Some entertainment & Photos

Here are some pictures taken from all over Greece:

The canal in Corinth

The Temple of Poseidon, Suinio

Me and a Spartan!

Ithaca, where we got off the boat and swam in its waters!

Myrtos Beach, Kefalonia... The 12th most famous in the world.

Melissani Cave, Kefalonia

 

 

The view after climbing 999 steps to the Castle of Palmidi, Napflion

In Olympia, the site for the Olympic Ruins

Some kids doing traditional Greek Dancing in the main street of Sami, Kefalonia. I loved it!

Athens knows how to do Starbucks!

We've made our way back to Athens! Hotel Palmyra has wireless, so I have managed to upload all of these images! I hope you all enjoy! For those on Facebook, my albums are updated as well!

With love from Glyfada (A suburb of Athens),
Carla

Kefalonia

Today is our last day in Kefalonia. Today was also our last day of class. It's a little bit surprising how fast time flies, and I cannot believe how near I am to the end of this chapter. But, it's not over yet...

We had to read Louis deBernieres' Corelli's Mandolin for class. It's already supposed to be read, and yet I'm still trucking through it. If I can take a moment to recommend something, I defnintely suggest you pick this book up. It's a moving stroy about a few interchanging characters and their lives on this island during World War II. Anyways, there was also a movie made based on this book which was shot, no surprise, here in Kafalonia. It's amazing to walk down the streets here and see how much pride the people take in the fact that this movie was filmed here. Picutres from the film, a diner that is actually called Captain Corelli's (which by the way has some amazing bugers), getting on a taxi and having our driver point out Nicholas Cage's villa and areas where the film were shot...Reading this book and seeing this movie, has somehow in a weird way, connected me to the locals here.

Besides that though, this island is rich in it's history - especially in the WWII eras. Our class drove to Argostoli, and from there saw the exectuion sites on the sides of the road where German soliders killled off thousands of Italian soldiers, after Moussilini's surrender. Memorials made by the Greeks for them... It pains me to come to the realization that here I am, relaxing.... When only a few decade ago, this island was filled with such atrosity and violence. It's always different when you know the history behind a place you visit, rather than just blindly going. For most of this trip, I realize that I truly apprecaite the education behind it... I feel like I can connect.

On a lighter note, yesterday our class took a day cruise around the island of Ithaca. It was a lot of fun, of course, seeing as we did nothing productive of the sort. I feel like Greece now is more than just a destination for me. It's the place that has given me this journey that I am now living. It has presented me with so many oppotunities to grow and develop (as I've said before). So to me, it's more than the mere beauty of this country and all fo it's breathtaking islands. It's more than the anient ruins, the history, the souvalki and pita, etc. etc. It is the context in which I have had the opportunity to cultivate and encourage some discoverey. Knowledge wise, personally, and spiritually. On that note, yesterday Ithaca presented me with the opportunity to break a little phobia of mine. Drowning when you're 3 years old does not erase itself easily from a person's memory Up until yesterday it's scarred me with a phobia of deep water. And yes, I can swim, but of course I never did in anything where my foot could not touch the bottom. But the water was pristine, and one would be foolish to not jump in. So, I figure at some point I've got to break this fear... Why not in Greece? So I get off the boat and plnuge myself into the beautiful water - my feet far from the ground. Then I realized what I've missed out on all this time. As I let the ocean carry me, it was a rush of freedom and peace all together, that I had never expireienced iin water until now. And for Greece, I am thankful.

So, the growth here... I've never appreciated God's work in nature so much in my life. I guess I was pretty ignorant to it. I never cared, and now I realize, through everything I've seen in Greece, that nature is one way that God expresses His love for us. Sorrounding us in beauty that has an innate ability to awe us and inspire us. To escape from the destruction that we ourselves have created in this world, and really look at the natural beauty of it - it can speak wonders to our lives. If only we let it.

Until the next time.
With love from Sami, Kefalonia,

Carla

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

Hydra...

