Brace yourself, Honies. This one's a biggin'!!!

[Note: This entry is really long -- I'm trying to remember/post as much as I can, because this is technically my journal for the trip, too. I broke it up so you can read in installments, so enjoy!]

Well, I’ve finally graced Athens with my presence, and I’m properly exhausted with jet-lag and anticipation. I made it through our first day of orientation, and then went straight into the sight-seeings and excursions. I’m thanking Zeus that my body adapted in time. After all, nobody likes a lackluster or grumpy student.

I’ve always told John that I have this insatiable curse when it comes to traveling by air – my flights never go as smoothly as they should, and most times the mishaps are borderline dramatic. But I suppose that I am, too, and I’d like to believe that I have a flair for telling stories. And, let’s face it; smooth travels hardly warrant a good story.

I flew out of Raleigh-Durham, NC, Saturday afternoon. I was accompanied to the airport with my two youngest brothers, my parents, and our Hispanic shuttle driver who thought that I was seeing them off, not the other way around. (The first of many “lost in translation” moments to occur through my journey.) After my family and I gave the poor check-in lady a hard time with our clever but painfully corny humor (don’t worry, by the end she was just as bad as we were), I was given my finals hugs and well wishes – along with a few classic “Mom statements,” such as “If, God forbid, anything happens to you, just know you were always my favorite daughter!” – and there I went. The first flight went well; we even got in a few minutes early to JFK in New York. I had never been to JFK, and never really understood why my folks insisted on avoiding it. I was soon to find out.

After 20min of running from one terminal to the other and dragging my terrible carry-on that ended up being nothing less than dead weight, I finally made it to the terminal in what I thought would be plenty of time. There was this massive line that weaved throughout half the terminal, and I chuckled to myself thinking, Poor chumps, they have to stand in dreadful line to check in and I’m running free to London! The joke, of course, was on me. I was never issued a boarding pass to my connecting flight to London, and I was forced to the end of the 200+ people line to wait for my stupid pass. I ended up being that line for 2 ½ hours, and my flight was delayed another 2 hours. The curse was upon me; however, some sympathetic mysticism dealt me a small relief. I was fortunate to have a really enjoyable guy not too much older than me, who kept me company through those painful 2 ½ hours. I couldn’t tell if it was the delirium from his jetlag or his own mishaps throughout the day that he was able to keep me entertained, but I was thankful for the limnal companionship. He ended up sitting behind me on the long flight to London and helped me get through the Heathrow airport, being a complete gentleman and keeping up an incredible sense of humor despite his lack of sleep and luck. And how do I thank him? I spilled coffee – that he bought me, no less – on him as I went in to hug him “thanks and good-bye.” So much for being smooth! =/

My 9 hour delay in London was interesting in itself. The rest of the trip included such details:
- These frat boys from California (who had graduated from college, but certainly hadn't grown up) found me reading my Lonely Planet Guide to Greece, and mentioned to me that they, too, were going to Athens. After making fun of me for being from South Carolina, they asked why I wanted to study in Greece (versus party, as they were intending), and they drew the conclusion that I was was only going there because I looked like the kind of girl who'd enjoy "Greek hairy men." After an awkward forced laugh and rolling my eyes until they practically fell out of their sockets, I made a comment to the effect of "you know, I was suffering from a case of explosive diarrhea earlier, but now I think I'm simply going to vomit." They immediately left, to which I was greatly relieved.
- I didn't really have diarrhea, of course, but I did take the preventative measures to stay hydrated and drank water like mad. I found a restroom towards the end of the terminal (after I had made my way through all the name brand shops -- never being able to afford any of it, though!), and went to do my bid'ness. Well, lo and behold, I find the one stall that locks itself. With me in it. And nothing but my stupid carry-on and a crowd of Japanese tourists chatting in high-pitched voices to keep me company. Well, the door goes all the way to the floor, so there's no way I'm crawling out of there. After I hear all of them have left, I ram myself into the door and push on the knob, but it didn't really work. I finally kicked the knob and somehow loosened it, finally making my way out. Needless to say, I tried to "hold it" the rest of the day....
- After a heniously delayed flight and bad sleep on the long plane, I found a big comfy seat in the terminal. I popped in my iPod and attempted to rest my eyes for a bit. Turns out I was more tired than I thought, and my "rest" turned into a full passing out. I woke up to the sounds of a Swedish woman giggling at me with her nasty teeth and badly applied lipstick. I somehow had managed to fall asleep with my head between my legs and my knees bending in and sliding off the chair. Ever seen the museum scene from the Mister Bean movie? Yeah... something like that. Great, so now I couldn't let myself pee or sleep in Heathrom. Ever again.
- Lastly, after I had moved from one end of the terminal to the other to prepare for my flight, I hear this woman screaming in a broken French accent "Ceeee-leeee-yaaaa! Ceeee-leeee-YAAAA!" Freaking out, I spun around and found this petite young woman waving my wallet (with my passport, credit cards, cash, etc.!) around above her head. My heart dropped when I realized it was mine. Apparently it had fallen out of my stupid carry-on, and this woman found it and was trying to find me. I ran to her and said tried to explain to her it was me, and after she searched my picture ID, she handed it over and I couldn't stop thanking her. She smiled and clasped my hand as I practically hyperventilated, trying to calm me down, and I tried to offer her something as a thank you. She just smiled again and said, "Be safe!" Lesson well learned....

