so, thanksgiving was last week and just now i get to write about it. there were a total of 15 Lewis & Clark students and 2 natives. i really wanted it to be all 23 of us but some people just did not want to deal with a big group or cook for a big group- understandable but selfish i thought. beside all it did was add extra stress onto an already stressful time. anyways, i went shopping with Helana the night before and dropped off all the groceries (90Euro) at the boys' apartment because it's the biggest out of the four apartments. the next morning i got up and ate early so i could get the turkeys (yes, plural) into the oven. i found out the hard way that only one of the turkeys would fin into the oven so i had to run back down to my apartment and tell the girls there how to cook it and then run back up to the boys house and start cooking the rest of the meal.
my menu looked like this:
stuffing with apple, currants, walnuts, and raisins
garlic mash potatoes (skin on)
pan fried sweet potatoes with brown sugar
2 turkeys
green beans almondine
green bean casserole
mushroom gravy
and then everyone had to contribute a dish for dinner. we got:
mac & cheese
cheesy broccoli
3 apple pies
cherry pie
cream cheese stuffed dates
hard cider
eggnog
rice pudding
lots of wine
champagne
bread
it really was an amazing night. it kinda helped that i had been pre-gaming it since about noon (the cider was really good). Maria (one of the two greeks) brought me more cooking utensils since the ones provided to us are... crap. i don't know if anyone could actually survive with just these utensils. some of the girls had come over earlier that day and set up the table (or four desk pushed into one long table) and placed some very nice decorations including candles and branches and open napkins in fall style on the table creating a lovely center piece. the dinner itself was very good. everyone's dishes were great and everyone loved my food and said thank you so many times. after dinner i kinda passed out (slept) in my friend's bed for a half and hour then i got back up and ate dessert and then we headed out to see Prometheus Bound... in greek. it was actully quite good despite the fact that we didn't understand any of it. the chorus was truly amazing. the only thing i didn't like was when Prometheus, who is supposed to be bound in the very first scene, got up and walked around his little platform. then i came home and finished my paper for Karavas on the various date that could signal the beginning of the Byzantine Empire. w00t. two papers done now. now just 20ish pages left to write (3 papers for two classes).
we had our debut and final performance of "Kasandrama" tonight. only about 20 people showed up in a room big enough for at least 60. oh well, i really don't care. that means less people saw my horrible acting. however, the people who showed up really seemed to enjoy the performance.
this also signifies THE END OF CLASSES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
....now all i have to do is write three papers.... damn it.
Thursday, November 29
Monday, November 26
myceane and olympia
quick note: two weeks ago i went to... epidurous (i've just been informed by helana) and we saw the "most acoustically perfect theater in the world". very cool. even better- i sang bohemian rhapsody in it along with 4 other girls. good memories.
Last weekend was spent on a hot smelly bus. why was it hot and smell? well, when you're dripping wet and the bus driver tries to simultaneously warm you up and clear the fog you get a lot of sweating people, drying clothes, and humid environment. but it was sooooooooooooooooo much fun!
our first stop in our last weekend excursions was this coll small town with lots of history (don't ask me about any of it- i wasn't feeling well so i slept during the enire tour of the town). in the morning we left the town and we stopped at his venentian fortification and as we were driving up to it the rain, which had been drizzeling for the majority of the day, really started to come down with thunder rolling in over the mountain and lightning illuminating the sky. way cool. we actually had to cut our time short there and make a made dash for the bus. after driving for a few hours we drove through this badass little town that was built into the side of a mountain. it was so pretty i wish we could have stoppped.
About another hour after that we finally arrived at Myceane. It was really cool to be able to run around the ruins of a place that i've read about since i understood what ancient greek was. it was really amazing to just run up to the gate in the rain and stare up at the lion gates that have dominated such a huge part of my imagination of this place. there wqas this really collcistern that we all clambered into when the rain really started to pour. i along with the majority of the group decided to climb all the way down it. problem: it was comepletely pitch black. good thing for Nicola's flashlight. afterwards we made our way back through the storm to the museum and the treasury of atreus. treasury (well, tomb in reality just called treasury b/c of all the gold found in it)- very cool. museum- not so much.
the next day dawned just about the same as the day before so we spent our time in olympia sopping wet. but we all had good fun. some ran in the stadium and we stood in the tmeple of zeus.
i realize i need to put pictures but don't expect any until after the semester is over. i finished 1.5 out of 5 papers. *sigh* it never ends. also- thanksgivng/christmas update coming soon....
Last weekend was spent on a hot smelly bus. why was it hot and smell? well, when you're dripping wet and the bus driver tries to simultaneously warm you up and clear the fog you get a lot of sweating people, drying clothes, and humid environment. but it was sooooooooooooooooo much fun!
our first stop in our last weekend excursions was this coll small town with lots of history (don't ask me about any of it- i wasn't feeling well so i slept during the enire tour of the town). in the morning we left the town and we stopped at his venentian fortification and as we were driving up to it the rain, which had been drizzeling for the majority of the day, really started to come down with thunder rolling in over the mountain and lightning illuminating the sky. way cool. we actually had to cut our time short there and make a made dash for the bus. after driving for a few hours we drove through this badass little town that was built into the side of a mountain. it was so pretty i wish we could have stoppped.
About another hour after that we finally arrived at Myceane. It was really cool to be able to run around the ruins of a place that i've read about since i understood what ancient greek was. it was really amazing to just run up to the gate in the rain and stare up at the lion gates that have dominated such a huge part of my imagination of this place. there wqas this really collcistern that we all clambered into when the rain really started to pour. i along with the majority of the group decided to climb all the way down it. problem: it was comepletely pitch black. good thing for Nicola's flashlight. afterwards we made our way back through the storm to the museum and the treasury of atreus. treasury (well, tomb in reality just called treasury b/c of all the gold found in it)- very cool. museum- not so much.
the next day dawned just about the same as the day before so we spent our time in olympia sopping wet. but we all had good fun. some ran in the stadium and we stood in the tmeple of zeus.
i realize i need to put pictures but don't expect any until after the semester is over. i finished 1.5 out of 5 papers. *sigh* it never ends. also- thanksgivng/christmas update coming soon....
