Ciao tutti,
(Grecia = Greece)
As you might remember from earlier in my blog, my friend and roommate at ND,
Troy, is currently studying abroad in Athens. He came to Bologna to visit me
the weekend that we had our BCSP excursion to Lake Garda. Well last weekend, I
got to repay the favor by visiting him in Greece! Our friend Brenna is also
studying there with him. (In fact, Brenna is Adrienne’s roommate at ND, so
Troy, Brenna, Adrienne, and I are doing a roommate-swap this semester between
Athens and Bologna!) It was great to have us all 4 together, especially is such
a beautiful setting as Greece!
We arrived in Athens late Thursday night, after a layover in
Munich (I know… Geographically it doesn't make much sense). But the one positive
was that we got to fly over the Alps and get some great views from the plane! Once
we landed in Athens, we were bombarded by the Greek language, which really gave me the
sense of being in a completely different world because the alphabet is so
different!
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| flying over the Alps |
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| Our first taste of the Greek language |
Early the next morning we caught a flight to the island of
Mykonos, staying there for two days. Mykonos was even more beautiful than I
could have imagined – our hotel was right on the beach and the weather was
perfect! It was a great, relaxing beach vacation. Exactly what we all needed J
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| flying over Mykonos |
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| Brenna and I with our shades on, ready to go! |
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| Our hotel |
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| Our hotel |
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| Myself, Adrienne, and Brenna ready to hit the beach! |
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| Paradise found. |
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| The lazy beach cat that kept us company |
We went into Mykonos town in the evening to admire the
beauty of this small island town.
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| Mykonos town |
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| Mykonos town |
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| We're in Greece! |
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| Mykonos town |
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| A typical Mykonos street at night |
And don’t forget dinner! We enjoyed all the great Greek
foods:
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| Saganaki! |
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| Greek salad! (with a HUGE chunk of Feta) |
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| Baklava! |
I will admit, it was hard to leave paradise in Mykonos, but
Athens was calling us. We only spent one afternoon in Athens, but it was
definitely enough to get a great feel for the city and take in some of the
sites.
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Adrienne and I at the Acropolis. Unfortunately,
this was as close we could get to the Parthenon
as the site had closed for the day by the time
we got there. |
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Syntagma Square, where the Greek riots
occurred a few months earlier |
As I have kind of made it a goal of mine to visit as many
Olympic cities as I can, the Olympic track in Athens was a must-see for me
because (as I’m sure you all know) this is where it all began! This Panathenaic Stadium is where the 1896
Olympics (the first Games of the Modern Olympiad) took place. I could not be
happier being able to walk the track and sit in the stands. It’s no surprise
that the Olympic track was by far my favorite thing we saw in Athens.
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Troy and I at the Olympic track. You can see
the Acropolis with the Parthenon in the background. |
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| Me at the Olympic track. I'm in heaven. |
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the Panathenaic Stadium, the birthplace of the
Modern Olympics |
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| the athlete's tunnel |
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There was a small exhibit adjacent to the stadium
which displayed various Olympic posters and torches |
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| outside the stadium |
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Brenna, Adrienne, and I (third, second, and first places,
respectively) enjoying ourselves on the medal podium. |
We couldn’t leave Athens before having a gyro! So of course,
Troy and Brenna took us to their favorite gyro place where I had the BEST gyro.
I now have a newfound appreciation for these delicious creations (although I
doubt I’ll be able to find one as good and as cheap as this one!)
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| The best Gyro I have ever had. From Grill and Pitta. |
A delicious way to end a truly fantastic weekend.
Ciao for now,
Augusto
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