miercoles, 5 de junio

I woke up Wednesday and the first thought I had was that we only have one week left in Valencia.  I can't believe the trip has flown by so fast and I am becoming more and more sad.  We had another normal class day and the weather has finally been very nice, which makes it that more tough to sit through class.  We returned home to a nice American lunch prepared by Jamel.  He made us hamburguesas, fries, and a salad.  It was a very nice change of pace for lunch.  After lunch Jen and I put off our homework as usual and delved into the books we're reading for fun.  It's difficult to get homework done when you caught up in a good book and that's all you want to do :)

Hamburgers on baguette bread

After we got some work done we went for a little stroll to the Plazas to get out of the house for a bit and check out some shops.  One thing I will definitely miss is having everything within walking distance and so many options of places to hang out and things to do.  We got a few things and headed back home to spruce up a bit for the night.  Gemma made us a tortilla con carne y queso and it was the perfect thing for dinner and not too heavy, which was nice.

Tortilla de carne y queso

We then headed out for the night to meet up with our group.  We were supposed to meet with Jake and John before going to meet the rest of the group but they got out of dinner later than expected so me and Jen gave up waiting for them and found a cute little tapas place where you could sit at the windowsill on the sidewalk.  When we met up with the group at the Plaza, a few people had found a cheap bar where you can get large classes of cervesas or sangrias for one euro so we decided to go there.  "Barrato" is the new motto for the rest of the trip for the group...meaning cheap!  It was a cute place and very lively so we hung out there for a while before heading to good ole Radio City again.

Small bar on the corner

Bebidas barratos

We ran into the boys from Hampden Sydney and this go round was more of what we expect from "their crowd."  A handful of them were genuinely nice people and fun to be around but the others were the typical stereotype so we steered clear of them for the night.  We hung out at Radio City for the rest of the night before heading home.  It's so interesting to me that the bars and clubs in the area play more American music than anything else, so that's always a fun time.  After Radio City we took a taxi home to get ready for class the next morning.

On the taxi ride home

martes, 4 de junio

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We were back to our daily grind Tuesday and started our day as usual with some good ole peanut butter toast and zumo de pina y uvas.  Our classes were all as they usually were, just normal conversations in Spanish and went over our English proposals.  We got out a little early to have extra time to work on our proposals so that was a nice change.  Jen and I returned home after school to a lovely lunch prepared by Jamel.  He made small meatballs, corquetas de pollo, patatas fritas, una ensalada, pan, y arroz blanco.  As always it was a ton of food and Jen, but of course by now we are experts at making it look like we ate more than we actually have.  We messed around with the salad and pile of bread to make it look like we ate some, when in reality we hadn’t even touched it, even though all the food was very good.

After lunch we gathered our things and went to the Royal gardens around the corner.  We worked on some homework there while getting our tan on at the same time.  It was much easier to get there than bother with the production of getting to the beach.  We stayed there a few hours before heading back home to spruce up before meeting with our intercambios.  Jake and John’s intercambios met with ours again and we all went back to the place we went the week before.  Getting there was much easier this go around because we didn’t make wrong turns…surprising, I know.  We ended up hanging out for a good 3 hours at the tapas place and it was just like we had all known each other for years.  We were making jokes and teaching each other slang in both Spanish and English. 

Intercambio Carlos

Grupo de todos

We headed home and Sam, one intercambio, walked back with us and come to find out she lives on our same street!  She was so sweet and easy to talk to.  She said her dream is to live in the U.S for a summer with a family because she really wants to practice English more and learn all about the culture.  Jen talked with her the whole way back in Spanish and she kept complimenting the two of us on how helpful we are and how sweet we are to everyone.  She said she wished she had met us weeks ago because she wishes she could’ve hung out with us more.  We got home and Jen and I immediately became sad when we realized we only have a week left and want to make extra time to hangout with Sam.

Sam y Lorzeno

We have really lucked out with everything this trip and we can’t get over how much we are going to miss the entire group of intercambios.  When we got home we worked on more homework and talked with the Italian ladies for a little about Greece.  Gemma and Jamel had gone out to a tapas festival near Benimaclet and invited us but we were bummed we couldn’t go because we had already committed to our intercambios, but it was definitely just as fun. 