Tuesday, November 13
Cretan Travels - free travel part II
I forgot to mention one part of my travels in turkey- topkapi palace. It used to be the sultan’s palace. It was amazing. There was gold and engravings and extravagance everywhere we looked. There were two treasuries with rubies and emeralds the size of a fist, a weapons’ room, and a kitchen with pots big enough to act as a bath tub.
On the morning of the 30th we got up really early (6ish) to catch a taxi so we could take the ferry to some nothing town to catch the bus to Ayvalik so we could take a ferry to Mytillini so we could take a cab to Hotel Votsala where we’d been living on Lesvos. We spent two days on
We spent our first day on
Sunday, November 4
ancient byzantium: free travel part I
okay- first thing's first: i know that everyone has been having problems commenting on my blog, i have no idea what's wrong. i'm doing everything right and nothing works, so here's what i'll do: down where you normally click to comment there's an envelope button if you press that you can send me an email just as though you were commenting without the hassle of running around trying to remember what you wanted to say to me. sorry for the inconvience but it's the best i can do. ONTO TURKEY!!!
turkey was amazing!
after being set free for our "free" travel, Clariece, Chris and myself (along with some other LCers including Carolyn) got on a plane at the Izmir airport and flew for 45 minutes to Istanbul. Once there we grabed a bus and directed it to our hostel. There were other people on the bus who weren't going to our hostel but the driver just dropped us off at our respective destinations.
as we drove into the city the walls of constaninople engulfed us. it was awe inspiriing to see those huge walls still standing after centuries of battle and to know that thousand died trying to breach those walls, slaughtered by the unstopable Byzantine/Roman catafrax (cavalry). the catafrax was the descimating force of the byzantine army. when the first (of three) walls were breached, the Byzantines fell behind the second. it was here, between the 1st and 2nd walls, in a grand total of approxamtely 20yrds that the catafrax caught their enemies between the walls and slaughtered them all. Byzantine history rocks! w00t!
The rest of the LC crew was staying either in the same hostle as us or veryclose to us. We stayed at the Orient Hostel- one of the best and yet still very cheap. This hostel was located approxamately a 5 mintue walk from Ayia Sofia, the Blue mosque and the bacillica cistern and then 15 minute walk to the Grand Bazaar.
Our first two days were spent in relative bliss. We hung around our hostel and surrounding areas, waiting for Melanie (our friend who's abroad in France) to get there. We spent a lot of time just wandering the back street were tourists were few and far between. there we oftne found the best deals and the best food.
When Mel finally arrived we spent the day being tourists. We saw the Ayia Sofia, Blue Mosque, bacillica cistern and grand bazaar in the span of two days. The bacillia cistern was my favorite, all nice and cool. It was really an amazing piece of roman architecture. the cistern was originally design to hold all the water that was necessary to supply Constantinople throughout a long seige or through everyday life. the interesting thing about the cistern were these two carved heads of medusa. one was completely upside down and the other was parallel to the floor. medusa heads were oringally used to ward off enemies/robbers/people who mean you harm. however, these medusa heads would have been under thousands of gallons of water where no one could see or get to... so, what's their significance? no one knows.
the hagia sofia (meaning St. Sofia) was quite a sight to behold. originally, the agia sofia was a church built by the byzantine emperor Justinian who married "Wonder Bitch" (or so she was dubbed by Prof. John Karavas.... the hot one.) her real name is Theodora and she was the true power behind his reign. words cannot describe this amazing place. it's huge and vast and is truely a wonder. go visit turkey. now. just go.
the blue mosque, while beautiful and spiritual signifcance, failed to caputre my interest. don't get me wrong it's beautiful and if you leave istanbul without seeing it you'll be an idiot, however this was not the shining moment of glory on the trip.
two full days were spent at the grand bazaar. this place is packed with people all the time, a writhing mass, all pushing and calling and cajolling. it's a headache but amazing. the vendors try to get your attention any way you can. "excuse me, where are you from? you're so beautiful." "charlies angels." "let me help you spen your money." "we've been waiting for you." are just a few of the many examples. i bought the majority of my christmas present while i was here, withdrawing over 300YTL (new turkish lira) to buy all of them, so you better like them. a few people will recieve gifts from athens/greece instead. don't hate me!
pictures and a post with the rest of trip will be forthcoming. whenever i'm not busy writing one of my four papers or practicing my lines for the play. (more on this later.)
turkey was amazing!
after being set free for our "free" travel, Clariece, Chris and myself (along with some other LCers including Carolyn) got on a plane at the Izmir airport and flew for 45 minutes to Istanbul. Once there we grabed a bus and directed it to our hostel. There were other people on the bus who weren't going to our hostel but the driver just dropped us off at our respective destinations.
as we drove into the city the walls of constaninople engulfed us. it was awe inspiriing to see those huge walls still standing after centuries of battle and to know that thousand died trying to breach those walls, slaughtered by the unstopable Byzantine/Roman catafrax (cavalry). the catafrax was the descimating force of the byzantine army. when the first (of three) walls were breached, the Byzantines fell behind the second. it was here, between the 1st and 2nd walls, in a grand total of approxamtely 20yrds that the catafrax caught their enemies between the walls and slaughtered them all. Byzantine history rocks! w00t!
The rest of the LC crew was staying either in the same hostle as us or veryclose to us. We stayed at the Orient Hostel- one of the best and yet still very cheap. This hostel was located approxamately a 5 mintue walk from Ayia Sofia, the Blue mosque and the bacillica cistern and then 15 minute walk to the Grand Bazaar.
Our first two days were spent in relative bliss. We hung around our hostel and surrounding areas, waiting for Melanie (our friend who's abroad in France) to get there. We spent a lot of time just wandering the back street were tourists were few and far between. there we oftne found the best deals and the best food.
