Yeeasas and Hello!

Though it took us about 24 hours of planes, trains, and buses to get here, the past two and a half days in Athens have been surreal. In the past 48 hours, I have seen 5,000 year old artifacts, stood on the grounds of the Ekklessia, the birthplace of democracy, and stood on the hill of the Areopagus, where Paul led his first Athenian convert to Christ!
When we arrived in Athens Friday night, we took a bus tour of the city and had our first authentic Greek meal. We are lucky to have arrived on the holiday of Epiphany because we got a glimpse of the city still covered in Christmas decorations. As soon as we started walking the streets to our restaurant, we encountered ancient landmarks such as Hadrian's Arch. It is hard to grasp just how old artifacts like that are. It seems to unreal.
The next morning we headed out with our guide, Maria and began to get oriented to the city. We traveled to the Pynx, which is where the ekklessia, or democratic assembly met in the open air. From there, we got a perfect view of the acropolis towering on an adjacent hill. Next, we got a closer view of the acropolis from atop the Areopagus (aka Mars Hill). The Areopagus, or hill of Ares, is the sight of the Athenian Supreme Court that stood from around the 15th cen BC to the 4th cen. A.D. This hill was especially interesting to me because it is the site where Paul delivered his sermon about the unknown god, found in Acts 17. Following this explanation of the gospel to the Areopagites, Dionysius, became Paul's first Greek convert. Though a large Christian community did not develop during Paul's time in Athens, his effort did eventually lead to a Christian community. In fact, today Greece is 99% Greek Orthodox Christian and 1% Roman Catholic. I got to teach our group about the Areopagus, so that was fun.
  Later, we visited the acropolis museum, which had beautiful reconstructions of the Parthenon friezes as well as innumerable Archaic and Classical art and sculptures. After taking a rest from a long day of walking we got a second wind and headed back out for round 2. We ate at Dr. Todd's favorite restaurant, Psaris, which was definitely the best Greek food I've had yet. It was in a cozy allyway with a charming atmosphere. The menu was a series of appetizer type dishes including Greek salad, saganaki (fried cheese), Spinacopita (spinach pie), Greek sausage, tzaziki (yogurt sauce), and my favorite Mouzika ( a lamb lasagna type pastry). After dinner we decided to hunt down the oldest coffee shop in Athens that our guide had pointed out to us on our first bus tour. Unfortunately we did not know its name or where it was, but knowing the general direction, we set out to find it. After being laughed at when we asked for directions and taking the same subway route multiple times, we found it 2 hours later! It was about 12:30 by this point, but the place was hoppin! Greeks eat and stay out much later than Americans. With mission accomplished, we headed back to the hotel and passed out.
Today we woke up to rain, but we didn't let it stop us. We trecked out to see the kalameikos, the 5th century pottery factory as well as the Royal Stoa (part of the agora-town center), where Socrates was sworn in as President. From there we subwayed to the government center of town. Behind one of the government buildings we saw the excavation of the Lyceum, the gymnasium where Aristotle taught. After that we spent several hours in the Museum of Cyclidic art, which held 5,000 yr old art from the Cyclides, Greek islands. When our museum legs were worn out, we went searching for a "mythical crepery" that Dr. Todd also recommended, and we were in for a treat! After splitting several crepes such as Mexican, ham and cheese, nutella and strawberry, and apple pie, we built up enough energy to climb to highest point in Athens, the Lycabettus.
     We went in search of the cable car to take us to the top, with ANOTHER Athenian dog who decided to become our guard dog (their really fond of tourists). When we gave up on the cable car, he followed us all the way to the top of the cactus-lined path to see the breath-taking view of Athens, the Acropolis, the surrounding Mts. and the Mediterranean in the distance. It was stunning. After a million group pictures and a visit to the Byzantine chapel at the top we rode the cable car down. It was a wonderful day besides catching someone read-handed who sneaked up behind me and was stealing my purse! Thankfully when I gave him an infuriated look he dropped it and ran. Anyway, tomorrow we are taking a ferry to a small island off the coast called Aegina. Got to get up early so I better go for now.
Kalineechta! Good Night!

Opah!

Well, when I left the continent that I fell in love with last fall, I didn't think I would have the privilege of visiting her again for many years. I would have never guessed that only a year later I would have the opportunity to study abroad again! I needed one more history credit to graduate and the only way I could make it fit into my school schedule was to take Greek history over Jan-term, IN GREECE!! I have always wanted to visit Greece and am so excited! I will be traveling with a group of about 25 students and adults from Samford from January 5th-24th. I hope to post lots of pictures and adventures so that you all can enjoy it as well! Wish me luck :)


Here's my itinerary:
Jan 5th: Leave ATL 6:00
Jan 6th: arrive Frankfurt 9 am, fly 1:30-5:00-Land in Athens!
Jan 7th-10th: Tour Athens
Jan 11th: Meteora- "hanging monasteries"
Jan 12th: Delphi
Jan 13th: Olympia
Jan 14th-16th: Poulithra
Jan 17th: Nauplion, Mycenae, and Tyrins
Jan 18th: Epidaurus, Corinth, and Acrocorinth
Jan 19th: Heraklion, Crete, 
Jan 20: Crete
Jan 22: Marathon
Jan 23: Athens
Jan 24th: Fly Home! 

