Saturday, March 29, 2014
March 31, 2000
It is a terrible time to start writing but I am so behind I need to. Yesterday morning I woke up with one thing in mind, the history test. I went to class and then started studying right away. I took a small break to come home and then continued studying a Goody's a little bit over a coffe. At 1:30 we had to be at school to take a group picture and then we were supposed to go to a speech by the US Ambassador to Greece. I tried to ditch in but Mr Kimon did not let me. So I could not study. I was hoping then that the speech would not take long but I am not that lucky. So I failed the test in other words. She asked some really random questions. After that I did not want to do a single thing so I went to the academic center and tried to sleep. Of course I could not do that either because I was having breathing trouble. I could not inhale for some reason. A few other people complained about ti too. They say it was from the pollution mixed with the humidity. Then Julie came with Revenge of the Nerds. It was exactly what I needed. At 8, we had another one of those dinnders. George was our entertainment. He would stick an entire baklava in his mouth at once and he ate about 8 of them. Afterwards, we kind of were saying to go out but Helen had to go to the hospital for class. We went and sat with her for a while but then we all went home. I was completely pooped by that time and went straight to bed. In the morning, I left Joanna in charge of the alarm clock which was a bad idea because we did not wake up until 8. It is a good thing I worry so much and woke myself up. Joanna decided not to go to school at all. I went and failed my Attic Tragedy quiz and then went to the Agora. I stopped at Wendy's for lunch and then headed home. I need to continue this later.
March 28, 2000
This morning started off very good. I went to class and finished my paper. And then I emailed and came home to do some stuff. I was very productive today and I had a good day of self control. I wanted to go for coffee so I called up Joanna to meet her. I sad a small run in with a lady at the card phone. I left my card in there and she want to give it to me but she gave me one of her cards instead. I took it because I had not noticed which one I put in. Then she realized it and yelled at me for stealing her points. I kind of snapped at her but she deserved it. So then we went to Perros and I got a flat Coke, confirming how much I hate that place. I went to the academic center and studied a little and then went to Greek. We decided to go to Gus' for kabobs with Patty and Helen. We left money on the table to pay and Gus chased us all the way outside of the store to give it back. I can never take anyone there again. We stopped by Vicky too before that and looked at some jewelry. Anyway, on the way home we went for crepes and a stroll by Taki's. Helen got totally drunk off of Malibu. It was so weird. Now it is really early and we are going to bed. Good because I am going to need the energy to hopefully study tomorrow.
March 27, 2000
So last night could have possibly been one of the worse nights of my life. First, right as I was about to fall asleep, Joanna calls me and tells me she is staying by her cousins. So that kind of pissed me off, but what could I saw. Then at about 3ish Babs calls me. I was actually so happy because I had been waiting to talk to her. But then she yelled at me for not going to Angela's and for how Alex is doing things as a favor to me and blah blah. So I got really annoyed and she got pissed. Then mom gets on the phone and she was bawling. She had seen a bad dream and was worried about me. I told her she could not get that upset about a dream but she was terrible. So I started crying too. She said she is going to come for Easter because she misses me so much. When we hung up, I just laid in bed crying and finally I fell asleep again. This morning I ran into Joanna on the street and we caught each other up. After class, I had this big plan of sitting in the academic center and studying but instead I sat there and ate. After history class though I was good and finished my paper. Then I came home and read a play. I was good. Then we had a surprise visit from Patty and she said to go to Hagen Daaz. Melanie, Minnie, Helen and Sis were there. I had a yummy pear sorbet and then I sad most of Melanie's sorbet thing too. Now I want to do a little more work because there is a lot to be done and tomorrow looks like a hectic day.
I later found out that my mom's dream was that we were walking on a bridge that goes over an express way and I fell over and she was watching the cars run over me and she was screaming and crying. I can definitely understand why she was shaken up.
I later found out that my mom's dream was that we were walking on a bridge that goes over an express way and I fell over and she was watching the cars run over me and she was screaming and crying. I can definitely understand why she was shaken up.
March 26, 2000
We woke up at 7:30 this morning new time to get ready and did not end up leaving the house until 9 thanks to no one being able to get a hold of Larry. We finally got on our way. We got to the little train that takes you up the mountain but the one leaving then was full and the next one was not until after 5. People wanted food so Taso stopped at a kiosk and bought them out of chocolate bars. He even took the box. Anyway. So we had to do everything by car. First, we went to a monastery that was a cave that had a natural fountain. It was interesting. THe whole building was practically in the rock that was the mountain. Then we went to another monastery where they made us put on skirts to go in. After that we went to the cave lakes and saw stalagmites. They were so gorgeous. There are a total of thirteen lakes but you can only see three. We ditched the tour group and were sneaking around taking pictures. Then we finally decided to go see the snow. We went all the way up to the ski station. There was actually a lot of snow and it was rather hot. Generally today was a gorgeous day. Matt really wanted to ski but we just sat for a while and had a baby snow ball fight. By that time everyone was starving so we went to eat. We sat at a restaurant that literally only had three things to eat. I ate french fries. By that time it was fairly late so we decided to head home. Lucky for us, Larry had not filled up his gas tank and the car stopped on the express way. We called Matt and they went and got us gas and drove back to fill us up. When we got moving again, I fell asleep but supposedly they drove by and accident where there was a dead guy laying on the ground. We stopped by the house so I can get my stuff and then Larry drove us to the train. Alex came by until George came to get her. Oh the train was filled with a bunch of obnoxious guys because there was a soccer game that had just finished. Anyway. Joanna had gone by her cousins house so I cleaned and am going to bed. This is going to be a hard week and I am not allowing fun until my work is done. Weird thing today. Babas called me off her cellphone to tell me she could not talk. Do you get it? Oh and we had a history class to go to at Niki's house and Joanna said she was going to go and she ended up not going and I was really counting on it in a way. What do I say now? We'll see.
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
March 25, 2000
I did not write int he journal yesterday because I really thought there was nothing to write. I woke up in the morning and did a great clean up of the apartment. Then I went to Vicky to pick up my laundry and I sat there and had my coffee. From there I went to the academic center and began working on my paper. I actually did a good amount of work. But I got sick of it sooner than I wanted to. So I went back home and got ready to go to Alex's house. I took me forever to get there. The stupid trolley did not want to come. So then I finally made it and and only Dina was there. Kathy and Alex came soon afterwards. No one had any energy really to go out even though they had kind of made plans with their friend. So instead she came over and then we got a surprise visit from Larry. That was more or less the entire day. This morning we woke up fairly early. It was my psuedo-names day today!! I got some cute flowers. We got all ready to go to the city for the parade. We met Taso there and two of Kathy's friends. It was so hot out out there and so sunny. At one point I felt like I was going to pass out. The parade was ncie. At first there were a lot of tanks and stuff. Then the navy and air force. And the police, firefighters and a bunch of guys in some really weird costumes They had fighter plans too that popped my ear drums. Some man passed by us and beat up on Alex. It was so weird. Afterwards we came home to eat. So we sat to eat and I had a piece of fish, so garlic spread, some bread and salad. Then I had more garlic spread. Then some more. Me and Dina sat there and cleared the table. I finished all the garlic spread and clean off Alex's fish too. I died. Right after me, Dina and Taso went and got ice cream. They don't make the white Magic anymore. Today they came out one with a new one that is like the almond one but it has strawberry juice in the inside. Manny's girlfriend did not get any. She pissed us all off. She told us we smelled like garlic. No shit girl. Like she should not expect it today. Larry came by for a little too and then they all left. I forgot to mention how I talked to grandma today but it was not exactly a conversation. Me and Alex and Kathy walked to this really nice park. We sat there for a while and talked. When we came home, I drank some tea and had some dessert. The plan was to to to 222 but we rethought it because we have to wake up at 7:30 tomorrow and the time changes today. I ended up falling asleep for two hours! I woke up and took a shower. Then we sat and ate some yogurt. Dina finally got a chance to fix my hair and now I am ready for bed again. Tomorrow we are going to Kalabrita so I am excited to spend the day with my village people.
March 23, 2000
Last night I had yet another horrible nights sleep. At about 5:15 we had a little earth quake. I don't know if I was up for it or if it woke me up but I really felt the shake and I was not sure what it was and then I heard the ind chimes and I realized it. It actually did a good job of scaring the crap out of me. I stuck my head under the covers and hid. Then I woke up because I was too hot. I forgot to mention how long it took me to fall asleep because of the dumb coffee. Joanna kind of talked in her almost asleep mode. She goes to me "what flavor?". The girl was dreaming of Basking Robins. So during hte actual day, I went to classes. We were in the Agora today and I almost died walking home. I was so exhausted. After lunch we went by Helens for a while and then we went home so Joanna could get ready to go to her village. I walked to the academic center and was planning on going to Vicky but since my laundry was not ready, I decided to stay there and relax. I went to Greek class and then I came home and took a short but very sweet npa. Patty called me and told me to go over. I got dressed, down a whole otn of m&m's and went. I thought she was on the first floor and I sat there like a dork ringing someone else's doorbell. We wen to Argo and were going to meet Minnie and Helen. They came and so did Melanie and her sister. It was a really cute place but they need to work on their drinks. Minnie ordered a Banana Bliss and they did not have bananas so they made her a strawberry daiquiri instead and it sucked. Patty was the only successful one with her Kahlua Kiss! Yum! We did not end up staying long. I came home and did a lot of stuff because I was awake. Now I am tired and I want to be up at a decent time tomorrow. Unfortunately, I need to play the alarm clock game.
