I got to scuba dive!

I am so extremely grateful to have the opportunity to scuba dive for the fist time. And I get to do that on the beautiful island of Menorca! It was so breathtaking. Like, the good kind of breathtaking, not the drowning kind. Incredible. And my outfit was also very attractive.

The Sanisera Site

So at the Sanisera site, there were different peoples occupying the area through the years. And for the most, these occupants were Roman.

I found a Roman coin yesterday! Well, actually it was half a coin. But it was during an economic decline of the empire so they would cut their coins in half and use them as functional currency. And then after that, during economically hard times, they melted coins down to make smaller coins.

The bigger the coin, the older it is. So my coin, even though it is technically half a coin, is quite the antique!

View from site

I could get used to this.

The field school lounge view

Last Bit of Paris

My flight for Menorca was at 5:40 on Wednesday the 16th. So I had the morning to say goodbye to Paris. But how to do it? The catacombs!!

I got there at 9:40. 20 minutes before it even opened and I still stood in line for three HOURS. Longest line I've ever been in. Luckily, I stood in line with a girl who is from Maryland who currently lives in New York. We talked about our travels and our lives. It was fun! Halfway through the line we started talking to a couple who was behind us. The girl is from Brazil, the guy is Swedish, and they met in California. So there ya go. They were a lot of fun to talk to. We took turns leaving the line for the bathroom or food, the others saving our spots. Finally it was our turn. 1:00. I got a discount for being an age between 18-26 so I had money to spare for the audiotour. The group I was in line with became my catacombs buddies and we journeyed down together. It was freezing down there! That's what happens when you're that far underground.

But seriously, that three hour line was totally worth it. The archaeologist in me was amazed and awed and totally feeling out. I taught my group about many aspects of bones which they were all really amazed to learn. They'd call me over to ask a question. We got out and I had to book it to get to my flight.

Best last day.

Paris Part Deux!

So this morning I had an amazing opportunity (through the Sandeman's tour group) to go tour the Gardens of Versailles! Who gets to do that? Sign me up!

We left the meeting place at 9:00 and hopped on a bus then a train to arrive at Versailles. But first, coffee. And a croissant. Because Paris. Had those two necessities across from the train station at a place called Brasserie Le Lyautey Glacier. Now say that five times fast.

But back to why we're here! The Palace of Versailles was beautiful looking, as expected. And the lines to get to it reflected that. But I was there for the famous and fabulous Gardens. I saw many glorious fountains and groves. All tied in on how Lous XIV wanted to be portrayed. The sun king! The divine monarch! It was just so surreal to be there. All the history. Amazing and I want to go back.

Met a guy named Judd (yes that's his real name and he is from Chicago). And he majored in Opera so we had a good chat back to the train station and the train ride before parting ways.

Next, lunch!

I stopped by a place that faced the Louvre and the river called Restaurant de Voltaire. Had an amazin cheese plate and wine. Afterwards, I followed the river to Notre Dame. I realized I would've have time to go into Notre Dame before it closed so I turned back around and walked all the way to the Eiffel Tower! Long walk, but fun to just look around and take it all in. I chose to walk up the Eiffel Tower. Pros: shorter line and cheaper. Cons: you had to climb A LOT of stairs. But no biggie, stairs are my specialty. Passed people going up that I never saw in the line, so that's a good feeling. It was amazing being up there. So beautiful. Who gets to see Paris from the Eiffel Tower?? Me!

Now as glorious as that was, I have a confession to make. Climbing the Duomo in Florence definitely spoiled me with the most breathtaking view. This was still a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am very grateful.

When I finally decided to head back down, I ran into two Australian women from the Gardens of Versailles tour! Small world. We chatted for a few minutes and the parted ways, me to dinner, them a taxi. I found a restaurant called Bistro de la Tour Eiffel and sat outside and really had a good time people watching and enjoying some great food. I stayed there for a couple of hours. I wandered for a bit before heading to the river and buying a ticket for a nighttime boat tour of Paris. My friend Ankit that I met in Barcelona said I HAD to experience this. I'm glad I listened. I got to see more from the boat ride than I could ever see on foot. Also, you see the different buildings you've seen before, but lit up! One building was lit up like the French flag!