When Mel finally arrived we spent the day being tourists. We saw the Ayia Sofia, Blue Mosque, bacillica cistern and grand bazaar in the span of two days. The bacillia cistern was my favorite, all nice and cool. It was really an amazing piece of roman architecture. the cistern was originally design to hold all the water that was necessary to supply Constantinople throughout a long seige or through everyday life. the interesting thing about the cistern were these two carved heads of medusa. one was completely upside down and the other was parallel to the floor. medusa heads were oringally used to ward off enemies/robbers/people who mean you harm. however, these medusa heads would have been under thousands of gallons of water where no one could see or get to... so, what's their significance? no one knows.
the hagia sofia (meaning St. Sofia) was quite a sight to behold. originally, the agia sofia was a church built by the byzantine emperor Justinian who married "Wonder Bitch" (or so she was dubbed by Prof. John Karavas.... the hot one.) her real name is Theodora and she was the true power behind his reign. words cannot describe this amazing place. it's huge and vast and is truely a wonder. go visit turkey. now. just go.
the blue mosque, while beautiful and spiritual signifcance, failed to caputre my interest. don't get me wrong it's beautiful and if you leave istanbul without seeing it you'll be an idiot, however this was not the shining moment of glory on the trip.
two full days were spent at the grand bazaar. this place is packed with people all the time, a writhing mass, all pushing and calling and cajolling. it's a headache but amazing. the vendors try to get your attention any way you can. "excuse me, where are you from? you're so beautiful." "charlies angels." "let me help you spen your money." "we've been waiting for you." are just a few of the many examples. i bought the majority of my christmas present while i was here, withdrawing over 300YTL (new turkish lira) to buy all of them, so you better like them. a few people will recieve gifts from athens/greece instead. don't hate me!
pictures and a post with the rest of trip will be forthcoming. whenever i'm not busy writing one of my four papers or practicing my lines for the play. (more on this later.)
Thursday, October 25
turkish delights
hi all! *waves furiously*
so after my last post of disappointments and madness, we finally got to turkey!!!! but not after finally making sure that we could in fact get back into Greece. turns out that so long as you're going to Turkey you can buy a multiple entry pass valid for 90 days. Our last days at Hotel Votsala were amazing and on our last night we prepared farewell presents to the staff of Votsala, as well as out teacher Sofia, and Iannis our guide/hotel owner. My contribution for the thank you ceremony was a slide show of all the fun things we did on Lesvos. Everyone loved it. the beauty of creating the slide show is that I had the final say, needless to say there are only a certain number of pictures of me in it.
Iannis and Sofia decided, along with Janette (the bar tender from votsala) and Demetri (Iannis' friend) to come along with us. we took the 8:30AM ferry to Ayvilik, Turkey and then drove to Assos. From Assos we visited Troy as well as the local ruins of Assos, which are mostly remnants of Byzantine (i.e. late Roman) and not Greek but they were amazing non the less. Even more amazing is the way the Turkish government treats the ruins in comparison to the American and Greek governments. As you can see from the picture below, the Turkish government just lets us run rampant in the ruins. This was the remains of a temple, I believe dedicated to Athena. We climbed all over it. It was so refreshing to actually be able to walk among these beautiful ruins and feel the power that they convey still today. There was also an acropolis with a mosque on it where we watched a sunset, here's a picture of me in front of the sunset on top of the acropolis in Assos below and to the right
.
We were staying in this beautiful little hotel with amazing food and atmosphere. On our second day we went to Troy and then on our second day we went to Pergamon. Both were amazing. Below are pictures from Troy. Carolyn as Achilles kicking mine, aka Hector's, butt and she stands victorious over my dead body. The one to the left is a picture of Hilary and Nate Kugler as well as Chris, Clariece and Rianna in a model Trojan horse. Troy was amazing. Almost all ruins were buried and then excavated downwards and there are even more ruins underneath. The coolest part was that there were both Greek and Roman walls right next to each other. So Clariece and Rianna geeked out over the Greek side, and I geeked out over both the Greek and Roman walls. We even saw the place where the legendary battle probably took place.
Today we went to Ephesus which was amazing. Not only did we get to really get into the ruins, but the ruins that are left there are amazing an d very intact. There will be pictures up tomorrow because my camera died while we were there.
Tonight was awesome. I went out with Rianna, Helana, Gussi, David, Amanda, and Carolyn to this amazing hookah bar and hung out with the people from the hotel Votsala on Lesvos who decided to join us in Turkey. We spent about 4 hours there, just drinking, smoking, talking, laughing, dancing, and talking with the owner. It's been the best night I've had in a long time.
So, I'll end this on a high note, with very high expectations of my free travel to Istanbul and a good long night of partying under my belt.
so after my last post of disappointments and madness, we finally got to turkey!!!! but not after finally making sure that we could in fact get back into Greece. turns out that so long as you're going to Turkey you can buy a multiple entry pass valid for 90 days. Our last days at Hotel Votsala were amazing and on our last night we prepared farewell presents to the staff of Votsala, as well as out teacher Sofia, and Iannis our guide/hotel owner. My contribution for the thank you ceremony was a slide show of all the fun things we did on Lesvos. Everyone loved it. the beauty of creating the slide show is that I had the final say, needless to say there are only a certain number of pictures of me in it.
.
We were staying in this beautiful little hotel with amazing food and atmosphere. On our second day we went to Troy and then on our second day we went to Pergamon. Both were amazing. Below are pictures from Troy. Carolyn as Achilles kicking mine, aka Hector's, butt and she stands victorious over my dead body. The one to the left is a picture of Hilary and Nate Kugler as well as Chris, Clariece and Rianna in a model Trojan horse. Troy was amazing. Almost all ruins were buried and then excavated downwards and there are even more ruins underneath. The coolest part was that there were both Greek and Roman walls right next to each other. So Clariece and Rianna geeked out over the Greek side, and I geeked out over both the Greek and Roman walls. We even saw the place where the legendary battle probably took place.
Today we went to Ephesus which was amazing. Not only did we get to really get into the ruins, but the ruins that are left there are amazing an d very intact. There will be pictures up tomorrow because my camera died while we were there.Tonight was awesome. I went out with Rianna, Helana, Gussi, David, Amanda, and Carolyn to this amazing hookah bar and hung out with the people from the hotel Votsala on Lesvos who decided to join us in Turkey. We spent about 4 hours there, just drinking, smoking, talking, laughing, dancing, and talking with the owner. It's been the best night I've had in a long time.
So, I'll end this on a high note, with very high expectations of my free travel to Istanbul and a good long night of partying under my belt.
Tuesday, October 16
a week of trials
I feel like a lot of this trip has been a view as to what not to do on an overseas trip. What with all the promises of trips, feeling misled often, and feeling cheated I’m surprised that I’m enjoying myself as much as I am… and I am honestly.
