Either the longest day, or shortest two days of my life!

June 1st/2nd Day 1/2

I MADE IT!

I woke up at 6:00 this morning to leave the house by seven. We left at 7:30. My first flight from San Jose to Portland was an easy, smooth transition. My second flight was from Portland to Amsterdam... nine and a half hours! It was kind of brutal but I was able to watch three movies which definitely helped pass the time. I watched the Book of Eli (yay Denzel), Dear John, and Valentine's Day. Book of Eli was pretty good, the other two not so much. I arrived in Amsterdam with less than an hour to make my connecting flight to Athens. Amsterdam airport was MADNESS! Right when I stepped off the plane I was blasted with not only tons of people, but with tons of different foreign languages...I was immediately humbled to feeling like a drop in the ocean. Luckily, I was able to find my gate but I ran pretty much the entire time, dodged people, and probably cut in line a few times. But there was no way i was going to endure a twelve hour layover by myself in Amsterdam with no cell service or computer haha. I made it to the gate and didn't have my boarding pass and I hadn't checked in either. But I had been told that as long as I make it to the gate on time, they can handle the rest. The women at the counter were probably a little bit frustrated with my "American-ness" but I made it on the plane so I was thankful.

After reading for a few hours, then dozing off for another hour, I lifted up the window shade to see the beautiful blue waters surrounding the Greek Islands...I am finally here! I must say it took a few hours for the realization to finally hit me. I was able to get all my stuff pretty seamlessly and I surprised myself with how efficiently I figured out the metro to get to my accommodations. Of course, I did have directions, but it was different trying to sort through the Greek to find the English. After being in Amsterdam, and here for just a few hours, I already REALLY wish I could speak another language! Sheesh, its awesome how everyone can switch in and out.

Right when I stepped out of the metro station, I was met with adorable cobblestone streets and roadside restaurants. There were people on vespas (yea cliche), people on bikes, and some crazy drivers as well. It is SO cute! Then I made it to the actual complex and checked in with my advisor who then took me to my apartment. I am the first one of our apartment here so I unpacked and showered and took a breather for a little.

Here are some picks of the cute apartment I get to live in with Jenay and Hilma for a month!

View from one of our balconies :)

Kitchen

We got the red living room! Cute!


My little section of our bedroom :)

Another view from a balcony. See? Note the guy on vespa haha


Once everyone arrived, we all met to go to dinner. We went to a Noodle Bar that Kathleen and GL had gone to before. It was really good and fairly cheap too! It was a great way for everyone to say hello to each other and get a little bit settled in.



On the way there and back, we passed some really cool sites. It was like I started to worry that I was not going to be able to take everything in! There is so much to see, and so much history to learn about and in a way, to be a part of that I wanted to try and capture as much as possible. I found myself having to try to relax and let the fact that we are going to be here for a month sink in.
Looks like southern Cali still right? haha


oh the boys, you know, workin it basically.

One of my roomies, the beautiful Jenay!

Parliament Building that had crazy guards out front but you can't see them in this picture.

An old church.


We went into a park and saw lots of fun stuff! Some really cool art pieces, an awesome bridge, and a ton of really entertaining birds, goats, and dogs. There were some beautiful peacocks too! Check out the cat in that picture haha. One thing we have noticed is how many dogs just wander around. We are careful not to pet them but we had one buddy who hung out with us while we were at the park. We named him Pez, don't ask me why, but he is pictured below.









Later we went to a rooftop party that overlooked the city. It was hosted by the company that we are staying with. It was pretty cool how it was all travelers from all over the world just hanging and chatting. The Acropolis is absolutely beautiful when it is all lit up at night. This picture doesn't do it justice.



Our group had some good laughs with each other, as well as watching some others dance...ohhh boy. We also decided that we are going to try and learn one Greek word or phrase every day we are here so that we will be able to have some Greek language down in order to appear more "cultured" haha. After an extremely long day/two days...I am ready to head to bed. So far, Greece is amazing. I know it can only get better. I am so thankful and thrilled to be here and hope to enjoy each moment! Until next time... :)