Ξένοι τους φίλους σας δεν έχουν ακόμη εκπληρώσει: Strangers are friends you have yet to meet

The day started at 7:30 this morning, so that we could drive to Poros and take a ferry from their port on to Hydra. Thank goodness I strayed from my usual Greek yogurt and honey and ate apricots instead because I’m not to sure my stomach could have handled anything else on that bus ride. Though we had a beautiful view of the coast from the mountain, the winding roads and I just do NOT mesh well. I was so relieved when we reached Poros, I could’ve kissed the ground. Instead I just got coffee. Haha an equivalent substitute, I suppose. Within ten minutes, the Flying Dolphin arrived to take us to the island. Why did they dub it the Flying Dolphin you might ask? Well, the boat actually has blue-painted equipment sort of like skis on it’s front, and this said equipment blends in with the ocean when you see it from afar, making it appear as though the boat is flying through the water with its nose up just like a dolphin. Now, while this may seem extremely boring to anyone reading this, I found it fascinating. Don’t ask me why. It may have just been my weak stomach and headache that was amplifying the awesomeness of our ferry, or it may have just been that the Flying Dolphin is truly awesome. We’ll never know. I digress. The second we stepped off the [awesome?] Flying Dolphin, Maddie and I spotted the gorgeous white and brightly colored buildings in contrast with the marina of calm, blue water and of course whipped out the cameras for a quick photo opp. Then, disaster struck, and Maddie’s floppy hat simply flopped on into the water. Luckily, though, a moment similar to that of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants between Lena and Costas occurred and a man used his fishing hook to retrieve her hat. I was obviously replaced in the photo opp:

As soon as we progressed past the dock, we laid eyes on a cluster of donkeys. Since Hydra does not allow motorized vehicles, they were the main mode of transportation (other than walking, of course). Incidentally, this also made them the most expensive mode of transportation… fancy that! We didn’t end up riding one, needless to say. After congregating by the smelly animals, David, Carolyn and Carly assigned us 5 portrait shots. In order to be respectful, this included us (and by us, I mean me because my group volunteered me every time) walking up to random strangers and telling them we are photography students who would like to take their picture for our assignment. No, they won’t be on Facebook. No, you don’t have to pose. Why? Umm you just seem interesting? As you can see, it had the potential to get super uncomfortable, super fast. I did get a few good pics and new friends out of it, though. I will try to give a little background info on each as I go:

(this woman is from Australia, has two twin daughters, and sells her friend Stefano's paintings which he creates on purely wood mediums. her necklace is of a shell that she found herself, and she especially likes how it looks like a heart)

(this is a man with a lot of hair who owns a jewelry and clothing store... that's about all I gathered from our short conversation)

(this is an old man with a lot of character, from what I observed. throughout his photo shoot, he tried out different poses for us, removed his shades and then his hat, shifted his cane from one hand to the other, etc., etc... he was a joy to work with!)

(this is a cat)

(this little boy's parents were so thrilled to have me take his picture! I think he was more confused than anything...)

(what a cute, posh, old couple in almost-matching attire... maddie swears that could be rachel zoe and her hubby when they're older)

(this is a girl who has style. from her circular shades to her statement necklace to her periwinkle nail polish to her yellow skinny jeans, she was pretty much just screaming "take my picture." of course, when we asked, she was happy to oblige... although there was a lot of nervous/awkward laughter at first.)

(this couple had matching ray bans which I myself own, so I asked if I could snap a pic... and since he had so much hair, I snapped a solo shot of him as well)

(with a beard like Santa Clause's, how could I not take his picture?! thankfully, this sailor was happy to be our model for a few minutes.)

(this woman was sitting at a table, sipping on cappuccinos with her boyfriend/fiance/husband when we walked up and they were possibly the cutest couple I've ever seen, with their matching ray bans and adorable british accents. when I asked if we could take pictures of them, the boyfriend/fiance/husband said "yes, but only if they don't end up on the internet." well, I sure hope they're not saying this under the instruction of witness protection agency or anything because they were so cute that I just had to include a few pics!)

Lunch was short and sweet… literally. I had the best pistachio milkshake ever… which you can see Maddie and Erin also enjoyed. It was an all-around fave.

After lunch, while everyone was slipping on their swimsuits, my bandage around my knee confined me to a covered patio where I sat and read. Rough life right? Haha

Throughout the day, I had multiple visitors… most notably, Callie. At one point, a spider started crawling up her arm so she jumped up screaming, looking like she was doing the hokey pokey quite enthusiastically while the two boys at the bar laughed. In her defense, it was a large spider:

Well, that pretty much sums up today, chillness and all. Yasas y’all!