Is a Saronic Island, about 1.5 hour away from Athens. We got here about 2 days ago and internet is limited. With that said... This old sea power island has so much history! I find it amazing that not once has it been touched by an Ottoman (When Greeks were fighting them). You'll find here breathtaking views. It's the typical impression that one would get out of Greece. The ocean, the landscape flooded with blue and white. It's all so surreal. There is no other kind of transportation here except my mule - and it's that kind of simplicity that make me love this island all the more. The water is clear and blue, you can probably see down 20 feet. The nightlife is lively and full of music. The locals are friendly and welcoming. It seems to be its own bubble, existing with the modern life I found in Athens. Simplicity is a beautiful thing for one person like me, who just seems to be intricately complex.
This is all for now, seeing as my timer is running out.
Until the next time!

With love from Hydra,
Carla

Beginning in Athens.

I don't think I have the words right now to explain what an amazing city Athens is. I've been here 3 days now and each day seems to surprise me all the more. But let's backtrack a bit to actually arriving. It was by far one of the longes journeys I've ever taken. From leaving the house at 2 AM to arriving at SFO with a 6:30 flight. A one hour layover in Philly after a 6 hour flight only to get back on the plane for another 9 hours to finally arrive in Athens. Good thing Hotel Palmyra is only about 20 minutes away from the airport, which by the way had been moved and rebuilt from its original location to accommodate the Olympics in 2004. Luckily, along the way, I met some people in my program - so I wasn't exactly traveling alone.

First impressions. I love how pleasantly surprised I was to find that Athens is not what I pictured it to be. I've come to learn, and even as we have already discussed in class, that there is a dual presence, both of an ancient and modern Greece. A lot of times, I think we tend to forget that Greece itself is an industrialized nation. We think of Greece and we picture beaches, blue and white buildings setting themselves in beautiful islands, donkeys as transportation... The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants even? And I'm afraid that we in the US, and sadly, myself included have fell victim to the image that society tries to feed us about Greece. It is a socially constructed image that has caused us to fail to see that although this stuff is indeed incorporated into this wonderful country, there is so much more to it than that. And all that stuff we don't realize, I hope to learn and experience in my time here. So, back to my the impressions that being in Athens has left me with.. It's very commercial. There are billboards, department stores, even US chain stores such as STARBUCKS! You can find a new railways system that was built for the Olympics, people everywhere drive a Mercedes, and tons more... So yo can imagine how shocked I was to not see one donkey in sight. But then again, this is the capital. At the same time, you head downtown into the Plaka area and you can find all the traditional Greek restaurants, a flea market, and then just above it, the amazing and ancient remains to the Acropolis. It is an exquisite sight, and truly an amazing place to be!


By far, one of my favorite moments has been last night when our program went to dinner. First of all, it was late. Second of all, we were there for more than 3 hours! Dinner here is not just dinner - it's a show! And a fantastic one in fact. We were entertained with live traditional music and dancing... Lots of dancing. Enough to drag a few of us up to dance with them. It was a night worth noting. I remember sitting there and realizing how much I loved the relax and joyous atmosphere. That dinner was not just time to eat, but a time to enjoy oneself in the company of others. It's not an eat and run as I have now noticed us Americans tend to live.

Another memorable moment which almost put me to tears was today. We were up top on the Acropolis (If you look at my pictures you'll see the breathtaking vies which look down on all of Athens. It's amazing!) I tour guide starts to talk about this huge rock a little bit lower in elevation. She mentions that it was called Mars Rock and it was where Paul used to preach to the Greeks when he came into Athens. This struck so much! To think that I was walking the steps of the New Testament really blessed me and caused me to appreciate all the more the rich history and value of this country. It's magnificent, and leaves me at a loss for words to describe it beauty.

With that said, my last words for now are that I absoltely love it here. It's no wonder why I was so obsessed with Greece. I can only wish I was even a little Greek myself. But then again, I am at heart! [=




Pictures: (Facebook only) Album 1 Album 2
(Open to all) Athens Album

With love from Athens,
Carla

10 days and counting...

Oh, the joys of all of this coming together! Really, I am excited - but as with all endeavors that require more than your breath to be accomplished, it takes some work. And that word in and of itself has become the epitome of my summer break thus far. Before I go on, I think it right to provide the background behind this amazing opportunity in my life.

