Fire

“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning”

--Sir Winston Churchill

Being in London is almost nostalgic in a sense.  I was here just over two months ago.  I saw many of the sights before, and feel a little bit like I know what is going on here.  Add to that the fact that everyone speaks English here, and I have a much better sense of England than I have of the other countries we have visited.  

Even though I have only been in the English speaking world for about 1 ½ days, it is still a little weird to walk into a bookstore or a restaurant and not need to go searching for the English section or the English menu.  I thoroughly enjoy it, and life is a little easier.  If you want to hear any different language, you can just sit anywhere in the hostel, near any tourist site, or even at the restaurant where we had dinner.  I don’t think it will really hit me until I get home that I am back to the completely English speaking world, since both London and Dublin will have plenty of other tourists.

During my time in London, I have visited a number of the same sites, but in a very different way.  We saw a lot of the same tourist sites with the Tube.  We also spent a lot more time on the Tube last time.  I realized just how helpful the bike tour was that I took last time.  It is nice to see parts of the city by walking that I missed last time, though.

As some highlights for my time in London right now: the fire alarm went off at 2:45 am.  I felt like I was back in the dorms again.  At one point in time, I literally thought that I was going to die in a hostel in London, but that was partly because it was so early and partly because walking out the door, I knew that something wasn’t right.  Someone had decided that it would be fun to make it snow (Oklahoma sorority girl, anyone? No?  I guess it was a while ago.)  Until we left the third floor, the ground outside of our room was covered with the remains of the fire extinguisher. 

We had to change rooms in our hostel, and when I walked into my new room, there was a boy sleeping in my bed.  I would have been perfectly content to leave him there and make the hostel employees deal with him, but Bri woke him up and politely told him to get out of the bed.  I asked the hostel employees to change the sheets (because who wants to sleep on sheets that someone else already has slept on?).  This was probably around 7:00.  When we got back to the hostel around 10:30, the sheets were still the same.  I was told that they would be changed at 11:00, since the person with the next shift would change both my sheets and the sheets from another bed with a similar situation.

Other than that, we have walked around and seen a lot of the site.  We walked up the Monument for the Great Fire in London.  331 steps up a spiral staircase that got more and more narrow with no breaks or rests along the way.  It was kind of insane, exhausting, and at times a little scary.  The stairs just got really narrow, and we had to pass people who were going in the opposite direction. 

We also met up with Tony and spent the day with him.  It is kind of crazy to see someone from my life in Indiana halfway across the world, but it makes everything seem much more normal.  It is strange to think that the next time I see Tony, we will be back in the States.  But at the same time, it is nice to vary who I am spending my day with (or add a new person into the mix.)

It doesn’t seem real that I am supposed to leave in about 4 ½ days.  I say that, and I don’t think I really believe it.  I am excited to go home and see my family again.  I also know that they are really excited for me to come home (or so my mom says on facebook at least).  But the thought of leaving Europe, not living out of a suitcase, not encountering new cultures and new languages every day, doesn’t seem real.  It may become more real the closer I come to leaving London and to leaving Dublin.  I feel like I have been living out of a suitcase for such a long time, that the end doesn’t seem possible.  Planning outfits and packing for home just doesn’t seem right.

I just have to make the most of my last few days of legal drinking and exploring a continent an ocean away.

Suddenly I See

“And at last I see the light

And it’s like the fog has lifted

And at last I see the light

And it’s like the sky is new

And it’s warm and real and bright

And the world has somehow shifted

All at once everything looks different

Now that I see you.”

--Tangled, I See The Light

Our second day in Prague involved a bit of wandering again.  We had to change rooms in our hostel, so we packed and moved in the morning.  We wandered into one of the squares in town.  We knew there was a church and could see it but could not find the entrance.  After going completely around the building, we decided to stop and have a traditional Czech sweet—a breaded bracelet.  Of course, within the next ten minutes, we were directed towards the entrance of the church, which was celebrating mass.  Without our snack, we could possibly have received Communion, but no such luck.  It was strange to watch people walk in just as the priest began passing out the Eucharist and still receive it.  I don’t mean to judge them, but I wonder how often that happens.

We wandered through the Jewish quarter a little before realizing that if we wanted to go the Castle, now would be a good time.  We raced across town to the Prague Castle, where we saw two churches, the old castle, and a lane.  The main cathedral was very impressive, and the buildings all had very long and intricate histories. 

I finally had the goulash and dumplings I had desired ever since we first arrived in Prague.  Yummy!  We walked back across the Charles Bridge that night.  The Charles Bridge is this cool bridge with a large number of religious statues on either side of the bridge.  It really is incredible to see all of the religious symbolism in the town.  So different from the States, where almost no religious material can be seen anywhere public. 

The castle looks absolutely spectacular at night.  It is incredibly beautiful and picturesque.  That night we saw these little lights float up into the sky.  The clearly weren’t lanterns, but they still floated quite a distance into the sky.  I really wanted to know what they were.  They reminded me of Tangled because the scene was so similar to the one in the movie.  It also made me think of my first blog post and the end of the school year.  My worries about Europe seem so silly.  I did start to think about needing to find a new dream, since many of my dreams came true while I was in Europe.  I am so thankful that I was on the bridge at that point in time and noticed the lights.  We ended the night lying in the square with the Astronomical Tower and the church that we went to that morning.  It was such a chill night and a cool place to hang out.

We had to change hostels the next day.  We walked to our new hostel before taking off for Kutna Hora.  There is this remarkable ossuary in Kutna Hora.  There is an elaborate chandelier made out of bones.  The ceiling had intricate decorations made of bones.  There were four pyramids composed of long bones and skulls.  It was smaller than the Capuchin Crypt but just as interesting.  There may be as many as 40,000 individuals represented by the bones.  The bones have been rearranged, so there may only by 30,000 individuals still found in the ossuary.  It is said that the bones displayed serve as a reminder of the number of people who will be standing before Jesus at the Final Judgment.  The sheer number of individuals who are in the ossuary is unimaginable.  The difference between the living and the dead really isn’t that great—there really is only on average a 70 year difference, which when compared to eternity is miniscule.  The altar in the ossuary was separated from the bones, but all of the bones were surrounding it.  It was such a cool sight to behold.