Chris and Clariece have started dating and they’re very clingy, so I’ve been hanging out with Rianna and Carolyn more and talking to Sam, Helana, David, Emma and Francis which has been a lot of fun. It’s nice to feel separate from the clique, even if the clique consists of my closest friends.
Friday, October 12
Thursday, October 11
the going ons
So the past two weeks here, everyone has been going to archaeological sites. The first week and a half I was in Mytillini (the big port town) working at different restoration sites as well as a "rescue site". This is a picture of Gussi, McKenzie, and Wendy (the three other members of my group) at the pottery restoration site. We got to put together a vase. We worked here for the first two days of our excursions. Day one was really boring because they had no idea as to what to have us do, so we spent five hours washing pottery fragments. The next two days were spent in the metal restoration workshop. This was really interesting on the first day because we got to clean metal objects with a scalpel. However, when we found out that those items were still going to be worked on on day two, that meant day two was infinitely boring. The days at the rescue site were the days I was sick, and it's too bed because I heard that that one was the most fun out of the workshops.Last Tuesday was Wendy's 22nd birthday, so we threw here a Lesbian bash. hehehe. We went to downtown Mytillini to this bar called the Monkey (it's funny b/c a famous Cycladic wall painting has a picture of a blue monkey). The bar was fun and played a lot of American music. We all went and had a bunch of drinks and hung out. As the night wore on we knew that we were never going to be able to stay awake until 3AM when the dance club opened so we turned the bar into a mock dance club. I think the locals were amused and even a few of them joined our dancing in the middle of the bar.
(Pictures from left to right: Wendy surrounded by most of the guys on the trip; Clariece and her "tower 'o shots; Carolyn the "cake eater")
The weekend was amazing. Sophia, our professor for Modern Aegean Culture, took us on a roaming bus tour of the island. On Saturday we went to a monastery, an old mansion, another monastery overlooking a village, this really cool market street and then we stopped at this church with a famous icon which legend says the last surviving monk of a pirate raid built using only the bloodied sand of his fallen brothers. Apparently, sometime the face is smiling other times it's frowning, and its face can also be either brown or red. however, at the time, there was a wedding procession heading towards the church so we didn't stay long. Pictures will be forthcoming.
Sunday was spent almost entirely at this amazing ranch. Everyone cooked lunch, with different groups preparing a different dish. We made souvlaki, stuffed tomatoes and peppers, potatoes, fresh bread, tsatsiki, greek salad and then Sophia brought us baklava for desert. While waiting for lunch to cook, we took off for the nearby town and toured the local church. After lunch, there was a dance instructor who taught us many traditional greek dances. My favorite was the on that local pirates danced.
that's all for now. and no complaining that I don't update!
Sunday, September 30
lesvos the fabulous.... kinda.
as i write, i am sitting in the main "lodge" in Vostala hotel in Thermi, Lesvos in Greece. It is amazingly beautiful here. The hotel is right on the beach and the weather had been great, warm but with enough wind to make the heat and sun very livable.
The Parthenon was amazing. Ever since I was little, I've wanted to come and see the Erectheon and Parthenon. To the far left, there is the Erectheon, in particular the women pillars. And even though we could not get up close, they were amazing. You can see a lot of detail even in my photos. 
The Parthenon was a spectacular as I'd hoped , partially because I'm pretty sure I built it up in my mind- just like my experience with Stonehenge. However, after hearing a presentation on it by some girls in my class, it became much more interesting. Apparently, there are no straight lines in the vertical construction because otherwise it would be a monstrosity of hugeness.
Sunday, our professors had planned to make us go on this long 13 ours tour of the entire island, however we convinced them to let us have our first day off in a month. Yesterday was spent, for everyone else, swimming and reading and hanging out. I watched some TV on my computer with a couple other people and then deleted my entire itunes library so i spent a goodly amount of time trying to restore a semblance of order to my music library. 13 hours later i went to bed.
Our classes this month are actually just one. Modern Aegean Culture with excursions to the local towns and Turkey as well. We also are experiencing archaeological digs which although we had high expectations for them, the first day was a real bust, in which Kugler received many complaints. What bothered me the most was when we tried to sit there and talk to him and voice our concerns with the program, we felt like we were being brushed off. He even had the gall to say to us "you can't experience the Greek experience by yourselves." Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's exactly what is supposed to happen. If he honestly felt that way then WHY DID WE NOT SPEND LAST SEMESTER LEARNING ABOUT MODERN GREEK CULTURE! but no- instead we took ancient Greek religions which has been no help at all by the way. All we need here is a cursory knowledge of Greek myths.
anyways, sorry for the rant and long period of no posts. hopefully there'll be another one up soon. but honestly they keep us running around all the time.
Since I last updated a lot of stuff has been happening. the old new first:
We visited the Acropolis before mom arrived. The picture to the left is Clariece overlooking onto the theater of Dionysus which is on the south slope of the Acropolis. we were all really excited about getting to "perform" i.e. read Lysistrata on the steps of the theater where Aristophanes plays were originally performed. Clariece geeked out over reading there for at least two days prior to actually even being there. She was unbearable to be around...
The Parthenon was amazing. Ever since I was little, I've wanted to come and see the Erectheon and Parthenon. To the far left, there is the Erectheon, in particular the women pillars. And even though we could not get up close, they were amazing. You can see a lot of detail even in my photos. 
The Parthenon was a spectacular as I'd hoped , partially because I'm pretty sure I built it up in my mind- just like my experience with Stonehenge. However, after hearing a presentation on it by some girls in my class, it became much more interesting. Apparently, there are no straight lines in the vertical construction because otherwise it would be a monstrosity of hugeness.We also went to the Agora, both the ancient Greek and Roman versions. 
However the only real piece of architecture left whole and standing was the Temple of Hephaestus which was located near the metal working workshops in the ancient times. Kinda obvious but yeah, there it was. Anyways, some of the objects/artifacts found there are really cool. There was a water clock, a lottery mechanism, and foundations of the (kinda) only temple that is dedicated to more than one god called the temple of the 12 gods and is dedicated to all the gods of the Parthenon.
