Traveler

A Week in Greece #36: RAMBO JESUS, GOODBYE ROOMMATE, TWO NEW CATS

Trish1 Comment

I was thinking about what I would write here while walking down the street, and it was literally going to include the words “I just want to be in the United States!!  Cry, cry, whine, whine.”  But then I saw someone I knew walking in the opposite direction!  But…we’ll get there at the end of the week.

It’s been a hard week, is what I’m trying to say.  Well, now that I’m looking back on the calendar, there were some really great moments too.  I don’t know!  Clearly this is not going to be a well-thought-out blog post.

Okay, so at work, we got our director back, which meant that most staff meetings were in Greek and it was translated to me and Luciana until everyone else realized that it took twice as long to do this and anyway, everyone speaks English.  This somehow set off a really weird set of circumstances where everyone kept trying to make me speak Greek.  I just kind of glared at people, and finally Natasha asked how Greek was going.  “It’s horrible.  I’m taking lessons twice a week and I’m still relearning the things I knew in January.  I feel like an idiot, but I also have zero motivation to put in more effort because when I’m at work, I’m thinking about work, and when I’m not at work, I’m thinking about fundraising, and when I’m not doing either of those things, I’m trying desperately to distract myself with books or movies.  And even hanging out with friends isn’t helpful, because it feels like work!  I like my friends here, but it’s not easy!  Nothing is easy!  So why would I purposefully add one more hard thing to my plate!?!?” In the face of this meltdown (it really happened, I said all of those things), Natasha said, “Oh.  Yeah.  Learning a new language in a new country must be…hard.”

“It is.  Thank you.”

So anyway Continue reading →

A Week in Greece #35: HD CELEBRATION WEEK, GREEK LESSONS, and a lot of FRIEND MEALS

TrishLeave a comment

This week has got me thinking that a LOT of my mental downswing the past couple months was because everyone was right:  summer in Athens sucks!

Now that people are returning from holidays, life is going back to normal and I’m feeling so much busier and happier.

HD NEWS

We had our fourth Celebration Week, and as always, it was pretty great.  Well, wait, no.  Holy cow, this week has been long!  Monday was chaotic, and everyone had something awful going on in their private lives.  Our schedule was therefore out of whack, but I felt like I got to step into my unofficial counseling shoes and help people talk about the things that were hurting them.  That part, at least, was nice.

But later in the week, we had more fun times together.  “A” always talks about this souvlaki place she loves, so we all went there on Thursday.  The food WAS amazing, but more importantly, it was FUN.  We talked about all sorts of things, laughed a lot, and bonded more as peers.

On Friday, Dina returned to the office after doing fundraising in the States for six weeks.  After the Celebration Week presentations, we all sat around and ate and listened to her stories.  It sounds like a lot of people are getting really excited to partner with HD, which is exciting!  I can’t wait to see where this all goes.

GREEK LESSONS

I’m starting Greek lessons again (I was off for August).  One of Anthi’s friends wanted to offer her services to HD for free, and I’m the only one who took her up on the deal.  She’s a much more structured teacher, which is great, but the first lesson was humiliating.  We basically went back to the very beginning of everything, and although now (after two lessons) I’m catching back up to at least the middle of my old lessons, it’s just.  AGH.  I have so little motivation for learning Greek except for “I feel like I ought to.”  It’s never going to get better unless I can find a better reason to do it.

FRIENDS

The best part!  I’ve discovered that I really like having people stay at my apartment.  This is weird, because I’ve never thought of myself as hospitable, and I’m a terrible hostess.  But I love having a place where people come and go or crash for a couple nights.  I don’t want to take CARE of other people, but I’m happy to let them be in my space.

Luciana came over at 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday night rather than drive all the way to the other side of Athens that late.  We stayed up a couple hours talking about feminism and literature: two of my favorite sleepover topics!

Natasha came at 11:00 p.m. on Friday night (she flew in late) and stayed for two nights.  She is scared of Hans Harrison, so I gave her my room and slept on the couch.  That is where Hans Harrison often sleeps, so I woke up in the middle of the night to him settling down heavily across my neck.  It was uncomfortable but so cute, so I let him stay.

But before that, I went out to dinner with Kendra to celebrate her recent engagement.  We talked for hours and hours, and I’m so glad to have an American friend in Greece.  We talked about how there are these concentric circles of walls between ourselves and other people, and it’s such a slow, exhausting process to take them down.  One of the walls is between ourselves and people from other countries, so being with Kendra means one less wall to take down.  It’s nice.

On Saturday, I met Maria and her husband John for lunch.  Just two Greeks and an American eating Persian food while discussing their recent trips to Sweden and Slovenia!  I like having couple-friends, and I like that Maria can be both my Greek teacher (when I’m not taking free lessons) AND a friend.