Weekend in Greece - Day 4

Our last day had arrived and we were not ready to leave.  Jen and I woke up a little earlier because we wanted to try out the bakery up the street everyone was talking about.  I got a decadent ham and cheese croissant that hit the spot.  The bus picked us up from the hotel and it was about a 40 minute ride to the airport.  We got to see the first ever Olympic Stadium on our way there, which gave me chills to see.  Getting to the airport was easy and we had a little time to kill so we grabbed lunch at a good ole Greek McDonald’s.  Many of us tried a “Greek Mac” which looked like a gyro in the picture but ended up being basically two hamburger patties with lettuce and tomato on a pita bread with a sauce that Jen said reminded her of ranch.  Nevertheless it was still good and fun to say we ate Greek McDonald’s.

 

First Olympic Stadium

Greek McDonald's

Our first flight thankfully was much smoother than the trip in.  I lucked out again and got the window seat so I had perfect views of the coast, crystal clear water just like the movies.  The flight was much better in general and thankfully we didn’t run into turbulence this go around.  We had about an hour layover in Zurich so we just hung out for the most part and waited to board.  This flight was better as well with a little turbulence because it was very cloudy out but once again we were all thankful it was nothing like last time.  Once we gathered all our stuff, our next adventure of getting home began.

Beautiful Views of Greece from above

Jen, Jake, John and myself all stuck together to take the metro home.  We were looking around for how to get there and while we were, nearly the rest of the group accumulated looking for it too.  It was quite funny to see all of us so confused because we could not figure out how to go “downstairs” to the metro.  Eventually I saved the day J and figured out what the arrows and everything meant and we found the station.  Well we may have found the station and got our tickets but we got on the wrong metro.  But of course we did not figure that lovely detail out until Jen looked at the sign and saw a few stops were skipped.  It all made sense because when we entered the metro I had said we had 15 minutes until it arrived, but the rest of the group got on the one that was sooner, so of course we just followed.

We all made the executive decision to get off at the stop when we realized we were wrong and it took a little while to figure out our where abouts on the map.  When we did the boys took the initiative to lead us home, I’m near positive they had no idea where we were going but they insisted they knew, so we just went with it.  It took about 30 minutes to walk home from where we were but we eventually made it home around 9.  Gemma made us pasta carbonara while we unpacked, which we were veryyy excited for.  After dinner we organized our stuff a little then headed off to bed to catch up on all our rest from such a great weekend. 

Weekend in Greece - Day 3

Sunday morning was what I had been the most excited about.  This was the day we were going to the Acropolis!  We woke up early again and this morning had the free breakfast which actually wasn’t that bad.  I tried a boiled egg and actually liked that too.  The Acropolis was only about a 10-minute walk from our hotel and even early in the morning, the crowds began to multiply.  We started off by going to the main entrance and the views were indescribable.  You could see all of Athens from every angle with the Parthenon above.  We continued to climb the perfectly constructed marble steps until we were at the top.  The first thing we saw and talked about was a temple dedicated to Athena which sat in front of and a little below the Parthenon.  

Temple for Athena

Next was the actual Parthenon and the pictures I have seen do it no justice.  It was so large and the columns were beautiful.  We learned that not a single column was alike and every one were built to bow out, so that the illusion was created that they were perfect, even though not a single one had a straight line.  Because each column is different, the architects have a difficult time building it all back together. 

"Greeks" in Greece

Parthenon

KDs in front of Parthenon

We had the chance to wander around the entire area and got to take a lot of pictures.  Once again it was a time for me that I could not believe because I remember learning about these subjects back in elementary school.  It was very exciting to be able to relate what I’ve learned and be able to see it in person. 

After the area of the Acropolis we started to go down to the Agora, which was like a public square back in the day.  Along the way there was a rock formation, which is dedicated to the Apostle Paul for his missionary work.  We climbed to get another beautiful view of Greece and of the Agora from above. 

Stairs to climb to reach top of rock

Rock formation dedicated to Apostle Paul looking over the Agora to the right

The Agora had a large-scale covered patio with columns along each side with a museum on the inside.  We explored around for a little before being let off on our own.  A small group of us went to lunch at a café where I got a gyro.  It was hands down one of the best meals I have had on this trip so far.  It came in a metal tin with pita on the sides and the pork on top of all the toppings.  The pork was perfectly cooked and seasoned and the tdaziki sauce was on point too.  After lunch we all wandered around the little tables set up of trinkets and souvenirs to buy.  It was interesting to see because many tables had clearly stolen goods and a majority were selling just junk.  We passed through these tables quickly and got to the good souvenir shops.  Mixed throughout the tables and cafes were the men selling the “stolen” Louis Vuitton bags and sunglasses.  I haggled one man for a pair of sunglasses and got them for my appropriate price of 7 euros…I’m good at my job :) and then Jen did some good haggling as well.  The other girl we were with got a wallet for 5 euros when the guy originally wanted 20, she learned from the best ;)