After taking two finals, one being a push over and the being karavas-ish, everyone rushed home to pack and then, 2 hours later, we hopped the metro to Piraeus and then took a 12 hours ferry (horrible and yet immensely entertaining and enlightening b/c most people were super trashed) and then arrived in Lesbos at 7 AM, only to be ushered without sleep to breakfast and then for a four hour walking tour of Thermi and then a huge barbeque dinner with everyone in all of Thermi invited. this was only our saturday.
However the only real piece of architecture left whole and standing was the Temple of Hephaestus which was located near the metal working workshops in the ancient times. Kinda obvious but yeah, there it was. Anyways, some of the objects/artifacts found there are really cool. There was a water clock, a lottery mechanism, and foundations of the (kinda) only temple that is dedicated to more than one god called the temple of the 12 gods and is dedicated to all the gods of the Parthenon.Sunday, our professors had planned to make us go on this long 13 ours tour of the entire island, however we convinced them to let us have our first day off in a month. Yesterday was spent, for everyone else, swimming and reading and hanging out. I watched some TV on my computer with a couple other people and then deleted my entire itunes library so i spent a goodly amount of time trying to restore a semblance of order to my music library. 13 hours later i went to bed.
Our classes this month are actually just one. Modern Aegean Culture with excursions to the local towns and Turkey as well. We also are experiencing archaeological digs which although we had high expectations for them, the first day was a real bust, in which Kugler received many complaints. What bothered me the most was when we tried to sit there and talk to him and voice our concerns with the program, we felt like we were being brushed off. He even had the gall to say to us "you can't experience the Greek experience by yourselves." Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's exactly what is supposed to happen. If he honestly felt that way then WHY DID WE NOT SPEND LAST SEMESTER LEARNING ABOUT MODERN GREEK CULTURE! but no- instead we took ancient Greek religions which has been no help at all by the way. All we need here is a cursory knowledge of Greek myths.
anyways, sorry for the rant and long period of no posts. hopefully there'll be another one up soon. but honestly they keep us running around all the time.
Friday, September 28
update on lesvos and finals
so apparently i do have internet access on lesvos, in the rooms in fact and wireless.
finished one of my finals, the art and archaeology one. easy. forgot two things. oops. oh well. A here i come.
finished one of my finals, the art and archaeology one. easy. forgot two things. oops. oh well. A here i come.
Thursday, September 27
and i'm back
sorry for the prolonged period of absence. however, i was productive during my absence. I finished the paper that had been looming aver my head for the past week. and i got my grade back from my midterm-- an A- thank you very much.
mom and alex were here this weekend and they took me and my friends out for two meals and we had a bunch of fun. they even brought me presents. i got a couple of things that i asked mom to bring me, a few movies, a pair of shorts, a shirt, messenger bag, and then she gave me a new dragon charm ( i am a sucker for a dragon). Alex gave me a copy of a cycladic figuring. a very cool gift even for re-gifting.
I was sick yesterday for no particular reason. i tried to get up and go to class but i just couldn't another girl, Consuello, is sick today. something must be going around. i hope no one else gets sick.
finals are tomorrow, which just blows my mind. and i hate it when teachers teach up until the day of the final with no time to go over things, review, or answer questions except in her office. and then not everyone gets the same information, arg- it makes me mad.
after finishing finals i have to go buy a pair of sandals and then pack for lesbos b/c WE LEAVE TOMORROW! but, i don't know what my Internet situation is going to be on lesbos so calling me is going to be the best way to keep in contact. (see contact info link on the right for the number)
hopefully, there'll be some sort of Internet in lesbos, however if there isn't- FEAR NOT- for i shall take many pictures.
mom and alex were here this weekend and they took me and my friends out for two meals and we had a bunch of fun. they even brought me presents. i got a couple of things that i asked mom to bring me, a few movies, a pair of shorts, a shirt, messenger bag, and then she gave me a new dragon charm ( i am a sucker for a dragon). Alex gave me a copy of a cycladic figuring. a very cool gift even for re-gifting.
I was sick yesterday for no particular reason. i tried to get up and go to class but i just couldn't another girl, Consuello, is sick today. something must be going around. i hope no one else gets sick.
finals are tomorrow, which just blows my mind. and i hate it when teachers teach up until the day of the final with no time to go over things, review, or answer questions except in her office. and then not everyone gets the same information, arg- it makes me mad.
after finishing finals i have to go buy a pair of sandals and then pack for lesbos b/c WE LEAVE TOMORROW! but, i don't know what my Internet situation is going to be on lesbos so calling me is going to be the best way to keep in contact. (see contact info link on the right for the number)
hopefully, there'll be some sort of Internet in lesbos, however if there isn't- FEAR NOT- for i shall take many pictures.
Wednesday, September 19
midterm done, presentation done... but the paper still remains
I took Karavas' midterm on Monday and it wasn't too bad. he said he wanted us to have a gist of what the main themes and events were and I dare say that I have a very frim grasp of these topics. For his midterm he gave us six questions and then gave us 2 hours to answer them. I chose to write about why Constantine espoused Christianity and why did it spread so fast as well as answering what made the western roman empire fall and what kept the eastern roman empire from falling.
I just gave my presentation on Women and Deomcracy in class with Emma and I'm really gald to have it done. with the test and presentation done all I have left to focus on is my paper due monday and washing my clothes.
today is Gussi's (my room mate's) 21st birthday, so Carolyn and I bought her one of her favorite pastries and woke her up singing "happy birthday" and presented it to her on a plate with a candle in it.
making dinner for people has been a lot of fun. they also don't pressure em to cook which is a good thing because somedays i don't have time. but tonight I am making Shepard's (retarded little brother) pie. why the retarded little brother? well, it's just the ingredients and i'm not twice baking it. oh well.
a week ago i made hamburgers but could n't find buns so we put them on pita and my room mates had feta with it. then we listened to the "Oh Brother Where Art Thou?" soundtrack. we decided that this was the perfect combination of Greek and American cultures. we're nerds at my house.