Σακατεύω: Cripple

It became clear to us last night that I was not capable of climbing the mountain to walk around the ruins of the castle, so, after eating breakfast with the rest of the group, I took a nap. By the time I woke up and went down to the lobby to meet up with Carolyn, the group was just returning and ready for lunch. Rachel, Holly, Erin, Maddie, Stephanie and I went to a small restaurant along the port where I ordered a simple, but filling, Greek salad and watermelon for dessert. Delish, as always. Then, we walked for a bit, stopping in a couple jewelry shops to look for presents for friends (and ourselves) to bring back home. Next stop? The beach! Unfortunately, I was not able to swim because of my stitches and was advised against tanning due to the tan lines that may result from the very thick strip of gauze around the middle of my leg. I was left with a shady umbrella and a book. Thankfully, Ellie and Demeris were in need of shade also, so I was in good company! We were also the go-to girls when others needed their pictures taken. The water looked so big, blue and beautiful that I wished I could've jumped in!

After the beach, we returned to the hotel to freshen up in the rooms and make some headway on our group t-shirt design as a congregation in the lobby. (I won’t spoil the surprise, but I’ll make sure to post a picture of our design if it all works out! ) So we’re sitting in the lobby, quietly working on our computers when my stomach grumbles loud enough to move mountains. Dinner time? I think yes. We went out as a group for dinner, getting a quick lesson in ISO while waiting for the bill. Then, we separated (Holly, Maddie, Callie and I gravitated towards the ice cream bars), began to take photographs before the sun could set, and returned to the hotel yet again… this time to blog and sleep! So here I am. Yasas y’all!

Here's a phrase I really should've learned... Θέλω να πάνε στο νοσοκομείο (thelo na pow sto sokomio): I want to go to the hospital.

My typical Greek breakfast of yogurt and honey started this morning around 8, which I finished quickly so that I was able to finish packing and catching up on my blog posts. (Yikes, I’m super behind!) We then dragged our luggage out to the bus, loaded it up (blocking traffic once more), and quickly fell asleep, not even bothering to slip in a movie this time. I actually finished my book “The truth about forever,” and surprisingly loved it, despite the slow start and flowery cover, which left me skeptical.

When we reached Hotel Nafplia, we were told to choose 2 roommates who we had yet to be with, so Holly, Maddie and I quickly grouped together. PARTAY. Haha but surriously. We took a bit of rest time and then went to the lobby for an hour to select 3 photos from the trip to be critiqued. I chose these:

Finally, around 1:30, we departed the hotel for lunch, stopping at a small, ocean-inspired, Greek restaurant where I ordered pastita, a delicious Greek version of lasagna. Though it took a while to come, it was definitely worth the wait! After eating, David asked those of us who had been in charge of videotaping Caroline’s birthday surprise the night before to return to the hotel to upload the videos and them meet them back at the restaurant. However, I was probably less than a block away when it hit me. In the literal sense. “It” being the ground. I ATE it… hard. Though my lens cap took most of the heat, my camera was fine. My knee on the other hand, had rocks and gravel lodged in it with blood oozing out. Gross. I was talking to Dena when all of a sudden, I tripped over a nail emerging from the concrete, split the sole of my shoe (good thing my dad told me to pack two pairs!), landed knee-first on the gravel construction area, and asked for someone to go get David and Carolyn. David came, helped me up, and walked me back to the hotel and then on it the hospital. It’s a miracle in itself that we actually found the clinic, considering all the confusing directions we were given by various townspeople. Once we entered the lobby, we knew this was going to be more of a challenge than we’d thought because only one woman knew English, and even she couldn’t understand all that we were saying. Carolyn and Carly arrived shortly after we did (apparently they had been having the same language barrier problems as us). We finally got in to see the doctor, who did speak English due to his dad being in the army and moving to the states when he was 7. That definitely helped! The doctor and nurse saw my knee and told me to go into the next room, following me in and closing the door in David, Carolyn, and Carly’s faces. I asked him if they could come in, and he just said “What are you afraid of?” Well, I’m in a foreign country, in a foreign hospital, it’s difficult enough for me to understand your accent, your nurse doesn’t speak any English at all and you just aid me down on an operating table and turned the surgery light on over my knee… hmmm do I have to spell it out for you?! I replied with “Nothing. I just might need a hand to squeeze.” And I did, at that. Right as I went to open the door and ask someone to join me, Carolyn was peeking through the door. Hallelujah! I went into the emergency room just thinking they’d be pulling the rocks out with tweezers (like the nurse’s office at Holy Redeemer did for me in 1^st grade or so when a boy in my grade stepped on the back of my shoe, causing me to land on my right knee, getting gravel stuck in it). However, this time it was my left knee and a whole other story. The doctor, John as we later learned, asked me if I had been to the dentist. I found this to be a very strange question so I answered it by looking up at him. He was holding a shot of something. Oh boy, I hate needles. Then I realized he was asking me if I was allergic to anesthesia. Apparently, my “I don’t think I’m allergic” response was enough for him to shoot three doses of it into my knee. Ouch. Soon, though, my knee was numb and Carolyn was distracting me with her stories of high school, cross country, small towns, college, etc. This didn’t keep me from noticing that he was doing something with my skin (I kept picturing those House and CSI episodes where they have the dead or live body on a surgery table and cut a T shape with what looks like an exacto knife in their chest… too much TV for Claire!), but at least Carolyn has strong hands to squeeze and I couldn’t feel the pain (just the movements, which were making me nauseous). As soon as they finished, I told them I didn’t want to see it (for fear that I might faint… or throw up), so they went ahead and wrapped it up in gauze, telling me that it was necessary that I exchange gauze every two days for the next week. Oh, and I should go to a local hospital in a week to get my stitches removed. STITCHES?! Carolyn nodded. At one point when I was lying down, she had looked over at my knee, her eyes increasing in diameter, and then looked quickly back at me with a huge smile on her face. I pretended I didn’t see it, just because it was better for my mental state (which was FREAKING out), but I realized this was when he was giving me the stitches. There were only 2, but still. I’ve never gotten stitches before, so it was a big deal! Oh, and did I mention the surgery only cost 5 euro? I don’t know whether to be happy or suspicious…

