Pictures say a thousand words.

For our class excursion in Peloponnese, we stayed one night in Nafplio (my birthday, btw) and the town was absolutely beautiful.  We went out for an impromptu photo shoot and it was a blast.  These girls are gorgeous. 

I'm livin' the life.

Life here? Not too shabby.

I had set some goals of blogging more.. but it ah.. just didn't seem to happen!  But I am here now and ready to update you all on my life here in Athens.

Over the past week, a lot of really great and exciting experiences have occurred.  First of all, our group put on a Toga party!  My apartment actually hosted and it was a blast.  With the use of bed sheets, we were actually able to create pretty legit togas.  We ordered in 8 Domino's pizzas (really Greek, I know, but we did order Greek pizza!), danced a lot, and just had some really good conversation.  Our group as a whole works really well together and it's always awesome to get to know each person.  This night was one of those opportunities and it is such a blessing.

So legit, right?!

Our next night, we headed to a cooking class at Lemonde International that our director, Greg, planned for us.  This was pure awesomeness.  Again, our whole group went.  We were in a giant kitchen with about 3 chiefs.  It wasn't as hands on as we anticipated, but it was really great nonetheless.  Everyone got to go up and help at some point.  Naturally for me, I helped with the dessert.  =)  We made milk pies which were quiiiite delicious.  Among that, many other things were made.  Shrimp, lamb, potatoes, sea bass, and mini appetizers were a few.  I couldn't get myself to like the fish, but the rest was quite good.  Also they offered us some very good white wine.  All of us were given aprons to keep along with the recipes and a certificate of completion (Oh yea, we're legit).  It was an incredible experience and everyone really enjoyed it.  Shout to Greg for such an awesome idea! 

This chief? The bomb.

Milk pies!

Thursday.  4:30am, off to the bakery we go!  My roommates and I went to our local bakery that our school is associated with in order to learn and watch what actually goes on at a bakery before the customers arrive.  Although it was extremely early, I was so excited for this opportunity that the tiredness didn't even phase me.  Upon arriving, our friend Alex who is around our age showed us around the bakery.  Her dad is the baker and he is unable to speak English so she helped us and answered any questions we had.  We were able to watch him prepare the bread and all the other pastries.  It was so cool!  Although it is so routine for them, the process was completely fascinating for us.  Everything that came out of the oven, we were able to try. For free, might I add.  We tried mini-apple pies (NUM), cookies, bread, croissants, and pretty much anything else they threw our way.  Her dad, even though he couldn't speak English, is an exceptional man.  You can see a love for his family and customers in his eyes.  We felt so welcomed and blessed to be there.  They let us help set up the shop before it opened and I was so grateful just for that!  Getting to know Alex was also really cool.  Her life is so different than ours back home.  Currently, her university is on strike and she hasn't even gone back to college yet! If this continues on for a long time, she will have to stay in school for a semester longer.  This just astounds me.  She has been filling her days with two different jobs and being at the bakery that early consecutively has definitely taken a toll on her.  These are struggles they typically deal with, and the economical struggles have not been helping them either.  They've lost a good amount of customers and it is simply making everything harder for everyone.  The beautiful thing?  They are so positive regardless.  Struggles like this do not phase Greeks.  Look at it how you want, but I find it refreshing.  They do not allow themselves to get overwhelmed by the hard things.  There is way too much to be thankful for.  And quite frankly, life is too short.  

Num :)

Us with Alex!

I'll leave you with that for now.  These few experiences have definitely been highlights while here in Greece.  I really can't believe how blessed I am and this life here is just incredible.  Not only are all of these experiences great, but relationships are really beginning to develop as well.  There are so many great people here and there is nothing more rewarding than getting to know them and their walks of life. I am so blessed by God to be here on this crazy journey. 

Love to those at home.  Missing you all!

Santorini steals hearts.

Life is just always epic here it seems. 