We continued exploring Kutna Hora for a few hours and enjoyed more than our fair share of ice cream.  We walked past a cathedral in Kutna Hora that was quite impressive.  It was very tall and elaborately decorated, but we didn’t get the chance to enter.  We saw a couple from our train that morning four separate times that day.  We even saw them in Prague, which just goes to show how small the world is. 

Upon returning to Hostel Orange, we were informed that there was some sort of glitch in the computer system and that we had been rebooked at a nearby hostel.  We walked over to the new hostel.  We had gotten as far as handing them our passport, but I wanted to look a little more into them before paying.  We moved into a common room and checked out their rating on hostel world.  Their rating was in the low 70s, but they also had a location rating in the high 90s.  Hostel Orange had a rating of 90.  Instead of staying in Hostel AZ, we went back to Hostel Orange to request a different hostel.  At the end of the night, we ended up at a hostel that was about 100 koruna more expensive than the hostel we booked for the night and just down the street from the hostel that we had left that morning.  Which meant that we walked for about half an hour while carrying all of our bags, for nothing.

The airport really wasn’t that exciting.  With the exception of the fact that the passport control was a little annoyed by the fact that we didn’t have stamps admitting us into the Czech Republic (we came by train—not our faults) and the fact that Brianna hadn’t received a stamp in her passport yet.  They weren’t sure if she was legally in Europe, but ended up letting her through and giving her the first stamp in this passport!  The return to the English language is so exciting and strange.

Houses Of The Holy

“But you’re so far away.

Doesn’t anybody stay in one place anymore?

It would be so fine to see your face at my door.

Doesn’t help to know you’re so far away.”

--Carole King, So Far Away

Talk about relaxing.  The Czech Republic was a very nice stop during our trip.  It was a very nice time to reflect on all of our time in Europe and our imminent return to the English speaking world.  The prospect of returning to London is both exciting and sad.  Understanding the culture (more or less) and the language will be thrilling, but a big part of the adventure and the culture will be different.  It won’t be the same challenge to order food or to communicate.

Instead of the constant movement that was Barcelona or Paris, we wandered through Prague a lot.  We didn’t always have an end destination; we explored much more.  We didn’t arrive in Prague until 11:30 pm, and our first challenge was to obtain Czech koruna.  In taking the subway to our hostel, we needed change, which ATMs don’t provide.  So we found a random shop open in the train station to get change.  After getting to the right metro station, we proceeded to find our way through unfamiliar streets to the hostel.  It really wasn’t hard with the exception of orienting ourselves once we left the subway.

We didn’t start our next day until later than most others, which was so refreshing.  We stopped at a bakery recommended by our hostel, which became a routine of sorts.  We started wandering with the intent of finding the Prague Castle, but we made a wrong turn (or, more specifically, didn’t make a right turn) along the way.  Instead we found ourselves outside of a church called Loreta, which we later found out to be considered one of the most holy places in Prague.  We had to wait for fifteen minutes or so for it to open after a short lunch break. 

Loreta was incredible!  It started with what I want to call a “Walk of Saints.”  There were portraits of saints (and a few of Jesus or angels) hung around the porch of this courtyard.  Along with each portrait was a sign that provided a short bibliography or summary of each saint and a prayer.  The walk was so peaceful, reflective, inspiring, and prayerful.  Reading about all of the inspiring lives of different saints and remembering so many issues that should be prayed for, both for myself, for others, and for the world created an indescribable mood.

In addition to the paintings around the wall, there were murals on all of the ceilings and directly underneath the ceiling.  Everything was painted in light colors and felt very bright.  In contrast with this feeling, there was a small chapel that was kept darker and decorated with plenty of gold and silver.  This chapel was small enough that there was only one row of benches inside.

Beyond the chapel was the church.  The church was absolutely spectacular.  The only way I can think of to describe it is that the church was much heavier than the outside courtyard.  Almost everything near the altar was completely covered in gold.  Everything was so elaborate.  I can’t actually imagine attending a mass there because I would be so distracted by all of the decorations around me.

Of course most churches in Europe are not complete without some tourists.  The closer to the altar I sat, the less I noticed them.  The second time that I sat in the church, I sat in the third row.  The tourists and their cameras were so distracting!

Loreta also housed a monstrance decorated with an insane amount of diamonds as well as other chalice and monstrance sets decorated with various gems and designs.  They were all sights to behold.

We eventually did leave Loreta.  From there, we wandered until we happened upon a library and a church that was only open for worship services –such a strange concept from what I have been experiencing in Europe.  We did find the castle but didn’t enter because it was late enough.  Instead we went to a little café and enjoyed some strudel while looking out over the beautiful countryside that is Prague.

For dinner, we went to a restaurant that basically refused to let us leave without drinking a beer and a shot of some cinnamon liquor.  It was an interesting experience with some drunk guys in the corner requesting that the accordion player play the chicken dance.  Over and over and over again.

The Girl Who Stole the Eiffel Tower

“The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.”

--G.K. Chesterton

I don’t feel like I experienced Paris.  I saw the sights, but I don’t think that I actually felt the French way of life.  There were just so many tourists.  We were only in Paris for under 24 hours after the train delay, though. 

Of everything that we wanted to do, we walked a lot more than expected, but completed almost everything else.

We saw the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, and mass at Notre Dame.  We walked around in the afternoon and got crepes (a must in Paris if you ask me) and saw the Eiffel Tower during the day.  We continued walking around and found the Arc de Triomphe and Champ-Élysées, which I was told was the second most expensive street in the world.  We explored until we were able to find Notre Dame, where we confirmed what time mass was.  Because we had over an hour, we figured that we could make our way back to the hostel to check in and move our bags from the lobby to our room.  By the time we got to the hostel, there was less than half an hour until mass, and it didn’t look likely we would make it on time.  We checked in, and I decided that I still really wanted to make it to Notre Dame for mass.  We raced back to the church.

It was funny because I had a friend who studied abroad in Paris earlier this summer.  I had been reading his blog about a moment when he was trying to make it to mass.  He got lost, but showed up just in time to hear the Alleluia, which is the cut-off point to determine if you have fulfilled your obligation for mass.  Knowing this, we showed up at Notre Dame as they were finishing the second reading and took our seats right at the beginning of the Alleluia.  It was too funny not to laugh.