March 22, 2000
This morning after Byzantine Art, I decided to talk to the teacher about my oh so wonderful midterm grade. She was actually nice about it. She said that I seemed overwhelmed and understood how the class might be kind of challenging for me since I was a math major. I just sat there and agreed But we decided that if I show improvement on the final, she will mostly count that. After class I went and emailed a little and then I went grocery shopping. Joanna called and said Alex was at 222 and wanted us to go. So we did but we weren't even able to say one hour. History class made me so happy today because she moved a bunch of assignments back. After class we sat in the academic center and I did some homework. Then Helen and Minnie came and they said they wanted to go to the moview. So we went to Friday's for coffee so I could stay aawake. We went and saw the Ninth Gate. Personally, I did not like it at all. After that we were exhausted for some reason so now I am ready to go to bed. Hopefully I will be able to sleep through the night. We got our midterm grades in today too. I am not doing as bad as I though. I have an A in Greek thank God! A B+ in History, a B- in Attic Tragedy, a B- in Art and Archaeology and of course my D in Byzantine Art. I am satisfied but then again, these really do not mean anything.
March 21, 2000
This morning in Attic Tragedy, I had to do a presentation on Alcestis. I was extremely unprepared. I gave a small synopsis of the play and then made one comment on what Euripides is trying to say about gender roles and the teacher totally took over. I did volunteer to do this but I don't know how much it will count towards my participation. For Art & Archaeology, we had to go to the Acropolis museum. I saw the metope with the man I had drawn on the back of the Greek Club t-shirt in high school. From there we went and got our France pictures. They are not too exciting. And then we went to the dining hall. I went and checked my email then and Joanna came to the apartment. I got an email from Amber and she is thinking of coming to Grece. I was going to go to Vicky and Joanna called me at about 4:30 and said she was there. I told her she could not go to the house so I assumed she would go to her cousins or somehting. So I rushed and left and when I got to the house I called her and she had gone to the academic center. Nice confusion. Anyway, so I went and bought a cd for Barbs to give to Becky. Then I went and had tea with Vicky. After Greek class I realized that I had gotten a visitor and I should not have so I started crying. Joanna went to her cousins but I just wanted to come home. I walked with Patty and I told her everything and it was nice to talk to someone who did not blame me. So I came home and spent some quality time with myself. It was nice. Now Joanna came home and is filling me in on gossip. Me and Joanna have been getting into dumb fights lately and we laugh about them later. I feel like I am with Babs. Like the other day when I did not let her carry my bag and Joanna threatened not to talk to me if I did not let her help me. Or the other day I offered to mail her postcards because I was going to the postoffice anyway. And she insisted on taking them herself. And today, she got the pictures from the concert and I said I was going to take the double and she had to give them to her cousins and I snapped and told her how I let her take all of the pictures I take with my cousins even if she is not actually in the. Personally, I think they are healthy fights and I am just writing them because they are something I am doing to want to remember eventually.
It seems more likely that I was writing them because I had to tell someone what was going on and this journal was my only trusted source. But this just goes to show how much I was in denial about what was really going on in my life and what I was really feeling.
It seems more likely that I was writing them because I had to tell someone what was going on and this journal was my only trusted source. But this just goes to show how much I was in denial about what was really going on in my life and what I was really feeling.
Saturday, March 22, 2014
March 20, 2000
I woke up ok this morning considering that last nights sleep was kind of uncomfortable. I decided to that I am going to pay attention all the time in Byzantine Art from now on. I did not talk to the teacher about my F because she never showed up to the academic center. I left right away to do some stuff around the apartment and then I went to lunch. I left from there to go work on my history paper. So pretty much I spent the entire day leaving people to do pointless things. In history we had some absolutely boring lecturer. Then I tried to work on my paper again but Joanna go the impression that she wont't care if they are not handed in on Wednesday. So I stopped and watched tv forever. Joanna ordered food and I came home to eat. When Joanna came home she was crying. Her grandma is sick and she feel bad because she can care less. She was PMSing too to make things worse. Patty and Minnie came by then and we wen to Takis. Then changed the sign outside so it is officially Alek and Takis Bar. Our waitress was not there though. Patty spent the enter time on the phone and Minnie tried to get through to me. They both decided they are leaving early. Minnie might be gone before May and Patty is leaving in May. That is really to bad. I wanted to travel with them a little.
March 19, 2000
Last night we ended up staying and Joanna's aunts house. I did not mind at all. I actually kind of wanted too. I had a need for that homey feeling and it was just nice to have other people around. All we did was look at pictures and watch tv. They boys had planned for us to go to the movies but we were both so tired that we got out of it. Joanna has this really bad head cold. Her aunt has a really nice apartment. It is filled with stuff but it is nice. She is a big collector of Swarovski crystal and she showed us this really tacky necklasce. Anyway. I slept horribly at night. They left a light on the whole time and people kept on turning the tv on and off and they had a chiming clock and the bed was angled the wrong way. So I got up at 8:30 and sat in the kitchen and wrote a letter to Babs. Everyone else slowly started getting up and then she drove us to a cab. We paid 2000 to get home which technically we could have done yesterday. Oh well. At home we just did any and every stupid thing you could imagine. And then I got bored out of my mind. Patty came over for a few mintues. They had fun in Spain. They actually went out clubbing ands tuff. Then we went next door to see Bianca and yes, she is engaged! She spent her week in Santorini and Crete and they had a great time. Tomorrow unfortunately classes start again. And I have all these papers to write the next two weeks and all these little things to do tomorrow. To top it all off, it is really really cold outside.
March 18, 2000
Yesterday morning, Joanna and I woke up ready to spend the weekend partying and relaxing on some ilsand. So we took the train to the port. Of course we wanted to switch at Omonia but the train did not go there so we had to go backwards a stop. Anyway. We got to the port and we had missed all the boats for Hydra and for Spetses. So we decided to suck it up and take the dolphin. But we would have to wait three hours for it. We want and sat for at Cafe Veneti. That place has some good looking foods. I got the chance to write out all my postcards and letters and stuff so it was cool. The dolphin was kind of shaky but not too bad. When we got to Spetses, it was cold and raining and there were absolutely no people out. So Joanna stood outside for a little while and I tried to find a hotel. I went into to hotels and that was about it. We chose Hotel Klimis. They lady told me 10,000 a night and when I said that to the man he seemed pissed but he could not do anything. So then we went for a walk. It was a cute island but totally dead. All the places close for winter I guess. We sat at a cafe for coffee. We played backgammon and checkers. It was weird because we really have nothing to say to each other. It is not a bad thing and I did not care but it gets kind of boring. After a while some people started coming. There were actually a lot of good looking guys and there was an abundance of guys too. I don't even know how many hours we sat there. Finally we decided to go and eat. We went to this Italian place. The guys inside was really nice to us. Probably because we were his only customers. By the time we finished we were ready to pass out and it was only 10pm/ We went to the hotel and went to sleep. All I can say about the entire day was that it was an experience. We should have done a lot of things differently. In the morning, we woke up and I went to find out about boats. Joanna did not want to sit on a boat for six hours so we decided to take the dolphin again. We walked to the other side of the port and saw more cute stuff. Then we sad and had what I though was very good coffee. But were were sitting outside so I did not last too long. We walked a little more and then had more time to kill. So we went and sat at the hotel. Once again, we just sat and looked at each other. Finally it was time to go. There ride back was pretty bad. Then dolphin dropped us off and we were not sure where we were. So we started walking and when we asked where the train stop was, they said it was a fifteen minute wlak. So we started walking. Joanna got mad at me because I did not let her help me carry my bag. We had no clue where we were going again so we asked and we were in between two train stops. I suggested calling her aunt so that is what we did. We took a cab to her bakery. Thank God the cabbie was really nice because he could have screwed us over. When we got there her uncle took us to the house and have us spaghetti. Now her aunt came home and we are going to sit. I forgot to mention what we saw yesterday on our way to Vicky. We walked past McDonalds and they had a huge sign for McLent.