Tuesday, September 18
new links and pictures
there are new links up in the right side tool-bar. just click on the photo button and it'll take you to another site. from there you can click on the subheadings in the left hand tool-bar.
a link to Carolyn's blog is up.
and also a link to schedules and itineraries. from there you can see where i'll be for the day as well as where I am going. click on the subheadings in the left hand tool-bar to find the month you're looking for.
a link to Carolyn's blog is up.
and also a link to schedules and itineraries. from there you can see where i'll be for the day as well as where I am going. click on the subheadings in the left hand tool-bar to find the month you're looking for.
cap-stone project & problems with free travel
yesterday Kugler was passing around a sign up sheet so he could talk to us about our cap-stone projects and I, being the intelligent and clever individual that I am, took the first stop so that I could have my choice out of the way because I figured a bunch of people would want this topic. I have been really fascinated with the Greek Orthodox Church here because of all the weird little rituals and traditions that they have. like i mentioned in my post about Delphi, all these weird traditions are still around that have roots in the Greek pantheon as well as other polytheistic religions. for example people don't like it when you pose next to ancient artifacts because it angers the gods.... I thought Greeks were monotheistic? there are lots of little instances like this though and I want to know if they are aware of the origins and why these traditions are perpetuated.
recently, an email was forwarded to us by the college putting a stop to many of the destinations that people were going to be traveling to for their week of free travel. initially, I was planning to spend the week in Santerini, but decided that it was too expensive and would be better served as a weekend trip. Clariece, Chris and I were then planning to make a tour of a few cities in Eastern Europe- namely: Istanbul, Bucharest, and Budapest. we are still peeved about this, especially because we had just talked to Kugler that day and he gave us the go ahead. apparently their logic is that this is a general culture trip and that travel should be limited to Greece and Turkey. however, if this is true why is travel to Italy limited? some of the best archaeological evidence of ancient civilizations is found in Rome and its surrounding areas.
now we have to figure out where we'll be going. poor larry (the head of the overseas department). he's going to be receiving many emails with complaints.
p.s. if anyone has any recipes WITH NO CHEESE please email them to me. i need a new menu.
recently, an email was forwarded to us by the college putting a stop to many of the destinations that people were going to be traveling to for their week of free travel. initially, I was planning to spend the week in Santerini, but decided that it was too expensive and would be better served as a weekend trip. Clariece, Chris and I were then planning to make a tour of a few cities in Eastern Europe- namely: Istanbul, Bucharest, and Budapest. we are still peeved about this, especially because we had just talked to Kugler that day and he gave us the go ahead. apparently their logic is that this is a general culture trip and that travel should be limited to Greece and Turkey. however, if this is true why is travel to Italy limited? some of the best archaeological evidence of ancient civilizations is found in Rome and its surrounding areas.
now we have to figure out where we'll be going. poor larry (the head of the overseas department). he's going to be receiving many emails with complaints.
p.s. if anyone has any recipes WITH NO CHEESE please email them to me. i need a new menu.
Monday, September 17
photos that aren't so important
hiya all!!! thanks for the comments I love reading them and they keep me pumped to update. And so, in thanks, here's a little treat.
I've started post the pictures I've taken of museum trips I've been atteneding for classes up onto this site: click me! So far, only some photos from the Cycladic Museum are up, but soon more fill follow. I just need to finish my midterm, my paper, and my presentation.
I've started post the pictures I've taken of museum trips I've been atteneding for classes up onto this site: click me! So far, only some photos from the Cycladic Museum are up, but soon more fill follow. I just need to finish my midterm, my paper, and my presentation.
Wednesday, September 12
a semester's worth of two classes within a month
arg. I am kinda burned out from my classes.
I have Art and Archaeology from 8:30AM - 12:00PM and then Power and Religion: History of the Byzantine Empire from 2:00PM - 5:00PM, with lunch somewhere inbetween. Although neither on of these classes are particularly hard it's the time spent walking to and from the school as well as the time spent in transit to the many museums and sites within the city on top of all the reading assigned, making our own food, studying for our midterm and writing and researching for our papers.
By the way, our midterm exam is on Monday and our paper due a week after that. Then there are two more papers due when we get back from Lesbos... the question is: how do we write these papers while we're in Lesbos with no computers, internet access, or library access? ... I have no idea either.
The worst part about the classes is that they are supposed to be air conditioned- but I don't feel a thing. It's too hot here.
Niccola Wardle teches Art and Archaeology. She is a portly English woman with a quirky sense of humor, often delighting in the most random of archaelogical finds, in which she credits its creation for the amusement of children (toys or dollhouses). Not surprising seeing as she has two small children, five and 16 months. I was in her group for the taverna dinner and found myself laughing for the majority of the evening. Her eldest is going to be trouble, especially because Niccola keeps positively reinforcing her for interrupting lectures at the museum, often stopping to pick her up or give her something to play with. She was married to an Arab muslim and is recently divorced because of his midlife crisis of faith. Her parents and god-mother are all prominent archaeologists themselves and she was raised on digs (often bored out of her skull).
John Karavas is a completely different story. A greek man schooled at Oxford in England, his accent is very difficult to place. He specialized in knowledge of the Early Roman Emprie's Army, but is teaching Byzantine history- no idea why. He is very good looking, but insecure I think as shown by his nervous pacing before evey class. According to the gossip around here he's either recently divorced (again) or recently married. Probably divorced since there is no ring on his finger nor any tan line suggesting one. He wears tight pants and shirts, smoke cigarettes and is damn sexy. A few days ago he came back form the weekned with a couple of days worth of facial hair- the joke has been he was either coming down from a heroin high or was binge drinking and bar hopping all weekend. He finally shaved yesterday. He looks much better clean shaven.
Funny thing is the Kugler also shaved off his beard. I don't really know what to make of him without the beard...
**EDIT*** It turns out Karavas is married (he takes off his ring before class- odd) and his wife was out of town this past weekend so he was out having fun. Apparently she got two days ago and now he's in the dog house. ***END EDIT***
I have Art and Archaeology from 8:30AM - 12:00PM and then Power and Religion: History of the Byzantine Empire from 2:00PM - 5:00PM, with lunch somewhere inbetween. Although neither on of these classes are particularly hard it's the time spent walking to and from the school as well as the time spent in transit to the many museums and sites within the city on top of all the reading assigned, making our own food, studying for our midterm and writing and researching for our papers.