Therefore, we were able to celebrate a Sunday mass at Notre Dame, which is beautiful and so large.  There were a few strange aspects to mass.  The first was that there were television screens on some of the pillars so that you could see what was going on.  It is very rare for me to go to a mass with television screens and cameras present.  The second was that when we were sitting down, you could look over and see tourists walking around the church.  Normally, I view a church as a private, sacred place.  The abundance of tourists and the constant cameras and talking around the congregation was surprisingly not too distracting.  It was definitely an experience to have.  Unlike the Vatican, I really did feel like I was surrounded by tourists.  There was a boundary between us, but we were much closer to the edges of the church in Notre Dame.

That night, we went up to the top of the Eiffel Tower.  We took the elevator up, and can I tell you how much I was freaking out.  I am not always afraid of heights; it depends on how safe I feel.  I didn’t feel very safe in the elevator, because the sides were made of glass and you could see so much open space on every side.  I was gripping the railing of the elevator like it was nobody’s business.  And then we got off on the second floor.  Only to wait in the cold in a line for another elevator (really? another one?) that went straight up for a long time.  At the top, I felt more secure for some reason.  There was an inside area with windows that gave you a nice view of the city and the distance from other major cities.  You could also go outside, but you were basically in a cage.  Brianna wanted to try to fit her head out (I don’t know how serious she was about that), but I would have completely freaked out if that had happened.  I did see one kid up there fit his head through the netting.  We walked around for a little and saw a magnificent view.  Looking out is so much better than looking down.  And I can’t even imagine walking up the stairs all of the way to the top of the tower.  It must take forever!

We started to head down a little before midnight.  By the time we reached the bottom (we walked down the stairs from the second floor) it was just past midnight.  We asked a police officer for directions to the nearest metro, but I only understood so much.  We ended up going a little too far and then figured we would run into another metro stop.  We must have kept missing the stops, because half an hour later we were approaching the Louvre (which by the way looks really cool at 1 am.  And so much less crowded with cars and people than during the day.)  Of course, the metro stop there was closed.  We finally decided that we would hop in a taxi to the hostel, cognizant of the fact that we had to be back by 2 am.  The taxi ride took a total of maybe 10 minutes but did give us the opportunity to see a little more of Paris.  By taking the metro, you miss seeing some of the sights from the sidewalk.

The metro in Paris was kind of disgusting.  I don’t know if it is the most disgusting in the world, but I wasn’t impressed.  Especially after the air conditioned metro in Barcelona, Paris was not my favorite.  All of the walkways smelled of urine and other disgusting smells that I would prefer not to remember.  Many of the seats would sink when you would sit in them and did not look very nice.  As a means to get around the city quickly and cost effectively, the metro was quite helpful.  Some of the metro cars were a little nicer than others, but the metro system in general was not my favorite.

The French keyboard was kind of annoying as well.  The q, a, z, w, and m keys were in different positions.  It was also impossible for me to find quickly any punctuation marks.  I could use the keyboard, it just took a lot more effort.

We left this morning rather early and are currently somewhere in the middle of Germany.  I am using (very little of) my sixth language this summer.  I never learned Hungarian, so it is my sixth language.  I know absolutely no Czech, where I am headed, but I can’t even try to pronounce what I see written in my guide book. 

So far, we haven’t really had any problems with our first two trains (other than a five minute delay and change of platform).  Compared to all of the other trains we have been on, today has been a breeze.  Both in terms of how much we have walked and how stressful the travel has been, today has been so relaxing.  We are trying to take three trains today to end up in Prague, so it has been so helpful to not have the massive five hour delays like those for Barcelona and Paris.  Here’s to hoping that I make it to Prague and through my seventh language without too many issues!  Although returning to the cold weather will not be my favorite no matter how smooth the travel may be.

Barcelona

“Remember what Bilbo used to say: ‘It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door.  You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.’”

--JRR Tolkien

Barcelona feels like a long time ago.  I keep meaning to sit down and write about it but am either too tired or my computer is out of battery or too busy or too distracted.  Barcelona reminded both Brianna and I of the West Coast a little.  They both have a similar feel in that there is a beach and everything is very chill.  Until, of course, the night comes.  Everything becomes alive at night.

We walked to the beach any number of times in Barcelona, but we never actually went into the water completely.  The one day we were planning on going to the beach for a morning or afternoon, we got distracted by the soccer field or shopping or the Olympic Village.  We didn’t get to the beach until close to 7 or 8.  We spent a couple hours there, but it was so cold that I didn’t even want to think about getting in the water.  We also had no beach towel.  Wearing our swim suits all day seemed a little silly afterwards, but it would have been even worse if we had gone to the beach and wanted to swim.  During our time in Barcelona, we spent a good three hours sitting at the beach and chilling.

I don’t think I mentioned that our train to Venice was delayed.  Somewhere around three hours delayed.  The train to Barcelona?  It was delayed by five.  We got on the train and left Milan at the right time.  But we didn’t arrive in Barelona until 2 pm when we were supposed to arrive at 9 am.  We found out when we left Barcelona that we were able to get a partial refund because the train was so late (hello 25 euro). 

Barcelona involved a lot of walking and wandering.  We would often just start walking until we found something that looked interesting and then would go try to find it.  This method helped us find a little sky tram that showed us Barcelona from the air.  It was beautiful!  There were three towers connected to the sky tram.  Our buggy got to the middle tram, and it slowed down and seemed really shaky.  Approaching the tower wasn’t too bad, but as we left it the buggy descended.  I did not like that part.  It seemed like it would be way too easy to fall.  Either way, the ride was still spectacular.  It was so fun to explore to find where the tram started and how to get on. 

There was a harbor tour of Barcelona, so I took the opportunity to look at Barcelona from the water as well as the air.  We didn’t take the harbor tour until our last day, and the sky tram was on our first, so it was a nice opportunity to reflect on Spain and on Europe in general.  It was also so relaxing to be on the water and to see the city from a different perspective.  There was one building in particular that I noticed from the water and am really curious as to what it is.