March 16 2000, Part 2
We ended up getting to Greece just fine which is what I assumed, but you just can't hep but be scared. We were in and out of the airport so quickly. When we got home, I just unpacked and tried to get some things in order but I was not that productive. Joanna totally passed out from the Dramamine. I woke her up and told her I was going to Vicky's. She ended up getting herself out of bed and coming with. We had a lot to say with Vicky today because of France and she had gone to the village. We went to Dinks and had a drink. She was hungry so we went to Goody's but Joanna did not want to eat there so they ate at Gus' instead. We came home and backed a small bag because we are going to an island tomorrow.
As for France, it is a beautiful country. I should start this over. As for Paris, it is a beautiful city. I could possibly say prettier than Madrid and I can say by far prettier than Athens. I can see how they say it is so romantic. The one thing that made it ugly for me was the weather. It was too cold but cloudy too. Gloomy is the word. As for the people, I cannot tell you what a French person looks like. They are very diverse. There was no particular look in terms of style about them either. I had no clue who was a Parisian and who was a tourist. That might have to do with the area we were in but I guess I will never know. I had heard that they are not friendly people and I agree. Not that they were terribly rude, but they made no effort when they saw you trying. I am sure most if not all the waiters know what water is, but when we asked for it, they pretended not to understand. And no signs were written in English. Not even at the Louvre. I have already mentioned the prices. Absolutely nothing was cheaper than Greece or America for that matter. I must comment though that it was a very clean city. Overall, I can say I loveParis. I will never forget seeing the Eiffel Tower sparkle. I will never forget all the tents that said Bar Brassiere Restaurant with the glass all around and the little tables. I will never forget seeing the winged victory at the top of the staircase. I will never forget the taste of my gaufree.
As for France, it is a beautiful country. I should start this over. As for Paris, it is a beautiful city. I could possibly say prettier than Madrid and I can say by far prettier than Athens. I can see how they say it is so romantic. The one thing that made it ugly for me was the weather. It was too cold but cloudy too. Gloomy is the word. As for the people, I cannot tell you what a French person looks like. They are very diverse. There was no particular look in terms of style about them either. I had no clue who was a Parisian and who was a tourist. That might have to do with the area we were in but I guess I will never know. I had heard that they are not friendly people and I agree. Not that they were terribly rude, but they made no effort when they saw you trying. I am sure most if not all the waiters know what water is, but when we asked for it, they pretended not to understand. And no signs were written in English. Not even at the Louvre. I have already mentioned the prices. Absolutely nothing was cheaper than Greece or America for that matter. I must comment though that it was a very clean city. Overall, I can say I loveParis. I will never forget seeing the Eiffel Tower sparkle. I will never forget all the tents that said Bar Brassiere Restaurant with the glass all around and the little tables. I will never forget seeing the winged victory at the top of the staircase. I will never forget the taste of my gaufree.
Friday, March 21, 2014
March 16, 2000
I am now sitting on the plane leaving France so I have to write my conclusive events and reflections. Yesterday our plan was to be at the Louvre at 9 so that Patty and Minnie can spend as much time as possible there but as you can imagine, that did not happen. We had breakfast at the hostel. They give you a roll and marmalade or laughing cow cheese and orange juice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate and yogurt. It was cute. We took the Metro to the Louvre and when we got out the station was like a really cool shopping center. Patty and Minnie are both cd crazy so when they saw the Virgin store they ran. We spent so much time in there listening to cd's. Finally we made it into the Louvre. We split up again because that is the best way to get things done. I went and saw the Nike statue, the Mona Lisa, Aphrodite or Venus de Milo right away. Then I was just wandering around and saw a lot of Greek stuff. At one point, I had an emergency bathroom run and spent about 5 minutes in the bathroom. By then it was already time to meet so we went back to the entrance. We said bye to the girls and then gave another meeting time. That time, I tried to go and find the Egyptian stuff but it was closed off. I did see the Code of Hammurabi though. So I decided to just wander around. I found the Napoleonic apartments (which were very exquisite). Then there was this cool courtyard with French sculputres. It was time to meet again so we went outside and saw the pyramid and took some pictures. Joanna and Helen wanted to see the apartments so we went for one last round. I just went anywhere and did not see anything special. there were some people who were painting the painting. Then we decided to leave. I can say we only walked close to a quarter of it and we did a whole lot of walking. You need at least two full days in there to really enjoy everything. I was pretty satisfied with my experience. We started walking towards the Champ de Elysse but we got detoured by a strip of souvenir sops. We kept going from one to the other comparing prices but not really buying because we had seen it for cheaper. We were starving so we stopped at this places that looked like it had a goo dmenu. But the food was crap. I got a vegetable soup which was like eating Ramen noodle broth with pieces of bread and grated cheese. So I got a croque formage so I used it as an opportunity to eat Dijon mustard. Let me not forget to mention how rude the waiters were because they spoke not a word of English and blamed us for it. And we asked for water again and they brought us bottles that we paid 18 france for. It is crazy what water costs in Frence. I wonder if they rare really at such a shortage. And the problem is that we don't know how to order plain tap water. But I was rather upset with the whole meal. I realized that I paid half of what I had paid the night before for crap. So when everyone says that the food is so expensive, I think it is more the little stuff than the actual restaurants. There you feel like you got your money's worth. So then we kept on walking and reached the streets. At first it is just a little park and then all the stores start. Helen had to pee really bad so she stopped at one in the street. It cost 2.7 franc and you had to pay that every time you closed the door. Once we hit the stores we went crazy. There were some really crazy trendy ugly shops. I did not see anything I liked. Then there were a lot of perfume makeup places. I did not think ahead of time that all the big names are from France like Chanel, Lancome and all those. We went into NafNaf and I bought some cute shirt for me and Babs. We found a Zara too and a shirt that was 2000 drachmas in Greece was 60 franc. Go figure. They had a Gap, a Disney Store and a Sephora that Helen went crazy in. We somehow made it tot he end and sat at George V. They made us sit in a straight line. It was so weird. We went to the arch and walked a little past it. We needed more souvenirs and found some stores that were crazy expensive so we decided we should go back to the first strip. I found green apple Mentos which were really good! We took the other side of the street back but it did nto have much. There were a lot of movie theathers. All of the restaurants were on that side too. Ok this is really scary. We are having really bad turbulence as is evident from my handwriting. I am trying to ignore it. Trying but it is really hard. Joanna is freaking and holding my hand so tight. I am going back to the previous subject. So we all kind of had a sweet tooth I think and we were stopping at every brasserie reading the menu. We got to the end of the street and rode the ferris wheel. Then we tried to go souvenir shopping but they were all closed so we were more or less screwed. We too the Metro back and went to find a place to eat. We tried to find a new one but could not choose. I personally was sick of looking at the same menu and wanted pasta or Chinese. We ended up at Vieuz de Chatele which was where we were the fist night. They let us sit upstairs in the dining area so we had a nice view and we were alone. I got this really damn good tuna salad. And then for dessert I got this cake that was like a pie crust with warm spicy apple cause on top with a scoop of ice cream. I ate like a pig again. By then we were so tired and it was only 10:30. We went home and did not even take a shower. I have not taken one in 48 hours. This morning we woke up and cancelled our plans for crepes. We booked our ass to the airport. We got to this... shit this turbulence is really bad and it is going to continue for another two minutes. I need to pray... It is kind of calm now or I spoke to soon... Let me try and continue. We got to this newsstand that sold a few ugly things so we bought them. I exchanged my money back and took a good loss for it but what could I have done. So we boarded the plane right away and now we are having these problems. right now I honestly can not think to reflect on my experiences of France.
