill which is the highest hill in Athens. First we went to dinner with our whole group at the same place that sells 2 Euro gyros. We made it to Lykebettos Hill and the view was spectacular.

Christina, Jenay and I at the top of Lykebettos Hill right before we saw Rufus Wainwright in concert. The hill is the highest point in Athens and the view was absolutely beautiful. After we saw the concert, we walked a little bit to a church that was up there and saw the most beautiful 360 degree view of Athens. It was amazing!


The concert was really fun and the views were some of the best I will probably ever see in my life!


Alright, well I know that is only an update for a few days, but that is all I can do for you at the moment, it is 2:20 am here right now and I am multitasking doing this, and watching Avatar and I should probably stop doing both and just get some sleep! I will try to add another entry soon, but forgive me if I don't! Thanks for reading! Kali Nihkta! That means "goodnight" in Greek :)