We also stumbled upon Las Ramblas, which are avenues that connect and go through a part of Barcelona.  There are five altogether, and they are very different during the day and at night.  During the day, they are filled with stands selling souvenirs and some restaurant tables.  At dinner time, the souvenir stands disappear for more restaurant tables.  After a night of going out, Las Ramblas becomes a little more sketchy.  It is filled with men selling beer from six packs (you can’t buy alcohol after 11 from grocery stores) and just creepy men in general.  I only experienced that once, and I wasn’t alone.  The men seem harmless, just a little creepy. 

We did go to a club in Barcelona for one night, but we were only there for two.  It seemed like something that we were supposed to experience while we were there, although it was very touristy.  I would have enjoyed experiencing more of the Spanish culture as opposed to the tourist culture in Barcelona.  The club and the dancing here was much less sketchy than some of the dancing common in the States.  It was weird not to see everyone grinding all night, but it was very refreshing.  Of course, there were still some strange old men in the club, but it was easy enough to avoid them.

The hostel in Barcelona was interesting.  It was one of the cleanest hostels I had ever been in.  It also seemed a little strict.  They turned the lights out, which was nice unless you got back anytime after 11 pm.  You also weren’t supposed to shower after, which made the bathrooms that much more crowded in the morning.  The receptionists all seemed like interesting characters, but they also seemed like they were full of life.

My first night, I was in a room with five Irish kids.  When I first moved in and met them, they told me a little about the city and the hostel.  It was nice to know what to expect.  That night, when I returned to the hostel, I looked around the room to see if anyone was there.  I thought I was alone and was about to turn on the light when I heard a sniffle.  Apparently, the guy in the bed above me had been there the whole time.  Somehow I started talking with him and ended up talking for a solid few hours.  It was a really strange conversation in the sense that it was very happenstance, but I enjoyed it.  When one of the other Irish kids came home, I went out onto the balcony and called home for a little while before going to bed. 

On our final day in Barcelona, we went to the beach to take in the water for the last time.  The sky had looked a little scary most of the day, but it started to get pretty bad.  We had been planning on going to the market and tapas after the beach all day.  By the time we were actually leaving the beach, it started to rain.  We found ourselves a door stoop to try to wait out a sudden downpour.  The rain slowed down a little, so we chanced moving on and trying to make it to the market.  We made it about a block down before it started to absolutely pour.  This time, we were under the porch of a restaurant.  And we also thought that our bags were still outside in the courtyard of our hostel where we left them, getting drenched.  The restaurant was chaos, with all of the diners taking pictures of the massive downpour that had just started and the waiter trying to gather all of their umbrellas and tables and chairs outside.  One of the waiters came in completely soaked, and all of the waiters were at least a little wet.  I took out my phone and called the hostel to ask them to bring our bags inside (they already had) and then we decided we may as well eat since we were pretty much trapped inside.  That made the waitress very happy.  And we got our tapas.

By the time we were finished with our tapas, the rain had ended.  We began making our way to the market.  The street and sidewalk was so flooded, and trees were down everywhere.  They even had to block off a main street for a tree.  We had walked into the market earlier, but since we were closer to the end of the day, there were so many deals.  I got the most delicious chocolate-coconut-banana smoothie juice drink for less than it had been earlier in the day.  There was plenty of fresh fruit to choose from and everything looked delicious (with the exception of the meat, but that is a matter of personal preference).

Because we had nothing else to do with the time we had left, we returned to the hostel and walked over the train station.  We ended up getting to the train station about an hour and a half before our train was supposed to leave.  Wouldn’t you know that the train to Paris would be delayed?  By two hours.  We ended up making friends with a couple from Canada who worked on a cruise line and were going on vacation to Paris for six days.  We talked to them on and off while we were waiting.  A couple of guys sat down on the bench with us as well, and somehow we all got to talking.  The Scottish boys pulled out some beer and started drinking, so we decided to follow their example.  Bri went to a supermarket and grabbed a bottle of wine, which we proceeded to drink while we waited.  It is still strange that it is legal to drink, but it isn’t like I take advantage of it to excess by any means.

We finished our bottle of wine in the train station, but the Scottish boys decided that we needed more.  One of them ran over to the same supermarket before the train left to buy us another bottle of wine.  We boarded the train and decided that we needed to share the wine with the boys.  We met up in the bar on the train, where we found out that they had booked their train for the wrong month.  So they had all of their bags still with them and were trying to hide from the train conductors.  It turned out that there were two beds that they were allowed to take, so they were safe.  But it was still an interesting night.  With the boys’ help, we finished the second bottle of wine. 

At this point in time, Bri was tired, so she went to bed.  She remembered in the morning that she had promised a friend to leave me in a bar at some point in time in Europe (jokingly), but that she had fulfilled that promise.  Success!  At the end of the night, I had to return a hat to one of the Scottish boys much to the dismay of the other.  He had been trying to help me steal it all night.  And we exchanged names so that facebook stalking can happen.

Europe is always an adventure.  It never seems to lead you where you think it should.

It Belongs In A Museum

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive.  And then go and do that.  Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

--Howard Thurman

Because I am still on a night train, I have some free time to write about one afternoon in Crete that I had forgotten about until now.  We were invited to tour the research center in Crete, which was spectacular!  To give you a sense of the center, there were multiple buildings, rooms, an entire stoa of artifacts, plenty of people, and libraries.  We weren’t able to take pictures inside because the artifacts were so new that they hadn’t been published yet. 

The center is large and accounts for a fairly large percentage of academic research on Crete done by Americans.  For me, I was very interested because I could see myself being involved at this site in some way in the future.  They accumulate all of the archaeological evidence at this site, clean it, organize it, analyze it, and hopefully publish it.  I saw some of the techniques that I may someday use in my career.  The center was so expansive and covered so many different areas of research.

There were students at the center that we saw in the field the following day, and seeing how they worked was kind of remarkable. 

Evidence is collected in a dig in large bags and organized based on the size and classification of the material.  Small pieces of material are cleaned and collected through a sieve, net, and an agitator.  Large pieces of clay are separated based on the type of object they were a part of.  The pieces are then laid out where they would be on the original object.  After all of the pieces are arranged, a puzzle begins where any pieces that can be fitted together will be.

The reconstruction room involves gluing the pieces together, filling in the gaps, cleaning the material, and finishing creating the piece as much as possible.  The people in the room were so interested in their work, and that passion is something that I want to have every day I go to work.

