If you were disappointed by the last post it's because I was having hot flashes of excitement to write about the second leg of spring break - Athens, Greece. Mark and I began the journey from Rome (not the brightest idea as we could've just jetted over to Athens from Turkey, but hindsight's 20/20 right?!) I don't know about you but I've always imagined Athens and Greece as general as a country still stuck in ancient times. Everyone wears togas and leaves on their heads and speaks in..well, ancient Greek, I guess. But in Istanbul we had met 3 guys studying in Athens who convinced me it was actually a progressive place where women weren't simply concubines or melodramatic lovers. We stayed in a hostel that looked like a complete shithole but was fucking fabulous and about a 20 minute walk from the city center. As Athens held the 2004 Olympics it had undergone some much needed change which was a plus for us - great public transportation, signs in English, and FOOD EVERYWHERE. Kebabs, gyros, that white sauce? Yes. And fairly cheap compared to Italy - their supermarket beer (Vergina, I kid you not) was about 4 euro for a 6-pack and rather appetizing.
The hostel was geared toward a younger crowd (as it was called a "Youth Hostel") but that didn't stop some of the creeps from coming out - and boy am I glad they did! We played drinking games one night w/ people from England, Madrid (they were acrobats in the circus!!), Bulgaria, Brooklyn, and Canada (check this guy out: www.andrewmondia.com he's exactly like this in real-life, such a weirdo). It was super to meet people from all over, learn what they thought about Americans, and eat food they were more than willing to cook.
Mark and I spent one of the days in the Acropolis - the city 'above' Athens that has the Parthenon, the Temple of Athena Nike, and other old really cool shit. Look it up, please. We also saw Socrates' jail, the Philopappou monument (Mark actually did push-ups on it, I told you he's a meathead), the Academy, and the National Archaelogical Museum. Mark had an episode of diarrhea so our time was cut short in the museum. We also traveled with our friends from England and Spain to the Olympic complex and watched time trials in cycling for the next Olympics. I love things that are free! You can also go to the site of the original Olympics of 1896 - a large (not in this day and age) track that was the first big stadium in the modern world. Interestingly it also happens to be a contemporary hot spot for drug deals!
The night life in Athens is...it's what kept us in Athens the whole time instead of going to islands like Mykonos and Santorini or Delphi. (Don't be angry, the weather was kind of bad too and not 'island weather.') But, as always seems to be the case for me, we got lucky and met all the right people to really make the trip. One night in particular stands out - read on if you want to be a bit shocked:
Mark and I were completely psyched to see that the Chinese National Acrobat team was going to be in Athens while we were there. We wanted to get tickets so badly that walking for 1.5 hours in the pouring rain (in sandals, of course) seemed like a good idea. As I made my way into the second gas station to ask for directions, a shifty-eyed Greek man w/ shoulder-length hair (yes, he was beautiful) said we were about 7 km away and offered us a ride. YES PLEASE THANK YOU! We hopped in and began a friendship. Antonios was a disgustingly wealthy lava-lamp-seller-turned-mechanical engineer who basically built present-day Athens. He was divorced w/ 2 kids (something he spent many minutes talking about) and very very lonely as he dedicated 12 hours a day to work. Was this his attempt at getting some from me? Probably, but whatever. He ended up buying a ticket to the acrobat show and said he'd pick us up the next night. He did, we went to the show (it was AWESOME!), and then brought us to his flat afterward for some wine (he even bought us our own bottle as a gift to take home). We kept the conversation going (yeah - it got awkward) and the subject of drugs came up when Mark was in the bathroom. I asked if they were a problem w/in the younger population of Athens and he said yes but that he admittedly was a coke user. Then Antonios went to the bathroom several more times and I finally figured out he was doing coke each time. I told Mark but he was a bit too drunk to care at that point which is when my brain turned on and I decided to STOP DRINKING and start making sure we weren't going to die that night. I mean Antonios was our ride home and it appeared as though our night was young...shit.
He proceeded to take us to a Romanian night club filled w/ slutty girls and humongously jacked dudes. I was scared but free drinks were coming and Mark couldn't help himself - he was hammered. Then Antonios asked if we wanted to go to a strip club - now I'd never been to one and Mark said he hadn't either (I saw right through that) - but what better place to do it than in Athens where we somehow meet the nightclub owner, sit VIP, get a free lapdance (Mark), free tequila and food, and free entry? Yeah, you heard right. I forgot to mention that it was also a sex show and I was about 8 feet from a horrific live sex scene. Then Antonios offered us each some coke and I declined. We got home at about 4 that morning - but we were alive.
Anyway Greece became my new favorite place after this trip and is still high up there. The people were very similar to Italians but in general much friendlier. It didn't help that I don't even know the Greek alphabet so when things weren't written in English we were fucked. Several times we encountered people for blocks that spoke no English and therefore couldn't get us home. But that's all part of the adventure. I'll never forget Damareos street (stay there if you ever go - Pagration Youth Hostel).
