Week in Review: February 25 – March 2

As usual, Athens didn’t fail to offer it’s share of new challenges and amazing experiences.

Monday was filled with a single class (Greece and the European Union) and a little exercise at the 1989 Olympic Stadium.

Although the track in the center of the stadium is closed to the public, a track at the top of the stadium provides locals with the perfect areas to exercise. Greeks have historically incorporated their architecture into nearby terrain and the Olympic Stadium was built into a hillside that not only provides a smooth track, but also hilly cross-country style paths. In addition to providing a track, pull-up & parallel bars, rings, and a cushioned bench for sit-ups offer exercise essentials to those who know how where the discrete entrance is located.

Anyways, on Monday after finishing my run and beginning to do pull-ups, I noticed an old Greek man walking an infant in a stroller. The man walked a short distance, struggled to turn the stroller, and began mumbling some elementary phrases in Greek to his infant (I actually recognized what he was saying!). I noticed that there was a huge turtle at the base of the stroller! Watching the old man communicate to the new born was so adorable, it absolutely made my day.

On Tuesday, I had the first lesson of a cooking lesson series. I learned how to make the simple yet delicious dish known as Penne a la Vodka. It was basically penne pasta with a creamy tomato sauce (contained heavy cream and white wine).

On Thursday, I went on an evening gallery tour with another class. We visited a variety of galleries. One featured art represented the struggle faced by those that were of different sexual orientations from the majority. Another featured images of youth (primarily young girls) that were sketched in black and featured other objects (often birds, or blood) that were colored (usually red). My favorite stop was at the local graffiti shop. As you can tell by the pictures below, graffiti throughout the city varies in quality but is everywhere. The shop featured more cans and varieties of spray-paint than I had ever seen in my life. Two artistic looking men that ran the shop were drunk but were surprisingly friendly and spoke decent English. The larger of the two came out of a back room with a plate, yelled, “Ooopa!!!,” and slammed a plate to the ground. We were all taken back (I had a shard fall into my shoe!) but felt that we were experiencing some thing authentic. The men told us to come back and hang out with them when they were sober; they would give us a tour and life advice. Ha!



I rushed back for my second cooking lesson (at 8:00 pm) and made lentil soup and corn bread. The soup’s primary ingredients are lentils and tomatoes. Once finished, white vinegar and olive oil are added according to the eater’s preferences. Obviously the corn bread was delicious (but not as good as mom’s) and a nice break from the norm.

Later in the evening, we all went to a friends apartment and hug out. We later went to one of the local tavernas nearby and had a few drinks and some great conversation with a smaller group of friends (5ish). I found that the Greeks look and treat you differently when you travel in smaller packs.

On Friday, I went on a “Sweet Crawl” with a staff member from the Center (Kim) and my classmates. After walking from the Center to our scheduled first stop, we learned that there was a bomb threat called on the McDonalds that we had just walked past. Police cars stormed in and the entire area was taped off. Kim told us that bomb threats were taken seriously and threats were made known four to five times a year. The most recent threat that came to fruition happened a couple of years ago and was not that serious. Bombs are intended to make a statement to the government and are not intended to hurt people (this is why most bomb threats occur early in the morning).


After our detour, we went to four different locations – a place that made honey and cinnamon doughnuts, one that served gelato, one that served traditional Greek dishes, and one the served chocolate. The walk took all day and spanned a variety of different regions throughout the city but was definitely worth the time.

Later in the night, we went to a nearby dance club known only as “Ethnic Club.” As sketchy as the name is, the Club was actually quite classy and we had to persuade the door man to let us in. Once inside we learned observed Greeks dressed up in a variety of different costumes that ranged from Minnie Mouse, to Elvis, to Shakira-esque belly dancers, to Devils, and Ladybugs. Carnival is scheduled to occur on March 5 and despite the fact that it was a week away, the Greeks dress up and go out for the two weeks that lead up to the occasion. While you most adults are not dressed up during the day, everywhere you look you see little kids dressed up in all sorts of different costumes.

On Saturday during the day I went to the beach! I only took .70 euro to catch a 45 minute tram to the beach. After wandering for a good 30 minutes in search of a way to access the sand from the road, we made our way to the shore. The sand was filled with semi-smooth pebbles and course sand; the terrain was definitely not comfortable to walk in barefoot. The cold wind and limited sunlight also made the experience rather chilly and unpleasant but fortunately good company kept all of our spirits high. Scattered throughout the beach were old men playing paddleball. They were all really good and quickly smacked the balls back and forth until one hit it out of reach of the other. When walking to the nearby beach-front café (which we didn’t end up dining at because it was too expensive), I had my first encounter with a topless sunbather. None of us saw it coming. One minute we were walking and we turned to the left and bare breasts were in our face. None of us tried to draw attention to the sight, but we were nevertheless surprised.

Later in the evening, I concocted this super food for dinner by combining lentil, whole grain rice, and veggies. After eating it plain that night, I mixed the leftovers with more veggies and eggs to make the ultimate morning treat! It’s my truly original, high-protein (and carb) creation.

After dinner, I hung out with some friends, watched another movie, and went to Psiri. People were again dressed up (but surprisingly not as much as the night before). We had a great time drinking coffee and watching the masses of greeks that walked past on the crowded streets. With the night winding down, we headed home and noticed a crepe shop in the distance. We knew that we really didn’t need to be eating a crepe this late at night but the smell and appearance of these warm and gooey treats lured us in. I had never had a crepe before but the Nutella (chocolatey-peanut butter) and banana dessert will leave me forever changed.

The following Sunday I woke up early and went to the privately owned Benaki Museum by myself. The museum had all the usual pottery and jewelry artifacts but also featured greek costume and clothing from different eras, items from the Greek homes, and two sitting rooms that were removed from ancient Greek mansions. It also had more recent war artifacts (guns, uniforms, etc.) and personal items collected from key political and artistic figures. The actual signed constitution from the War of Independence (1819?) was also present.

After the Benaki Museum, I visited the Papaloukas exhibit. Papaloukas is a famous Greek painter and the exhibit not only featured his art, but an analysis of how it was composed and what to look for in each piece. The painter believed in maintaining form in art and drew lines that formed angles in all of his work; some of the lines remained visible to help viewers understand the nature of his art. Later in the painter’s life his art became more abstract; it was these pieces that I liked best. Instead of using color for the sake of color itself, he used it to form edges that were to create contrasts – dark colors were used to create edges that formed brightness and light colors were used to create edges that formed darkness.

I after the Papaloukas exhibit I explored the city and tried to find a couple of places that were recommended in my Athens guidebook. I was only able to find Kraft, the first microbrewery established in Athens, but had a great adventure exploring the city. I made it back safely, did some homework and prepared for the first day of class.