The tour was for only an hour but it allowed me to find a perfect spot for when the Eiffel Tower flashed with lights at midnight.

Once again, who gets to do this??

Paris!!

Bonjour!!

I'm in Paris. IIIII'm in Paris. Nope. Still don't believe it. Yesterday was my first full day in Paris and I covered a lot of steps. Seriously. My fitbit said I walked almost 30,000 steps yesterday. So let me start at the beginning. It's a good place to start. I woke up early to get to the Louvre Museum around the time of opening. It opened at 9:00. I got there at 9:45. Not bad, in my opinion. My friend Jenna who I met in Barcelona said to go through the entrance that's under the Carousel since the line would be undoubtedly shorter than the main entrance through the pyramid. She was right but even though I got there shortly after it opened, the line wrapped around the whole underground shopping mall. I even adventured to the main entrance to see if Jenna was pulling my leg about the main entrance should be avoided. She wasn't. Back down I went! The line moved quickly and soon I was in the Louvre!! Wow. Just wow. I went into the Denon wing and spent the majority of my time there. That's where amazing Italian and French art and statues were kept and also the very famous Mona Lisa. I saw the painting with my own eyes! Not from a postcard or a movie. I wrestled my way through the crowd and got to see her lack luster smile for myself. Who gets to do that??

Let me also just comment on how amazing the Louvre is as a whole. Nothing compares to it. I remember being impressed with the museums in Greece. They are in the minor leagues in comparison. I found out that it would take you approximately 4 weeks to see every piece of art at the Louvre. And that is without eating or sleeping.

I was there for only a morning. I only scratched the surface. Such a great morning.

Afterwards, I made my way to the Sandeman's free walking tour that started 1:00. I got there early so it was a perfect time to have my first crepe! Nutella and banana. Yum. Glad in haven't had one until now because I'd eat them too much. In the walking tour we started in the Latin quarter (named for the university in the area that would only allow you to speak Latin in the area. That's no longer a rule but the name stuck). We walked there to Notre Dame. I only saw the outside but I learned a lot about the history of the building before and after the French Revolution (example: during the FR people cut off the heads of the statues on the building because they thought they were kings... They were saints.. Oops)

Then we walked to Pont Neuf (new bridge) that was made by Louis IV, the lock bridge, and then to the Louve. Louvé meant stronghold in French and was used to defend against the English.

And did you know that the famous glass pyramids were made by an American? Take that! (But it's been said that the pyramids were the French president's way to pay respect to his lover the Egyptian disco singer, Dalida.

We took a break and I had desserts from Eric Kayser, which was recommended and was delicious, but is a chain. You can find one in New York. We walked through Jardin des Tuileries and ended our tour there.

I left the tour and headed towards the Eiffel Tower. When I got there, it was already closed off in preparation for Bastille day. Bummer.

But I had time though to go the Montmartre tour I was planning on doing the next day. Got there just in time!

Started the tour at the Moulin Rouge. Moulin Rouge in French means Red Windmill, so that's why there is a red windmill on top of the building. The tour guide Alexander asked us questions to see how much we knew about French history.

Alexander: "The Moulin Rouge was built the same year as the Eiffel tower. Does anyone know what year that was?"

Me: "1889."

A: What dance is the Moulin Rouge famous for?

E: the can can

A: what is absynth known as?

E: the green fairy

(That last one I knew from the movie Moulin Rouge)

So I kind of looked like either a French scholar which I clearly am not, or a smarty pants. But whatevs.

Everything you'd think of about quant Paris is actually Montmartre. That's funny because for the majority of history, Montmartre wasn't a part of Paris and was not taxed or renovated like a part of Paris. Saw famous restaurants, saw the last standing windmill of Montmarte: Moulin de Lagalette. Buckwheat windmill. The Russian destroyed all the others during Napolean's reign. We also got to see and go into the Sacré Coeur! Very pretty. And if you ever go and look at the gargoyles, on one side there is a pig instead of a gargoyle, and a goat on the other side.

To add to the smarty pants image, I guessed that St Dennis would be depicted with two halos, one on his head and one where his head should be (he was decapitated by a soldier). And I also knew that bistro was not a French word but in fact Russian, meaning fast.