On Saturday night, the Holargos girls (me, Tatiana, Natasha) wandered the neighborhood to find somewhere to eat.  We wound up at a creperie, where we each got savery crepes before splitting a crepe with CHOCOLATE, BOUGATSA CREAM, and CRUMBLED COOKIES.  Omg.

And then on Sunday, I actually went to church!  Woo hoo!  I still sat by myself, but afterwards there were many more people there that I knew, returned from summer holidays.  Bible study is starting up this next Wednesday, so hopefully I can deepen some relationships and feel more at home at church.  We will see!

DUBSMASH at the Palace of Knossos in Crete

Trish3 Comments

I have a new obsession:  Dubsmash!  This app has provided me with HOURS of gleeful giggling at my face, which is honestly one of my favorite pastimes.  I think I’ll try to put together some compilations like this one so that everyone else can have a good laugh (and perhaps join the app yourself!  and friend me so we can send dumb videos to each other!).

The Palace of Knossos is remarkable and beautiful and everyone should visit it while in Crete…but you won’t see much of that in this video.  Instead, there are time travel references, screaming Indiana Jones, and a valley girl who almost definitely existed thousands of years ago too.

A Week in Greece #33: ELIZABETH ARRIVES

TrishLeave a comment

August is tourist season, and I’ve been so happy to host visitors taking advantage of their summer holidays-first my mom and now one of my closest friends (Elizabeth co-writes the Let’s Talk  About series with me). 

But before Elizabeth came on Friday, I had a normal workweek.  Not much to report there, necessarily. Two staff members are out on holidays, and we’re just about finished with our summer schedule. That means slowly getting ready for the return of our official classes (thank God) and me working on fundraising things (I’m up to about $4,000 out of $32,000!)
What a good time to self-promote! Donate online today at www.gemission.org/donate! 

The main interesting thing this week was all the skype conversations I had with strangers and old friends.  An unexpected theme arose from these conversations where I was reminded of my primary interest in ministering to ministers, and thinking about how that might play out someday in missionary member care or a retreat center or who knows! It’s really fun to see how I am accumulating experiences and developing skills that will lead me on a hopping path to new opportunities. 

I’ve been feeling a lot lately, just how much I love my life. I’ve frequently wondered if I would be happy if I died suddenly and soon, and…yes! I feel like I am living life to my fullest. I’m taking advantage of opportunities that come up, I am giving to the world the best of myself, and I am constantly learning and growing and transforming. I feel so content (in the midst of fear and wanderlust and anger) knowing that I’m living the life I want to live. I’m so lucky. 


That pickiness only increased on Friday morning when Elizabeth arrived! She is my kindred spirit and my mental soul mate, and so far we are having so much fun together. We went to Heraklion, Crete for the weekend because we’re both massive history nerds, and last night we stayed up until 1:00 drinking wine and eating cheese and talking about the freedom that comes from actually believing in God’s grace. Today we spent hours at the museum full of the most amazing Minoan artifacts, and we’ve been eating great Greek food to stay energized. Also napping. Right now is nap time, so as soon as I post this…zzz. 

Letters Between Friends: WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT GREECE

Trish2 Comments

img_3198

Dear Tricia,

First I would like to thank you Miss Tricia for my history lesson today.  I learned some new stuff and RE learned some old.  Most of the historical stuff I read was as one would assume…Because Greece is one of the world’s oldest civilizations, the influence MANY Greeks had on EVERYTHING is astounding.  Math (Pythagorean Theorem), Language, Architecture, Art & Theater, Psychology, literature, fashion (draping, gladiator sandals, headbands, etc.), democracy, should I keep going??

Basically, we wouldn’t be the America we are today without Greece.  So how about I give you some random trivia knowledge about everything Greece… Some you may know, but others (I will feel accomplished if) you may hear for the first time!!!

greece

  1. Athens is one of the oldest capitals in the World.  (Back story: The original capital was Nafplio, then that was stripped during the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th Century.  Athens became the capital in 1834.)
  2. Nearly 17 million tourists visit Greece every year, which is 50% more than their entire population!
  3. Greece is the most sexually active country according to Duramax survey.
  4. Greek is the oldest written language and one of the oldest spoken languages in the world.
  5. Cleopatra, famous Egyptian ruler, was actually GREEK!  Not Egyptian at all!
  6. Greeks invented the yo-yo!
  7. The Parthenon at Dusk
    447-438 B.C., Athens, Greece — The Parthenon at Dusk — Image by © Colin Dixon/Arcaid/Corbis

    So that Parthenon was actually in pretty good shape most of it’s existence…but in the 1600s they were using it as a place to store gun powder and there was an explosion…that + time = what the Parthenon looks like now.