By the way, our midterm exam is on Monday and our paper due a week after that. Then there are two more papers due when we get back from Lesbos... the question is: how do we write these papers while we're in Lesbos with no computers, internet access, or library access? ... I have no idea either.
The worst part about the classes is that they are supposed to be air conditioned- but I don't feel a thing. It's too hot here.
Niccola Wardle teches Art and Archaeology. She is a portly English woman with a quirky sense of humor, often delighting in the most random of archaelogical finds, in which she credits its creation for the amusement of children (toys or dollhouses). Not surprising seeing as she has two small children, five and 16 months. I was in her group for the taverna dinner and found myself laughing for the majority of the evening. Her eldest is going to be trouble, especially because Niccola keeps positively reinforcing her for interrupting lectures at the museum, often stopping to pick her up or give her something to play with. She was married to an Arab muslim and is recently divorced because of his midlife crisis of faith. Her parents and god-mother are all prominent archaeologists themselves and she was raised on digs (often bored out of her skull).
John Karavas is a completely different story. A greek man schooled at Oxford in England, his accent is very difficult to place. He specialized in knowledge of the Early Roman Emprie's Army, but is teaching Byzantine history- no idea why. He is very good looking, but insecure I think as shown by his nervous pacing before evey class. According to the gossip around here he's either recently divorced (again) or recently married. Probably divorced since there is no ring on his finger nor any tan line suggesting one. He wears tight pants and shirts, smoke cigarettes and is damn sexy. A few days ago he came back form the weekned with a couple of days worth of facial hair- the joke has been he was either coming down from a heroin high or was binge drinking and bar hopping all weekend. He finally shaved yesterday. He looks much better clean shaven.
Funny thing is the Kugler also shaved off his beard. I don't really know what to make of him without the beard...
**EDIT*** It turns out Karavas is married (he takes off his ring before class- odd) and his wife was out of town this past weekend so he was out having fun. Apparently she got two days ago and now he's in the dog house. ***END EDIT***
Monday, September 10
apartment photos courtesy of Clariece:
This is the view from our balcony off of our common room. Kolonaki is a beautiful neighborhood. and if you look very carefully you can see the monastery that wakes us up every morning at seven just to the the left of the tree.
our common room- with the curtains drawn.
our closet- complete with Christmas tree
and our very small kitchen.
our common room- with the curtains drawn.
our closet- complete with Christmas tree
and our very small kitchen.
Friday, September 7
delphic friday
Last Friday was amazing. Prof. Kugler had scheduled a trip to Delphi for all day Friday, but first we stopped at this amazing Byzantine church (circa 10th century CE). T
he structure itself was amazing although a portion of it was under construction and so scaffolding was scattered around some of the walls. There were actually two churches and between the two was the tomb of St. Lucas who apparently heals people who spend the night at the church. I think the Orthodox Greek church is so weird.
Legends like this one hark back to the pantheon of ancient Greek gods, where the god Aesculapius healed those who spent the night in his temple and left an offering. Apparently there are many of these little connections within the Orthodox Greek Church.
After spending an hour or so playing in the courtyards, terraces, and monastery halls we piled back onto the bus for another hour to Delphi.
On the way it began to rain. It continued to rain through our tour of the museum at Delphi and through the Agora and the Temple of Apollo all the way up to the top of our climb to the stadium.
Where we took a couple of group photos. As you can see the rain had cleared up but everything was still wet and slippery.
he structure itself was amazing although a portion of it was under construction and so scaffolding was scattered around some of the walls. There were actually two churches and between the two was the tomb of St. Lucas who apparently heals people who spend the night at the church. I think the Orthodox Greek church is so weird. Legends like this one hark back to the pantheon of ancient Greek gods, where the god Aesculapius healed those who spent the night in his temple and left an offering. Apparently there are many of these little connections within the Orthodox Greek Church. After spending an hour or so playing in the courtyards, terraces, and monastery halls we piled back onto the bus for another hour to Delphi.
On the way it began to rain. It continued to rain through our tour of the museum at Delphi and through the Agora and the Temple of Apollo all the way up to the top of our climb to the stadium.
Where we took a couple of group photos. As you can see the rain had cleared up but everything was still wet and slippery.
Finally, at the stadium we climbed down all the marble steps to reach the temple of Athena and abled around down there until it was time to go.
I can see why the ancient Greeks and Romans had an Oracle at Delphi because, especially with the rain, it becomes a mysterious place.
Wednesday, September 5
the greek life for american students
All CYA students are living in apartments spread across central Athens. L&C students were given apartments in the fabulous district of Kolonaki, which is where many of the embassies (including our own) are located along with the more trendy shops and little parks full of trees, statues, and non-working fountains.
I live with Carolyn, Gussi, Clariece, and Amanada. Gussi and I are rooming together, while Clariece and Carolyn share and room and Amanda has a room to herself. Besides the three bedrooms, our apartment comes equipped with a small but serviceable kitchen (complete with pots, pans, utensils, and plates), a small living room (two chairs, a couch, and a coffee table) with veranda doors that open onto a fabulous balcony which is always in constant use, a decent sized bathroom for five girls, and a few miscellaneous closets, one of which contains a fake Christmas tree.
The flooring is either fabulous wood planks or awful 60's orange-ish laminate. The walls are stark white, but all that does is give us room to decorate. The ceilings are very high, probably 10-12 feet with crown-molding. The stairwell floor and steps are composed completely of marble, as is most of Greece's stairs.
Besides the inside space, the outside is what truly makes our apartment the best of the bunch. The balcony opens up to a fabulous view of a small cathedral, who's bells woke us up Sunday morning at a very ungodly hour, as well as the many trees that line our street. There is a little garden/yard area before the gate to out apartment in which three cats reside. We've named them εφαρσςτη, παρακαλο, and τιροπιτα- "Thank-you" (the papa- all grey with black stripes), "Please" (the momma- grey and black stripes with a cream belly and paws), and "Cheese-pie" (who is the kitten- fluffy and all grey with black stripes).
There is also a great little market and grocery about a black away which has almost everything that we'll need. There are also tons of restaurants, bars, kiosks, miscellaneous stores, and cafes. The only problem, which really isn't a problem considering that we receive a per-diem, is that they can be a very expensive compared to the remainder of Athens.
