Our Odyssey and The Iliad

“No man or woman born, 

coward or brave, 

can shun his destiny.” 

― Homer, The Iliad

We've been here a little over three weeks. I can hardly believe it! It continues to baffle me that I am actually in Greece of all places. It's a beautiful country with an exciting history, a charming culture, and delicious food. I'm in an olive, tomato, and wine lover's heaven. However, I've never been away from South Dakota this long before. This week, I found myself hit with a small bout of homesickness. Perhaps this is what culture shock feels like. The following is a passage is from a message I sent Bobby, when I was feeling particularly melodramatically helpless:

"I miss having a home in the states and I miss my sweatshirt and I miss taco bell. I miss watching tv with you and being able to read directions on the back of packages. I miss my bed and my clothes and my car and my books. I miss being able to see plays in english. I miss the theater department and not being judged for eating a burger with my hands."  

I assure you, I am still incredibly grateful to be here, but since this is a major part of the study abroad process, I thought it important to share. But on to the adventures of last Saturday. I'm starting to actually have homework and projects now, so forgive me for the prolonged post.

Our Odyssey and The Iliad

Saturday was an adventurous day, 
An Odyssey, one girl might say!
We made some plans to hit the town,
The Athens Mall and a theater round.

The day began in quite a fuss

Amanda, Jess, Anna, Debbi

We couldn't seem to find the bus! 
But thankfully the Lord did see
And sent some helpers straight to me.

The first, a graduate of our school,
Sent us to the right bus - super cool!
The second, come from Cuban dance class,
Walked us from the train - how very badass!

Once in the mall, we were very shocked,
Been weeks since we so comfortably walked.
Felt like home with burgers in hand,
(Of knives and forks, Europeans are a fan).

JOY

Shopped a lot and spent a little too much,
Greeks are such a fashionable bunch!
Amanda gave us a ride back,
Of skills, this Brazilian does not lack.

Then back on the Metro, we felt so great,
We knew we'd make it to the Iliad by eight.
One stop here, a transfer there,
Public transportation can take you anywhere!

Getting to Kallithea. 

Giggling and chatting, we had such fun,
We could make friends with anyone!
But alas, very soon, the train got tense,
A man upset with his bike? It made no sense.


But all was fine, we got off at our stop,
Just in time - that man got hot!
The doors were closed, but we had a hunch
That we totally saw someone take a punch!

...That's the only time I have ever been 
Uneasy about my safety in Athens.

Alas! We were lost! And no one could care
How much we don't want to pay taxi cab fare. 
Nothing looks like it did on Google maps,
And in Greece we don't have any data or apps.

In Kallithea, but we were so lost,
We had to give in to that taxi cab cost.
We tried to fit five of us in one small car,
He kicked two of us out - we were not getting far.

We arrived at the theater! But all was in Greek.
And looking around, we caught not a peek
Of Ancient Greek set up. We followed in line
And finally we entered the warehouse on time.

Expectation...

Reality!

Yes, I said warehouse, but it was fantastic!
And trust me, I'm not being the least bit sarcastic.
But after three hours, my friends were so done
And in English told me they were suckers of fun.

So back in the streets of Kallithea we went
To a cab to a metro and home we were sent
We stopped for a gyro at the restaurant called "MILF" *
(I know. But chill out and mind away from such filth.)

It was the best Chicken Souvlaki we have yet had.
But the fact that our big day was ending was sad.
Two girls got seconds, then we bid our goodbyes.
Our Odyssey was epic and nobody died. 

Jess, Amanda, Anna, Carissa: sucking fun.

The End. 

(tumultuous applause)










In Other News: Anna and I have still been incapable of locating some ground beef. However, we are super satisfied by the excellent fresh produce selection at the weekly farmer's market and we don't think we'll ever be able to go back to American Greek yogurt. Classes have really started to kick off for me! My favorite is Voice and Speech, though I love all the others as well. Graduation date is officially being pushed to December 2014. 

We have also booked flights to England and Italy in November. We are seeing Matilda and Billy Elliot in London and then we plan on checking out Bath, Stratford-upon-Avon and the famous Royal Shakespeare Company, possibly Stonehenge, and Canterbury (I just finished reading the tales in English class!). We also hope to hook up with my dear cousin Hillary who's been attending graduate school in England because she's ridiculously cool. In Italy, we will land in Milan and head over to Cinque Terre and then we are not sure where else. As far as flights go, here is a TIP: Easyjet.com is an excellent source for booking cheap flights in Europe! However, do it early early early early. Hence, why we are going in November. 

However, to those of you who have already traveled through Greece, England, and Italy, please post your advice for things and places Anna and I need to see! We are still lost and learning about this whole adventuring thing - we are currently facing the challenge of coordinating things like activities and hostels. I'm also slowly learning what it is like to be poor. Sending many gratitude prayers toward my parents and their support of this journey! 

Thanks so much for taking the time to read about our adventures!

Σας αγαπάμε! (Sas agapáme: We love you!)
*MILF: Meat I Live For. Yeah, I know it's not much better....