  8. Greece is the leading producer in sea sponges!
  9. No point in Greece is more than 85 miles from water.  Greece has about 9,000 miles in coastline, 10th longest in the world.
  10. The first recorded Olympic games was in 776 BC staged in Olympia.  It consisted of one event, the 200 meter dash.  BUT FIRST, they sacrificed 100 bulls to Zeus.  The dude that won it, Koroibus, was a baker from a nearby town.  And of course, he did it in the buff.

So did I teach you anything?!?!  Every other article I found was, “You’re an American going to Greece?!  Oh my! Be careful!  People want your money, and don’t wave at someone with an open hand.  And if they spit on you, it’s a good thing.”

HAPPY THURSDAY/FRIDAY!  See you in 64 days!

Love,

Lindsay

Italy | BOLOGNA

Trish3 Comments

As you know from my last post, Venice (mostly its hoards of tourists) was kind of overwhelming.  I was not excited to leave the hotel for day three, so I threw out this option:  “Let’s go somewhere else.  We’re near the train station!”  My mom is awesome, so she agreed to the impromptu change of plans.  Our mission was to simply find a train headed to a city we had heard of that was leaving relatively soon.  Those low standards led us to getting €12 tickets to Bologna!!

The two hour ride there was amazing, because I love reading and falling asleep on trains.  It is…my normal preferred life activities, but on a train, so it has the aura of forward movement and purpose attached.  There was one downside, though, which we discovered when we got to Bologna.  Because we hadn’t planned anything or even known where we would go, we hadn’t downloaded Google Maps for the area, and therefore had no idea where we were.

IMG_4072

We found some fancy stairs, and assumed that going up was a good idea.   Continue reading →

Italy | COMPLAINING ABOUT VENICE

Trish3 Comments

Venice is an amazingly unique city, full of twisty streets, water transportation, and…tourists.  It is absolutely FULL of tourists.  Granted, my mom and I visited the city at the worst time of the year; a weekend in August is basically asking to be smothered in visitors wearing shorts and sporting cameras around their necks.  And it didn’t help that we had just come from Slovenia, which is a country that boasts wide open spaces and mostly short lines.

IMG_4005
TOO MANY PEOPLE.

But okay, can I really complain about Venice?  I KNOW how ridiculous and privileged that sounds.  I’m not ready to give up on the city, and I would love to return in, like, November or February and see if the experience is more enjoyable.  But I cannot tell you how much the presence of tourists made the place feel cheap and fake.  I mean, one night we returned to the hotel early to watch Heath Ledger in Casanova, because an ACTUAL fake Venice seemed more appealing than the real thing.  Continue reading →

Slovenia | HIGHS AND LOWS

TrishLeave a comment

As we wandered through Ljubljana during our last day in Slovenia, I kept feeling overcome with anger. I ADORED this country, and every delightful experience just made it harder to say goodbye. 

The open market was mostly organized and really enchanting. We ate freshly purchased blueberries while picking out purses, honey brandy, and glass blown vases. We wandered through shops and watched children chase bubbles through the street under a sign proclaiming that Ljubljana had been awarded the title of European Green Capital 2016. We sat in Le Petit Cafe and ate a cheese platter and a chocolate soufflé while going over the things we loved best about our trip…and the things we didn’t love as much. For your own Slovenian travels (do it!), here is one woman’s preferences:

The Bad

  1. Driving on tiny mountainous roads. This was seriously scary for two Midwesterners, and we didn’t even go into the Alps. It didn’t help that we had a larger vehicle, so if you want to do more exploring than we did, book a smaller rental car ahead of time!
  2. Lake Bled. This was the only area I’d heard of, and apparently the same was true for everyone else. Although Bled Castle was really great, I just couldn’t stomach the pristine beauty of the place while jostling through crowds (note: this complaint was going to seem VERY petty once I got to Venice).

And…that’s it, I think. Slovenia won me over, hard. 

The Good

  1. Renting a car. Do it! Although you can get to all of the tourist destinations by bus or tour guide, it is so rewarding to take in the country at your own pace. Having a car gives you freedom to stay longer, change plans, or just get in some roadtripping. 
  2. The pastoral yet majestic scenery. None of the pictures I took really capture the way the Slovenian countryside filled my insides with peace. So much of where we went included quaint steeply sloped houses with bright flower boxes in the foreground and stunning mountains in the background. It’s what I imagine New Zealand must be like. 
  3. Vintgar Gorge. This place is AMAZING, go at 8:00 am to get the full exploratory experience!
  4. Predjama Castle. Great tour, cool castle, lovely surrounding landscape.
  5. Skocjan Caves. It is one of those places that make you think, “The world is more magnificent than I ever thought to imagine,” so I recommend it highly for those who need a boost of wonder!

I adored Slovenia. I hope this is not my only time to see the country. If any of you ever go there, let me know and we can shriek about its perfections!

