Getting into a routine

My days in Greece are beginning to slow down which is both a good thing and a bad thing.  I am getting into a routine:  I wake up, eat, get dressed, head to class, come home, eat, do random things for a couple of hours, homework, then bed. On one hand I am happy because I feel like I am actually living here and learning the ropes.  However, on the other hand, I promised myself I would do something spontaneous everyday, so that I didn’t pass any opportunity by.  I do not want to take my time here for granted and spend my days studying and sitting in my dorm room.  I am not a huge fan of routines; they allow the days to fly by unnoticed with no specific memory to hold on to.

            On a different note, I was curious to see what my friends and family wanted to hear more about.  From the people who responded, I was asked to talk a little bit about the weather and the “political riots” in Greece.  The weather here is awesome, today was an especially pleasant day.  Usually I cannot find one cloud in the sky and there is a constant breeze.  Summers here are not the rainy season, so we have had nothing but sunshine!  Temperature wise, it is typically in the mid to low ninety’s which can be a little warm for my taste at times, but it is truly quite pleasant (the breeze helps a lot).  As for the political uproar Greece is in with the riots in the streets and people going on killing sprees over the new political party in office, it is pretty calm here.  Honestly if I did not know about the election, I would not have been able to tell by peoples behaviors.  The riots and uproar probably won’t become too prevalent until after some of the rules and regulations of the new party are put into place.  I have not seen any type of crisis; in fact the only instance of negative behavior I have seen is between two kids fighting over a soccer ball. 

            As I have said many times before, the group of people on this trip is unbelievable.  I have laughed, danced, walked, explored, and gotten lost more here with these irreplaceable individuals more than I have in a long, long time.  

Our note card collage

My wonderful crepe

  My room mates and I thought of the ingenious idea to keep record of the hilarious things people have said by writing the quotes down on highlighter-colored note cards and taping them to one our the main walls in the kitchen area.  I took a picture of some of the things we have so far.  I do not know if you will understand the hilarity behind them but they serve as a constant reminder of our good memories together, carefully hung with a strip of off brand adhesive.  Hopefully I can try to explain some of the scenarios and stories behind any of these that strike your interest.

The menu

After classes were over today, a group of us headed to the Platia which is the "Town Square" so to speak.  We had attempted to go to a crepe place that neighbors one of the most amazing gelato places, for some time now, but every time we tried to go it was closed.  After deciphering the greek on the door, we came to understand that the restaurant did not open until six.  being the punctual people we are, out group of six showed up right on time and placed our orders.  I got the number 105 which was a "salty" crepe stuffed with ham, gouda cheese and bacon. 

 It was so delicious, as most of the food is proving to be here.  against my stomachs will, I indulged in the number 206: a dessert crepe with carmel praline spread (like nutella but a different flavor), bananas, and cinnamon.  i could not have thought of a better dinner for tonight! it was amazing and i even had a conversation with one of the workers, (in english though, don't get too excited), and assured him that we would definitely be back!

 Let me take a moment to explain to you room 304’s new found obsession with both Nutella and the off brand nutella, Fundelina (which tastes like brownie batter) and Merenda (which tastes exactly like nutella but is like .2 euros cheaper).  I do not know what it is about this phenomenal concoction of hazelnut and chocolate but, like the black-eyed peas say, I just can’t get enough.  This is the closest I have been to experiencing the symptoms of an addict; when im not eating nutella im thinking about it, when im running low I get worried that I need to buy more, when I eat anything, I crave its hazel-nutty goodness.  I admit that most of what I just said is extreme, but it gives you an idea of what I, and the inhabitants of room 304, am going through. We learned that in WW2, the chocolate supply was low in Europe.  The country found a solution in cutting the chocolate with hazelnut, making chocolate last longer as only half of the amount was being used per container.  The spread became an identifying factor for Italy, as most things do in times of starvation and war.  It is because of this that we have the nutella we know and love today.

I know this post was a little random but, it was a quick update of the random stuff in my life!  Please let me know if you are curious about anything going on in Greece and again thanks for reading my blog!  I love hearing from you guys and would love to Skype anyone! Ya sas! (That’s goodbye in Greek!)