March 4th-Rueben…Are you for scuba?

Yes…today I went scuba diving…the kind with full out gear. It was very surreal. Scuba diving was always something done in the movies and my opportunity just kind of sprung up. A meeting at school left students with the opportunity to go on a “Discovery Dive” with a local scuba company. I jumped on it, knowing I would be kicking myself if I saw photos of others exploring the Mediterranean coast.

20 of us got up at 9 AM and walked 5 minutes to the scuba shop. The man that met us…Yoti…not joking…reminded me of the fellow from “Along Came Polly”. For those of you who have seen this movie…you will know what I am talking about and have a chuckle. He had the long hair going, accent to match and just the general feel of the man in the movie. This was naturally a great start to the excursion. More and more instructors started to show up. The group was divided into the instructors’ cars and the drive to Halkidiki started. Halkidiki is the group of 3 peninsulas that lie west of Thessaloniki. This is the summer hot spot where all Thessalonians head to on the weekends and summers. It was a BEAUTIFUL hour drive.

Side note: Petro went to Halkidiki with a family friend the day before. He came back and naturally I asked him how it was. He immediately started to talk about the drive to Halkidiki. He spoke of colors….vivid vivid colors. I knew exactly what he was talking about as soon as we got out of the city on our drive. Maybe it was because Petro had put it in my head, but the greens, blues and browns of the countryside really did appear overly vivid. It was amazing. Oh, yeah, and Mt. Olympus was in clear view out the shotgun window. That mountain just does not look real. Again my love for mountains over took me here.

March 2nd—Where did February go?

We are now in the month of March….the month that contains March 31st which is the day I fly to Paris to see that lovely girlfriend of mine and some wonderful friends. Usually I take my days “day by day” but that date has always provided me with some strength and energy. Efforts to plan my spring break have taken full force. I have flights picked out, hotels lined up and plenty of anticipation brewing. If you can’t tell…I am extremely excited. Spring break is on everyone’s mind because we are all planning a trip that is beyond surreal. This is stuff we all dream of and are now taking steps to make it real. Crazy. That is all. And also, when I am making spring break trips…I often think about the epic trip back to Northern California. To this day, that family trip is been the time of my life…it was just absolutely amazing. I am soooo excited for that as well. Go Gus!!! Possible big foot sight?...who knows, we will see.

Alright, now it is just random thoughts for you.

I bought a computer speaker system (subwoofer and 2 small speakers). This was an essential purchase. You all know me and you all know I love to listen to music all the time and at loud levels. I love them and they make time at the apartment more enjoyable. I can get back to pretending my daily activities have a soundtrack. It’s great.

I tried going to a dance club last night with some friends. They denied me at the door because I had my rope sandals on. Ha! I thought this was great. I am glad it happened because this is not the establishment I want to be at. I will go ahead and say that is one downside to life here. People will actually judge you on what you are wearing. For me…that is just a ridiculous notion and there is not any place for it. Petro and I ended up running into two new local friends, Vasilis and Costas, and they invited us into the bozoukia literally right next door. Bozoukias have big stages with live performances with big bands. Everyone ends up dancing, including on stage and on tables. This is more my scene!

Classes are great. I find each one interesting and am learning a lot…contrary to possibly many of your beliefs. I love my literature class. The professor is absolutely great…someone to look up to. We read a piece prior to class…often times challenging…and then spend the class period discussing it. There is no pressure…we say what we think with no wrong answers…love it. The Greek language is coming very slowly but I am learning it piece by piece.

As always, I miss home. Family…you are in my thoughts. Madison…you are in my thoughts. I realize my attachment to UW and the city. I really don’t see any campus beating UW. I know I might be biased, but I just absolutely love that environment. Granted all my friends being there certainly does contribute to this feeling, but the city and campus are just perfect to me. I look forward to returning. The ONLY thing my campus now has over UW is mountains. I have taken quite the liking to my mountains here. We have a great relationship going…they let me climb and hike…and in return I give them a smile every time I see them!

As far as the people I have met here. I can’t seem to begin to explain them. They are all wonderful and I think I will wait to talk to you to explain them all. It would take too much effort to try and put to words off the top of my head.

Feb.24-Meteora Monasteries

A large study abroad group visited Kalabaka this past weekend. This is the site of Meteora ("Suspendid rocks"). I remember looking up pictures of Greece before leaving for my program. I came across these monasteries perched on top of cliffs. To my absolute delight, the school arranged a field trip to this breathtaking panorama. That is truly all I can say about it.

We left early Saturday morning, stopped in Trikala for lunch and just a break from the bus. Interesting note, my Greek teacher was originally from Trikala so he was very excited to hear of our travels. Our tour guide, Dafni, wonderful middle-aged women, took those interested on a tour of the old city. Of course I did not pass that up. It was either the tour or wonder around and shop. We saw the old defense walls and climbed the clock tour to get a view of the city. The weather was foggy and didn’t allow us to see too much.