One highlight of the trip that really reminded Mark and I both of home was playing soccer and basketball w/ some locals at Pagrati Park. Also near the park a small zoo where, for 10 minutes of awe, we watched a ram trying to rape a small goat. It was really disturbing.
Toodles!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Spring Break - Istanbul
What exactly was it that possessed me and tricked me into thinking it would be a magnificent idea to travel, for 11 days straight, w/ a guy named Mark who is an uber meathead? I'm not sure but it turned out to be one of the greatest trips of my life. I can't really get along w/ anybody for 11 days, let alone someone I've only known for 2 months. But it worked and on March 5 Mark and I embarked on an 11 day journey that took us to three countries and two continents. You heard right - I've officially been to Asia! But on to more important things...
We stayed in "Istanbul Hostel" (I recommend it) which happened to be about a 10 minute walk from any and everything you'd want in Istanbul, Turkey. There's the Blue Mosque (have ya heard of it? Google it, you'll be amazed), the AyaSofia, the Topkapi Palace (the children on field trips LOVED Americans), the Basilica Cistern, and the Grand Bazaar in "old Istanbul." The new part across the water is geared toward a younger crowd and is mostly secular. Mark and I spent a night there which I really don't remember at all if ya dig what I mean...But when we were there during the day we climbed (by elevator) the Galata Tower which overlooks both the old city, new city, and Asian parts of Istanbul. It is a huge freaking place - 14 million people and it goes on for miles and miles. The next day we took a boat to the Asian part (technically the Middle East, and you could kind of tell) where there were little to no tourists and being 6'2'' w/ blonde hair, Mark made us stick out like sore thumbs. But Istanbul is also home to some of the most friendly people in the world (I can't decide if it's their nature or just a way to get us to buy things). Either way we were treated to many free teas, coffee, and the like by the Turkish people.
The Grand Bazaar is a shopper's paradise as it houses 4,000 shops under one 'roof.' Luckily the Turkish Lira is pretty weak which was convincing enough for me to spend a..shit ton of money. The Turks are damn good salesmen (and I can say men because the women there are somewhat hidden away. I could ask a man a question and they'd always direct the answer to Mark.) I came away w/ a Turkish rug, a Hookah (I don't even smoke hookah), and plenty of gifts for people back home. So I guess I'm saying YOU'RE WELCOME and my parents can't be mad because I hardly bought anything for myself (except some knock off Adidas pants - but hey! Mark bought a matching pair and we wore them to the airport and got on TV for it). So I guess I'm also saying I'm a celebrity in Turkey.
All in all Turkey was a fantastic experience. It was the first place I've visited where the national religion is non-Christian and it's also a place highly threatened by war. But the Turkish were a very peaceful people (aside from an incident early on in the trip in which we saw a man getting beaten in the head w/ a baton - remotely horrifying).
We stayed in "Istanbul Hostel" (I recommend it) which happened to be about a 10 minute walk from any and everything you'd want in Istanbul, Turkey. There's the Blue Mosque (have ya heard of it? Google it, you'll be amazed), the AyaSofia, the Topkapi Palace (the children on field trips LOVED Americans), the Basilica Cistern, and the Grand Bazaar in "old Istanbul." The new part across the water is geared toward a younger crowd and is mostly secular. Mark and I spent a night there which I really don't remember at all if ya dig what I mean...But when we were there during the day we climbed (by elevator) the Galata Tower which overlooks both the old city, new city, and Asian parts of Istanbul. It is a huge freaking place - 14 million people and it goes on for miles and miles. The next day we took a boat to the Asian part (technically the Middle East, and you could kind of tell) where there were little to no tourists and being 6'2'' w/ blonde hair, Mark made us stick out like sore thumbs. But Istanbul is also home to some of the most friendly people in the world (I can't decide if it's their nature or just a way to get us to buy things). Either way we were treated to many free teas, coffee, and the like by the Turkish people.
The Grand Bazaar is a shopper's paradise as it houses 4,000 shops under one 'roof.' Luckily the Turkish Lira is pretty weak which was convincing enough for me to spend a..shit ton of money. The Turks are damn good salesmen (and I can say men because the women there are somewhat hidden away. I could ask a man a question and they'd always direct the answer to Mark.) I came away w/ a Turkish rug, a Hookah (I don't even smoke hookah), and plenty of gifts for people back home. So I guess I'm saying YOU'RE WELCOME and my parents can't be mad because I hardly bought anything for myself (except some knock off Adidas pants - but hey! Mark bought a matching pair and we wore them to the airport and got on TV for it). So I guess I'm also saying I'm a celebrity in Turkey.
All in all Turkey was a fantastic experience. It was the first place I've visited where the national religion is non-Christian and it's also a place highly threatened by war. But the Turkish were a very peaceful people (aside from an incident early on in the trip in which we saw a man getting beaten in the head w/ a baton - remotely horrifying).
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Venice on a budget
...or my night as a vagabond.