March 15, 2000
I don't where where I am going to start and where I am going to finish writing about the past two days. I'll see what I can do. We woke up yesterday with a lot of things on the agenda. I had in mind to be sightseeing by 11. Well, we all got up and took showers. Surprisingly enough, the water was not terribly bad. We tried to get the hostel breakfast but we barely missed it. So the first thing we had to do when we went out was get some breakfast. We went and had crepes. Our waiter was a total cute pie. It was a fun breakfast. From there we went to the Notre Dame Cathedral. It is really gorgeous in the inside and I got to see the rose window and the La Pieta statue. We did not get a chance to go up to the towers though. We ran into Beth from school which was random. Then we found this little street that had a whole bunch of souvenir shops and we kept going from one to the other buying stuff. We lot a whole lot of time doing that. Finally we began walking toward the Museum Dorsay. The walk was a whole lot longer than what it looked like on the map and we kept thinking we passed it up. We found it and decided to split up and meet in an hour so I was walking around looking at some stuff that did not interest me that much. It took me forever to realize that there was another level with all the Impressionist stuff. I had to walk through it quickly but that is ok because I did see a lot of Money, Van Gogh, Renoir and Degas stuff including the Danceur. I went to meet the group and Joanna and Patty were there and we realized that we were still all on Greek time. So we sat around massaging each other waiting for them to come. Everyone was hungry so we decided to go towards the Eiffel tower and then to sit and find a place to eat. Well, when we got there we started taking pictures and walking around and basically did a lot of nothing. Then we sat down at this cute little place with the rudest staff. They spoke no English and could careless. And the food was not to great either. Only Joanna got this really good pizza that was more like a mushroom, onion, cheese pie. Then we took a big step and decided to finally go up the Eiffel tower. We stood in line forever on the first floor to get up tot he top and it was very very cold. I was making a scary face and laughing without smiling and Patty was getting the biggest kick out of it. When we made it to the top it was gorgeous. There was a glass level and an open level. It was so windy though you could not really stand out there. We started heading down and me, Joanna and Minnie wanted to take the stairs part of the way. It was not bad at all and at one point it even started sparkling on us. But then it started to rain so I was kind of upset because I though it would ruin our plans. The stairs were closed on some levels so we had to take the elevator down. We got in and it took like what seemed forever for it to start moving. By the time we got down Patty and Helen were soacked. Our plan had been to walk tot the arch but they wanted to dry off so we wen to eat our authentic French food! I will say from now that it was by far the best meal I have had in a while and the first meal I (have let myself) enjoy. For appetizer Minnie and Helen got a salad, Joanna and Patty got Onion Soup and I got duck pate. I thought it was so delicious except for one bite that had something wierd in it. The soup was good too. For entrees me and Minnie had smoked salmon in a butter sauce with some spinach and two little boiled potatoes. It was about as tasty as it could be. Patty got lamb chops and potatoes and Helen got chicken and potatoes. I did not try either of them. Then Joanna got a pepper steak that was to die for. Just unbelievable. For dessert Helen wanted to be healthy and ordered fresh fruit. They brought her a bowl of whole fruit and a knife. Then Joanna and Minnie had creme brulee. I got a pear cake in raspberry scause. The pear cake was really good but the sauce was kind of overwhelming. Patty got a chocolate cake in an English creme sauce with whip cream. She did not like it too much so I did a good job of eating it for her. By far one of the bet things I have eaten especially for a chocolate cake. I was so happy with the whole experience. And it was good because we all got different stuff so we got to try a bit of everything. By that time we were so tired that no one wanted to walk to the arch. We took the train to it, got out, took some pictures, and then left. We came home and crashed. It was hilarious when we were trying to get to it. We could not find a person or a machine to buy tickets for the train. We did not think it would be closed so we jumped the bars. The train came normally so we got a free ride and did not get arrested. it was overall a very fun day. The only problem was that there were so many of us that you keep on doing the little things people want to do and you lose time. I guess it does not batter because that way at least people are doing the things they want but at the same time you don't see a lot of things. Just to close for tonight I will mention some details I forgot last night. They have a brand of ice cream that has the same symbols and the same ice cream names as Algida except they call it Miko. The cabs here are not one specific color. I could keep writing now but I should sleep. I guess i should have something to do on the plane tomorrow.
March 13, 2000
Where do I start. So much happened today in France that I cannot think about yesterday in Greece but I will try. We went to the Hilton to meet Joanna's aunt for coffee. At first we wen tot he restaurant where they have a Sunday Brunch buffet. We sat down and tried to order just coffee but the waiter would not let us do that. But the food looked so damn good. I could have eaten everythign. It was like shrimp and crepes and all these cool desserts. Anyway, we went and sat at the cafe part and drank our cofee. After that we went home and just did a lot of stuff around the hosue. Our stupid but cleaner would not stop running water, hot water so our apartment turned into a sauna. Not only that but we did not have any hot water left. Then, Bianca came over so we could meet her boyfriend. I did not talk to him much because I was on the phone with Babs but he is a cutie and they looked happy. After that we got our stuff ready and went to Alex's house to get ready for the Mardi Gras party at 222. We took the 6 trolley which was kind of weird. At the house we all got each other ready. Alex was a hoochie bunny, Kathy was a cave girl and she looked really cute, Dina of course was Dracula, Joanna was dressed up as a student, Mary was a french maid and then Larry was a grandma. I of course was a strawberry. I was not too happy with it at first but then when Dina did my hair, I loved it. We went to 222 and sat. There were a lot of people from the village there. We danced a little but it was not even as close to fun as I expected. We left at 3 and came home.
We were supposed to be the girls at the cab at 6:15 so we did not sleep at all. We went to the airport and checked in and everything. Helen had to buy her ticket there so she kind of overpaid for it. The plane was small and very empty. I slept most of the three hour flight. Finally we reached France and our adventure bgan. First and most important, I totally overpacked. Not only that but I brought the worse luggage in the world. It weighed 60 pounds and had no wheels. We were going up and down the airport looking to change money and find a hostel. We got some information and plopped our butts on the floor looking at the map. We finally randomly chose a place and tired to make reservations but we couln't. We decided to just go to the place. We went outside to take the bus to the train but there was some problem with a luggage inside and they made us all go back in. After 20 minutes we got on the bus. We went to the train station and were not sure which train to take either. It cost us 40 france to get into Paris. We did that ok and then switched to the 11 Metro that took us to the place. It ended up being just the office where you can look them up. So we got back on the MEtro and took it two stops over to Republique to find the hostal. We were so confused in the streets and dying from the luggage. Thank God for Patty who helped me so much. We finally got there. It is called Fuaj or something. We got a room for 4 and for 3. It comes out to 115 per night with breakfast so I was happy because of money issues. But the showers are communal. By this time we were all starving. We wanted to go and have some French food but everything was closed at the time we were out. So we ended up of all places at McDonalds. It was very different though. They had ice cream with blueberry topping. They had chicken nuggets but with vegetables and they had a lot of desserts. But the food was weird. Their BigMac did not look anything like one. We went back to the hostel to dress warmer and then started walking. We found a little center type of thing and there was this huge shopping mall. Everything was very weird. THen we saw some gorgeous building that we don't know what they are. Anyway, we decided to sit for coffee. The coffee shops here are very different. They are not just coffee. Actually I would say they are less coffee and more restaurants and bars too. They are hard to explain. I had a coffee express. From there we kept walking and got to the river. It was unbelievable beautiful. We took a boat ride down the Sienne river. We saw the Louvre, the Eiffel tower and Notre Damn. Paris is gorgeous. After that we were all so tired we decided to go sit at a bar. We went to one right by there and ended up getting food. Joanna had onion soup. Notice how they do not put the word French in front ofit. Minnie got a steak with some good fried. Helen got a ham sandwich on bread with cheese melted on top. Patty got a mozzarella tomato salad that was drenched in sea salt. Then they all split a creme brule. I got a fruit salad because I am an idiot who fasted today. That was really stupid of me because I missed out on a lot of good stuff I could have tried. We took the Metro and came home. At the front desk they could not find our key and me and Joanna panicked. It turned out they they put a fought person in the room which we are not too thrilled about. But it is cheap. Now I am sitting on the top bunch forcing myself to write this because I do not want to forget anything. I am done with the events of the day so I will write a little about stupid details and impressions. Everyone was right about one thing, it is very expensive. I spent about $40 today on nothing really. I guess it is ok compared to America but not to Greece. The people here are weird too. They are very random. I cannot give you any characteristic of a French person. And there are a lot of scary popele I think. They have Dijon mustard. In terms of stores, they have Gap Kids, Footlocker, KFC, Pizza Hut, Hagen Daaz. The dogs here are all shaped very strangely. They all seem unproportioned. Orangina is everywhere. There are min in the street who play a game where one throws a ball and the next guys throw one and tires to hit it. There are carousels on a lot of the street corners. They have public toilets in the streets and big green garbage cans. I can't think anymore. I need to sleep. I am sure I will remember more tomorrow but not now.
