Study Abroad Reflection

After being back home for a few days I’ve had time to think about my time in Greece. I had a great while studying abroad and enjoyed every minute of being in the Greek culture. I was fortunate enough to be able to visit different cities within the country to get a great overview of the country. Every city was different in regards to architecture, cost, and feelings towards tourists. I would say that my favorite city was Tolon because it was a small enough town that I was able to get to know some of the local people who worked at the shops and restaurants and they were all very hospitable. I was definitely surprised at how well many Greek people could speak English; I had time to talk with local people who had lived in Greece for years and also students who went to school at the University of Athens. It seems like such a different culture because of how serious they take learning other languages like English and for the surrounding countries. Apart from learning about the culture and ancient sites I also got to know a lot of great people within my group. There were more than 50 of us on the trip including faculty. I made many new friends and it was great to be able to share an experience like this with them. I am so grateful for the chance to taken part in another study abroad trip through TNCIS and Vol State. My time abroad has given me a new perspective on another country and has made me want to travel more.

Traveling Home

5/29/11

Location: Nashville

We got up early this morning and had to have all of our luggage in the lobby by 8AM before eating breakfast. Then we got onto a bus to take us to the airport. The ride there was about 30 minutes long and then we got off to check our luggage. The process of getting our tickets, going through customs, and checking our bags at security took about an hour. Once we got to the gate we either had to stay there or go through security again if we wanted to leave. We eventually boarded the plane and got settled in for the long flight. I slept for a lot of the flight except when they were serving food. It was 10 hours on a plane but it actually wasn’t too bad. We landed in Philadelphia and had a few hours to relax and eat after going through security again. It was good to be able to spend time with people in our group before getting on another plane. The second plane ride was only about 2 hours long and was pretty quick. We got into Nashville earlier than scheduled so we all waited by the baggage claim for our luggage and family. It was great being able to meet everyone’s family. My parents and a good friend of mine met me at the airport. It was hard to say goodbye to everyone and we are definitely planning to get together over the summer. The 3 weeks that I got to spend in Greece was amazing and I’ve also made a lot of new friends. I wish that the trip would have lasted longer but it’s also good to be home.

Last Day in Athens

5/28/11

Location: Athens

I got up and ate breakfast this morning as usual. Today is free for me because we’ve finished our class. I had some time to relax and I waited for the people from the business class to be done. Then I went into central Athens to do some last minute shopping along with some other people. I was able to find everything that I wanted to get and I also got to eat at a nice restaurant where I had chicken and pitas. We spent a couple more hours walking around to make sure we had everything. It was a Saturday so there were some garage sale-type stands in the city. It was fun to look around but I didn’t get anything. We headed back to the hotel in the late afternoon and I packed up all of my souvenirs. Then I went into town to go to the grocery store before dinner. Some of us had a toga party at our farewell dinner and we got a lot of great pictures of everyone. I’m really going to miss everyone on this trip. It feels like I’ve been with them a lot longer than 3 weeks. I wish that this trip was longer but in some ways I’m ready to go home. Some of us went into town to get some gelato for the last time and it was good as always. Our group sat and talked about our favorite parts of the trip while we ate our gelato. Then I went back to the hotel and stayed up talking with a few people in my room and making sure that all of my stuff was packed before going to bed. It was a good last day in Athens and I was able to have some time to look back on the trip as a whole and how well I’ve gotten to know everyone here. I’ve definitely made a lot of new friends on this trip.