We saw the storage facility, and I saw bones on display.  I really wish that I had the required knowledge to be able to analyze the bones fully and to understand everything about the lives of the individuals.  I know that my education is only so good at this point in time, but I hope that the future will allow me the opportunity to be able to pursue my dream. 

There was an incredible amount of money that had been invested in both the buildings and the technology at the center. 

We saw some of the results of the work done at the center, which was amazing.  Really, it was something to see and behold firsthand, but I was so impressed.  It was one of the coolest afternoons and lessons from Crete. 

The Little Things

“If you read a lot, nothing is as great as you’ve imagined.  Venice is—Venice is better.”

--Fran Lebowitz

Venice is unreal!  It is like nothing I have ever experienced before.  Everything is reached by boats, because there is no way to reach some of the areas by walking.  I have seen a few Venetian fortresses in Greece, but Venice does not really compare.  Venice is built on a different site, so they have to take into account all of the water.  It is still marvelous to see how the Venetians built around all of the water.  The buildings were all so large and grand and beautiful, and the canals and bridges are literally everywhere.  The church was ginormous and absolutely beautiful by night.  Brianna and I enjoyed some awful pizza from our hostel and split a bottle of wine while we sat along the river and walked through the town.  But we did officially uncork the bottle of wine on our own!  The night was pretty spectacular.

This morning, we woke up to do some minor exploring of Venice before we had to return to the train station to catch our train to Milan.  The town is just as magnificent by day, although it does look different.  The gondolas don’t have quite as much magic during the day, although I thought that the number of gondolas was lacking.  While the only significant part of our morning involved walking around and taking the vaporetto (water bus), we did stop in a church right next to the train station.  It was so peaceful right and was right next to the water, although it was strange to see others taking plenty of pictures with flashes and making noises with cameras and phones.  Only a little distracting while I was praying.

I took a nap for most of our train to Milan, but I did have to move and squeeze into a smaller space when more people got on the train and needed seats.  Sad day.

We made it to Milan with plenty of time, and so we took a break from the trains to grab some food and go exploring.  We decided that we wanted gelato from a place that also has a store in Rome.  On our way to gelato, we came across a magnificent church.  It was so tall and the ceilings were absolutely amazing.  There were so many little details that it I kept noticing little things everywhere, like the crucifix that was hanging over the altar, after being in the church for twenty minutes.  It was crazy! 

We walked around Milan and got our gelato before making our way back to the train station.  For a four hour “layover,” it was pretty successful.  Currently, we are somewhere between Milan and Barcelona—either in Italy, France, or Spain.  But that is part of the adventure.

Coincidences

“No one’s laughing at God when there’s a famine or fire or flood.  But God could be funny.”

--Regina Spektor Laughing With

I have mixed feelings about Rome.  Rome is the Eternal City, and it has so much to do and see.  Especially for a Catholic, Rome is a wonderful place.  The Vatican is amazing and full of so much history.  I do wish I would have had a few more hours in Rome to explore a little more of the Catholic heritage there.  It’s something that I didn’t realize how much in Rome I wanted to see until last night after everything closed and today on the train as I left Rome.  But Rome is still and probably will always be the city that took me away from Athens.

I started out Sunday with mass at St. Peter’s Basilica.  St. Peter’s is enormous!  I really wish that I could see St. Peter’s without all of the tourists and constant flashes of cameras.  If I could see everyone praying and reverent in the basilica at one time, filling the basilica completely, it would be beautiful, treasured, sacred, and blessed.  There would be enough people in the world willing to do it, but I don’t think it will ever happen; there are just too many tourists.  It was strange to go to mass at a church where the majority of the people in the church were not celebrating mass.  Guards did block an area off for those of us who were celebrating mass, but there were still people taking pictures of the area near the altar, which included us.  Of course, the church is so big and my sense of numbers is so skewed that there may have been many more people at mass than I thought.  The mass and building itself were beautiful and magnificent! 

I stayed with Brianna and her parents for the rest of the day.  That means my visits to some of the iconic sites in Rome include three to the Trevi Fountain, at least three to the Pantheon, three to the Spanish Steps, and four to the Colosseum.  I also found the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the Italian guards there during my first night of adventuring, and it put a smile on my face.  They reminded me of my beloved Evzones guarding our Tomb, although I couldn’t get close to them and they did not have the same gravity about them.  The guards were not as rigid in their movements nor as choreographed.  At the time, I was feeling incredibly homesick for Athens, so the reminder that first night made me way too happy. 

The Capuchin Crypt was so cool!  The crypt had been decorated with human bones.  I was utterly fascinated and had a strong desire to study the bones.  I also quizzed myself as I walked through to try to name all of the bones that I saw.  I could identify at least a general location for almost every bone if not the exact name and location.  For someone who wants to study human skeletal remains, the crypt was among the most fascinating things I have seen while in Europe.  It honestly was probably my favorite thing I saw in Rome (and around the same level as the Vatican).  There was a child’s skeleton that had been decorated as a reaper and attached to the ceiling, which I felt was a little disrespectful and irreverent to the child and his or her family.  I just wanted to protect him or her and take the child down to a more protected position.  I understand that this is something that I will have to deal with if I pursue studying human skeletal remains, but for some reason that was the only skeleton that really upset me.  I understand that cultures are different.  I just feel bad for the souls and the loved ones that belong to the bones. 

I had my first Kosher meal (that I know of) for dinner in the Jewish Ghetto.  I learned a little about the rules associated with Kosher eating and can say that I definitely respect those who keep Kosher.  It must be a challenge, especially when traveling, to ensure that everything you eat is Kosher.  The food was delicious, and I am very curious how my dessert, which was Grandfather’s Cake and had a chocolate filling, was made without any dairy.  Then again, my high school Chemistry teacher had been apple pie out of tofu using some magical chemistry properties, so I shouldn’t be too surprised.

Yesterday was dedicated to the Vatican.  After waiting in a decently long line-1 ½ hours (because I kept putting off buying tickets online until it was too late), I made it into the Vatican Museum.  The line was totally worth it, because while I meet a group of older people from Greece.  I recognized the language and wanted to cry just because I was near Greek people and was hearing such a comforting language.  I tried to talk a little bit with them, but ended up listening to them talk while waiting near them more than anything.