A two hour bus ride from Trikala put us in Kalabaka. We were taken directly to our little hotel. The rooms had the bare essentials. I was hoping for a decent bed but found one similar to the one in my studio. I really did indulge in buying my bed this summer. I am now use to a more luxurious bed….which was a mistake given the current situation. Anyways, most people took naps or headed out into the small town. A small group of us decided to head up into the mountains and see what kind of mountaineering we could get ourselves into. It took awhile to find an entry point but we did. The terrain was slick so we had to be careful but all of us really wanted to get some hiking in. We made our way a decent way up. It was just some good clean hiking fun. I hadn’t gotten to explore nature like that in a long time and I look forward to more of it.

Something did happen before we found our unfound hiking path. An elderly man made a “come here” gesture from inside his little gated garden. None of us were sure of how to proceed, but Nikos just started to walk towards him. The man opened a door to his basement revealing his collection of homemade clay scultures. These were of prominent Greek buildings, like the Acropolis and even the White Tower in Thessaloniki. This man had these beautiful art pieces in his basement. He just wanted to show them off…great little side not to my weekend.

That night ended with a great dinner and an early retirement to bed.

I was the first one to wake up…immediately got dressed and headed down to the breakfast that was included in our trip. It was a great spread. I found a table right next to a fire that was already going. The rest of the group joined me in the hall within minutes. The group was lively…we were about to head up into the “floating rocks”…I don’t know how one couldn’t be lively.

The bus ride up there resembled my trip along highway 1 in California or the drives up the rocky mountains on my family trip to Colorado. The roads were as narrow as possible and one slip would send us down…I know…gruesome. Dafni was constantly gripping the chair…she wasn’t a fan of heights. I had a front seat view of the drive. These tour buses provided great views but the best was from the front seat. Jah and I made sure to get it each time we got on that bus.

The ascend was a quick 10 minutes and we were at our first monastery. This was the first of two, although there were 8 total.

The rest of this story is been shown through pictures. I am working on setting up an on-line photosharing site. It will be up soon. The monasteries were just as I had seen them in those pre-departure photos I had looked up. This was a simple life where monks and nuns prayed for 8 hours, worked for 8 hours and slept for 8 hours. They were used to house refugees during Turkish and Ottoman invasions/occuptations. Today, they are big tourist attractions although the monasteries have managed to stay true. Women are given long skirts to put over their legs before entering. Very few modern technologies have been adopted. The only way to reach them is still a long and challenging hike up carved steps. Just take a look at the pictures. You will see (hopefully soon)

This has been the best weekend of my trip so far. I am just a sucker for landscapes.

Feb. 23-Night to Celebrate Harrison’s Bday

Two weeks of school are gone now. My classes are very interesting. I am taking a Modern history class that hasn’t shown me anything quite yet. I just think we haven’t gotten into the bulk of the class yet. It is all introductory stuff, so I look forward to the real content. My “Politics of the European Union” class is completely interesting. I am learning so much with many different viewpoints. I have taken a big interest in the EU and the integration that comes from it. Some Europeans are for it and some are not. I love to hear what people have to say on the issue. Greek 101 has not been too difficult yet. We have just gotten through the alphabet. I can read Greek now!!! That is not much good to me yet though. Now starts the task of learning the vocabulary. Finally there is my literature class. I have a superb professor. She gets everyone involved and is completely passionate about her work. Seeing her in her field is really inspiring. The professor track has become more and more appealing.

What else…futbol is a blast. We have a pretty good team. So far we have just had an inter-team scrimmage. From what I see, we should put together a strong squad. The coach assigned me to a forward position at one point in the practice. I don’t want it. Hopefully I will end up in the midfield. There is a great midfielder on the team and I think we can do well together…hopefully. The Athens trip is going to be a great time. We are staying at the “President” hotel. Look it up online if you would like. That is what I have been doing and it looks quite nice.

I have been looking up spring break information. Looks like I will fly to Paris on March 30th…stay there with Courtney and friends from back home until the 7th…then Courtney and I will head south to the French Riviera!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow….I cannot wait to spend time with that girl. We are just going to relax and experience s. france for a week. Then she will come to Greece for a week. We are so blessed to have these opportunities. Trust me, we will not take them for granted. The bank will certainly take a hit, but it is something I must do. I have found some great airfare deals.

The search for summer work continues. I have gotten responses from some very exciting opportunities….but I have put myself in a place where person-to-person interviews are not all that possible. Not many companies are fond of phone interviews. This puts me in a jam. Let me know if any of you got ideas!

50 or so of us head to Meteora tom. For a weekend school field trip. Search the place on google images or wait for pictures from me. This place looks absolutely amazing. You will see. I am excited to just travel a bit…get to use that brand new backpack…shout out to Gus and Christie for that gift.

I miss Courtney, home, Madison, friends, ice cream, my stereo, my bed, Asian cuisine, everything…but I am growing fond of this place. Gyros truly are one of the best meals here…2 Euros for a pita filled with meat, fries, onions and ketchup. It is a fulfilling meal to say the least. Dido’s is two right around the corner. The young gentleman speaks no English and whistles tunes and jumps around while making the food. It is a great spectacular. I love the fact that I get to see mountains every day. That will never get old. Meeting people and learning about other cultures is priceless.