GREECE, DAY 1-3:
I arrived in Athens around 3:45am (Greek time). I stumbled off the plane with bloodshot eyes and wobbly knees, and made it to baggage claim. Long story short: They lost my luggage. Both bags. All my clothes, all my toiletries, all my chargers and adapters -- gone. The Greek girls at the desk were insanely rude, and I wanted to cry... I was so tired! After another 30min or so of dealing with the girls and filling out forms, I finally left defeated, exhausted, and upset. I stumbled some more outside to finally catch a cab and make it home. The doors opened and I took in a huge whiff of fresh, Greek air -- it stank. Stupid airplane fuel and smog from all the cars. I was first in line for the taxi, and this grumpy old man huffs out and helps me get in with the one bag I had with me. The 30min ride to Pagrati was actually pretty pleasant (traffic's pretty dead at 4:30am, after all), and made it to my apartment in Athens. My 4 flatmates were kind enough to wait up for me, and they helped me get to the room I share with one other girl. I tried to be as sweet and pleasant as I possibly could, and they were really great back. I made it to bed about 5am, and slept for a few hours until orientation.
Day 1: not so much fun. I was barely coherent for most of the first class, and the rain that poured in London had followed me to Athens. I couldn't really explore (not that I had the energy to do so anyways), and decided it was a good opportunity to nap. And I did. And it was glorious. My roomies had done the same, so by the time we woke up, it was late enough in the evening for dinner. Thinking we'd be okay, we wandered around the soggy city and found a taverna that had a semi-English menu. But nobody even spoke semi-English. We finally had to break it down by pointing to pictures and hoping for the best; the food was good, but we hadn't a clue as to what we were eating, other than it was "gyro-like." Afterwards, we went back to the apartment and tried to settle in a bit more and get to know each other. And went to bed.

We went to the Acropolis at the crack of dawn the next morning. At first we were all kind of mad, but it turns out to the best time to go. We had already made it through and visited some great places before the MAD crowds of people had made it: old folks tourist groups, little kid field trips, "wanna-be" smarty-pants scholars, etc. I got some great pics and enjoyed myself a lot!
Afterwards, we went and explored the markets and things around our area. I had to buy all this weird Greek shampoo, soap, conditioners, etc., since my luggage was STILL missing! We found this little "mall" area close and a few of us grabbed drinks and talked about ourselves. I was the most interesting, of course. ;) But we all hung out and shopped a bit (I needed fresh underwear, like whoa!). After walking the major hills of Athens, we were beat!
Day 3, the National Archeology Museum. Loved it! There's some fascinating stuff in there, not to mention a grand display. After the lesson, we decided to venture to the coast and spend the rest of the day basking on the beach. We waited for my luggage to finally arrive, but they only recovered one bag and brought it to me hours after they said it would be there. We only got to spend a little while on the beach, which was about 45minutes away. After we packed it up and ran back to the tram to catch it on time, a man walked out and told us that the tram was out of order and we'd have to find the bus station and find our way back. We rose to the challenge and attempted to get back to Athens. By the time we did (much longer than 45 minutes on the way back), we realized that I needed clothes to pack for the excursion to Delphi in the morning (my other missing back had all my clothes in it!). We ended up going another 30min north to find this French brand "walmart," and stocked up on cheap clothes, food, and stuff. After dealing with some pretty rude individuals, we ended up waiting for the bus for what seemed like FOREVER!!!! We didn't make it back until late, and CRASHED as soon as we got home.


GREECE, DAY 4-6:
Off to Delphi... and because this entry has gotten SO long and I'm painfully sleepy, I'll let the pictures start speaking for themselves...:

"Athena" lotta good stuff!
"Athena" lotta good stuff! (Part Deux)
Byzantine Art at it's finest!

I'll try to write a little more about the "goings-on" tomorrow, after we get back from our next beach trip!!! (I'm so happy to be so close to the beach.) I'm ready for my millionth gyro and for a looooong shower. Thanks for reading and I'll do my best to get more posted ASAP!!! (PS. I got my last piece of luggage in today, I'm so happy!)

All my Musaka'n best,
Celia