We were supposed to be the girls at the cab at 6:15 so we did not sleep at all. We went to the airport and checked in and everything. Helen had to buy her ticket there so she kind of overpaid for it. The plane was small and very empty. I slept most of the three hour flight. Finally we reached France and our adventure bgan. First and most important, I totally overpacked. Not only that but I brought the worse luggage in the world. It weighed 60 pounds and had no wheels. We were going up and down the airport looking to change money and find a hostel. We got some information and plopped our butts on the floor looking at the map. We finally randomly chose a place and tired to make reservations but we couln't. We decided to just go to the place. We went outside to take the bus to the train but there was some problem with a luggage inside and they made us all go back in. After 20 minutes we got on the bus. We went to the train station and were not sure which train to take either. It cost us 40 france to get into Paris. We did that ok and then switched to the 11 Metro that took us to the place. It ended up being just the office where you can look them up. So we got back on the MEtro and took it two stops over to Republique to find the hostal. We were so confused in the streets and dying from the luggage. Thank God for Patty who helped me so much. We finally got there. It is called Fuaj or something. We got a room for 4 and for 3. It comes out to 115 per night with breakfast so I was happy because of money issues. But the showers are communal. By this time we were all starving. We wanted to go and have some French food but everything was closed at the time we were out. So we ended up of all places at McDonalds. It was very different though. They had ice cream with blueberry topping. They had chicken nuggets but with vegetables and they had a lot of desserts. But the food was weird. Their BigMac did not look anything like one. We went back to the hostel to dress warmer and then started walking. We found a little center type of thing and there was this huge shopping mall. Everything was very weird. THen we saw some gorgeous building that we don't know what they are. Anyway, we decided to sit for coffee. The coffee shops here are very different. They are not just coffee. Actually I would say they are less coffee and more restaurants and bars too. They are hard to explain. I had a coffee express. From there we kept walking and got to the river. It was unbelievable beautiful. We took a boat ride down the Sienne river. We saw the Louvre, the Eiffel tower and Notre Damn. Paris is gorgeous. After that we were all so tired we decided to go sit at a bar. We went to one right by there and ended up getting food. Joanna had onion soup. Notice how they do not put the word French in front ofit. Minnie got a steak with some good fried. Helen got a ham sandwich on bread with cheese melted on top. Patty got a mozzarella tomato salad that was drenched in sea salt. Then they all split a creme brule. I got a fruit salad because I am an idiot who fasted today. That was really stupid of me because I missed out on a lot of good stuff I could have tried. We took the Metro and came home. At the front desk they could not find our key and me and Joanna panicked. It turned out they they put a fought person in the room which we are not too thrilled about. But it is cheap. Now I am sitting on the top bunch forcing myself to write this because I do not want to forget anything. I am done with the events of the day so I will write a little about stupid details and impressions. Everyone was right about one thing, it is very expensive. I spent about $40 today on nothing really. I guess it is ok compared to America but not to Greece. The people here are weird too. They are very random. I cannot give you any characteristic of a French person. And there are a lot of scary popele I think. They have Dijon mustard. In terms of stores, they have Gap Kids, Footlocker, KFC, Pizza Hut, Hagen Daaz. The dogs here are all shaped very strangely. They all seem unproportioned. Orangina is everywhere. There are min in the street who play a game where one throws a ball and the next guys throw one and tires to hit it. There are carousels on a lot of the street corners. They have public toilets in the streets and big green garbage cans. I can't think anymore. I need to sleep. I am sure I will remember more tomorrow but not now.
March 12, 2000
We walked to Plaka. Me, Joanna, Patty, Minnie and Bianca. There were a bunch of people there with clubs and stuff so we bought some too. We started walking down th streets and it was crazy. Everyone was completely beating everyone else. I shouldn't talk though because I joined in so quickly. The place was so packed you could not walk. It was so weird and fun. But then it got kind of annoying. The younger guys were so violent about it. I got clonked on the nose and Patty got a cut on her hand. Some of the older guys were at least polite about it and would just tap you. Anyway, We took a small rest and got some ice cream and then we worked our way back out. We went and sat at Cafe Thanos for a little bit and then came home. We went to bed at about 2 and woke up at 11 this morning. I spent so much time in the bathroom shaving and cleaning. Soon we are going ot go for coffee with Joanna's aunt and then we must get ready for France.
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
March 11, 2000
Yesterday morning I woke up so depressed. I saw in my dream that I was talking to Barbs and I was asking her how she used to go home from school. I was wondering why I never went home for lunch of something. So I got up and got dressed and left the house. First I went and paid for the tickets for France. Then I headed towards Vicky. I stopped and weighted myself and I was very shocked.* So I went and sat and Vicky and drank coffee. Some guy came and he was singing to us and Vicky was annoyed by him. Ada came too so I saw her for the first time. Then we went and got some cake for Kosti and went home. I went to the washroom and had a realization about my weight. I talked to Babs too and she told me that Dr George told her I cannot fast for lent, just in front of the cousins if I have to. By the way, Vicky gave me a necklace. I am going to buy it but she let me take it so I can wear it in France. Anyway. Then I went to the academic center and emailed and did some homework. I left and came home to do some stuff. Alex called and said she was going to come by. Then Minnie and Patty stopped by too. Nobody stayed long. Me and Alex left without any real plans. She is a few days late and she just is getting such a kick out of it. I could not believe half of the jokes she was making. And she said she would have an abortion as if it was nothing. I don't understand. We called a bunch of people but no one was home. So we walked to the center. There were some ladies singing so we listened to them for a while. Then we took a walk down Ermou Stree. Before all of this we saw the changing of the guards too. Then Kathy called and said Larry was at the house so we all decide to meet out. We sat at this restaurant and some people were singing. But no one was in a talkative mood. Alex was totally out of it. Nobody wanted to really go out so we went to this beer place. It was really nice atmosphere and music. We left kind of early though and came home. I of course wanted to stay out but oh well. It took me forever to fall asleep and this morning we were woken up early. We went to do some shopping. Dina bought pants and glasses and Alex bought gym shoes. Then George picked up Alex and me and Dina went home but she had to leave. So me and Kathy and Aunt E sat and at the food she made. I thought it was crappy for Alex to leave because she knew how excited Aunt E was to have everyone at the house. After lunch, me and Kathy sat outside because it was gorgeous today. We played some backgammon and talked. I felt bad because she really really sucked at it. Then we wanted some TV and I left to come home. Joanna was already here and now we are going to go out.
I actually initially wrote "I had a realization" but crossed it off to say "I was very shocked". I mention this realization again later but never actually say what the realization was. I am assuming it was something along the lines of, I have lost too much weight, I am disgusting, I can't lose anymore. Those were very recurring thoughts for me during this time. But I kept losing and then kept repeating. I really did not want to lose anymore. But I was more afraid of gaining than I was of losing. I was so unhappy with myself. I knew my weight and my disordered eating and thoughts were the cause of all my problems, but I had no idea how to make it stop. I did not want to talk about my problems with anyone. I wanted to figure it out on my own. I was ashamed of what I had done to myself.
I actually initially wrote "I had a realization" but crossed it off to say "I was very shocked". I mention this realization again later but never actually say what the realization was. I am assuming it was something along the lines of, I have lost too much weight, I am disgusting, I can't lose anymore. Those were very recurring thoughts for me during this time. But I kept losing and then kept repeating. I really did not want to lose anymore. But I was more afraid of gaining than I was of losing. I was so unhappy with myself. I knew my weight and my disordered eating and thoughts were the cause of all my problems, but I had no idea how to make it stop. I did not want to talk about my problems with anyone. I wanted to figure it out on my own. I was ashamed of what I had done to myself.
March 9, 2000
I am officially on Spring Break and I do not feel it at all. We went to calss this morning and then went to the National Musium for Art and Archeology. We decided to walk home this time, but kind of got lost. We ended up walking for close to 40 minutes. Joanna got kind of mad I think because she said I told her to go a certain way and I know I didn't tell her because I did not know where I was Anyway, I came home and then Joanna came by to get me so we could go to Perro's for coffeee. All the blondes were there too and they all got beers. We sat there until it was time for Greek class. We went to see a movie for class. We were planning on walking but decided to take the trolley instead for Helen. But it was not coming and I think the teacher was getting kind of worried. So we decided to walk and poor Helen was ready to die. We were the only ones in the theater except for one guy. The movie was so weird. It was about two brothers and one had to kill another man because of some vendetta. He had killed his grandfater. But it was the other brother who wanted to kill him. And then there was the girl who left Crete and went to Australia and wanted nothing to do with anything Greek. At the end the whole thing was cleared up and the girl married the good brother and the other brother opened up a cafe called Vendetta and the physcho grandma married the man she wanted killed. It was interestingly bad I must say. Walking home, we literally almost died. A bus came turning and must have stopped within a foot of us. Not even really that he stopped so much that we got out of his way. Poor Patty especially. When we got home, we tried to go to sleep but it did not really work. But my bed was so damn comfortable and the apartment was so warm. I actually felt cozy in ehre. We got up and got ready to go out. We tried to go to Rock n Roll but the crowd was too old. So we went to Jackson Hall. We managed to skip the cover charge. We had this waiter Tom who was kind of confused. I asked him to bring a daiquiri without alcohol and he had not concept of what hat was. He just seemed to think that our entire order was weird. It was kind of embarrassing I think. Anyway that place is crazy expensive but that is how the neighborhood is. Tomorrow Joanna is going to Argos and I don't know what I will do. But I have a feeling that she might want this time away from me.
