Living out of a suitcase... Hydra to Napflio!

Yia Sas! Or in English, "Hello" from Nafplion! Yes, again, we are in another part of Greece. I admit, I do miss Hydra. The island itelf made it almost impossible to not just sit and relax. We're back in a city, and yes, I consider myself a city girl... But I do miss the island and all of it's incomplexities. Nonetheless, I've been in Greece about 2 weeks now. We (my class) are half way through our program. I feel like we've done so much, and yet, I have not had the time to document it all. So, I think I'll do so right now.

I must say, this whole living out of a suitcase bit is really not too bad. I have surprised myself in saying that merely because I, as with a lot of us, truly do enjoy the comforts of home. Not to mention, I'm not too good with change and having to reacquaint myself. But this program broke that for me. We have, as of now, stayed in 3 different areas off Greece. Each location quite a distance from the other. It's a constant packing, moving, reacquainting with the new city, exploring and scouting out new places to eat (when you just familiarized yourself with one place, you have to start all over again). All this to be topped off with constant field trips to new sights and having to be a part of a class and community of completely new people. I think this is one of the best things that have happened to me. I'm learning - learning how to be flexible and not so stuck on familiarity - learning about pushing my own boundaries of exlporation, getting out of my comfort zone to fully be able to embrace a culture. And trust me, I am. I'm doing new things. For one, as an avid tomato hater back home, I'm actually eating them here. I'm less hesitant to try new food. I've killed a spider. I'm drinking only one cup of coffee a day as opposed to 3. I'm embracing the heat and not complaining about it. I'm getting over my fear of deep water and throwing myself into the beautiful beaches that Greece offers. But beyond the superficial... I really am getting to know myself, and the art of getting to know others. I'm getting to know what's outside of my own domestic boundaries and fully embracing every aspect of it. I'm reminded of a quote that the oh-so-wonderful, kind of, Professor Patterson told our MMW6 class - and that was to see the everything in the world, and if you can't do that, see the world in everything. As a side note, I find it so amazing that God has created us all as humans - and yet, the cultures we all have in this world are strikiningly different. But that's the beauty of it. And my only hope is that I, who have been given such an amazing chance to explore this world, embrace every part of it. Instead of limiting myself to my Flipino/American culture, I hope to integrate the world, in all that it had taught me in travelling, into my perspective of life. My lens is not a closed, but open one. Open to see what God sees everyday, and appreciate the beauty in its differences.

Alright, so Hydra. Hydra is an amazig island - it's small, but I loved it! While in Hydra, aside from class, we went to 2 museums. One of them was this old captain's mansion which was so much fun to go through. I was obsessed with the windows in the building! Each one seemed to capture an an absolutely beautiful view, effective back then to see enemies coming towards the island. Other than the islands, there was a lot of downtime. We swam in the clear blue waters, careful to avoid the lurking sea urchins which left remnants of itself in a few of my classmates. I had my first expierience in a bar/club. [And to all my readers who are worrying, don't. I didn't drink, just danced] It's funny beacause it's really not that great. And I find it surprising how eay it was to say "No, I don't drink" to everyone else I was with. It really wasn't as hard as I thought. Living by example I suppose. I took a few walks at night, when the stars were out and the port was lit beautifully! Perhaps one of the more entertaining times was having another program to American kids sharing the weekend in the same hotel as us. A group of guys with the exception of 5 girls seemed to compliment our class of 25 girls and 5 guys really well. We got to know a lot of them, and spent a good part of the weekend swimming, chatting, playing mafia, and spoons with each other. It was definitely nice.

Back on sea Monday morning into the Peloponnese. On the way to Nafplia, we stopped by Epidaurus. There we saw an stunning theatre that must have been able to seat thousands. It was good to see that it was still in use for theatre productions now. We also some some of the ruins there which included a stadium and temple.

Now we're in Napflio/Napflion... whichever way you say it. Anyways, the city is interesting. It seems to be built with layers of different eras. Hopefully I'll read more about it. Nonethless, it's nice to be back to the city life. Today we visited Mycenae and saw the Tomb of Agamemnon, as well as the Anicient Site of Mycenae. It's fascinating to see how much of Greek culture is embedded in its past or, myths of. The more I see these ruins, the more I realize this aspect of Greek life, and I find an even deeper appreication for a country of such an age.

Perhaps this is getting a bit lengthy so I'll leave you here. As far as pictures go, I'll post a few on the blogs themselves, but if you have Facebook, my albums are updated. For the Photobucket album, I will let you know when that is updated!

Until the next time!
With love from Napflio,
Carla