Until next time my family, friends and love. Have the bestest days, smile and say hello to me whenever you get a chance. Signs from home are so comforting to me here. Ya Sas!

Feb. 19—Tirnavos Pagan Fertility Festival

We got up at 6am to catch a 2-hr train to a city called Lorissa. From there, the 15 of us walked our way to the central bus station to catch a bus to the famed village of Tirnavos. The bus pulled up 30 minutes later…I must say pretty much to a ghost town. We were all looking for the costume parades we had heard about. (Melissa, a 2nd semester veteran, had found out about this hundred-year-old celebration) A two minute walk in a completely random direction showed us our first sign of fertility. There stood a group of four men standing outside a taverna…grilling octopus tentacles on an open grill. We walked past and the man controlling the grill literally waved a ceramic (excuse the vulgarity but it is the truth)….penis at us. This was the intro to the show.

The town of Tirnavos holds a festival to celebrate a superstition that apparently brings good fertility for the year. The festival is held shortly after Valentine’s Day and right before lent. The only meat served is fish…mostly octopus and kalamri. Ouzo and retsina are in every glass…men very passively taunt woman with clay male organs…speakers are set up throughout the village, playing the loud songs for everyone to get a groove on…kids throw firecrackers in the streets to strollers surprises…Tables, white table cloths, bread, food and drink are set in most of the open areas, for people to sit and watch it all in. Take a look at pictures and you will get a sense of what went on here.

Anyway, it was such an interesting day trip. I got a sense of what it takes to get to Athens via train. I saw a local village celebrating their uniquness( one of the study abroad students remembers learning about this festival in a Western Civil. Class). I got to know some of my classmates with the help of 6 hours of roundtrip public transportation. It was a long long day but I only have one class tom…so that ain’t bad.

Heard Mikey Drimel will be arriving in Thessaloniki on March 20th. He is bringing a friend. We will hang here for a day or two…then head south to Athens and beyond (islands!) I hope I can show him a good time.

You all have a better one.

Feb. 16-First week of classes

Kalimera. It has been awhile but I have some moments before I leave for Friday’s classes. As I type, I hear a megaphone outside the apartment complex. Apparently, this person comes by a lot in the morning trying to sell things. I find that strategy insane. Anger people by waking them up and then try and make a sale. Soliciting is “welcome” anywhere. Anyone can walk into a restaurant and offer up to sell something. They are always discrete about it…but come on.

I am trying to recall the past couple of days. It has basically just been school. I have a wonderful European Studies class titled “Politics of the EU”. It has really highlighted my previous education’s inability to teach World history…as opposed to American history. I am learning some very interesting things from class. There is a variety of nationalities in the class…which makes for good viewpoints. My literature professor is great. She loves literature and tries to bring that out in the small 9 of us. My greek class is still intimidating. I have it first this morning and there is a sense of nervousness because I do not know the alphabet yet. We are not expected to know it, but that is what we are going over. Finally, I have a history class which should expand my European history “knowledge”. I am excited about that. Basically, I am just excited about the classes and school in general. That professor track is more and more appealing. I just really enjoy school.

Jameson was here last semester and we talked about becoming a professor as a career path. We are both in similar situations, except he is a philosophy major. Yikes, those discussions are just headaches. Anyway, we talked about this when we were at dinner. Paul(Georgia), Jameson(Kansas), Ozzy(Turkey) and Evo(Bulgaria) all went out to a taverna for dinner. I had the best chicken to this date. It was so moist…one of those dishes that seem to melt in the mouth.

Feb.11-Day before school.

Early Sunday afternoon here. I believe most people are sleeping. I got up early…compared to everyone else…to run and check my e-mail. I couldn’t wait to hear all about Courtney’s travels in New York City. I then walked around to try and find some food. I still don’t have all the essentials to make a decent meal. Most places…and I mean almost every place is closed on Sundays. I did find one of my favorite gyro places to be open. That was a nice surprise.

So then I made it back here to find the apartment complex pretty much dead. I am not so keen on the location of my room. It is on the first floor tucked in the corner. Most of the students are on the 5-8 floors. It is easy for me to miss out on little stuff that other students are doing. Oh well.

We all went salsa dancing last night. I was able to learn one basic step. It is something else to see an experienced couple dancing salsa on the floor. They literally move and twirl as one. I wonder if gus and Christie are at that stage yet. We then went to a big dance club right on the water. Harrison, my pal from London, knew the “bouncers and got us all in. The place wasn’t all that impressive. It was overcrowded and not many friendly faces I would say. I am not sure if that is the “cool club face” or general impressions by the younger population. I hope for the first.

I finally met Ozzy(Turkish) and Jameson(Kansas) at the end of the night. They were here last semester and had been traveling around a bit. Both seem interesting. They had some bob Marley loudly when I walked in. I hadn’t heard those songs in a while. It was nice.

Was hoping to play some futbol today with the guys. It is a tad bit rainy out so I am not sure how motivated the others will be. I just hope it doesn’t turn out to everyone just laying around in the apartment. I’ll find something to do. Adio for now.