Tdzaziki sauce, tomatoes, lettuce, onion, pork, french fries, pita bread= real Greek Gyro

Of course a day can’t end without a little excitement.  Dr. Goetz told us to follow the shops to the end of the road and it would lead us to where our hotel was.  Well that was definitely not the case.  We ended up getting turned around and walked past one restaurant 3 times after going up and down hills and around winding streets.  We pulled over and finally looked at the map after a good 20 minutes of just laughing at our issues and getting lost, good ole Lewis and Clarke for ya.  When we finally made it back home we took time to relax and read on the balcony for a bit before getting ready for dinner with everyone.

We started off our night with the girls meeting up at the roof top bar that had a perfect view of the Parthenon at night.  It was a perfect view of everything and once again beautiful.  After the roof top we all met up for dinner, which wasn’t as smooth going as the night before but ended up working out.  I was really craving good pasta but settled for a pizza.  When I got the pizza it looked like a bowl with just melted cheese on top and some tomatoes.  I was a little confused when I received my meal but Jen quickly stabbed it with her knife and discovered that indeed there was crust underneath all the cheesy goodness.

Strange couple from the bus to the left

Parthenon at night

My "pizza"

The end of the table we were at enjoyed some games of hangman and tic-tac-toe while waiting for our food and dessert.  Always a fun time :)  April and I had our dream fulfilled of eating baklava in Greece and it was so much better than I have ever had in the United States.  After dinner a few people had grand plans of going to some club which required the metro to get there and a taxi ride, which was ridiculous given that we were in a foreign country, thankfully my room along with nearly the rest of the group were not down for that.  Clearly some people in our group just don’t think too logically.  So the group split up and we wandered around the few blocks within our hotel distance.

April and John at dinner

BAKLAVA!

We were all just hanging out enjoying the area and we ended up running into our professors, which was quite entertaining.  It was funny to see them so much more relaxed when out on their own, and it was actually kind of fun to hang out with them for a few minutes.  After they left we slowly started to go back to our hotel.  The people we were with ended up just all hanging out in our room while a few went down to hang out at the bar.  Come to find out the “gung ho” group who wanted to go to the club didn’t end up going and ended up at our bar at our hotel…as we suggested in the first place.  Anyways we all hung out a bit before going back to just chill in our room because it was the largest.  We all shared laughs and stupid stories before heading off to bed.  It was weird yet cool to see how close we have all become, because all hanging out together that night felt like we had all been friends for years, when it was really only for 2 weeks for most of us.  

Weekend in Greece - Day 2

Saturday morning was rough getting up, given that I only had about 5 hours of sleep.  The hotel provided a free breakfast that consisted of two fresh rolls and two boiled eggs.  We were told there were cafes nearby with croissants and pastries but we weren’t able to find a single one.  So when we spotted Dr. Holliday going around the corner Jen took off after him to see where he was going.  While searching for him some nice old man at a café asked her if she was looking for something and she replied, “yes breakfast quick!”  The man hurried off while she came to retrieve me from the hotel and we went to the café.  The little man was so cute and he kept offering us café while we waited.  He cooked us a perfect egg with fresh sliced tomatoes on the side.  I know I keep saying it but these were honestly THE BEST tomatoes to date, I have never seen a tomato so red and perfect, I was so excited.  This was breakfast from heaven for me.  On top of that, he gave us an entire loaf of bread to feast on as well.

After breakfast our group all congregated in the lobby to walk to the bus to take us to Delphi.  The bus ride was about a 3-hour ride and we shared the bus with 5 other people on the tour.  All the people except two sat in the font, where normal adults sit, but one couple took the back row and hung out with our group.  It was kind of weird for us but the group just brushed it off and went with it.  Well we were right that the situation was weird…the couple definitely had a few screws loose.  The bus had to pull over about an hour into the trip so the lady could use the bathroom but we were all convinced she had to go do drugs or something fishy really quick.  The lady was in platform wedges probably 3 inches tall with a low cut shirt with long sleeves, all black, and high waisted shorts that her butt was hanging out of…clearly something was not right because we were going to ruins where you climb rocks…straight dumb.