(Steph kept saying "I know it's annoying now, Claire, but you'll thank me for these pictures later... I couldn't help but laugh, especially since I knew she was right. Thanks, Steph!)

(me being repulsed by the rocks in my own knee... after this was unsuccessful, we decided to head to the hospital)

(me being oh-so happy as Maddie and Holly point out my bandage)

Afterwards, we met back up with everyone, worked on pics for a bit, and then split into groups of 4 for dinner. Maddie, Holly, Erin and I wanted to eat by the water, but all the restaurants over there seemed to be cafés with only drinks and dessert, so we found a cute little restaurant across the street next to a small church. The church was surrounded by people in nice attire and a limo-ish car ornamented with a pink bouquet on the hood was awaiting its driver. When we asked the waiter what was happening he said, “marriage.” “A wedding?” we asked. “Yes, marriage,” he said again in his Greek accent. We were truly witnessing a “big fat Greek wedding.” Now I can cross that one off my bucket list!

After eating, we found an ice cream place and met up with the group, stopping to take some pics at the pier. I messed around with my focus a little bit, just for fun!

Then, we started power walking. With my newfound injury, I found this to be slightly difficult, but I was curious to see what all the fuss was about, so I tried to keep up. When we arrived at our destination, we entered a hot, sweaty gym, but instead of finding athletes, we found an Islamic confirmation-type ceremony occurring. It consisted of an elder man in a black robe, conducting the entire religious ceremony, four men in black robes playing various instruments, and four men in white outfits, spinning around for a good 10 minutes or so at a time and transforming (into whatever the black robe symbolizes) by the end. Watching these Whirling Dervishes made me dizzy! And, on top of that, they all wore these brown straw hats that seemed to most resemble thimbles. Talk about a fashion statement:

(Maddie loved it)

When we returned to the hotel, we sat in the lobby, exhausted, as David and Carolyn critiqued our top 3 photos, and then we went upstairs to get ready for bed. Usually, this is where I’d end my blog, saying, “and now I’m blogging,” but as I got ready for bed, I faced another challenge: showering. I wasn’t supposed to expose my bandage to water, so I used the hand-held showerhead to wash everything except for my left leg. However, every time I’d need to use shampoo, conditioner or body wash, I would have to set down the showerhead. This, obviously, was not the right move, considering I ended up drenching our bathroom… sorry, roomies! Haha okay so NOW it is time for sleep. Oh, and happy Father’s Day, Dad! I love you! Yasas y'all!

Συμβαλλόμενο μέρος όπως είναι η δική σας γενέθλια: Party Like It's Your Birthday

This morning, Ms. Hartman left at 2 am to be with her grandmother. Please keep her in your prayers. As we woke up after a late(r) sleep, I groggily stumbled down a flight of stairs for the usual bowl of yogurt and honey, bag and camera in tow, ready to conquer the world… or at least a day of walking in Athens. We first trekked to the Numismatic Museum, which is world-famous for its archeological finds and displays. Though my favorite piece of art was the wooden bench we were allowed to rest on, the museum offered up many a statue as well as a “Myth and Coinage” exhibit, which I took a particular interest to, considering I felt they would all look spectacular as pendants on a chain around my neck (similar to the time when I commented to my friend Dani that a certain Monet in a museum in Houston would look great over my headboard… what can I say? I have good taste!). They obviously weren’t up for grabs, but it’s the thought that counts!