March 8, 2000 Part 2
We spent the afternoon at home doing the most random stuff. I cleaned out my desk and did my pictures and stuff. Then we went and talked to the travel agent. We got ourselves tickets to France. We are leaving on Monday and coming home on Thursday. It is costing us 100,000 drachmas for the two of us. We are getting it on some sort of deal because Helen is paying that much for herself. We tried to go somewhere else too but it was getting picey. We found the same deal to Brussels and Milan but the times did not work out at all. As of right now, we are thinking about going to an island the other days. Anyway. So we went to the academic center for a while and the for kebabs one las ttime. We stopped by the house to see Vicky and she was not going out so she decided to come to Friday's with us. But as we walked by the restaurant she got sucked in. So me and Joanna went and ordered our ice cream drinks. I absolutely loved mine. Vicky came a little while later and said that when we left, Larry came by the restaurant. Go figure. And she was going to tell him to come and see us but then decided not to for some reaons. And the only way she even though it was because we had been looking at Joanna's birthday pictures. Then we ordered an Oreo Cookie and literally overdosed on desserts. We left Friday's and wanted to go meet Joanna's cousins at Insomnia. We asked the hostess where it was and she gave us kind of wrong directions and we ended up walking the biggest circle. It was good for digestion though. Then we decided to go where we thought it was and we found it. They were there with their firends. We stayed for a little while and then everyone left. On our way home Joanna turned on the wrong street and would have walked up to a random building if I had not been calling her name. It was funny. Talk about being dazed which she was all day today. That is about all. One more day of waking up early for a while thank goodness!
March 8, 2000
Last night at Taki's was rather interesting. We got there and I ordered my tequila shot. They did not bring it out with sale and lemon, just an orange peel. So I took it and it was not that bad. Biance came after a little while too and we were just talking. Her boyfriend is coming on Sunday and she thinks he is going to progpose. I hope she does not get disappointed. Then Patty came by for a little bit. They ordered me another tequila shot and thi right way this time. I did not drink it though because the first one really made me dizzy. The girls get annoyed that I do not drink, but why should I if I don't feel comfortable doing it. So I came home and though I was going to pass out but I actually cound not fall asleep. This morning we had a walk with Byzantine Art. We went to about four churches and she was talking to a few students and practically ignoring the rest. It was exicting. We came home for a little while and then went to get Joanna's hair cut. I left because I did not want to wait to I came home and Joanna just got here. We don't have history class today so I don't know what we will do. I got on an F on the Byzantine midterm. I really need to do something about this.
Friday, March 7, 2014
March 7, 2000
This morning we had to go to class early to make up for one we had missed. So we got there and the teacher comes late. So then he has nothing to lecture about so he let us go early. Thank you very much for htat. So then we had to walk to the Acropolis museum. We went kind of the wrong way and walked a little bit extra. After class we walked home and were so tired. I got a hold of John and he said that I am going to see him after April 9 He is so busy he does not even sleep at home. I am kind of annoyed because I was getting so upset at myself that I wasn't calling and it would not have made a difference. Kathy came by the house and we just sat and talked for a while. When she left I wen tot the academic center so the apartment would not depress me. I got my strawberry costume from my mommy. It is so damn cute. And she wrote a letter that made me cry. After Greek class we had dinner at the school. They were talking to us about Greek Independence Day. Everyone got drunk as usual. George slammed his head into the walll. Melanie got out of the hospital too. It ended up being a parasite. So now we are home and Joanna is cutting Minnie's hair. We are going to Taki's after this for some drinks. Actually right now so that is it.
March 6, 2000
So this morning started off on a wonderful note when I miserably failed the Byzantine Art midterm. I practically did not answer the one part that was 55 out of 100 points. And the truth is, I can care less. We hung around the academic center and I did some homework. After that we went to eat and then emailed. I got the cutest card from mom and dad. Then we went to history class and we got to plan a time to meet so on March 26th we are all going to Niki's house. When we came home I got in a depressed mood again which this apartment and I think generally staying home does to me. I tried to sleep and to tell you the truth I don't know if I did. But even though I was lazy I got up because I said I would not miss an opportunity to go somewhere. First I went to see Rita at her restaurant finally. She did not recognize me of course. I did not stay long because she was busy. Then we went by Joanna's cousins because she had made dinner and she is a good cook. We ate and watched video awards. Then we came home. Joanna's cute Grandpa gave us eggs, rice, noodles and cheese. He is really cute. We talked to Raina today too and nothing is going to happen. So we are probably going to France with Minnie and Patty and then I don't want to go to Madrid so we might now. One ore thing, Melanie is still in the hospital and it is some kind of colon infection. I guess I should keep track of the class gossip in here too. Eli has something going on with Julie I think but I have seen him very close with Jessica. And then at some point he kissed Mary. Andy and Kim were going out but now they broke up. Then there was something about him kissing Lynn. And there is still a big mystery as to if or what is going on with Sia and George.
March 5, 2000
Yesterday was a great day because I finally caught up on some sleep. Joanna went to her Aunt's house so we were actully going to spend the day apart. I did some stuff around then house and then went out to make some plans. I finally talked to John but he was on his way to the village so I have to call him tomorrow. I made some plans with Alex but for ht enight. So I decided to go se Angela. We just sat around and were watching tv. Aunt Adi was there making her usual random comments. I was pretty bored but did not know what to do. Then Anna said to go for coffee so I was all for that. The coffee got me so wired that I sped walked home and did some exercize. I was expecting Joanna to come home and it was about 11 and I had no idea what we were doing. I went and called her and she said Alex was coming by the house a and that she would be home in half an hour. They both got here at about 12. Her Aunt took away our nice cell phone and gave her one with a card. And she brought us a ton of sweets again. Christina was with Alex too which was random. We went to 222 and waited for George to close up. From there we went to a masquerade party at Dolce. It was really crazy. They had strange music and people were dancing like phychos. Nick the waiter was there too and me and Joanna worry about him. He has so much energy and he is totally concerned with the way he looks. Alex said he used to straighten his hair every day. We left at about 5 and went home. This morning we woke up and kind of laid in bed because it was too early Then Dina came with her friend and we played slaon. Joanna colored Kathy's hair and then she cut Alex and Kathy's. Then I fix Alex's and Dina fixed Joanna's. Now it is my turn. By then it was time to leave and Christina was getting nervous because she would be late. We went with Alex by her house because it was John's birthday. One of his friends came over too and he had the funniest voice. We thought he was making fun of someone at first. Angela and Ana come then too. We had some cake and left. Alex was going to come by but George picked her up off the street. Now we are home and area exhausted so we will do nothing the rest of the night.
March 3, 2000
We woke up this morning and headed to school to do to Defli. The bus ride there was long and bad. I barely slept and it was uncomforable. When we were driving thru Arahova, we saw Alex and Dina. We were knocking on the window but they did not hear us. It is so weird. That is the second time we have run into them in random cities. When we got to Delfi, we went to the museum. It was pretty boring. Jenny was my tour and she was so anxious to go smoke. So then we had our typical picnic lunch and from there we went to the actual ancient city. We saw the temple and the theater and more of less a bunch of rocks. We got there late and they were literally chasing us out so they could close. Then we went to the old spring and another temple and we came home. Traffic was absolutely horrible. We went by the academic center for a while and Joanna ordered food. We walked home and the delivery boy was standing outside. Talk about fast service. Minnie and Patty came by and we went to see Melanie at the hospital. She is really sad. They are still not telling her what is wrong. We wanted to go to a club called Wild Roses or something but we had no idea where it was so ended up somewhere else and I really liked it. Good Greek music, but there was annoying group of young guys behind us. Patty was kind of depressed too. We ended up leaving early to go to a bar but then everyone said they wanted to go to sleep instead. So that was it. Too bad because for the first time I was not at all tired and am still not but will take advantage of this opportunity to sleep.
March 2, 2000 - Part 2
So I went to talk to him about my grade and he was a total jerk. He insisted in was obvious and then told me that I need to participate more. Then of course he said how I had not gone to talk to him about the paper when I had so many times. So then I went to Art & Archaeology and I got a B- on my paper to continue on to my day. I went home and Joanna was kind of up. I cleaned a little and then I tried to sleep. I was actually in bed for three hour but I did not get anything out of it. Joanna threw up a few more times but she would not eat anything which kind of annoyed me. When I was cleaning today, I encountered our first roach under the sink and very surprisingly, I did not scream. Then I went to Greek class alone agian. I got and A- on my test so that was good. After class Patty came by the apartment and we were kind of saying to go out which I would have liked but we did not. So now I don't want to sleep and Joanna has not gotten out of bed all days and is all poopy and so I don't know what to do. I walked outside before and there were cooking outside of Takis and it smelled so good. I am going to get ready for bed now because it is later than I thought.