Slovenia | UNEXPECTED HOSPITALITY

TrishLeave a comment

After spending the day in Skocjan Caves, we drove in the vague direction of our hotel reservation, assuming we would find somewhere to eat dinner. We wound our way through Vipava, but the one time we got out to see if a wine shop also offered food, everyone inside turned to watch us. This is my literal worst nightmare, so we walked right back out (also it was clear they’d don’t have food). 

We drove through winding streets that increasingly looked that we were leaving civilization behind, and when we finally found the town where our reservation was, we were stopped when the road led us to a castle wall. We walked through the entrance, and I connected to wifi at the (closed) castle exhibit. With new directions in hand, we walked along the village wall, knocking on doors and opening ones that were unlocked. Just when we were about to give up, a man stuck his head out of a second story window. “You have reservation here?”


“Yes!” we said, and gave our name. He welcomed us at the door and showed us to one of two available rooms. 

Still very hungry, I asked where we could get food nearby. 

“Oh, today is a bad day for you. It’s Wednesday,” he said ominously. “The restaurant is closed. There is another one 5 km away, but it is also closed.”

At our devastated faces, he offered to make us dinner if we wanted. “YES, thank you, anything would be wonderful!” We went back to the car and brought our things to be tiny apartment. Thirty minutes later he knocked on the door, announcing that dinner was ready. We climbed the stairs to his apartment, where he had laid out a delicious meal, complete with local red wine and a TV turned to the Olympics. With food in our bellies, we happily chatted with him for awhile. It turns out we were staying in the tower of a castle’s city wall! 



When we finished our meal, he asked if we would need breakfast as well, and the next morning he had once again laid out a feast for us, quietly leaving us to eat alone in his kitchen after some chit chat. We paid him for the room and the food, and what had begun as a giant confusion turned into one of the most enjoyable parts of our trip!

Slovenia | CAVES AND CAVE-CASTLES

Trish2 Comments

I love caves. My fear of choice is definitely heights and not even a tiny bit claustropobia, so when I found out that Slovenia boasts not one but TWO world famous caverns, I got really excited. 

(A brief aside: these caves ARE world famous, even if most Americans don’t even know that Slovenia is a country. Although we haven’t seen any tourist hoards like those in major European cities, from what I can tell, Slovenia is a popular outdoor destination for other Europeans.)

On Tuesday, we drove an hour and a half from Bohinj to Postojna. The caves here are the most Disney-ified caverns I’ve ever been to. No, there weren’t princesses or cartoons. But the ticket-buying process was streamlined, and a long avenue of restaurants and souvenir shops led you to the cave entrance. This consumer-heavy concession is actually helpful, since we had to wait 1 1/2 hours for our tour. Postojna is the world’s most visited caves, after all! The Disney-ification continued as we got on an underground train that took us through 4 km of cave tunnels. We were then taken on a walk through some of the more beautiful caverns (the Spaghetti Cave was my favorite) and a quick viewing of an aquarium of olms (little dragon-like lizards) before again boarding the train to return to the entrance. 



Postojna is beautiful, and there are a lot of fancy stalagmites and stalactites to see…but I wasn’t hugely impressed. Luckily, just 9 km away we saw Predjama Castle, a massive fortress built into the side of a mountain with secret escape caves leading out the back (the Slovenian Robin Hood-esque hero Erasmus used them to survive a seige…at least until he was killed by a cannonball while he was using the bathroom).



Predjama was AMAZING, and wonderfully easy to tour with the help of a really great audio guide. After Vintgar Gorge, I think this was my favorite destination in Slovenia. 


Back in Bohinj, we woke on Wednesday to steady rain. Unable to resist a perfect slow morning, we didn’t leave the hotel until 11:00. Along with everyone else whose guidebook told them “when it rains, you might as well go to a cave,” we made our way to the Skocjan Caves. 

Unlike Postojna, we hiked about one kilometer to get to the entrance of Skocjan after buying our tickets. So many people were there that they had to divide the 1:00 tour into six groups. I was happy to be in the last English-speaking group because of our top-knot wearing guide with killer cheekbones. But even his beauty fell away when we got underground and HOLY COW. These caves are the most amazing I’ve ever seen. 

For one (and for, like, all points) it is HUGE. One of the first caverns you enter is big, and you think, “Oh, cool. It’s mostly a big slanty hole without many cave ornaments, but it’s nice.” And then you walk through an entrance, and AHHHHH!  It is exactly like the Mines of Moria (Lord of the Rings reference, for any non-nerdy readers). It is simply MASSIVE. I cannot describe it. It’s simply lit without being ostentatious (cough Postojna cough) and the effect is astounding. You even cross a bridge that is dizzying may high above the underground river that created the caves. We weren’t allowed to take pictures, but here are some from Google that only partially captures the grandeur of it all. 



If you like caves, Slovenia is the tourist destination for you. And while I recommend visiting all three of these sites, Predjama Castle and the Skocjan Caves are definitely superior!