I especially loved learning about Nike on a deeper level than the simple sportswear swoosh. Though the English translation was a little rough on its sentence structure, here’s what her plaque read:

The deity that symbolizes the desired end in a war, a battle or even an athletic event, Nike symbolizes strength and speed, hence people thought of her as having wings and descending into the battlefield or a stadium to crown the victors.

After departing from the museum, we stopped for a quick gyro on the way to the Benaki Museum. It was a happenin’ lunch spot.

We only stayed at the Benaki for a brief period of time, but a few of us did enjoy the jewelry they collected there. Again, I found myself wanting some of the art.

Straight from the museum, we headed to the Parliament building to watch the changing of the guards. Bold fashion statements and interpretive dancing with guns… who wouldn’t want their job?!

Next, we stopped for ice cream for two reasons. 1) Routine… we obviously needed to fill our daily quota… and 2) today is Caroline’s 16^th birthday! Hooray! The fro yo guy was apparently equally as excited:

With cones in hand and smiles on our faces, we headed back to the hotel for two hours of freshening up, blogging, resting, etc. before shopping and dinner. Dinner was especially memorable. Not only did I try Mousakka for the first time (DELISH.), but the patio-style restaurant was beautiful and even surprised Caroline with a “happy birthday” song and dessert. Then, after eating, we divided into two groups and went on a “scavenger hunt” of sorts to obtain videos of random strangers saying “Happy Birthday, Caroline! (in the language of their choice) When I was 16, the craziest thing I did was ______________.” As you can see, Maddie, Stephanie, Holly, Dena, Callie and I had great success:

I hope you enjoyed the videos and happy birthday, Caro! Yasas y’all!

Yassou, Delphi and yassou, Athens!

This morning was another chaotic one as we packed up and left Delphi for Athens. On this particular three-hour bus ride, we put in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. However, I only watched snippets of it, as I was falling in and out of sleep and reading quite often. Once we arrived, though, the situation only seemed to increase on the tension scale. Our bus stopped in the middle of a busy road, stopping traffic as well. As half our group stepped off the bus and began grabbing luggage, the police told the driver that he could not stop there, and all of a sudden, the bus started driving off. We were confused to say the least and drove around again for another 10 minutes, until the bus driver finally stopped, let us out, and helped us unload luggage onto the street. Maddie, Carolyn and I actually walked into oncoming traffic in the process of unloading the bus… yikes! However, the Athens Center Square Hotel was only a short minute away, through the market place. Once we arrived, we realized we only had 1 single and 8 doubles, meaning that an adult would have to room with a student. To solve the problem, I volunteered to room with Carolyn (or as I nick-named her, Care) and we had a blast. It was definitely the nicest place we’ve stayed and the shower pressure was the cherry on top! Athens, however, did not really win me over. After a quick souvlaki for lunch, I walked around with Maddie, Stephanie, Demeris, Ariel, Caroline, Dena, Carolyn and David, and couldn’t see anything but garbage and graffiti. Not the kind of graffiti that makes you marvel at how many various forms of art there are, but the kind that makes things just look more trashy. Fortunately, there were some nice people, who helped the city’s case, and I even found a little bit of myself buried in one of the few pieces of art. Enjoy:

After strolling around town, we met up with the rest of the group at the hotel. Some of us were very tired, others very hyper:

Following our quick recharge, we hit the newly familiar streets again, targeting the Parthenon as our next stop. After the short-but-tiring walk up there, David and Carolyn bought our tickets and a couple frozen lemonades (which we once again were asked to chug before entering, resulting in many a brain freeze). While taking pictures in front of the ruins, a boy named Andrew and his mother offered to take some of our whole group. We noticed he said “y’all” and realized how much we missed that southern hospitality!

(photo courtesy of Callie)

(photo courtesy of Andrew & mother)

On the way down, we did some quick shopping and then headed to dinner at a cute restaurant on the bottom slope of the mountain. As we were waiting for our entrees to come, two men, two women, and a band surprised us by breaking into a traditional song and dance. I could not help but laugh and, before I knew it, I had taken their place up on stage. Maddie and I had spotted a little girl (probably around 7 or so) dancing to the music by the side of her table, her parents occasionally acknowledging it, but talking amongst themselves more. Then, for some reason, I decided to walk over to her, extend my hands, ask her to dance, and spin her around as she took them. She started out slightly confused, but had a huge smile on her face by the end of the song. I was probably beet-red, but her smile was big enough for the both of us. It was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. I think Callie had fun with her new friend, too!

(photo courtesy of Callie)

Seeing as it is now the end of the day and had already become pitch-black out, we walked to our hotel back under the Greek stars, where Maddie found Athens’ one and only salvation: a combo of Gap and Starbucks.

I am now waiting for Carolyn to enter and bust me for staying up 10 minutes past curfew… haha oops! Yasas y'all!