View of Oxford from atop the chapel

A London Fall

          I have loved being in London this past week. On Wednesday, I got to see Les Miserables, which after my parents seeing it 3 times, hearing them talk about it innumerable times, listening to the soundtrack, and skating to the music for two years, was a dream come true. I have never heard such powerful vocals and the storyline was so moving. Let's just say I was bawling... If you ever get the chance to see it, it is a must!
         On Thursday after working at the hospital school in the morning, I went with the kids to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. Winter Wonderland was a fair themed like a German Christmas village with lots of rides, bratwurst stands, and a skating rink. I had so much fun with the girls and it was a huge success until we tried to get on the ice. Let's just say, they were a bit like Bambi :) It ended up okay in the end, with just two cut fingers and a few bruises...
         On Friday, after another day at the internship, some friends and I visited Harrod's Chocoloate Bar. That was my first Harrods experience of the trip, and it really put me in the Christmas spirit. That one store is like a giant mall, and I loved looking at all the ornaments and the giant stuffed animals. The Chocolate Bar is a small bar with tons of amazing desserts. I got a delicious piece of chocolate cake and ice cream. To die for! Afterwards we walked around Regent Street and visited Hamley's, London's largest toy store. It was five stories of fun. Once again, I loved the giant stuffed animals and the lego Buzz Lightyear. Regent Street is all lit up for Christmas with Narnia themed lights. Walking through the street was truly enchanting.
        On Saturday, I had the amazing privilege of visiting the world renowned, Oxford University. Not only did I visit it, though, I got a tour from Roger, our neighbor who graduated from there about 40 years ago. He knows the town backward and forward and absolutely loves taking students there. When we first arrived, about 9am, he took us on a walk around Christ Church fields to give us a panoramic view of the school. Walking through the nature trail with its winding stream, arching bridge, and colorful leaves, finally gave us a much wanted feeling of fall. We also loved seeing the rowing team out on their morning practice. Apparently rowing is the most prestigious sport at Oxford and as we walked through the different buildings we saw paintings on the outsides which marked one team's victory over another.
           What I didn't realize was that Oxford is not just one college, like Samford, it is comprised of 39 different colleges varying from 80-1,000 students each. The colleges are friendly toward each other, yet they do get competitive sometimes. Roger attended Magdalen College, where C.S. Lewis attended and taught. He told us that when he was trying to decided between Cambridge and Oxford, he actually wrote a letter to C.S. Lewis to ask him which one he recommended, and he actually got a 3 page letter back with all the reasons why Lewis recommended Oxford's English program! Later, however, he told us that he never went to any lectures and really only had about one hour of class per week and one paper. The rest of the time he just did what he wanted, WHAT?! He said that nothing really mattered in University until your last two weeks of your 3 year degree when you have to write 9 Essays as your final exit exam.  He said that those grades are the only ones that really count and that they are so stressful people are regularly admitted to the hospital during those weeks! In my opinion, not the best system... Their graduates however, are apparently very successful. My favorite part was probably the chapels Each college had their own and they were beautiful. We ended the day by visiting the Eagle and the Child pub where C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien frequented. It was really a wonderful day, and getting to hear all of Roger's crazy life stories made it very special.
              Today, Mary Evelyn and I took the day exploring parts of London where we have not spent much time and finding some Christopher Wren churches. One of my favorite churches we saw had been bombed out during WWII, all but the steeple. Now a rose garden stands where the Nave would be and the steeple still rises up to the skyline. We also found Samuel Johnson's house, the Royal Courts of Justice, and Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese (mentioned in a Tale of Two Cities).
           I can not believe that I only have less than two weeks left in London. There is so much more I want to see and do, but I at the same time I am so excited to go home. I am truly thankful for my time here, and am going to try to enjoy every moment I have left.

