Spring Break: The Winner Is...

Do those pictures give you any ideas? Still confused? Well look below!








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AUSTRIA!!!! The birthplace of Mozart (pictured to your left...well it's Tom Hulce who played Mozart in Amadeus. I wasn't sure if you guys would be able to tell a picture of Mozart from anybody else. I know I didn't). 1/2 of the countries that started WW1! Cities with long traditions of music and the opera! And as a Cinema Major, I must point out that it has been the backdrop for such movies as The Third Man, Before Sunset, and the ever popular The Sound of Music (which saved 20th Century Fox from bankruptcy). And to be fair, it was also the birthplace of Hitler...I suppose you have to take the good with the evil.

Specifically, I'll be traveling to Vienna and through Austria to Salzburg (via train) and eventually to Munich (also via train) to fly back to Athens in time for Easter Sunday, the biggest religious holiday for the Orthodox Church. I am very excited and I welcome any and all suggestions on how to travel, what to eat, and what to get in terms of souvenirs. I'll be gone between March 30-Apr. 7, so don't get worried if there are no updates during that time.

You may be wondering why Austria when I have the big ol' continent of Europe before me. Why didn't I go with Italy? Or France? To be honest, I'm not sure why I am drawn to Austria, but ever since my roommate suggested it, I kept thinking about how interesting it would be. Plus, I kinda like the fact that I came into Greece thinking I was going to Italy for Spring Break, then switching it up because it feels like it's the right thing to do. Plus, the promises of sausages, saurkraut, beer, and snitzels don't hurt! Here's crossing my fingers that I'll get to see an opera while I'm in Vienna...I just might die from it all.

Special Sidenote: Thank thank thank thank you all for the lovely and yummy care package goodies I received. While the trip from the center to my apartment was less than nice (long story short: I had to carry the box to my apt uphill and such...not fun), opening up the box to see all the "from home" goods made me feel very happy and loved. I now know how much you guys care...you love me about 44 lbs that gets heavier every step of the 45 minute walk I made back to my apt. Your love was so powerful that I had to take many breaks just to deal with the impact it had on my shoulders and arms. My roommate was nice enough to share in your love too, but she quickly realized that your box of love was too intense for her. But I have thus far enjoyed the love (I dug into the crasins first, believe it or not) and can't wait to send you guys some Athenian goodies!

Side Sidenote: Again, pictures are at a stand still because the wireless internet is crappy and my roommate's laptop can't connect. I promise they will come soon! They will be on a Flickr account which I will email you guys all the info to view when they are up and running. Then you guys will be able to see recent pics from Carnival activities and George, the cute, fat dog (I named him!) who sleeps in front of the Grande Bretagne, the most expensive hotel in Athens (he's got good taste). Plus, last last Sunday was a very rainy day in Athens, so I decided to do a photo-tour of my apt which I think you guys will find amusing. I'll let the photos of me opening up my box of goodies speak for themselves!

Carnival: Goofy Costumes and Dancing

Carnival season is upon Greece for the next couple of weeks before Lent starts. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you judge), Greek carnival is less of the Mardi Gras, show-me-you-breasts-for-beads variety and more of the Costumes, masks, and dancing-in-the-street kind. Greece takes carnival pretty seriously (in a fun way) since they kinda invented the whole concept (all the worship festivals and whatnot).

Not too much to tell. My roomie and I got all dressed up and ventured out to Moschato for some Carnival fun: dancing, live music, street vendors, and colorful decorations lining the streets. It was really fun to hear some live music and see some of the interesting cultural dances they have for party times. There were costumes all around, some pretty basic (funny hat) to very complicated (a girl dressed up in Marie-Antoinette type clothes!). The real treat was eating some fresh loukoumades...oh so yummy, yet so small! They are basically donuts fried up, but drizzled with honey, cinnamon, and sometimes fudge and frosting. They were amazingly, wonderfully, (insert more positive adjectives) tasty. I highly suggest making some since they are pretty simple, but oh-so pleasant!


Then we decided to check out the festivities around Plaka. It was pretty much a bust because we were too late for one wave of partying and too early for the next wave. But we walked around for a bit and checked out the beautiful window displays of the candy shops. I found what is now officially one of my favorite streets and once I can load up my pictures (blast!), you'll see why. It was a beautiful little alley of Plaka with lights stringing above the closed store shops, but it looked straight out of a film (yes, I am missing cinema classes!). We eventually dragged ourselves home and whined about the pain in our feet. Overall, it was yet another interesting experience I've had here and it's only the third (fourth?) week.