The Russians aren't a very patient people.

But yeah! I learned a lot on that tour, but also realized how much I already knew about French history.

I highly recommend Sandeman's New Europe tours. They're such a great way to get to know a city, the culture, and the history.

I'm loving Paris and am so glad I'm here.

Paraga Beach, Mykonos, Greece

I could've stayed here all day.

Mykonos Part Two

So the second day of Mykonos, we decided to go to Paraga beach instead of Paradise beach in order to mix it up a bit and to have more of a relaxing day on the beach. It was gorgeous. Absolutely beautiful. I could've stayed there all day!

Getting there was kind of interesting. We must have just missed the bus because we sat there outside of our hostel at the bus stop for about an hour. But we got there! When we got there, we lounged on the beach for a bit and put our feet in the water. It was absolutely freezing. Soon I finally went in for a swim and it was the most breathtaking thing. Like, it was so cold it took my breath away. Haha

But for real, I am so glad I decided to swim. I would've regretted not doing it.

I got out and made Ann want to go in too so I swam in the Aegean Sea again!

We swam longer than we should've and missed the hourly bus back into town. I was not disappointed at all because that meant we could have lunch on the beach! Ann and I split a Greek salad and pasta with pesto.

The Greek salad only had tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and feta cheese. No lettuce. Ann doesn't like tomatoes very much so I had those and she had the cucumbers and we split everything else.

After lunch we actually caught the bus and went back to the hostel to freshen up to go into town. On our way, one of the owners of the hostel picked us up and drove is the rest of the way. How sweet of him!

We walked and wondered the streets, took pictures by the windmills, and found a bar that was supposed to have a World Cup game on.. It did, but it was on mute and the bar played really horrible arrangement of pop songs. The view was beautiful, looking over the ocean and Little Venice. The drinks were good too.

We left and started wondering a bit before dinner. There was a musician playing a stringed instrument that played songs that you hear in all the movies. It was great!

We found dinner at this restaurant that was right by the ocean where we could see the sunset. Ann and I split fried calamari and seafood spaghetti. I'm glad I eat and like seafood because I had a lot at this point and would continue to have copious amounts of it later on.

Later we went through the shops, eventually, finally, found a bar that wasn't just a club, and shared a Mythos beer and a mixed drink. The music there was good. That DJ should help some of the other DJs do a better job at picking out music. That inspired us to go dancing so we found a club, danced for a bit, and went on a long journey to find the bus. We found a gelato place that had the World Cup game and free wifi. When we bought our bus tickets, the next bus was not for another 40 minutes, so went back to the gelato shop until it was time to get on the bus.

That bus was crowded like you wouldn't believe! Full of drunk Australians. So there's that. I told the bus driver where we needed to get off. He forgot. We went all the way to the beach and had to ride the same bus back to the hostel. It was not a fun experience especially for how tired we were. But we got home eventually and went to bed.

The next morning we got up, packed, had breakfast, and was driven to the airport by Frozzo (co-owner) and she gave us little souvenir magnets that said Hotel Milena 2014 on it!

We loved these people. We wanted to take them with us. But alas, it was time to go to Italy!

By the way, Mykonos airport is very small and security was very chill- didn't have to take off my shoes, Ann made the sensor go off but they told her to go anyway. Easy enough! Had to take a shuttle bus to the plane itself and then it was smooth flying from there.

Oh hello, blog!

Sorry I haven't been updating my blog.

When we got to Rome the wifi was terrible and then after that, all the downtime I have had, I've been catching up on sleep. But no more! I'm back in action starting now and I'll be posting about the rest of or adventures in Mykonos, Rome, Florence, and Cinque Terre! Wish me luck!

Mykonos

Today has been long and wonderful.

I woke up at 5am. 3 hours of sleep. No coffee..

We left at 5:45 and headed down to the metro down the way and got there a little after 6 and boarded the train that was headed for the port city Piraeus. It didn't take very long, which was good. I had all of my bags with me and there wasn't any room for me to put them down so we stood the whole way.

We bought our ferry tickets when we got there and got on the Blue Star ferry headed to Mykonos.