Lovin' Life :)

I so wish I could have found time to update you all on all the events of the last few weeks! I will try to go back at some point and record them, but for now I just had to write about some of the most exciting highlights!
           I just got back from seeing the world renowned production of Les Miserables. My whole life I have heard my parents talk about it, listened to the soundtrack, and skated to the music, so seeing it in person was a dream come true. Even with all my expectations, I was shocked at the caliber of the vocals and the emotion and passion which the characters portrayed. I have never heard such strong and beautiful male vocals as Jean Valjeans and the girls' voices were absolutely angelic. After seeing the horrors of the life of the poor during the French Revolution, I was really moved to consider the poor that I pass on the street every day. At the end of the play, all the martyrs stand gazing down from heaven pleading to you to join in their cause and it was really very inspiring. The people who fought during the revolution, even the children, gave everything for what they believed in. I hope one day I may be able to do that. This show is a  "must see" for everyone and I would see it again in a heartbeat if I got the chance.
          Another amazing experience I've had recently was visiting the quaint Medieval town of Brugge, Belgium. 4 of my friends and I took an overnight bus last Friday and arrived in Brugge around 8 am on Saturday. We climbed 366 stairs to the top of a 13th century Belfry, visited the Gutonhuse Palace, the Cathedral of the Holy Blood, and many adorable Christmas shops. Also, because Belgium is known for its "frites" (aka original french fries), belgian waffles, and chocolate, we pretty much ate the weekend away :) The fact that it was rainging the whole time helped ;) On top of that we visited a chocolate museum. It taught us the history of chocolate from when it was traded as a Mayan currency, to when it was brought to Spain and exploded across Europe. We also saw a video on the process of making chocolate and it is very long. The best part however, was seeing the president. Yes, I actually saw Barrack Obama, but yes, he was made out of chocolate. I also saw a chocolate Madonna and child and many chocolate cats! To end the tour we saw a demonstration by a chocolatier making truffles and then got to taste one. Belgrade chocolate=the best I've ever tasted! Traveling back we rode on a christmas decorated coach and arrived bakc in London at 4:30 am! Woohoo. Nothin' like being a crazy college student! I will try to share some more fun adventures soon :)

A Rockin' Day...

Sorry, I haven't written in so long! Things have been soo busy, but I will try to find the time asap to record the amazing adventures I had in Ireland and Scotland. As I write this, I am currently riding the national railway back from a day at Salisbury and Stonehenge! The town of Salisbury was a picturesque Medieval town with shop–lined streets, a beautiful cathdral, and a fairground filled with children. We were privileged to visit Salisbury Cathedral, built in the 13^th century, which has the highest spire in England, soaring at 404 feet! It also holds what is believed to be the world’s oldest working clock, dating back 800 years. I am continually perplexed and astonished by the effects cathedrals have on me. I have visited what seems like dozens over the course of the last six weeks, but every one I enter seems more beautiful than the last. Salisbury’s had such a calming and peaceful atmosphere. The ceilings were some of the tallest I’ve seen and the stained glass was magnificent. I loved the feeling of holiness and worship there. I have been bothered in a few cathedrals by the amount of shrines to various saints, which seem to take the focus away from who the building was built to worship. I love being in a cathedral though and imagining God’s voice saying, “This is my house.” If God had a physical house on earth, he would deserve the best of man’s design and craftsmanship, and that is what is so magnificent about these cathedrals. Plus, the cathedral housed the best of the 4 original copies of the Magna Carta!
When we left the cathedral, we wandered through the streets to the bus station where we embarked on a tour to the world famous Stonehenge. It was exactly how I pictured it, a stunning and mysterious monument surrounded by rolling green hills. There were even sheep which were trying to walk amidst the monument and had to be shooed away by the guards. I tried to picture the people who created this monument some 4,000 years ago and grasp that length of time. Our tour told us that Stonehenge is the third “henge” or hanging to stand on that spot. Earlier henges were apparently made of wood and date back to 3,000 BC. The stones are believed to have been carried over from Ireland or a more distant part of England and floated down the Avon river on rafts. After that, the stones are believed to have been transported by rolling along wooden logs. When they reached the crest of the hill, where they stand today, historians’ guess that they were slid into holes, which were slanted on one side, and using levers and the power of hundreds of men were stood upright. No one knows why Stonehenge was built, but it is evident that it’s design is very purposeful. The placement of the stones functions a bit like a giant sundial which works as a calendar for a whole year. Specific marker stones indicate the time of the summer and winter solstices, and throughout the year, one can determine the month based on which stones the sun shines through. The Beaker people must have had a huge presence in Bronze Age Salisbury, because over 500 of their burial mounds are present around the area. Furthermore, there are other stone circles, including the larger, Avesbury circle, which surrounds the entire town of Avesbury. Though I would love to understand how such monuments could have possibly been constructed, the mystery makes the Stonehenge experience so much more enchanting. I feel like I’ve accomplished a lifelong goal, after seeing the circle, because I remember as a little kid, marveling at Stonehenge pictures in National Geographic Kids, never imagining that I would actually get to see it in my life. I feel so blessed that this trip has been full of those types of moments. I am constantly thrown into a state of shock at what I’m seeing, and am so thankful for every one of my experiences here. I can’t wait to get home and tell you all more about it!