Beautiful views to Delphi

The bus stopped another 30 minutes later for the scheduled break we were supposed to have and I tried a Greek pastry with cheese in the middle that was heated perfectly.  It was the perfect snack.  When we finally arrived at Delphi we were broken up into groups and had a student from the History 100 class lead us and tell us about the different spots of the ruins.  John was our tour guide and we had a perfect group of five people.  Grupo Numero Uno! – Our slogan for the day.  He showed us everything from the Temple of Athena to the Stadium where races were held and the theater of the Greeks.  Everything was so cool to experience and it was so cool to think that I was walking where those famous Greeks used to as well. 

Hanging out at the rest stop

Grupo numero uno!

Jake and I at the ruins

After wandering around the ruins for a few hours we headed back into the small winter skiing town for a picnic lunch.  After lunch we had some time to walk through the rest of the town and do some shopping.  Most stores were closed because it was there off season but the ones we found were good finds.  The entire bus met back up at 5 to start our drive home, but of course problems arose.  The lovely couple from the back row were late to begin with and not only that, the lady “lost” her passport.  We had to drive back through the town to each store and bar they went to so the boyfriend could look for it.  The last place was the place they ate at and the guy came back on the bus with, not her passport, but her entire purse.  We were all thinking what this lady could’ve been on to leave a huge purse in the open at a bar.  Dr. Goetz was pretty funny because she kept making comments while talking to us like “well while we’re wasting time, lets talk about Greek food” because she along with the rest of us were all annoyed with this couple.  

Town of Delphi

We finally got back to the hotel around 8:30 and everyone showered and got pretty to go to dinner at 10.  While looking for a place to eat, we got stopped by a man from a restaurant who offered us either a free drink or 10% off of our meal so we decided to eat there.  Christine and I shared an appetizer of Gruyere cheese with tomatoes and herbs wrapped in filo dough and baked.  And for dinner I tried moussaka.  Moussaka is kind of similar to lasagna but made with eggplant, potatoes, and meat layered on top with a béchamel sauce on top of it all and baked to perfection.  I loved my entire meal.

Gruyere Cheese

Moussaka

After dinner we wandered around looking for a bar to hangout and dance at.  We found one place called Tiki but the prices were ridiculous so many of us just decided to call it a night.  After a day full of walking and another day ahead of us, my entire room went back and we hung out a little before all crashing to sleep.

Weekend in Greece - Day 1

Friday morning finally arrived and it was time to begin our journey to Greece!  Gemma packed us lunch and dinner to take on the plane which consisted of a ham and cheese bocadillo and a carton full of the rice dinner from the night before...I could not bring myself to eat that so we stopped by the cafe across the street so I could get a good brunch to hold me over.  I had a tortilla de patatas bocadillo and it was just perfect before meeting up with Jake and John to take the metro to the airport.  The group all was on time, for once, and we checked in.  I lucked out and got a window seat on both flights so I was very happy.  When it was finally time for our flight to Zurich we were all ancy to get going...but after the take off we all wanted to get back in the terminal.  When we took off the plane immediately started to rock left and right and it was something I have never experienced in all my time of flying.  Every face on the plane grew white and we all froze.  Eventually we leveled out but everyone was freaked out after that.

The coast of Spain

Lovely snack of a torte, swiss chocolate, and white wine

Zurich, Switzerland

Giant jar of nutella in Swiss airport

When we got to Zurich we had a 4 hour lay over so we wandered around the airport for a while and then sat down to eat our bocadillos for dinner.  We opened them and since they had been sitting for a while they were no good and so we settled for BK even though we had to dish out 12 euros for a simple burger meal...ridiculous.  As if the take off to Zurich wasn't enough, when we arrived in Greece we all experienced the scariest landing of all time.  The plane hit the runway, swayed to the sides a bit after over correcting a bit and then bounced about two times before coming to a screeching halt, which caused one of the food cabinets to fly out of its compartment...needless to say we were all thankful to get off that plane. 

Fancy eating at Swiss airport

A bus took us to our "hotel" where Jen and I shared a room with 3 other girls.  There were 3 sets of bunk beds and a small kitchenette with a lot of space in the room.  The bathroom was quite interesting, the shower was the bathroom floor and there was no lip or anything to keep the water in one place.  We had to squeegee the water from around the bathroom floor and direct it into the drain in the middle of the floor, quite the experience.  Along with the lovely shower ordeal we could not figure out the AC so we settled for the hot because we were so exhausted.  When we were finally settled in and showered we were able to lay down for bed around 2:30 am to get up at 8 to go to Delphi in the morning.

Our hotel room