March 2, 2000 - Part 1
That night I decided to go to sleep everyone else went to Takis bar which kind of sucked to miss. So we woke up and it was Joanna's birthday! We went to our Byzantine Art class and our midterm had been cancelled which was cool. After class we went by Vicky because i thad been a while since we had seen ehr. We sat there and just idd our usual catching up. She gave Joanna a really nice ring. From there we went to the dining hall and had lunch with everyone. We came straight tot he academic center and look at some picture and Joanna got her package from Babs. After history class we hung out a while because we needed to wait for everyone to go and see Melanie. She has been sick the past few days and now she is in the hospital. She was really happy to see us all she started to cry. THere were about ten of us there and we were all amazed by her American magazines. The doctors do not know what she has yet. They ran some tests and are waiting for the results. Hopefully she will be let out today. Poor girl has maxed out her credit cards. Her parents will be so surprised. Her brother is here too for spring break and he is spending his days in the hospital. We had to leave to get ready. Joanna's mom called and then Joanna started crying. In the cab on the way home, everyone started calling her. She must have gotten at least 5 calls. It was pretty embarrassing and funny. We got home and we rushed to get ready. We got to 222 at 10:30 like we had planned but we were the first ones there. George was really gut and got her a little plant type hting. So we sat and had a drink. I t old her that the girl form school did not want to come and I thinks he got upset because people would not be there. So then Alex and Kathy came. They got her a cute shirt and bought her a cake. Then Angela and Joan came and they got her a mirror and wind chimes. Then Larry came too. So by then we started the shots of Samnbuca. When she was at about 3, Patty, Minnie and Helen came. She was so happy! So the shots kept going. We cut the cake while she was still somewhat OK. Then she made it up to 8 shots and she was pretty gone. I think the perfect drunk. She was totally dancing alone. And she was walking around hugging everybody. We were having lot os fun. At about 1 or something everyone else left and it was just us school girls. So we started dancing even more. George and Nick and the DJ all got into it too. We made 222 a club. The Eddy treated us all to a shot. Joanna had hers and then Minnie made her drink another one which I thought was a bad idea. So we danced some more. Me and Patty were trying to learn to dance sexy like Helen but concluded that we needed boobs. Anyway, Joanna started not doing os well so we started trying to sober her up. We left at about 3. She was wasted. I should not have let her had the last two or at least one. I thank George and apologized for driving him buts and I left him a great tip. Joanna passed out the minute we walked into the house. She woke up at some point during the night and threw up. Obviously she did not wake up for class this morning. I did somehow. And I got my midterm back and I got a C on it. I don't know if I should talk to him about my grade because I do all the work. We'll see. Raina called yesterday too and she is going to attempt a little something for spring break. Hopefully we can work something out.
February 29, 2000
Let me mention first about yesterday how at the movie theater they had assigned seating. We did not have to follow it because i twas empty, but that is stragne. Today I woke myself up super early and got ready to do sutff. I went to the post office, dropped off film and went to try on shoes all before 9:45. I like not having class in the morning. Then we and Joanna headed toward Agora for class. I twas so damn cold to have class outside. Then me and Joanna because our shopping. We went crazy and I spent all my money. I bought a pink tarzan shirt, gray pants and a black jacket seater. And then I got Joanna a pair of black pants and a tunic for her bithday. We took forever shopping and we were dying of hunger so we went and ate at Wendy's. We came home for a while and then went to the academic center to hang out.. After Greek class we had our costume party. It was pretty fun. Some people were dressed up really cute and other were dressed up like little houchies. The teachers and staff were the cutest though. Me and Helen left kind of early and now I am ready for bed. Today was Sandy's birthday. She turned 20 or 5 in leap years! Oh and the best male costume went to Steve who dressed as Superman and the best female to Sarah who made a costume out of duct tape.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
February 28, 2000
Today was such a random day and I am so mad at myself right now. I woke up in the morning and went to class. I sat and wrote a letter to Barbs. Then we went and I emailed a whole bunch of people. We went to lunch and I went shopping and then I cleaned a little. I was being very productive. After history class though I took a nap I did not feel like taking. Helen came by and we decided to go for drinks at Friday's. I had an Electric Lemonade. It was Smirnoff, some blue stuff, sour mix and Sprite. I can't say I liked it too much. But it was so light that I drink it so fast and it went straight to my head. Joanna got a Sex on the Beach and Helen got an Alabama Slammer and they were both so much better. Joanna won though. We decided since it was a rare occasion that we do not have Attic Tragedy in the morning to go and see amovie. I was so up to it, so we went to The Green Mile. It looked so good and I tried so hard to stay awake but it didn't work. I woke up right at the end when everyone was crying. I cannot believe myself. Now I need to go to bed because I want to do some shopping in the morning.
February 27, 2000
Yesterday morning we got up and went to school for our little calss trip. We sat in the acadmeic center watching a movie and I can't even say what it was about. We got on the bus and passed out as usual. We stopped at this cafeteria on the way which was so cute and it was such a ncie day out. We got to the monastery and had another picnic lunch. Then we went inside the two churches. Thy were very pretty. At one point the class went next door and me and Joanna started taking pictures and we lost them. We walked all arund like idiots and they were right there. The teacher was actually kind of funny today. She was playing detective as tot h time that the chruches may have been built. She kept pointing out wather stains and piles of sotnes. We actually did not stay there too long. We got on the bus and slept the whole way home. Overall, I did not dread this trip like i thouhg I would. The bus dropped us off somewhere near our house and me and Joanna ahd no clue where we were but we found our way home. We were just sitting around and Aelx came by. She convinced us to to and sleep over even though she had no plans. I finally opened up to her about Larry. We'll see if anything happens now. We go to their house and got chicken for dinner. Then we got dressed really warm and they put the heat on nicely and we watched the Omen. I of course slept in the chair. We went to sleep and I totally enjoyed it. They left the heat on for me and we slept closely and we had blankets and the bed was so comfy. And the best part was the we got to wake up to sunlight even though it was only 8, At about 10, Dina's friend came over and we headed into the city. We walked around for a while and then we went and got ice cream. They have started doing things for Mardi Gras and it was like a carnival. People were dressed up and drinking and singing crazy songs. I will write the words when I get thm. It was really different and fun. Then we took the bus and wet to 222. We sat there for hours. Me and Alex went to get food but could not find anyting. Then we sat and played Trivial Pursuit and me and Joanna did not do too bad. When we got home we made food and then we had a therapy session. It was about my weight problem and my health problems. We both cried. Then we got on the subject of Renee too. We pretty much all need some help I think but especially me. The subject has gotten very annoying lately but I think that our talk today helped. Now Joanna went to her cousins and I have to finish up a paper for tomorrow. This week is going to be a busy one but I am just going to have fun because it is Joanna's birthday. This weekend was actually a lot of fun too in a laid back way.
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
February 25, 2000
These past two days have been very interesting ones but I must say I am having fun. Yesterday morning after classes, I forced myself to stay in school and work on my paper. So I sat in the library for God only knows how many hours and actually got some work done. Of course I was tired as hell but at last felt a little bit relieved. I fell asleep on the couches of the academic center before Greek class. I was hoping she was going to cancel because only half the class would be there but I was not so lucky. Instead we sat in Nadia's office and talked. When we got home, I was hoping to get a small nap in before the concert but I could not get myself to fall asleep. So we got up and got dressed in skimpy outfits and went out in the freezing cold. We went to Dinks first because Natasha was there and we had to say buy. I finally met her friend Philis too. Then we went by Joanna's cousins house and their friend was there too. We took the trolley to Rex and met two other friends there. We were at the bar and the view was great. At first all these random people came out and sang some good songs. Then Rokko came out and I though the was great. Then Terzi came. He is such a cute man and he sings so well. We danced a little bit and then we went up on stage too. It was really an exciting nichg. We got home at about 4am and crashed. I should mention how today was Melanie's birthday. I feel bad because we did not end up doing anything with her. The one idea I had to get her some desserts, Larry stole. Anyway, so then I had the worse night sleep of my life. I absolutely froze myself to sleep. I don't know why either. I could not keep my arms ward. I tucked them inside my shirt and slept like that the entire night. It was crazy. When I woke up in the morning, I just put on a pair of jeans and went to the Byzantine Museum. It was extremely boring. I got the information we needed for the paper and came home. We went to the paper store on the way and I fell on my ass in the middle of it. At home I sat down to do my paper and realized that I hated what I had. So I started over. All day yesterday was a waste. So me and Joanna sat on our beds till 6 writing our papers. I meanwhile could not stop shivering from the cold. It was ridiculous. When we finally finished we got ourselves dressed and reay. I took a shower which made me feel human again. We went and sat at the academic center to rewrite them. Our plan was to sit there until we heard from Alex and then to go out. We had all these plans to order food and the the girl closes the center at 8:30. We were so pissed. We headed towards Vicky and Alex called and said she was not going to come. So Vicky said she had plans to go to Friday's for dinner which was what we were thinking. And yes, when I say Friday's I mean TGI Fridays. Me and Joanna heard for the first time yesterday that they are here and then we happened to see it so we got totally excited. Anyway, so me and Joanna went on our own. We were like little chidren. We ate like pigs. I had Jack Daniels chicken and a baked potato. Joanna had chicken fingers and a peach daquiri. Then we had the warm apple crisp. It all just hit the spot. Then have all these cool alcoholic drink that we can actually order and then they have a bunch of alcoholic ice cream drink. Vicky came as we were leaving. It was such a fun low key bonding night. I loved it. We could have gone to a movie but we cam home and decide to keep up the relaxation theme.