I'm finally get back into the swing of things this week after one of the best weekends (busiest & most exhausting as well) of my life.  Santorini, Greece: most beautiful place I've ever been, hands down.  On Friday morning, we managed to all meet at 5:30am to begin our trek to the metro and then onto an 8 hour ferry ride.  This trip was also different in that we didn't have our directors with us.  It was all 30 of us, in charge, making our way & planning, this awesome weekend.  We started off with a bang on the metro nearing 6 in the morning.  Unfortunately, two people on our trip got pick pocketed.  An iPhone and camera were taken.  I've heard it happens all the time in Europe, but it's quite different when it happens to yourself or people you know.  They both handled it extremely well, but we were all much more aware after that.

Our ferry ride was quite uneventful, being that I slept for at least half of it. It was quite luxurious though, I must say.  But by the time we arrived, I was beyond excited to get our weekend started.  The whole weekend was filled with so many amazing things, I can hardly even express how great it was.  When we finally made our way to Fira (the town we'd be staying in), we managed to find our hotel and get all settled in.  We had an awesome outdoor pool and each room had a beautiful view.  That night, 7 of us girls went to Oia, the most picturesque area of Santorini, to watch the sunset and have dinner.  I couldn't believe the sunset.  It was gorgeous, but also the landscape of Santorini is so unique and gorgeous.  The buildings are all embedded on the sides of the mountains and painted in white with bright windows, doors, and accents.  We stood their for quite awhile just taking everything in.  After that, we found a place to eat, that by the way, looked out over the sea.  Every time I'd glance out, I couldn't believe where I was. So blessed is all I can really say.  I enjoyed a delicious plate of spaghetti and some incredible conversation with great girls.  Successful night #1 I'd say.

On Saturday, oh gosh, what a perfect day.  We started out by taking a sailboat tour to a volcano and hot springs.  The sailboat was really awesome and just being able to be on the water made it all the better.  The volcano.. not quite what I was expecting, but still very cool nonetheless.  It is still considered an active one and is expected to erupt again in the next 5-10 years.  We saw smoke rising and could smell it as well.  I, though, really enjoyed the hot springs.  When we arrived, we all got to jump off the boat and go for a swim.  As the water got muddier, it got warmer.  It was never hot, but it was fun to partake on a little mud bath! After getting back on the boat and making our way back to the port, we began our way back up the mountain.  How you may ask?  Oh just by donkey.  Mmk so this was hilarious.  I wouldn't say it was particularly enjoyable, just down right funny.  My donkey would leisurely stroll, and then all of a sudden really speed it up, and then decide to take a little poo all over the path.  Classy, yes.  It is quite the bumpy ride as well.  Many of us had bruises of some sort, might just so happened to be on my butt.  Really great spot for a bruise!  Overall- awesome experience.

How beautiful is this?

This is where it gets good folks.  That night, my friend Laura and I decided that we were going to go parasailing.  Before I left for Europe, I knew this was something I just had to do.  So in the late afternoon, her and I along with two others, took off for the beach in search of some parasailing action.  Another awesome form of transportation: ATV's.  Oh goodness, definitely one of my favorite experiences of the weekend.  There is truly nothing like cruising around on an island, in the middle of Greece, with the wind rushing against your face.  Complete freedom.  Plus the views; breathtaking.

When we reached the beach, we found the parasailing and thus the journey began.  Kate and Chris, our other two adventurers, climbed in the boat with us and we made our way out into the open sea.  With mountains all around us and the most beautiful water below us,  we soon escalated high into the sky.  I really wish I could truly explain to you how incredible this was.  I was overwhelmed with thanks and praise to God's goodness.  I am so blessed.  These beautiful places: all God's creation.  He lives and breathes in all of this and I can't really thank Him enough.  We flew high in the air for nearly twenty minutes just laughing at how incredibly awesome it was.  The boat driver would slow down so Laura and I would lower down, our butts would touch the water, and then he'd speed up and we'd quickly fly high back into the air.  I could of stayed up their all day.  It was probably the coolest thing I've ever done thus far.

After spending some time on the beach, we cruised back on our ATV's as the sun went down around us.  We stopped to watch the sun go down and then made our way to Oia for some dinner and exploring.  We made our way to Oia on our ATV's as well and this drive is so great.  The road bends along the side of the mountains, while the sea is directly below us.  The sky was beginning to darken and I just couldn't get enough of this experience.  So many times I was overwhelmed with thanks.  In Oia, us four enjoyed a pizza dinner.  Sooo delicious!