Venice is a beautiful city, at a distance. Okay that's unfair - it's a really beautiful place when you're there, too, it's quite a maze - the buildings are packed tightly together and every four turns or so is a large piazza or campo where there are vendors and children at play. The best sights to see are San Marco and the Frari church. I didn't go into the Frari church as it was, after all, "Venice on a budget" and I couldn't spare the 3 euro entry fee. However San Marco housed likely the most beautiful church I've ever seen (yes, even grander than IL VATICANO) - all the paintings were mosaic, ALL OF THEM! It was gorgeous not to mention on the coast of the Mediterranean. And Venice is all about glass. Murano, an island that's technically a part of Venice, imports glass to the bigger island and to places all around. The pieces are beautiful and inexpensive depending where you shop. I bought a ring (it's broken by now) that was very cheap as well as gifts for Kelsey and Lara. They are splendid!
It was my first time taking a flight from Italy and everything went smoothly. I accidentally booked myself as 'priority' so I was one of the first people on the plane which was absolutely unnecessary. That made for some funny jokes along the trip.
But back to Venice - it's a smelly place. It's technically on the sea and all the 'streets' are made of river water and aside from small bridges to cross, you can only use a water bus or a gondola. We rode a gondola for too much money but it was a nice way to see the city. We stayed at a hostel that was in a prime location for food and gifts, and it had a kitchen so we cooked the first night. For whatever reason we decided not to have a hostel for the second night because we didn't want to pay for one since our flight was early the next day. We decided to get drunk at the train station on cheap wine to keep us warm, but that buzz only lasted until about 1 am. That was not nearly long enough to make us forget about the cold. It was around 25 degrees and somewhat windy. We wandered around the city and snuck into two hotel lobbies before getting kicked out of both. We slept near a homeless man who was extremely gassy for about 45 minutes. After killing about an hour from wandering and bartering for a place to stay (in vain) we went back to the train station to find that it had closed. WHAT THE HELL ARE WE TO DO?! So we stayed outside of the train station, huddled on the steps until it opened back up at 4:30. Then we proceeded to go home on our 8 am flight. I had never been so happy for warmth (p.s. I was wearing sandals the entire time).
In all Venice was a fantastic time. It was quite expensive naturally but we were able to keep things pretty decent. The scenery was beautiful and Mo and I got kicked out of two campos playing soccer w/ some 12 year olds. They loved us and it was fun letting go and playing with the younger kids.
I miss you all! -- Off to Istanbul and Athens on Thursday for spring break. 'Til then!
Venice is a beautiful city, at a distance. Okay that's unfair - it's a really beautiful place when you're there, too, it's quite a maze - the buildings are packed tightly together and every four turns or so is a large piazza or campo where there are vendors and children at play. The best sights to see are San Marco and the Frari church. I didn't go into the Frari church as it was, after all, "Venice on a budget" and I couldn't spare the 3 euro entry fee. However San Marco housed likely the most beautiful church I've ever seen (yes, even grander than IL VATICANO) - all the paintings were mosaic, ALL OF THEM! It was gorgeous not to mention on the coast of the Mediterranean. And Venice is all about glass. Murano, an island that's technically a part of Venice, imports glass to the bigger island and to places all around. The pieces are beautiful and inexpensive depending where you shop. I bought a ring (it's broken by now) that was very cheap as well as gifts for Kelsey and Lara. They are splendid!
It was my first time taking a flight from Italy and everything went smoothly. I accidentally booked myself as 'priority' so I was one of the first people on the plane which was absolutely unnecessary. That made for some funny jokes along the trip.
But back to Venice - it's a smelly place. It's technically on the sea and all the 'streets' are made of river water and aside from small bridges to cross, you can only use a water bus or a gondola. We rode a gondola for too much money but it was a nice way to see the city. We stayed at a hostel that was in a prime location for food and gifts, and it had a kitchen so we cooked the first night. For whatever reason we decided not to have a hostel for the second night because we didn't want to pay for one since our flight was early the next day. We decided to get drunk at the train station on cheap wine to keep us warm, but that buzz only lasted until about 1 am. That was not nearly long enough to make us forget about the cold. It was around 25 degrees and somewhat windy. We wandered around the city and snuck into two hotel lobbies before getting kicked out of both. We slept near a homeless man who was extremely gassy for about 45 minutes. After killing about an hour from wandering and bartering for a place to stay (in vain) we went back to the train station to find that it had closed. WHAT THE HELL ARE WE TO DO?! So we stayed outside of the train station, huddled on the steps until it opened back up at 4:30. Then we proceeded to go home on our 8 am flight. I had never been so happy for warmth (p.s. I was wearing sandals the entire time).
In all Venice was a fantastic time. It was quite expensive naturally but we were able to keep things pretty decent. The scenery was beautiful and Mo and I got kicked out of two campos playing soccer w/ some 12 year olds. They loved us and it was fun letting go and playing with the younger kids.
I miss you all! -- Off to Istanbul and Athens on Thursday for spring break. 'Til then!
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