Athena Blogs

A month ago I arrived at the airport one day before the other students were going to be there. I made my way to the metro and then took the train to the acropolis since my hostel was a two minute walk from the acropolis.

That first day I accidentally slept from that afternoon all the way to the next morning. I then woke up and explored the acropolis and forum by myself, since the other students had not yet arrived. That night some of the first students started to show up and the rest came over the next two days. We all got to know each other and had two group dinners and explored Athens by night.

In the early morning of the fourth day we got on a bus and made our way to the four hour-long ferry to Paros. Over the next three weeks we explored the island, from the beaches to the Mycenaean acropolis; went out to the bars; ate group dinners, and started classes. This last Tuesday we spent two days in the nearby island of Naxos. Naxos is the largest island in the Cyclades and we spent our time in their archeological museum, relaxing at the waterfront restaurants and bars, and visiting various ancient sites like a Sanctuary of Demeter and two large statues near the marble mines.

The rest of the week we went to our classes, finished some projects, and prepared for our spring break in Turkey. We are going to the island of Samos for a day and then we are going to Ephesus on the coast of Turkey and then further inland for the rest of the trip.