The tickets we got didn't give tell us where we needed to be on the boat. Ann even asked where we were supposed to go and the people who worked there just pointed and said to follow everyone else. So we did. Which we shouldn't have done. Right before the ferry starts going, two different couples came talking in very fast Greek saying that we were either in their seats or close to them. So clearly we were not in the right spot. Finally we found someone who would help us and he pointed up the stairs to the next level. Woo.

We sat down, read for a bit, napped for a bit, then went outside to take in the view. It was gorgeous. And extremely windy. Like winter in Boone kind of wind. Wind that slaps you in the face. But we stayed outside because it really was that pretty. Soon we got hungry for lunch. We found the part of the boat that serves food. There wasn't much to choose from, but I had a cheese pie and pistachios. When we went to sit down to eat, the wind decided it wanted to prove how strong it was. Chairs and trash cans falling and sliding across the floor. My face felt like it was on a roller coaster. It didn't seem real. We quickly got up and went to a part of the boat that was covered and stayed until the ferry reached Mykonos.

When we arrived, we found the man from the hostel who took us and a couple from D.C. to the hostel (Milena). We got there and he carried my heavy pack inside, a woman brought us all orange juice, and she took out a map of the island and started to write down our survival guide. So basically we're in Greek heaven.

The beach we wanted to go to was Paradise beach and it costs €1.60 for the bus ride. The bus stop is conveniently right outside the hostel. It takes 1km to get to the center of town and she listed the restaurants that were good and where to find them. She's good people.

She showed us our room and our bags were already there waiting for us. It's like Hogwarts! We got ready and went down to Paradise beach. I have never seen such pretty water. It was so blue. The sand at the beach was more like small rocks, which was different but felt good to walk on. Ann and I decided to layout on our towels versus spending money on the lounge chairs at the dance clubs on the beach. Priorities. It was very relaxing. It's exactly what we needed after such a long morning of travel.

Unfortunately, when we'd look to our left, there were three very tan, very old, very naked men. They had no shame... Good for them? Let's just say I tried to never look to my left.

After a couple of hours at the beach we headed back to the hostel to get ready for dinner. We wondered down to the center of Mykonos. It was kind of perfect. Small but lively. So much culture.

We found one of the restaurants the the woman at the hostel suggested, Nikos. It was so good! I had the fish of the day and it sautéed spinach and tomatoes on top with pilenta underneath. Amazing. Then Ann and I split the lemon pie which tastes basically like a lemon square. And who doesn't love a good lemon square? Also, because of this restaurant I have now fallen in love with Greek coffee. Lord help me.

We wandered the streets some more before heading back tonthe hostel. Can't wait for more things to come tomorrow!

I still can't believe I was there....

Last day in Athens

Okay so yesterday was our last day in Athens and we definitely did it up.

I woke up at 8:15, got ready, and we headed done to breakfast in the hostel. There were fresh breads hard boiled eggs, and coffee so I was a happy camper.

After breakfast we headed down to Syntagma square to buy Hop On Hop Off Bus tickets. It's actually a pretty cool concept. It's a tour bus that travels around Athens in 90 minutes and you learn about the city. How we did it was, we rode around and when we wanted to stop at a site, we did, and then we would get back on and finish the tour.

The first place that we stopped at was the New Acropolis Museum. It was amazing. Before you even walk into the building, the pathway is see-through so you can see an archaeological site underneath the building. That was pretty awesome. We bought our tickets and walk around. It's probably one of my favorite museums, and I've been to some amazing museums. Luckily, Ann and I know a lot about Greek mythology so we could really appreciate what was there. I loved it. We weren't allowed to take pictures, but we snuck some towards the end.

We hopped back on the bus and headed to the Acropolis. The bus tour offered a free walking tour so we decided to try it out. It was not what we were expecting. We thought we were going to have a walking tour inside the Acropolis. Nope. It was a chaperoned walk around th area outside of the Acropolis. It was still kind of cool, but there were a lot of things we couldn't see because none of us bought our tickets for the Acropolis and our "tour guide" wasn't authorized to give tours of the Acropolis. Whatever. It was still a nice walk around parts of Athens we wouldn't have seen otherwise.

After the tour, we hopped back on the bus again to save our legs just to head back to the Acropis to actually tour it this time.

