For my part, it was Greek to me

So, I usually like to put a little video nugget at the beginning that I imagine my friends clicking on and listening to the music as they scroll through my post - like a little soundtrack. The song I wanted you to listen to today has no video - what, what? Anyway, check out this band:

Cotton Jones Basket Ride and if you really want to humor me play Somehow to Keep it Going while reading this post. Make sure you open a freshie window. I was in physical pain when I found out that this band played right here in Eugene at Sam Bond's in August. How do I miss these things? Now I've had to start harassing them on Facebook to come back.

Ok, now I am ready to start. See how much easier it is when there is a video, Cotton Jones? Get on that.

I knew this would happen. School has sprung and I neglected my blog. But if it makes you feel better now I am neglecting school work to blog. It all works out, yeah? School is good, busy as usual. I have this weird feeling that I can't call myself a 'second year' yet because my cohort and I have a major revision on our summer paper kind of hanging over our heads to complete and present before I can officially move up in status. The new students are here. The leaves are turning. You know what, the rain hasn't started, the air is crisp and I remember why fall is my favorite. I have a psych class this semester where I learned about the spotlight effect. I suffer massively from this effect. It means you think people notice you and care about you a lot more than they really do. Do you think that has anything to do with blogging?

But you guys didn't come here to hear about school today, did you? You want to hear about Greece! (i hope)

It was wonderful. My man and I have never taken a vacation alone, more than a night or two camping or skiing, so just the idea of being together 24 hours a day for two whole weeks was very exciting. Both being quite indicisive, as you may know, it was hard to pick, but I don't think we could have done better. We picked it because
1) when are we going have so long to go so far ever again? In like 30 years when our unborn children are grown up? That's too long.
2) Greece is romantic.

3) We thought the eating would be easier there for us than say, Mexico (who wants animal fat in everything) or Hawaii (the depravation without the fish.... I may have mentioned that Ahi tuna is the one thing that I sometimes feel like I would unvegan for. However, I saw The Cove and my non-fish-eating ways have been reconfirmed).  

And we were right about the romance part.
Food - let's just say it was delicious but repetitive. Olives and Greek salads with no feta. Stuffed tomatoes. Beers.
We went to Athens first, to do the learning and culture part of the trip. We did have a rough start. My man's bag was lost.

"Your bag is in Rome"

We got a taxi to our hotel after learning there was a transportation strike and reading the guidebook saying it should only be about 15 Euro. Well, we sort of had a creeper taxi driver and found out he was charging us 60 Euro - like $100! But apparently the book was very wrong. He yelled at me for accusing him of being a thief. Which I did not. Anyway, the trucks were on strike in Greece driving by the Parliament, very close to our hotel and blaring their horns. It kind of sounded neat, but oh so loud.

We were quite frazzled by the time we found our hotel on foot after being let out and told it's around here somewhere. It was only about 5 blocks away. Keep in mind it's hard to read a map or signs that aren't only not in your language but also not in your ALPHABET.

Cheat sheet

Our hotel was not the most romantic. Gotta love twin beds for the first night of your honeymoon. Actually, all the nights. That's how they roll in Greece. The location could not be beat though.

After that though, we started to like Athens. The Acropolis was amazing.

 I was a bit confused about what is real and what is not. There were a lot of 'real' parts of the Parthenon in the museum down below. But then, there they were up there too.... hmmm. A lot are allegedly in the British Museum as well, information which was spat out my our tour guide in such a contentious way I felt like they had taken HER personal bits of the ruins.

Like these ladies were incredible, but they were in the museum too. Except one. British Museum. They are like 12 feet tall.
From the top of the Acropolis you can see buildings all around. This view is 360 degrees as far as the eye can see.

We were shocked to learn that Athens has only around 3 million. Standing up there, my man and I decided it must be bigger than NYC. I think that illusion has a lot to do with the fact that the buildings are short? I don't know, it looks like more than 3 million to me.

Part of what I loved about Athens was that there was this kind of modern, yet semi-run down city where in the midst of it, ruins and beauty.

All this stuff was in walking distance from our hotel.
Some things I learned in Athens:
1) Greek coffee is not just coffee in Greece. It's different. And -

 it does not taste as good as it looks.

2) This I did not learn in Athens, but it slowly dawned on me that the signs in the bathroom not to 'put paper in the toilet' were not simply mistranslated. 

You really can't put toilet paper in the toilet there. This one unfortunately confirmed my suspicions. I could longer pretend I did not understand...

Anyway after a few action packed days we were off to Mykonos. I am crazy. And I can be a bit cheap. So when I had the choice to book a flight for about a quarter of the price, I was willing to sign us up for a 6am flight. Not thinking we need to be there an hour early. And it's an hour bus ride. And the bus only comes every 30 minutes. Our wakeup call was at 3am. I apologized to my man when we got up like zombies and, you know what he said? "It's ok, I was ready to get up anyway." Love him.

We stayed in Iaonnis area and it was quite relaxing, away from the city (called Hora) where all the late night parties happen.

Mykonos was gorgeous, we stayed at the place where Shirley Valentine was filmed. I really, really loved it there. One day we rented a ATV. My man really wanted a moped, but the rental guy would not allow it. We took it all over the island. I really loved the islands.

Super Paradise Beach

Obligatory pigeons.

I hope you like sunsets.

Next, we were meant to take a ferry to Santorini. Ferry travel turns out to be a bit tricky. I thought it's like the plane, it comes in, you board like 45 minutes before, then it leaves. Well, we got on the boat, they took our Santorini tix and everything. Then the boat proceeded to leave the dock about 30 minutes early! Wrong boat. 

The boat company was really nice about it, but we did have to spend the night in Tinos, which ended up being quite fun and different than anywhere else we went in Greece. More real. Less English. No credit cards. 

Where are we?

This was hands down the smallest and coolest bathroom of the trip. 

I am slightly nervous that I am the blogger obsessed with bathrooms. What with the WOW talk and the toilet paper. I am sorry. 

Very authentic.

Another boat ride in the morning took us to Santorini, which was stunning. Again, we stayed off the beaten track in Monolythos beach, but these pics are mostly from Thira. 

Santorini used to be called Strongili which means round one. It was an island that turned into a caldera after an explosion many thousands (?) of years ago. We took a boat out to the middle and swam in the volcanicly hot waters. 

Oia is home to the world's greatest sunset...

I missed my dog. Greek Stink.

 So what do you think of the sunset?

It was amazing. My man loved Santorini the best. 

After almost 2 weeks though we were ready to get back. I missed my dog. I have to show you the place we stayed in near the airport in Athens on the way home.

Is this place a David Lynch set or what???

And it was good to be home.

Up next: 

"Arcade Fire concert almost ruined by dog-left-in-parking-garage's incessant barking."

and

"Brothers have weddings too"

Stay Tuned.