Spring Break and Final Exams

It’s hard to believe my semester here is coming to a close. In exactly nine days, I’ll be back home in the United States working my summer job, preparing for the LSAT and senior year, and undoubtedly missing Athens. Thankfully though, it’s not yet time for me to say a somber goodbye to this wonderful country I’ve come to love and call home. Before that came my last adventure during spring break.

My friend Alex and I, like nearly everyone else in the College Year in Athens program, decided to take advantage of the eleven day Easter break we were given to travel around Europe and see some of the Greek islands. We first visited a close friend of mine studying abroad in Rome, where she showed us the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, the Vatican, and more. By more, I mean gelato. So. Much. Gelato. I regret nothing. I have wanted to go to Italy ever since I was a little girl, and it was everything I imagined and more. A bustling city with breathtaking ruins popping up ever so often, it’s reminiscent in many ways of Athens. We took a day trip to Florence where we saw the Duomo, learned how to haggle in the outdoor leather market (I was pretty good at negotiating, surprisingly enough), and ate the most amazing clam pasta ever.

 

The view from the Vatican duomo.

 

After leaving Italy, Alex and I spent a few days on Santorini Island, arguably one of the most beautiful islands of Greece. We stayed in Thira, close to the sea overlooking the rocky cliffs that drop to the ocean, and even visited the black sand beach in Perissa, which was unlike any beach I’d ever seen before. From there we took a ferry boat to Mykonos, where we stayed for 3 days in an Air BnB with two other friends for Easter. It’s true what’s often said about Mediterranean waters–it’s the clearest blue you will ever see. The beach near our Air BnB was phenomenal, and almost empty because we arrived just before tourist season began. On Easter our host Sissy invited us to have lunch with her family, and it was absolutely amazing! The hospitality and kindness of Greek people never ceases to amaze me.

 

Easter lunch with our Air BnB host and her family.

The view from the Caldera in Santorini.

 

Now it’s back to reality. Final exams start this week, and the Greek language exam is my first. Of course, Greek is also the test I’m most worried about, but I’ve been studying non-stop, so hopefully an A is in my future! Besides that I have a philosophy paper, Greek myth and religion paper, and two essays for my Greek political science class to write. Stress is very much a state of being at the moment, but I’m staying motivated to finish this semester out with a strong GPA. Sleep can be caught up on later! The next time I’ll be writing for this blog will be from home, and there will probably be tears involved. So for now I’m going to tackle my exams and appreciate my last week in Greece as much as possible!

 

Me in Mykonos.