June, 2006: About 2 years ago I graduated High School. With that, as all High School graduates know, come a ton of celebrations. One of these was at Church where each one of us in the youth group who were graduating were prayed for by Cris, our YP at the time, and Pastors Bryce & Dona. Well, two years ago Cris spoke that God was sending me down to San Diego to be an "ambassador to the nations"... And after that, Pastor Dona said that during my second year in college, God would open the doors for me to go abroad, and I would not even have to doubt if it were Him.
This has always been evident in my mind - and so here I am, 2 years later, at the end of my second year... Not only did God open "a" door, He opened multiple & it's amazing to see His word come to pass. My first experience abroad this year was in Yaroslavl, Russia. That one week I spent working in orphanages and women's hospitals abroad caused me to fall in love - not just with Russia but for the world. And it's not because there are so many amazing things to see, but it's because in the grander scope of life, there are people all around that can teach us something. All it takes is for us to be open to the differences in our cultures - bridging those gaps by embracing diversity. I know that God has called me around the world, and it's a calling that I am fully excited about.

So yes, here I am - ten days away from getting on a plane with about 6 months miraculously packed into a 50 pound suitcase. I'm stunned at how God can fully come through in all of it. There has come to exist many obstacles that have tried to keep me from this journey. Let's take for example, the epitome of all stress this week: my UK Visa. As of right now, I am currently without my passport. Long story short, I don't need a Visa for Greece or Italy, but I do need one for London. But, because I will be out of the US, I needed to get my Visa before I leave on the 30th. This meant having BU (My London Program) send me all the necessary documents early. Well, I didn't receive these documents until early this week. It took about 4 hours for me to finally finish the application, and not to mention that the only available appointment to get my biometrics done was on Friday. This meant that the Consulate would only have 5 days to receive, process, and send my Passport/Visa before I left. Well, God is definitely good. I walked into the biometrics office the next day just to see if they would let me get it done early, and they did - easily. I mailed out my application overnight and got an e-mail saying the Consulate had began to process it. To ease the stress that is having a non-existent telephone number to the mysterious office of the British Consulate, my Greece Program Adviser helped me out by having a contact there. OH THE ART OF NETWORKING! She was able to make sure that everything would be done by Wednesday. So it is all coming together.

I say all that because it goes to prove how SO EVIDENT God is throughout this whole journey. It seems as if there is so much opposition trying to stop me from going, but God is constantly showing me favor. Not to mention, I'm getting a little sick, but it's okay. Fears are starting to pick up a little, but I know that this will be the most amazing thing I've done in my life thus far. I am 10 days away from officially embarking on this journey, and although it has definitely had it's share of stressful moments, I know that God has some HUGE things in store. Although this is all for education purposes, I know without a doubt that God would not send me across the world just for school. He's got a bigger plan and I am without words to explain how excited I am so see it all unfold.

So this is me as of now.
With love from Marina, CA, USA.


Taken on 6/18/08 - Carmel Beach

Carla

The Journey Begins...

[FIRST POST!]

The journey begins... with paperwork! I think I've been immune to the agony and pain that is filling these sheets out. To say the least, I've finished the specific paperwork for UCSD. Now, it's just a matter of making the copies and turning it in. Then, it's more paperwork to follow. Oh, I love it... Only because if it doesn't get done, this journey would ease to exist. Now what's a little pain when there's a huge 6 month reward ahead.

Yet, because this paperwork, as monotonous of a subject as it is, is not yet complete - this whole situation is still evidently surreal. When people ask about it, I never feel like it's actually going to happen. Oh, there's excitement. But there also exist that feeling of a sort of pseudo-reality - because it doesn't actually feel like I'm going to be embarking on this adventure. Nonetheless, that time will come. Once everything is set and all I have to do is get on that plane and leave.

I think about what's in store and can't help to be a bit nervous. Six month not just away from home, but away from EVERYTHING that has ever been familiar to me. That's a huge leap, but I know it's a leap that is worthwhile. As I've experienced in traveling abroad, especially with going to Russia, those gaps are the best bridges to cross. The gaps where everything is new - culturally. It's like this rush of "knowing" that you pull out of it. A deeper perspective, and a deeper understanding of our world.

To say the least, this first entry is the start of many. My ticket is officially booked to go to Greece. The journey has begun to unravel itself and I go in to this expirience with a determination to become, as cliché as it may sound, a better individual. I thank the Lord for opening up these amazing doors of opporutnity. We'll just have to wait and see the crazy things He's got in store!

With Love From San Diego,
Carla