The museum was filled with so many different rooms and artifacts.  Everything was amazing.  There were so many rooms and twists and turns.  A number of the rooms were closed to the public, which included a couple exhibits on ancient Greek and Roman sculpture.  The artwork all over the museum is so gorgeous and elaborate.  I think I probably took a full 200 pictures in the museum alone.  The frescoes in Sistene Chapel were incredibly elaborate and complex.  The first time I walked through the museum, I stood in Sistene Chapel for a good 20 minutes.  I left and started really looking at the exhibits.  I returned to the chapel again right before I left from the museum after looking at some boards about the chapel, and I was able to understand and see so many more parts of the fresco.  It really is among the most complex and ornate designs I have ever seen.  I was ushered into the Chapel by a guard who kept reminding you not to stop and to keep moving down the stairs.  They would come around and yell at you if you sat on steps that you weren’t supposed to or if you had your camera out.  Every minute or two a guard would shush everyone in the chapel and remind us that it was a place of worship that needed silence.  It would quiet down for a few seconds, but within a minute the noise level was back to before.  It wasn’t horrifically loud or anything, though.  Both the chapel and the museum were crowded with people.  The tour groups really clustered up the museum, especially when there was only one route through the museum and a tour group would occupy the entire way.  I was shocked by the usage of flash photography in the museum.  The light will severely damage the art, but there were no signs or reminders to turn off the flash.  Some of the art is among the most prestigious in the world, so it should be more protected than it is.  The Sistene Chapel isn’t the only important sight in the museum.  I was also surprised by the number of people posing with sculptures or other pieces of art.  In Greece, you would be flayed if you used flash or posed with anything.  The intent of the rule is to be respectful and to ensure that huge crowds don’t form waiting to pose with a piece of art.  After seeing the Vatican Museum, the rules make complete sense.

I also climbed the steps of St. Peter's to reach the cupola.  550 steps total on the way up and 499 steps down.  There were a few times when I realized just how high I was and how dangerous it coud be at the top of the dome or on the outside of the cupola.  I can't imagine how Michelangelo lived through the massive heights.  The scariest part of my entire climb was some of the stairs.  The stairs got really narrow at parts and were not always straight.  We were on a dome after all.  I was also wearing a skirt, so I was trying to ensure that I didn't flash anyone and protect my purse.  Amidst all of those distractions, it would be so easy to fall down a set of steep spiral stairs and take out part of the crowd behind me.  I just prayed that I wouldn’t lose my balance.  The stairs and the cupola were cramped but well worth it.  At the top of the dome, I ended up asking a random guy from New York if he could take a picture of me.  He was really sweet about it and even yelled at people who tried to walk in the picture.  His friend then took pictures of the two of us together.  Maybe I will get them through my e-mail, but we never exchanged names…  It was a really strange interaction but really sweet halfway across the world.

I suddenly realized how long I had been on my feet (6 hours with only a short, less than 10 minute break) but decided to walk to my hostel from the night before to pick up a bag and then move to my new hostel.  Big mistake.  I recognized that my two hostels were on opposite sides of the map but figured I had been walking everywhere anyways.  I had to take multiple breaks to sit and let my feet recover before I made it to our hostel.  When I finally showed up, Brianna was talking to a random guy, J-F from Canadia.  (I know it’s really called Canada, but I like to be stupid and call it Canadia.)  He’s traveling through Europe on his own, which I am still amazed by.  He joined us in this wonderful little pizza place for dinner.  Italian pizza Is wonderful, although I took about twice as long to eat my pizza than Brianna and J-F.  But, hey.  It was a full pizza.  And I was savoring.  We finished up dinner with a chocolate shot.  The shot glass was edible and made of chocolate.  It was delicious, although I still hold that my mouth isn’t that big and that was the main reason I failed (and made a bit of a mess) of my shot.

Later, Bri and I walked along the river and talked about our lives back in Indiana and for the summer.  She realized how much she would miss Rome, and I completely understand.  I definitely miss Athens.  Anytime I think I hear Greek, I get really excited.

This morning, we went to the train station to catch our train to Venice.  We tried to get on an earlier train, but it was full.  After waiting in the station for a solid 45 minutes, 10 minutes before our train was set to depart, a sign on the board said something in Italian.  One of the train personnel told us that meant we needed to get to a different station in Rome, so we raced onto a train.  We made it to the train a few minutes before it left.  While the train went to the next station, we found out one of the women (who spoke some pretty decent English) was supposed to be on our same train.  We left the train at our stop and raced to a board, only to see absolutely NO information.  Our helpful guide started asking anyone and everyone, including passers-by, and no one knew anything.  We just continued following her around the station like lost puppy dogs.  Eventually we found ourselves with a group of people all waiting for the same train.

About half an hour later, we found a conductor who said he had our train.  We continued following the group until we made it to the train.  We grabbed a seat and collapsed, although I am pretty sure (later confirmed) that Brianna was still terrified it was the wrong train.  She was worried about making it to Milan in time for our Barcelona train in the worst case scenario, even though we had a full 24 hours for that.

Suddenly, we see a kid with an “I’m backpacking through Europe” bag and a Ravens football cap.  Who else would it be but our good friend from Canadia, J-F.  We got the chance to hang out with our hostel buddy for a few more hours.  However, we found out that he probably was not on the right train.  He was trying to make it to the port to catch a cruise to Croatia that he had missed the day earlier.  Hopefully the trains took him to his cruise on time without any more difficulties.  He left us in Florence to try to catch a faster train.  Until then, we chilled and played cards for a little while.  I figured it was a sign that we were supposed to get to know each other for a little longer.  It was such a strange coincidence, but then again, I also saw kids from Athens by chance at the Colosseum.  It was a coincidence that we couldn’t get seats on the earlier train, it was a coincidence that we ended up on that train, and it was a coincidence that J-F was told to go to the train at Platform 7.

Basically, our day was filled by the train.  We went to the station super early, waited for a train, rushed to a different stop, waited again, and sat on a train for quite some time.  Our train was 140 minutes late!  Over two hours!  There had been a fire at one of the big Rome stations two mornings before we left, so it makes sense that the trains are a little bit of a mess.  We literally spent today sitting on a train, although my feet did enjoy it.  We only have two more days that could be like this.  The rest will involve night trains, which will probably result in less time lost to travel, although a break every once in a while is nice.

