Italy and Greece Adventure: Summary of Getting Home

Left for the Athen's Airport at 8 am (Greece Time)
2 hour wait in the airport
9 hour flight back to Atlanta
Arrived in Atlanta at 8pm (Atlanta Time)
Missed connection to Minneapolis by 5 minutes after going through security- the plane left at 8:20 (Atlanta Time)
Stayed free at hotel 'overnight'
got on a shuttle after getting out luggage at 11:15 pm (Atlanta Time)
woke up for shuttle back to airport at 4am
got breakfast at the Atlanta airport from dunkin' donuts
plane left for Minneapolis at 6:15am (Atlanta Time)

Some people were able to leave the night before, but we were the first plane with Mayo Students to land in Minneapolis that morning. The other Michael went on a family trip and left for Seattle on a separate plane. Everyone made it home safely. We drove Michael F, Mr. Wagner, and Emily home in Grandpa's van. Mom was there to see me, too.

Italy and Greece Adventure: Wednesday 6/29/11

8:00 am (Greece Time)
Bus


We're going to drive to the airport as soon as everyone loads onto the bus. Our plane has about two hours of delay due to the electrical strike. We have a 3 hour layover in Atlanta, tough, so hopefully that will just become 1 hour instead and we will still be home on time.
I am so excited to get home- there were police at breakfast this morning with guns and gas masks. We couldn't go out after 4 yesterday because the shops were so close to the parliament building. It was really scary.

Daily Food List

D14 breakfast- croissant (x2), yogurt, sausage, egg

D14 lunch- pasta, bread, butter, orange juice

D14 dinner- Pizza, ice cream, orange juice

Italy and Greece Adventure: Tuesday 6/28/11

4:50 pm (Greece Time)
Hotel Room, Athens


This morning we went to the Acropolis Museum and found out how anal the Greek security is in that museum. "No pictures, no standing still, no feet on the chairs, no breathing!"
Then we had free shopping time/ lunch time. We ate at the same place we are eating dinner at xD.

Daily Food List

D13 breakfast- yogurt, croissant (x2), orange juice, peach juice, sausages

D13 lunch- Greek pizza, tzatziki

snack: coffee, from a really helpful restaurant that showed us how to get to our metting place with the rest of the group.

Then we went down Hermes Street for shopping. Michael F, Michelle, and I got lost and ended up about 2 blocks from the protestors. The police sent out tear gas (which we could see from where we stood) and there were people running around with gas masks and molotov cocktails. We finally found our way to the right square by going around the protestors and asking a coffee shop- which we thanked by buying coffee (and they gave us free water, too!)

After getting lost, getting through protestors, etc. we were glad to make it back to our group (on time and everything)- although we were coughing a little from the city smog, tear gas leftovers, and running to make it on time. Not going near parliament building is a good option right now. After check-in we were going to have more shopping but in lieu of the protest we decided going back to the hotel as a group would be safest. Right now Michelle and Michael F are on the roof of the building chilling- while Rebecca, Amy, and I are lounging in the hotel room. 

Italy and Greece Adventure: Monday 6/27/11

7:50 am (Greece Time)
Hotel Lobby


waiting to leave for Athens and wherever else we're going today. We didn't go to Olympia yesterday because our ship was in so late, so we just went to Tolo and went on a beach walk/ postcard shopping tour.

Daily Food List

D12 breakfast- Greek yogurt, honey, bread (x2), cranberry juice, fruit

We have about an hour and a half drive today in which I will sleep. A bunch of people got up at 4:45- including our room- in order to see the sunrise. Michelle and I opted to go back to sleep afterwards, which ended up being a good decision because Rebecca and Livi went to the beach to see it and said it was underwhelming.

8:42 pm (Greece Time)

Hotel Room

We made it to Athens. It's super sketchy here right now- our hotel room is literally 2 blocks away from the protests that blocked out path earlier (the rerouted traffic) and the electrical strike caused a blackout in the restaurant we ate lunch at.

Daily Food List

D12 lunch- p something or other (like lasagna), apple pie

snack: powerade

D12 dinner- potatoes, bread, pudding (x2), gelato, rice, 1/2 an herb ball, cake, orange

First thing this morning we met with one of our guides and went to the Epidaurus theater and then this castle/ fortification with the lion's gate and Agamemnon and Clydemnestra's tombs (in Mycenae)

Then we saw the oldest bridge in Europe. Next we stopped for lunch, dropped off our first guide and picked up our second for the Parthenon.

Then we got stuck in traffic from the strike and finally got to the hotel. The reason we went to the Parthenon today rather than when we go to the museum tomorrow is because it is possible that it will be closed tomorrow due to striking in this area.