February 23, 2000
I am not having the greatest day. For some reason, I am just not happy. Not just today really but generally. I do not feel like myslef. I don't have any of the energy I used to have and I feel like I am not good company. I am worrying to much about everything and now I am going to start worrying about his too. I need a therapist or a vacation. Anyway. Today I went to school to ignore the teachers again. In the afternoon I did some little stuff again and worked very unproductively on my paper. After history we went by Joanna's cousins and picked up our oil. And then we went to Vicky to pick up my laudry. We had to come home though because we thought we were going out with her Joanna's aunt but instead she just dropped by to say hi. So me and Joanna actually cooked some food. We waited around because we were supposed to go out with the girls but nobody called. So instead of working on my paper, I am going to go to sleep so maybe it can help a little.
This is the first post where I actually express knowing that something is wrong. I'm sure I thought it long before I wrote it. Prior to re-wroting this post, I was noticing how information focused my posts were and how there was no talk of feelings what so ever. I definitely had them. Was that because I did not want to express them or because I did not realize what they were? This is just over a month into my trip and three months before the end. What if I had acted on this when I first admitted to it? How would that have changed the course of this trip? The course of my life? I was so afraid to say it out loud that I need help. I was so afraid to admit that I had messed up.
This is the first post where I actually express knowing that something is wrong. I'm sure I thought it long before I wrote it. Prior to re-wroting this post, I was noticing how information focused my posts were and how there was no talk of feelings what so ever. I definitely had them. Was that because I did not want to express them or because I did not realize what they were? This is just over a month into my trip and three months before the end. What if I had acted on this when I first admitted to it? How would that have changed the course of this trip? The course of my life? I was so afraid to say it out loud that I need help. I was so afraid to admit that I had messed up.
February 22, 2000
Classes were classes again today. Afterwards, I went to the academic center to try and get some work done but I was not being productive at all. So I went and ate. Everyone went for coffee afterwards which I think is crazy because it was so cold out. I walked around a little hoping to find some pants but had no luck. I did find a Zara int he neighborhood htough. I came home and slept because I was exhausted again and then went to Greek class. Everyone wanted to go and eat but I did not want to spend money. We ended up at La Pasterie which had good food but it was pricey. I really need to stop spending money. Now I am hoe and am going to sit back and read. Quite an uneventful day I must say.
February 21, 2000
What a hectic day. Luckily this morning I woke up on time to make it to class because I had accidentally turned of the alarm clock. Right after class, we made plans to meet Alex to go shopping. We ran around all the stores so quickly. I bought a pair of stretchy jeans, the same ones Alex has. I did not buy black pants and I don't know why. We took the Metro tog et there, It is nice but there is nowhere to hold on to and it takes forever to come to a stop. From there we booked it to the dining hall and then to class. I got a B+ on the midterm which I did not deserve but no complaints. Afterwards, we went to the academic center and everyone was glued to the tv watching Backdraft but I was good and read the play. We came home for a little while and then got ready to go out. I was falling asleep. We went by Joanna's cousins and hung out there for a while. We are thinking about going to a concert on Wednesday. From there we went to Gus for kebabs. Then we went by the house to see Vicky and Natasha. Ada opened up a bakery and we ate some very good desserts. I was falling asleep in the chair so we did not got out. I need some sleep but there is too much to do.
February 20, 2000
Last night was a strange but good nights sleep. I woke up a million times between the cold, Joanna and the slamming window. But I did not hurt myslef. I have had this small problem sleeping ehre. I cannot sleep on my stomach so I sleep on my side. But I put all of my weight on one point and I wake up in terrible pain. It's weird. Anyway, we ate breakfast and then we went to Lerna andTirnys. Neither of them were exciting. And I cannot say I learned enough on this trip to write my paper. Joanna sat on the bus because she did not feel well. Then they drove us to the top of the Palamidi. It was so windy we could not stand up. We walked down the 999 steps and it was so funny because we were holding on for dear life. Once we made it down, we went to a cute place for lunch. Just me and Joanna. We were looking for a bathroom and Joanna her a voice that sounded like Alex's. It was actually her!!! She had come with some friehds. It was such a crazy surprise. Unfortunately our bus was leaving in 10 minutes. They said they had room in their cars but we could not do that. I was totally beating myself up. So the whole bus ride home I slept. The weather here was really gloomy and rainy. Since I have not been home, I have done some little tuff. Alex cam by for a short while and then George came to pick her up. Vicky and Natasha kind of ditched us but that is fine tonight. Joanna has barely gotten out of bed since we have been home. And that is about all. Tomorrow we are shopping!
February 19, 2000
We got up this morning and went down for a very nice hotel breakfast. From there, we left to go to EPidavros. On our way there we stopped and looked at a Mycenean bridge which is not even worth mentioning. At Epidavros we saw the sanctuary and the alter and the round tholos. You could not tell much of any of htem. We went into the museum too. Then we went and saw the theater. I twas so cool. We had a little math lesson there. Everything is based around the Fibinachi series 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55... and the Golden number 1.6 something (the ration of two numbers). It is really cool because they thought of it thousands of years before. We got to play on the the theater too. It is the one where you could drop a pin and hear it everywhere. Joanna stood in the middle and did her loud whistle. We left from there and stopped to get bread for lunch. Then we headed to a little church and had a crappy pincic. It was really pretty but it was too windy. From there we walked to the Franchthi cave. It was the coolest thing. We got to climb up these huge rocks into another part of it and there was this hole 140 feet deep. Luckily climbing down was a lot easier. That was all of the school stuff of the day. When we got to the hotel, Helen's boyfriend was there with a friend of his. We all went for coffee. Neither of them were terribly friendly so it was kind of boring. We went to the other hotel to see what everyone else was doing and Larry had made reservations for dinner. We did not want to go anyway so we made plans with JOanna's cousin. We took a cab into Argos and found her. She was with her boyfriend John and her friend. John was a cutie and reminded me of John S. We went and had coffee and then waited to go out. We went to Blaze that had live Greek music. Joanna was not feeling too good because she had taken aspirin and had coffee and had not eaten so we went to get some food. We found some sandwich place and ate. When we got back to the club she threw up. So we pretty much picked up and left. It was a waste of what could have been a really fun night. But I really liked Argos. There were tons of people around. I met a guy Michael from their village who was very nice. But Nafplio and Argos and definitely places I would like to see agian. I should mention that Nafplio is overpopulated with groups of teenage males.
Saturday, March 1, 2014
February 18, 2000
I somehow managed to get up and ready this morning and we took a cab down to the school. The minute we got on the bus, I passed out. We made a stop in Corinth. I bought some loukouma which is supposedly good from there and Joanna finally ofund her m&m's!! I kept telling her we would find them at the most random place. I slept the whole rest of the way too. Finally we reached the spot that we had to start our walk. Some people stayed behind but we went. About twenty minutes into it, they realized we were going the wrong way and we had to turn around. Meanwhile, we were walking in total mud. Our shoes had a thick layer on the bottom and our jeans got totally dirty. We all rolled them up in the end. On our way down we found the right path so we started walking. It took us two hours and we were all dying. FInally we reached the Mycenean citodel. We sat and had a picnic lunch. It was cute. There was a turkey/cheese/lettuce sandwich, a tomato/olive/feta sandwich, a cucumber, a banana and a chocolate. From there we split up with our director. Steve was ours. We stopped first at a shaft grave and went inside. Them we saw a tholos grave. It was unbelievable. The thing was huge and made out of large chunks of stone. Then we went to the citadel and saw the structure of the palace. We walked down these stairs that led to what used to be a fountain. It was pitch black and the stairs were slippery. We had to use candles to see. It was so freaky. Steve told us a story about an ex-girlfriends family who had gone to see it and the dad went down with some village man. When they were down there, he asked him if he was German and the dad said no. So the village man told him good or he would not have made it out alive. Freaky! By then we were exhausted and we drove to Nafplio to the hotel. They put us in a room with Sue. They are kind of cheap hotels and it is freezing in our room. Helen came up here and Sue offered to switch rooms with her so we did. Instead of sleeping, we sat up chatting. We had the choice to go to dinner in Argos, but we chose to stay around here. We walked to find the hotel of the other group which ended up being pretty far and much nicer than ours. Nafplio seems really cool. I definitely would like to come here in the summer. So then me, Joanna, Helen, Melanie, Minnie, Patty and Julie went and ate. Helen got totally buzzed off the wine and she was so funny. After we ate, we got so tired we came home to sleep which is what I am goign to do right now.
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