The day involved a lot of instances of God laughing at us and our attempts to plan things, but it was nice to spend a day relaxing and doing nothing.

Goodbye My Lover

“So take the photographs and still frames in your mind.  Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time.  Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial.  For what it’s worth, it was worth all the while.”

--Green Day, Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)

To set the stage for this post, I am sitting in the Athens airport waiting for my flight to Rome.  I barely even remember flying into this airport last time.  The few memories that I have include watching one guy from my flight because I was curious about what he was doing in Athens.  And getting in a cab.  There was a line that I waited in and a bus somewhere in there, but those are vague memories.  Logically, I knew that I should be a little worried about going to my hotel, since it was in the “bad” area of a city that I didn’t know.  Somehow, I didn’t feel worried about the cab or my hotel.  It must have been a sign that my time in Athens was going to be wonderful.

I am typing the next part from a piece of computer paper with scribbles all over it.

Currently, I am sitting on a bus to the airport at Syntagma.  I literally just hopped on the bus, so I am hot and sweaty from my 15 minute walk from my apartment.  Apparently, taxis have been on strike all week, and I just haven’t noticed.  It is kind of embarrassing that I haven’t noticed anything was different.  Once it was pointed out to me, the lack of yellow cars on the street seemed obvious.  The only time I really use taxis is late at night to go out and to get to the airport (or in this case, I would have used one to go to Syntagma to catch the bus.  Taxis to the airport are something like 35 euros during the day or 50 at night, the rough equivalent of $50 or $75.)  As I said, I walked to Syntagma weighed down with all of my stuff.  It was strange because I had a posse walk me to Syntagma, and they all commented that I hadn’t brought much.  It is true that one of my bags is filled with things that I accumulated while in Greece.  While I agree that I don’t have an abundance of things, by the end of my walk I was feeling everything that I had brought.  Luckily, I will be sending some of my unnecessary bags and other luggage home in Rome—I love Brianna’s parents so much right now.  I carried all of my stuff, with the exception of one grocery bag, the entire way to Syntagma!  I am a beast, thank you very much.

Going backwards, we had a farewell lunch with almost everyone today.  Three people flew out this morning, so 17 students came.  Add to that our professor, Aleko, and everyone’s favorite bus driver Christos made a guest appearance!  It was like reliving some parts of the trip all over again.  We ate so much good food (although we all agreed that Christos and his family was the highlight of the trip).  We went to the same taverna at the start and the end of my first class, so it was as if we were finishing the same way that we started.  This particular meal was slightly strange in that no one had their cameras out.  It was different from most of our meals, but it felt like we belonged in this country.

And then came good-byes.  I hate good-byes.  I was fine.  I swear I was.  Until I actually had to start hugging people.  All of this past week I have been in denial that I am actually leaving.  That the end is coming.  I still don’t think I realize that I am leaving.  That I am on my way to the airport.

It’s not ok.

It’s a lie.

Except, right now—this seems like real life.

I got up to leave the table a little early because I still didn’t have everything packed completely and was starting to freak out a little.  I just had a few extra things to squeeze into my bag.  Then came hug time.  I just started going around the table and hugging everyone while they were sitting in their seats.  It meant that I hit everyone at the table, and it made sense.  The first few hugs meant the realization that I’m leaving.  So I got a little choked up.  But then hugs became normal.  So I was good.  Until I came to Caitie and Anna, who requested to be skipped.  After my awkward hug fest around the table, I came to two of the girls I had lived with for the past eight weeks in Athens.  (Stephanie, the other girl I had lived with for eight weeks, had already lightened the mood by calling me albino as we parted.) 

And suddenly, as I am saying goodbye to these two girls, little wet drops started accumulating in my eyes.  I think those are typically called tears.  Next thing I know, I am crying with a whole table looking at me, not to mention the adults who were probably thinking I am crazy and the Greek waiter who I am sure thought the water works in front of him were very unnecessary.  And I start laughing at myself for crying.  So much for trying to be strong and detached for goodbyes.  I think that a part of it was that I was the only one saying goodbye to everyone, so all of the attention was on me.  It wasn’t a group hug party.    

I went back to the apartment, grabbed my stuff, and stopped by the taverna again before heading to Syntagma.  This time, I was able to say goodbye in a more composed manner, which made me feel better.  And then I picked up my parade from the taverna for Syntagma.  Of course I trekked past the guards one last time!

Packing was an adventure.  I literally don’t think I could squeeze anything more in.  I stuffed my suitcase completely full, tried to close it, and then had to rearrange everything three times before I could zip it shut.  I bought a new, larger bag while I was here to carry on, and it is currently also stuffed.  I am also carrying a purse and a grocery bag, which I know won’t fly for the airline (Haha, I’m so punny!)  I know I will do some major rearranging.  --Side note: Budget airlines only let you carry on one bag.  I ended up throwing away a little bit of food I was hoping to bring and stuffing everything into my bag without zipping it shut so that I could carry it onto the plane in one bag.  It’s so stupid, because the second I walked onto the plane, I split my bags into two separate bags.  –Either way, I consider my packing a success.  I am so excited to take out my unnecessary items and send them home, so my load will be a bit less full soon!

I finished my final paper a little before 6 this morning.  It felt so good to finally have it done.  It also seemed more normal to stay up late and finish work, something I haven’t done since I had been here.  I took a quick little nap until 9:30 or so and then got up to start my final part of a Greek day.

I revisited the Temple of Olympian Zeus as my historical site for today.  Two days ago, I climbed Mount Lycabettus and realized just how big the Temple to Zeus was.  I saw this massive space of open land dedicated to Zeus in the middle of the city.  I had to stop by and revisit the majestic site.  The size is so impressive.  You can’t fully realize how monstrous this area is from the ground.  The mountain also helped me realize how much I had learned about Athens in my time here.  My first few days in Athens, I climbed Philopappos Hill.  I had no clue what anything was, and even when my professor was trying to point out significant landmarks, I often couldn’t find them.  At the top of this hill, I was able to figure out where my apartment was.  I have come a long way in just eight short weeks.