Close to Ending

5/27/11
Location: Athens

I got up in the morning and got ready for the day. I ate breakfast and got ready for class. I had class for an hour and then went to listen to a speaker who talked about the Olympics and the country of Greece. It was pretty interesting; I enjoy listening to native Greeks talk about what they think of the current economic situation. We had a break before listening to another speaker so I went into town to go to a grocery store. I hadn’t been able to find one in 2 weeks and I was really happy. I was able to buy water and some other things that I needed. Then I went back to the hotel to listen to a speaker talk about the health care system in Greece. It was kind of interesting but sometimes it was hard to understand what he was saying. I had a little bit of time to just relax which was really nice. I was able to catch up on my online stuff and write a paper for my class. Before dinner we had a chance to go downstairs at the hotel and meet students from the University of Athens and talk with them. It was fun being able to meet people who were studying some of the same subjects who lived in another country. I got to know a couple of girls named Mina and Helen who were both very nice. After dinner, I played cards with a group of people at the hotel. I had some more time to relax and just be able to enjoy my time with the group of people I was with. I went out with a few girls to get gelato later on and then came back to the hotel to go to sleep.

Going to Class and Into Town

5/26/11
Location: Athens

I got up in the morning and got ready for the day. I ate breakfast and got ready for class. I had class for an hour and then had a break where I helped a friend with some homework. Then went to listen to a speaker who met us at the hotel and that session lasted about 2 hours. Once I got done with the class portion of my day I tried to find a grocery store in town but I couldn’t find one. Then I went back to the hotel and met up with a group of people to go into the main part of the city to do some souvenir shopping. I spent a few hours walking around with Libby and I was able to find a few t-shirts for myself and some other people. I like just being in the city and seeing a different side of Athens than where we are actually staying. Later on, we all sat down to eat some dinner. I ate some honey and sesame chicken and it was really good. It was raining on and off all day so our movement throughout the city was dependent on that. We traveled back to the hotel and got back around 11PM. I had a good time in the city with the people in our group and I felt like I got a lot of my shopping done. Some of the people from our group who stayed at the hotel thought I went into Athens by myself because of a rumor that had started and by the time I got back they were attempting to form a search party. That was an interesting situation to come back to but it's good to know that the other group members care about me.

School Time and Protests

5/25/11
Location: Athens

I got up in the morning and ate breakfast. I had some time to relax before class started. Class lasted about an hour and then we had time for a lunch break. I went into the smaller part of town to get some lunch. We ate at a small restaurant called BoBo's and it was really good and cheap. Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel to listen to a guest speaker who talked about the Greek economy. I thought his speech was pretty interesting and I learned alot about the economic crisis right now. A little while later I went into the main part of Athens with Emily and Brandon to see the protest that was going on. There were about 5,000 people at the protest and there was actually a second protest going on across the street as well. We stayed in that area for about 2 hours to see what was happening and then headed back to the hotel. The trams were shut down because of the protest so we had to walk about a mile and climb over a fence to get to a tram that worked. We eventually got back to the hotel for dinner and then had some time to relax. I stayed in the hotel lobby for a while to work on my computer and then went with a few people to get some gelato. I've had a lot of fun being able to explore the different parts of the city. I'm really going to miss walking around the streets and being in such a different culture than what I'm used to.

Athens and the Acropolis

5/24/11

Location: Athens

We had to get up really early this morning to travel to the center of Athens. I still managed to shower and eat breakfast before leaving at 8AM. The whole group got on the tram and traveled 45 minutes to the end of the tracks and got off to get onto the metro system. We got off the tram at Syntagma and then traveled on the metro to the Acropolis. We went down to the ancient part of the Acropolis to see the ruins. We walked around and saw a lot of different structures and the Parthenon. We spent about 2 hours walking around the site; I could have spent longer there but it was really hot out. I went into the main part of town to eat lunch and look at the shops in the area. I was able get a lot of my souvenir shopping done but it took me about 5 hours to get everything I wanted. I walked around with a few girls and then traveled back to the hotel. My legs were hurting pretty bad but it was worth it. I eventually made it back to the hotel to eat dinner and then I went into a different part of town that was closer to where our hotel is located. A few of us went to the movie theater to see Pirates of the Caribbean 4. It was an interesting experience being in a theater in a different country. We went back to the hotel after the movie and I stayed up for about an hour talking with a few people from our group. I eventually went to bed around 1AM. I had a really good time exploring the main part of Athens.