The beautiful lagoon.

Early Sunday morning we made our way back to Oia for some cliff jumping!  Another one of my favorite things.  The lagoon we went to (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants did filming in this very spot) was the most beautiful place I've ever been. Hands down.  The water- exceptional.  We could see nearly 30 feet below because it was so clear.  Their were rocks everywhere and the water was all different shades: deep turquoise, teal, aqua, and deep blue.  We spent a long time just swimming, trying to take it all in.  Oh and we jumped off a 20ft cliff as well :) That wasn't too shabby, I suppose.

This activity brought us to the end of our incredible weekend.  After a long ferry ride back and very late night, we are back in the swing of classes, homework, and class trips.  I can hardly believe this amazing weekend occurred and I am again so thankful that I had the opportunity to go.  Life in Athens is continuing on, quite too fast I must say. We only have a month left here and then it's off to Rome! I truly do love Greece.  So much is happening, we're all getting closer, and I'm growing everyday.  Because this is getting quite long, I will write again soon with updates on daily life in Athens.  Wonderful things happen during that time too :)

Missing all of you from home & my prayers are with you.
God bless! 

Beautiful sunsets & Greek islands.

Look at me already blogging again!  I'm going to get better at this I promise. 

So I've just an awesome weekend, like usual here.  I mean really, how can you have a bad weekend in Greece?  We started it out on Friday evening by journeying up a very large hill to a small touristy church that overlooks the entire city of Athens.  The climb: intense and steep, but, it's fast and completely worth it.  We went just before sunset and it was beautiful.  It was a deep pink and once we reached the top, we got to see Athens light up and come alive at night.  As we made our way back, we decided to get some ice cream (story of my life here) and it was so worth it, as usual.  I've told myself many times that if I get fat off of ice cream it'll be so worth it.  It's not just the ice cream either, it's the people and conversation that accompany it.  Every time I've had ice cream thus far, it's always been with different people, new flavors, and usually nice conversation with a Greek or two.  This is the life. 

Saturday was our day trip to the island of Aegina.  With not much planned, we had an amazing day of ferry riding, exploring, and beachin' it up.  Did I mention how much I love this place?

When we first arrived, we made our way to the Temple of Aphaia (daughter of Zeus).  The history is always interesting, but it's usually the view that astounds me the most.  The ocean is all around us and the landscaping was really beautiful as well.  Afterwards, we ate lunch and went to the beach.  This beach was so great, and very quiet too.  The island of Aegina in itself is lined with boats and this was when I discovered my obsession with boats (notice the many pictures on my Facebook).  They are so different and it's the detail that really fascinates me.  Not only that, but the water here is rich teal.. I really wish I could have this view everyday.  This small town feel (quiet little streets, small restaurants, beaches every mile, boats and harbors everywhere) is what I really love.  I could really get use to this atmosphere.

As you can guess, we had to take a ferry to get to and from this island.  This in itself was one of my highlights for the day.  We sat on the top deck, surrounded by ocean, cool breeze, and seagulls.  Then on our way back, I saw the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen.  I am truly in awe of God's creation at these points.  This is too good to be true. 

Love & miss you all. 

God bless.

I live in Athens, Greece.

So I've been slow, I'm well aware of this.  Finally getting settled into one place has made me quite relaxed, meaning my blog upkeep has suffered.  Also, my picture taking is on quite the decline as well.  It will rise again, I assure, just give me some time!  Alas, I am here, enjoying my new home, Athens!

Now may I rewind and say that pre-travel finished oh so swimmingly and we had no big mishaps or struggles throughout our time.  I'd say, overall, we took Europe by storm and rocked it.  Advice for your future goers: well, stay tuned!  I'm in the process of developing some "do's and don'ts" that we learned throughout our process.  Our pre-travel experience was such a blessing and our group had a really awesome time together.  It is now nice to be in one central location, with the entire group, learning and living in Greece.