My last few days in Athens were bittersweet.  While I was in denial that I was leaving, I still had lots of things I wanted to do.  So many things, and most of them weren’t accomplished.  In all fairness, my list was a bit unreasonable.  I did finish all of the important things.

I was obsessed with the fact that I was leaving.  I was trying to make it real.  At the same time, I wanted to be fully present and experience my last few days in Athens.  It’s like the end of a weekend.  All weekend, you know Sunday night is coming, and you will have to finish your homework and prepare for the next week.  But you are in denial.  And you hope that if you ignore it hard enough, it will go away.  But Sunday night always comes, and you always (if you are me at least) have to do all of your homework from the weekend.  I started missing Athens before I even left it.

As a second part to this post, I have now been in Rome for a little over one day.  That day has been hectic and chaotic and I know I have made more mistakes than I can count on all of my fingers and toes.  If I can say anything, I will at least say that it has been an adventure.

Firstly, I flew into the airport and found out that my bag made it to Rome!  Hurray!  I didn’t have to repeat the beginning of my trip.  However, the next step involved transportation from the airport.  I decided that I didn’t want to pay between 40 or 60 euro for a taxi, so I opted for the train.  I had been told that the train was around 9 euro, but it actually cost me 14.  In my mad dash for the train, I didn’t see a validation machine, so my ticket wasn’t validated—the punishment for this can be steep.  I was standing right near stairs on the train, and my balance isn’t so great.  I felt like I was being thrown around the entire ride into the city.  When we showed up at the central station, a guard walks on the train and requests my ticket before I can disembark.  Of course, I had put my ticket in my wallet which was in my purse.  So I started to dig it out.  By the time I had my ticket out, he was far enough away that I just walked out.  I had paid for the ticket, so it isn’t like I did anything wrong.  The only thing I could do is reuse the ticket, which I won’t have any reason to.

I then walked what felt like a mile with ALL of my stuff to the metro area.  I just kept telling myself that if I could make it from my apartment to Syntagma, surely I could make it to the start of the metro-wherever that was.  I came just to find out that the metro station (at least where I was) was closed.  It either closed at 9 (I showed up at 9) or it had been closed all night.  So I ended up taking a taxi from the station to the hotel, which wasn’t too bad.  It just meant a little extra walking for me.

Then came the hotel.  When I showed up, I tried to check in.  Apparently, the front desk didn’t have my name or anything.  I was able to access an e-mail that said I could stay there, but the person at the desk said she needed verbal permission.  I looked up the phone number I had for Brianna, but she didn’t answer.  The front desk person said that she did have single rooms available, but they cost more than I was willing to pay for one night.  I literally sat in the hotel lobby for close to an hour.  She finally called another receptionist, who apparently informed her that I had permission to get into the room.  I had already started trying to come up with a contingency plan, but hadn’t really finalized any solid plan.  By this point in time, my night involved getting off a plane, spending an hour getting to the hotel, and then waiting another hour until I could finally get into the room.  By the time I finally made it to my room, I was grumpy.  I wasn’t in Athens anymore.  I had been through enough challenges.  And I am sure it didn’t help that I hadn’t had dinner yet, although I wasn’t really hungry.

I decided that I could give myself a night to dislike Rome.  I knew that it had taken me away from my love Athens.  So it was okay to dislike it a little bit at least.  There were so many people out, so I went around for a little nighttime walk.  I managed to get myself to the Pantheon without realizing it, which was really strange.  I didn’t realize that it was the Pantheon until sometime today.  When I returned to the room, I was exhausted.  I managed to watch the only English channel: CNN.  I actually stayed up for a little while and organized myself before bed.

I let myself sleep in today.  I then just started walking around.  Just walking around, I think I ran into any number of important sites.  It is a different type of city from Athens.  While there are ruins here, many of the old buildings have been restored more.  In that sense, the city looks more put together, but technically isn’t as old. 

I tried to find my hostel from the hotel a couple times.  The first I actually made it a part of the way here, but then I gave up because I couldn’t figure out what street I was on or where I was.  I tried to direct myself back to the hotel and actually ended up two blocks from the hotel.  Surprisingly, I was able to find my way back.  After a short break, I decided to try to get to the hostel again.  This time was a success, but I think that I walked twice the distance necessary.  I seemed to miss most of the streets that google maps told me to turn down.  I would go too far.  A few minutes later, I would see an area I recognized.  I would be a block away from where I turned around, down the street that I knew was in the right general direction of where I needed to go.  It was a little frustrating, but I now could probably find my way from my hostel to the hotel fairly easily. 

I continued walking around.  Eventually, I found myself at the Colosseum.  On a Saturday, the Colosseum becomes bride central.  I am pretty sure I saw no less than six wedding dresses at the Colosseum in a very short span of time.  As I was walking around the Colosseum, I started thinking about Greece.  Various parts of my trip were running around in my head when suddenly Derek was right in front of me.  Derek was in my last class in Greece, and I knew that he was coming to Rome along with Mark and Mary.  The timing of my thoughts with Derek’s arrival was uncanny.  Considering how big Rome is, I find it very impressive and strange that I did happen to see the students from CYA sometime during the day, even though I was in a heavy tourist area.

I ended up walking around with Derek, Mark, and Mary for a couple hours tonight.  I ended up meeting up with Brianna after her train got back and finally met her parents before grabbing some dinner, gelato, and a cab back to my hostel.

Apparently, one of the times I returned to the hotel, the original front desk person thought it was suspicious that I flew by her on my way up to the room.  It was later in the afternoon, and I still had a key to access the room, but she thought that I should have checked in with her or something.  So she decided to unauthorized all of the keys.  In essence, this meant that later, Brianna and her parents all had to get new keys that would work to unlock their door.  I don’t think that this particular hotel likes me very much.

I still miss Athens.  I know that Rome will be a cool adventure, but it is hard to love something that has torn you away from your home.  I just have to keep giving it a chance.  I don’t know Italian as well as I do Greek, so it may be in part that I can’t communicate very well here.  Even though I have been excited about returning to areas where they flush toilet paper, I have had to stop myself from throwing away my toilet paper every time I go to the bathroom.  I have literally opened the trash can and stopped myself just short of tossing it in the trash.  But, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.