IMPORTANT

I can't decide where to go for Spring Break (Mar. 30- Apr. 10). Part of me wants to go to Turkey and for some reason, something is calling me to Austria. Or I could go to one of the other 40 countries that surround me. Do I want to fly or go by train? Do I want to stop in other countries? I don't know...darn my indecisiveness! Any suggestions, advice, quotations of inspiration would be greatly appreciated. Plus any travel tips or places to look for good deals (cheap flights!) I would also welcome with open arms! I'm not willing to go crazy and spend tons o' monzo, so I'm trying to figure out how I can budget a trip wisely and cheaply AND maximize my discovery/fun potential. I leave it up to you friends and family! (Not really...but I'd love input!)

Spices, Beans, and Butchers, Oh my!: Exploring the Central Market

(Due to heavy rains and tons of reading, I haven't been blogging at a usual pace. These next posts are make up ones for the weekend)

Saturday, I finally made it out to the street market on Xenokratous where I purchased some of the freshest strawberries I've ever tasted (they were very red and pretty...some still had flower petals!), some onions, and some tomatoes. I was able to get a kilo (1 Kilogram = 2.2 Pounds) of rice for about 1.20 Euros ($1.50 in USD). Believe it or not, it was the better than any price of rice in the store (which is usu. more than 1.50 Euros for half a kilo).

Still excited from the market experience (you pick out fruit/veg/whatever, venders weight it, then you pay), I decided to go to the Central Market with my roommate. Before we made it to the market, I wanted to find a little shop called Elixir that I had read about online. Check out the panorama view of the place even though it does not do it justice. The place looks like what I imagined an old apothecary in Medieval times would look like: spices hanging from the ceilings, colorful powdered mixes in drawers, incense smoking up the place, and herbs of every shape, size, and smell crammed in a overall small shop.

I can't even describe the smell because it was a mix of so many different herbs and spices, but it wasn't overpowering or sneeze-inducing. It was just such an interesting place that I will have to go back to before I leave Athens. Plus, my roommate and I couldn't decide whether or not to get a jar of the 20+ different types of infused honey they had like lavender honey or mandarin orange honey! They are pretty pricey, but the jars are big and I'm sure they are all very classy considering the overall quality of the materials. Did I mention the cinnamon sticks? There were some that came up to my knee and upper thigh, bundled together in twine. It was quite a (dare I say it) magical place, even though the worker was pretty greasily looking and stared us down while we were looking around.

The Central Market! What a loud, busy, funny place. Just imagine people and food everywhere. Some good finds: a pack of homemade, fresh pita bread for .80 Euro cents, kilos of black beans (YES! Finally!) and pinto beans for under 4.00 Euros, and tons of mental notes for where I need to come shopping for A LOT of stuff. It was cool because I got to use a little Greek, but then confusing because sellers assumed I was Greek, so I had to admit I didn't understand what they were saying. The interesting aspect of visiting the central market was the multiculturalism throughout all the seller. Most of them were not Greek, but Turkish, Indian, etc. What does this mean? I got asked constantly where I was from (see the paragraph below for further details). Apparently I can pass as a member of A LOT of different countries (thanks ancestors!). It was a little sad though because many people were disappointed when they learned I was from America and not their home country...like they missed that cultural connection. I can see how they feel since there aren't too many Mexicans-Americans roaming around Athens (BUT see the last paragraph!)

ANYWAY, overall the experience was pretty amazing because I have never really shopped for food that way in America. I won't even mention in detail the mountains of fresh sausage (easily 10+ different kinds) that tempted me. For an appropriate visual, just look at the following picture to your right.

