Done in Italy, Off to Greece

I’m sure you all have noticed that this blog has been pretty quiet in regards to tales of my European adventures, but needless to say, I have been less than quiet here. Somehow I managed to squeeze my way into an informational video about the campus for incoming international students. I’m sure the advisors picked me because of my stunning physique and pure charisma. Or whatever. Either way, I got paid 50 euro, and I’ll probably become YouTube sensation. Otherwise, the last two weeks have been pretty uneventful. I spent the last weekend in Rome, catching up on school and preparing for my exams. I did the usual stuff around Rome, like eat gelato and bob-and-weave between tourists. The school put on a nice banquet our last night in Rome; it as at a swanky bar downtown, with finger food and wine. It was more of a cocktail party. The whole session really came full circle considering we had a champagne toast our first night here. Catholics are definitely more fun in Europe.

Anywhoo, I took my last exam on Thursday, and was in Greece on Friday. Because the trip is only ten days, I was able to leave a bag in Rome at my school, so I’m not dragging my coffin-sized suitcase up the steps of the Acropolis. I tried to pack light, but since I’ve never been to Greece, the land of white houses and hairy women, I wasn’t sure what to bring and what to sacrifice; I think I made the right chose of packing half my bag with snacks. And I heard it’s going to be hot while we’re here. Great.

The whole program seems like it’s going to be a lot of fun. My professor from Rome is teaching it, along with another professor from Athens, who is surprisingly a southern bell. She was born in Canada, raised in South Carolina, educated in Great Britain, and now lives in Greece as a art historian / food critic. She seems like a big ‘ol ball of Greek fun with a southern twang. We’ll be traveling every two days in Greece, trying to avoid the riots with flying yogurt. Our professors assured us we have nothing to worry about in regards to Greece’s apparent turmoil. I’ll update you on that later. There’s 20 students on the trip, and they all seem pretty normal. For the most part.

We already left Athens today to went to Mycenae to see an ancient community, and then we headed to Nafplion to go to the beach. Doesn’t suck. The drive was about an hour, which is prime for sleeping and such. Mycenae was sparse, the only thing there were the ruins, but Nafplion is absolutely beautiful… we’re staying over night and leaving tomorrow. The beach is beautiful and the town is so pleasant. I’m really starting to think that I like Greece better than Rome. Rome has all the anarchy of a major American city, while Greece’s Athens is a lively big town with a small town atmosphere. But only time will tell how I feel about Greece in 7 days when I return to Italy for a final week. I’m sure you’ll get another post within the week!