To begin, we arrived in Athens toward evening on the 29th and spent time getting settled into our apartment!  Overall, it's nice, but unfortunately our particular apartment has many bug friends that like to live in our bathroom and kitchen.  Adds a little adventure to living I suppose, but we could really do without them.  Beyond that, we have two double rooms and one single, with a nice living room, kitchen and bathroom.  Three guys from our trip are our neighbors and that's been really fun.  One of our first nights we joined together and made a really delicious spaghetti dinner.  Just recently, we all gathered and had a guitar sing-a-long/jam session which was so great.  Overall, its been great in the apartments and us roomies have had a really fun time preparing meals, getting to know one another and just talking about everything.

Outside of apartment life, school has officially begun.  My motivation for class is quite low, but all of the classes are very interesting thus far!  I'm in Modern Greek (language & culture), Art History, Senior Seminar, History, and Theology.  Our classes are very long compared to school back home, but we don't have class Friday, which makes the extra time definitely worth it.  So far, Theology has been my favorite.  We're learning about Greek Orthodox and the professor is great.  He's a priest and makes things interesting and asks a lot of enticing questions.  Later on in the term, we get to attend his church and see how his faith life is practiced out! Another class I like is our Seminar class. Our professor from home, Greg, teaches that and his emphasis is on Fine Arts.  We will be attending a lot of different fine art performances, while also using the class time to reflect on our experiences and just get to know each other better.  For the majority of our classes, we get to get out and see the sights.  Every week for art, we are attending different museums, while in History and Theology, we also get to explore.  This factor makes school seem all the more fun, and I think it teaches far more than any one professor could try and express.  Overall, everything has been great and the homework load isn't too bad!  We're trying to learn Greek in record speed, so that is the main struggle I'm enduring right now.  Greek is hard, in case you wanted to know.

We've done a lot of really awesome stuff outside of class thus far, but I'll just highlight a few that I've particularly enjoyed!

1. Class dinner out at a Taverna.  One of our first nights, a few Greek professors took out our entire group to a local Greek Taverna for a little taste of Greek cuisine and wine.  It was so fun to try all of the different foods!  Greeks usually eat family style, so we had many different dishes, and we simply just passed them around the table until they were gone.  I really liked an eggplant dish and the fried cheese.  I surprised myself, but it was all really good!  Plus, the dinner conversation and being out with the whole group was really great.

2. President's Dinner.  So our first Friday in Athens, we went to the President's (of our college) house for a garden party/dinner.  His house, holy crap beautiful.  His backward is gorgeous, and also huge, being that he invited over 150 guests.  We all dressed up, had really great conversation, and also ate again, a very delicious meal.  I myself ate 4 pitas, exciting I know, but they were so good.

3. Temple of Poseidon.  So our first Saturday, Greg and his wife took us to the beach and then onto the Temple to watch the sunset.  The beach was gorgeous and luckily, quiet! We spent the afternoon there exploring, laying out and swimming.  My favorite though, was checking out the Temple.  I wish I could fully express the view.  It was beyond breathtaking.  On 3 sides, the ocean was far below us and as far as we could see.  Boats crawled all across the ocean and Temple was silhouetted by the sun.  This Temple began being built in early 5th century BC!  I couldn't really fathom being somewhere that held that much history, even before Christ's time!

["The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for founded it on the seas and established it on the waters." Psalm 24:1-2]

Gorgeous much?

The whole group!

4. Exploring the city.  We've done a lot of exploring and that has been really awesome.  We are familiarizing ourself with our surroundings and getting to talk with a lot of locals.  We've done some shopping, eating out, and one of my favorite activities, we went to a sandal shop, The Poet Sandal Maker, where we had custom Greek sandals made for our feet!  They are not only awesome looking, but quite comfortable and look rather good on my feet (:
Just of last night, we went to an outdoor movie theater where us girls say One Day.  This theater overlooks the Acropolis to the left and is just beautiful.  Not to mention, the movie was great.  I'd recommend it, but prepare to be sad.  Beforehand, I had the best crepe of my life.  Strawberry, nutella, graham cracker, whipped cream, and chocolate.  Oh my deliciousness.
Lastly, I'm obsessed with the Friday market here.  Close to our apartments, starting at 6am on Friday, the streets are lined with delicious (and cheap) fruits and vegetables.  I cannot get enough of this and wish they had it everyday.  It is currently Friday here, and that market is calling my name as I type.  So I will end on this note, and try to write again... soon.

My heart and prayers go back to those of you at home!
God bless.