Needless to say, I'll be going back there again...except maybe for the fresh meat area. There is this huge section of the Central Market indoors in a warehouse-type building with tons of meat vendors (chicken, beef, pork, lamb, everything) that have precut meat OR will cut the meat right there for you. I'm sure if I had looked behind the vendors' curtains, I'd have found some cows just waiting...pretty bad, but upside (if you like meat), you get it incredibly fresh and at very good prices. BUT, back to the butcher problem. I must have stepped in some butcher catnip or something, because right as soon as I entered the meat market, I was swarmed by butchers. At first, they were just trying to sell the random cuts of meat (in Gk. "Miss, fresh chicken!", then it got awkward. I've never been asked "Where are you from?" (Gk. transliterated "Apo pou iste?") so many time in my life in such a short amount of time.

Some "ooo baby" and "Miss, your name! Your name!" later, I was looking for an escape route. You would think that they had not seen a woman in years (vendors were abandoning their selling posts for gosh sakes), but there were other women in there too! My roommate was really surprised and perplexed because she said that has never happened any of the times she has been there (with other people as well as alone). Again, butcher catnip + the unidentifiableness of my features = Love Potion No. 9 effect. Honestly, it wouldn't have been so bad (I was ignoring it) except a group started following us and touching our arms/shoulders with their meat hands! I know it's fresh, but still! Long story short (too late!), we escaped and I still think it was strange and funny. If I ever feel down, I know I can take a stroll through the meat market and replace depression with nervousness and fight or flight response!

An end note to the whole escapade of the Central Market wanderings: I decided to seek out a Mexican restaurant that I had read about online because the address was rather close to the Central Market. After getting lost and having to wander down some more sketchy street, my roomie and I found Meson de Mirador, an "authentic Mexican restaurant." I have yet to discover their definition of "authentic" because it was closed when we found it and we were too tired to wait around till it opened. However, it makes me excited to think I might enjoy some Mexican cuisine!

Reminder: pictures will follow...promise! I just haven't loaded them on my roommate's computer yet. The computers at the school won't recognize my camera, so I am going to have to put them online through my roommate's computer, which can only happen while at the Academic Center. Confusing and complicated- Check!

Cold...So Cold: Rainy Acropolis Day

Let me begin by saying that the today's pictures will come soon. Long story short: It will take a little creativity to put my pictures online, but I'll get it!

It was very cold today because it rained all night and this morning, plus there was a very strong, mean wind. While on-site teaching has been pretty awesome so far, having to walk from Kolonaki to the Acropolis at 7:30 AM because the Metro workers decided to go on strike is not so much fun. So it was a fun, wet, slippery adventure to the Acropolis because Athens has very little gravel roads or sidewalks. When the sun is shining, sidewalks made of marble and stone are very quaint. When it's raining, sidewalks become a dangerous slip 'n' slide mixed with puddles.

The walk upto the Acropolis was equally scary because again everything is stoney and marbly (sp?). Plus, as we (Archaeology of Athens class) were on top of the Acropolis, it started raining again. However, it was kind of beautiful in a scary way because we could see the dark clouds coming as we got higher and areas that were previously in sunshine became dark and foggy. You can pretty much see most of Athens (including Piraeus and the Aegean Sea!) from the Acropolis. Even with the cold, it was very breathtaking to see a whole city within view and the Parthenon, yet it is a tad bittersweet. The Parthenon is undergoing major renovation, so it is literally in pieces as archaeologists are attempting to preserve and restore the marble section by section. The magnificance of the building is still there, but is greatly overshadowed by the not-so-nice scaffolding and wiring. Plus, it's sad to see the chipped away pieces of the Frieze and see shadows of the sculpture that used to be there. (In another view) Everything has to age sometime and it's still amazing that the Parthenon is still with us (From 5th century BC people!) as well as all the other beautiful monuments covering Athens' landscape. It must have been amazing when it was first created and hopefully the restoration will help it last as long as possible.

Needless to say, I was pretty cold and I had three layers on! The only thing that really bothered me was my feet...they got a little numb from the cold and the walking...and probably the rain. If this rain continues, I might invest in some goloshes just to keep dry. Admittingly, I had it pretty easy because some students had only windbreakers and/or no hoods, so many peeps got wet. I thankfully had an umbrella...one of the few times I was actually prepared!

Word on the grapevine: I may be getting a care package, which I am particularly psyched about! Now I have to start assembling my first care package to home....hmmm

Other news: I'll have to put up a picture of Τέπο (tee-po), the nicest cat who hangs outside of my apartment. Why does she have that name? Because some lady downstairs says that over and over again at inappropriate times of day (e.g. 6 AM) to get the cat's attention. She is extremely sweet unlike this other mangy cat that steals other cats' food.