However, the neighborhood is beautiful, the apartment is beautiful, the city is amazing and I have everything I need (if not everything I desire- namely wireless Internet access in our apartment) and this is going to be an experience that I will never forget.
I live with Carolyn, Gussi, Clariece, and Amanada. Gussi and I are rooming together, while Clariece and Carolyn share and room and Amanda has a room to herself. Besides the three bedrooms, our apartment comes equipped with a small but serviceable kitchen (complete with pots, pans, utensils, and plates), a small living room (two chairs, a couch, and a coffee table) with veranda doors that open onto a fabulous balcony which is always in constant use, a decent sized bathroom for five girls, and a few miscellaneous closets, one of which contains a fake Christmas tree.
The flooring is either fabulous wood planks or awful 60's orange-ish laminate. The walls are stark white, but all that does is give us room to decorate. The ceilings are very high, probably 10-12 feet with crown-molding. The stairwell floor and steps are composed completely of marble, as is most of Greece's stairs.
Besides the inside space, the outside is what truly makes our apartment the best of the bunch. The balcony opens up to a fabulous view of a small cathedral, who's bells woke us up Sunday morning at a very ungodly hour, as well as the many trees that line our street. There is a little garden/yard area before the gate to out apartment in which three cats reside. We've named them εφαρσςτη, παρακαλο, and τιροπιτα- "Thank-you" (the papa- all grey with black stripes), "Please" (the momma- grey and black stripes with a cream belly and paws), and "Cheese-pie" (who is the kitten- fluffy and all grey with black stripes).
There is also a great little market and grocery about a black away which has almost everything that we'll need. There are also tons of restaurants, bars, kiosks, miscellaneous stores, and cafes. The only problem, which really isn't a problem considering that we receive a per-diem, is that they can be a very expensive compared to the remainder of Athens.
However, the neighborhood is beautiful, the apartment is beautiful, the city is amazing and I have everything I need (if not everything I desire- namely wireless Internet access in our apartment) and this is going to be an experience that I will never forget.
Tuesday, September 4
contact information
should you care to contact me, here is a page with all the necessary information you might need.
http://abroadinathens.wetpaint.com/page/Contact+Info
http://abroadinathens.wetpaint.com/page/Contact+Info
Monday, September 3
a now a word from our correspondent in Athens, Greece
hi *waves*
i am alive and fine in Athens!!!! sorry there has been no communication since i left on Thursday, but i can't call out on my phone without incurring huge charges and i have only had access to the Internet as of yesterday with not much time available to utilize it.
my first day in Greece was awful. we finally landed after almost 24 hours of travel and found our luggage without too much trouble after hearing many skeptical comments about our bags actually arriving in Greece with us. After hailing a taxi to the Kugler's (our professor from L&C) Carolyn and I found out where we lived and who we lived with. Then came the long, hot walk to our apartment. Normally the walk isn't that bad. However, we had to drag our bags up hill about 12 blocks in the worst heat of the day. Upon arrival we promptly sat our selves down, gulped down water, and didn't move for a half an hour. Then we tried and failed to unpack and instead turned up the air conditioning and fell asleep for an hour. I then woke up and was sick, but had to force myself to get ready to walk to CYA (College Year in Athens). When we returned home we fell asleep.
Over the next couple of days everyone arrived and settled into their apartments. Hopefully I'll put pictures of mine up here soon, i.e. whenever I feel like bringing my computer down to CYA so I can get wireless Internet access.
As it stands, I'm having a blast. I've been making dinner for me and the other residents of my apartment almost every night and tonight we're going out for our first Greek meal.
Yesterday signaled the start of our school year. I have Art and Archeology from 8:30-12:00 and Religion and Power: Byzantine History 2:00-5:00 Monday through Friday. Our teachers are very funny with quirky senses of humor and a lot of enthusiasm for their respective areas of expertise. It looks like this month is going to be jam packed but immensely entertaining.
i am alive and fine in Athens!!!! sorry there has been no communication since i left on Thursday, but i can't call out on my phone without incurring huge charges and i have only had access to the Internet as of yesterday with not much time available to utilize it.
my first day in Greece was awful. we finally landed after almost 24 hours of travel and found our luggage without too much trouble after hearing many skeptical comments about our bags actually arriving in Greece with us. After hailing a taxi to the Kugler's (our professor from L&C) Carolyn and I found out where we lived and who we lived with. Then came the long, hot walk to our apartment. Normally the walk isn't that bad. However, we had to drag our bags up hill about 12 blocks in the worst heat of the day. Upon arrival we promptly sat our selves down, gulped down water, and didn't move for a half an hour. Then we tried and failed to unpack and instead turned up the air conditioning and fell asleep for an hour. I then woke up and was sick, but had to force myself to get ready to walk to CYA (College Year in Athens). When we returned home we fell asleep.
Over the next couple of days everyone arrived and settled into their apartments. Hopefully I'll put pictures of mine up here soon, i.e. whenever I feel like bringing my computer down to CYA so I can get wireless Internet access.
As it stands, I'm having a blast. I've been making dinner for me and the other residents of my apartment almost every night and tonight we're going out for our first Greek meal.
Yesterday signaled the start of our school year. I have Art and Archeology from 8:30-12:00 and Religion and Power: Byzantine History 2:00-5:00 Monday through Friday. Our teachers are very funny with quirky senses of humor and a lot of enthusiasm for their respective areas of expertise. It looks like this month is going to be jam packed but immensely entertaining.
Wednesday, August 29
a welcome and reasons to stall
this blog is for my friend to keep in contact with me. and if you're feeling adventurous, please you the link to the right called "a more in-depth way to keep in touch". this link will take you to the primary site that i check that is much more detail and very cool.
as i write, i am procrastinating. i am not packing up my giant suitcase with jeans, shirts, socks and other miscellaneous items. no, instead, i am sitting on my bed wondering what the hell i've gotten myself into... and if i made the right decisions to apply to this program; i have a sinking feeling that i've bitten off more than i can chew.
as i write, i am procrastinating. i am not packing up my giant suitcase with jeans, shirts, socks and other miscellaneous items. no, instead, i am sitting on my bed wondering what the hell i've gotten myself into... and if i made the right decisions to apply to this program; i have a sinking feeling that i've bitten off more than i can chew.
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