Italy and Greece Adventure: Sunday 6/26/11

10:12 am (Greece Time)
Ship Cabin


Rebecca's alarm went off every 5 minutes since 7 am apparently. Thank god for ipods! I didn't hear a thing- but I had a dreamless sleep on the boat (although the dramomine made me tired and I crashed pretty quickly into bed)
We get off the boat at around 12:30, but we have to meet in the lobby around 11. Then we drive for 2 hours to Olympia (the ship was late, so we never went to Olympia) and after that stop we drive 5 more hours to our next destination. 2.5 days to see everything in Greece, it's crazy. The other group of Americans on this boat are from Houston, Texas. They all got food poisoning while in Sicily, but they're better now and back on track for their tour. They're touring Greece, like us. They're going to have less time to see things, though, because they stayed in several different hospitals for 3 days. That would have been scary to me.

Daily Food List

D10 Dinner- fried ham, salad, juice, bread, fries (not too terrible for boat food)

D11 breakfast- bread, croissant, juice, coffee, 2 hard boiled egg outsides. (kinda weird breakfast on the ship, but it was okay)

I should finish packing all of my stuff from the boat now, so I will write sometime later on.

10:30 pm (Greece Time)

Hotel Room, Tolo

Daily Food List (cont.)

D11 lunch- fries, break, fanta (also from the ship, not too bad)

D11 dinner- Rice, noodles, lettuce, cantelope, cake, pork

I'm taking a shower after Olivia and Michelle, and I'm bored. Tonight I'm with Michelle, Olivia, and Rebecca. Rebecca is really starting to get on Michelle's nerves. She's downstairs right now, though, so I don't have to worry about her reading this.

Tomorrow we're getting up to watch the sunrise- so that should be fun.

Italy and Greece Adventure: Saturday 6/25/11

4:20 pm (Greece Time)
Ship Port


We drove all day today and now we're sitting here waiting for the ship.

Daily Food List

D10 breakfast- bread, pastry, coffee, lemonade

D10 lunch- panini, peach frosty cup

D10 dinner- gross ship food? (we haven't had dinner yet xD)

Apparently the food on the boat is disgusting, so we made sure to pack a lot of snacks beforehand. The gas station at lunch was huge with a restaurant and everything. Aisles upon aisles of candy- we are all set for the ship.

Tonight we're rooming as a quad- Michelle, Rebecca, Amy, and I, again. I hope Michelle doesn't get too annoyed with Rebecca. She has been getting a little too comfortable (talking to us about personal things, borrowing electrical cords without permission: just too comfortable)

Michelle, Amy, and I were happy to get away from her for a little for the two days in Sorento, but hopefully we don't have any problems tonight.

Time to end boredom and draw- will write more later.

10:09 pm (Greece Time)

Ship Cabin

Super drowsy from dramomine, but the ship finally began moving. There are people sleeping on the steps to the helipad. Now there is a life jacket instruction session going on, in many languages. It's like a mixture between an airplane and a train (both of which I have been on before)- but on water. I've never been on such a huge boat. It's named "superfast ferries" which makes me want to sing I'm on a boat... except the ferry isn't really all that fast.

Now there are a bunch of people in our room- the guys came over for food xD so I'm going to stop writing for tonight.

Italy and Greece Adventure: Friday 6/24/11

11:10 pm (Italy Time)
Hotel, Sorento

We're back in Sorento after our Pompeii and Naples visit today. This morning we visited the ancient city and it's corresponding museum in Naples- holding tightly onto our money so it wouldn't be stolen. Then we had lunch, which was wonderful.

Daily Food List

D9 breakfast- pineapple juice, somersausage and cheese, bread, pie

Snack: 2 and 3/4 mini-pies (shared with friends) which I bought in Rome

D9 lunch- Margarita pizza alice, fanta (european fanta is so much better and so different than american fanta)

D9 dinner- Rice and veggies, tomatoes, fish, potatoes, white chocolate chip gelato, 

Snack: Smurf/ puffi (tastes like frosting- advertising the smurf movie) and inglaterra gelato

After lunch we went to the previously mentioned museum and took a really long walk through Naples to a coffee shop and then to the bus even further away.

After that we came back to the hotel (3 hour drive-ish) and napped along the way. Pucca was on when we came back! (Pucca! Ninja! Noodles! -the only english words in the theme song)

Then we had dinner and went to the gelato place and the bankomat again. The gelato place is called primavera, by the way.

Then we went on another walk. Tomorrow we have like a 9 hour drive to the overnight ferry to Greece.

I feel bad since I haven't e-mailed my parents since Florence and this hotel has wifi, but I'm not rooming with Rebecca, so no internet going devices. Plus we were so busy in Rome- I just haven't had time. I hope they are doing okay. The hotel room last night was freezing- it made me miss my temperature controlled room at home.

There were stray dogs all over the pompeiian ruins, so I of course badly wanted to take one with. We weren't even allowed to touch them, though :( I miss Luke and Norah. Time or bed, though, I will write more on the bus tomorrow. Long drive, yuck.