Care packages: The Confusion of Customs

Several peeps have wondered what can and can't be sent into Greece in the form of packages (hopefully to myself...unless these said people know anybody else in Athens). I found the following list from Fedex, which I assume is pretty up-to-date and valid, which defines what can't be sent into Greece (don't send me any animal carcasses please!).

Also, I was advised by the study abroad people to make sure to say that something is used if it COULD HAVE been used at any given time (i.e. shirt, shoes). Make sure that you state that there are used, personal items. But please don't open up a bag of chips just to make it looked used...I don't think they will accept it (though it would be funny). Equally important: Either do NOT insure the package (unless it is something that needs to be insured e.g. computer, Ipod) OR insure the package for very little because I will have to pay a tax on the insurance and/or the customs people will delay its routing.

Hopefully that answers some/all the questions you may have. Just in case you are thinking about sending any surprises (No pressure: I'll be getting you a gift either way!), a few things that I have been missing (and are near to impossible to find in Athens!):

Peanut Butter (Creamy, of course)

Tostada Chips/Tortilla Chips

Canned Salsa

Canned Jalepenos

Dried or Canned Beans (preferably black)

Canned Hominy

Cinnamon Sticks

Jello

Wide-Rule Notebook Paper

Apparently, most Mexican-ish food items are native to North America, because they are ridiculously expensive and/or none existent. I have no idea the whole organization of shipping to the US, but I will find out soon because I'm probably going to want to ship some items before I get back. Sorry for the lack of pictures--the computers here refuse to recognize my camera, so I have to find a sneakier way to do it.

Give me some ideas about what you would like!

Stupid Phone: Second Week in Athens

Long story short (too late), my school-issued cell phone is apparently angry at the world, me specifically. That being said, everything else seems to be doing alright. I have been to the National Archaeological Museum three times this week for class, taking wonderous trips on the Metro and Trolley. It's not too shabby considering that most Athenians travel this way to get from place to place. For a Classical fiend, the National Arch. Museum is extremely awesome. You get to see various sculptures, paintings, frescoes, and bronze art that had only been in 2-D up till now (from text books). Who wouldn't want to come face to face with the supposed mask of Aggie?

I ventured out to the Monastiraki Flea Market this past Sunday and am very excited to travel back there again. Lots of random odds and ends...pack-rattery to its greatest potential and I'm all for that. I've begun to get the lay of the land a bit and have gotten lost a couple of times purposely just to see if I can find my way back. One special adventure had my roommate and I discovering Carrefour, the international Walmart without the not-so-great reputation. They have electronics, personal items, and clothes on one floor, then all your grocery needs on another. It has been pretty impossible to find cheap eats here in Athens, so my roomie and I were in heaven with some of the prices. Important to note: many things are just as expensive as other small markets around Athens (you'd figure that in the land of feta cheese, you'd be able to get it cheap!). BUT there are some items that are cheaper than the US, which was amazing to me! For instance, a six-pack of soda (name brand mind you) was only around .75 cents (USD)! Unfortunately, anything remotely Mexican (i.e. a jar of Old El Paso salsa and a box of taco shells) was easily over $7 dollars. This is especially painful for moi, since I am used to get most of my food 99 cents or less!

More interesting facts that I have learned in Greece:
1) Local Greeks have informed me that they only have/grow one kind of onion...the red kind. And so goes my hopes for finding my elusive yellow onion while in Athens. Who knew such a basic vegetable would be so sorely missed.

2) Greek men usually live with their parents until they get married, which can be until their 30's and late 40's. In Kolonaki, I typically see older men with pretty young wives plus their even younger children.

3) Not really Greek related: Most college students' studying abroad come to party, not to study. I'm not sure what happened to half the population of the Spring Semester, but I haven't seen a lot of people since Orientation.

4) Street Kiosks can sell nudie magazines without having to black out or cover up any personal areas. I'll just leave it at that.

5) The Metro gets really crowded and it is very difficult to watch where one is going...especially when said person accidently trips over the cane of a blind man being guided by his wife (!)

6) Bad traffic, grafitti, irate grocery customers, and pan-handlers seem to be international as I have seen just about as much as I've seen in Los Angeles.