I'm still in awe that I have seen the Parthenon. It hasn't really hit me that I was there. I am so lucky. We went down and saw the Theatre of Dionysus. It was so cool! I can only imagine how epic it would have been to see a performance there in person. We sat there in the stands, resting, taking pictures, and taking it all in.

For those who want to see the Acropolis someday. Do it. Go now. Just be prepared for slippery rocks. It was a hazard the whole time and while we were walking down the steps leaving, I slipped on a rock and skinned both my needs really badly. Good thing my mom made me take band aids and neosporin!

We walked the Roman agora, saw the museum for it, and walked up to the Temple of Hephaestus. That was really neat.

We once again hopped on the bus and went to the National Archaeological Museum. I totally geeked out once I was there. I kept learning different cultural behaviors from these artifacts that I wouldn't have thought of otherwise. We didn't even finish the first floor before the museum closed. That's how big the museum is. 

We got on the last bus of the day at 8:18pm and finally finished the bus tour. We got off at Syntagma square and found a restaurant. I ordered the seasonal greens and tzaziki garlic spread with bread. The man made me think I was getting green vegetables. Nope. I got collard greens kind of greens. I ate it because they're good for you, but when we went out for dessert, indefinitely compensated for my lackluster dinner.

Once we finally got back to the hostel we collapsed and packed for our next day of travel.

And here we are! We're in Mykonos!

Water was definitely needed today...

The Temple of Olympian Zeus

First Day in Athens

Today was a long day to say the least. Yesterday, my sister and I flew from Charlotte, NC to Philadelphia, and from Philadelphia to Athens, Greece. The flight to Philly was harmless. We got there around 10:30am. Our flight from Philly to Athens was to take off a little after 4:00pm. We had time to kill, for sure. We wandered the place, had asian food in the food court, sat in rocking chairs while listening to a live band play, and then got Starbucks from a shop that only been open for four days and they were as inexperienced as you'd imagine, but worse.

Our flight to Greece was as easy as could be. And we arrived at 8:30 local time. We got our packs and went to find the express bus to take us to Syntagma. The bus driver was no help, saying that the stop we wanted was earlier, making us believe that it was in fact the correct stop. Then while I was getting out of the bus, he closed the door on me. Twice.

Ann and I spent the next 4 hours walking around Athens basically lost. We always knew how to get back to home base (the bus stop) and kept trying different routes to our hostel, confused about why we hadn't found it yet. We both are normally very good with maps and directions, but when your maps and directions are in English and the street signs are all in Greek, the maps are only confusing you not helping you.

When I was at the point of painful and scary dehydration (caused by walking for miles in the heat with a forty pound pack on my back and having to carry two other bags...nbd..) we stopped so I could get water and we asked for directions again. We had asked directions twice before from people who had no idea what we were talking about. But this man was our savior. That is when we learned that the bus stop was not the right one. So we kept on walking. On the way we finally came across the metro and we took that opportunity to get to the right place without walking for additional miles.

Once we got off the metro at Syntagma, our hostel, the Acropolis House, was easy to find. Ann and I collapsed on the bed and took well deserved naps.

When we finally woke up it was around 5:30. We got ready and headed out. We walked through the national gardens and then walked around the ruins of the Temple of Olympian Zeus. It was so incredible to see something like that in real life. It's amazing that something like that even existed so long ago. We're going to the Acropolis tomorrow and seeing this site today is making me even more excited.

For dinner, Ann and I went to a restaurant called Oasis. The people who work there are so nice, spoke English, and gave very good recommendations. I asked what was on the menu that had no meat and he suggested that we get a Greek salad and Greek spaghetti and split them. So we did and I'm glad.

We managed to end the day on a very high note and I can't wait for what Athens has enstore for us tomorrow. 

And we're off!

Here we go! Right now we're on our way to the Charlotte airport. You're not reading the time stamp wrong. It's 5:21am. We left the house around 5:00 which means we had to wake up at 4:00am... It's all good. My parents are good sports taking Ann and me to the airport.

Two hours to the airport!

Getting things figured out before going on an amazing adventure! #emerytakeseurope

Getting things figured out before going on an amazing adventure! #emerytakeseurope

— Emery Bencini (@emerysnow27) June 24, 2014

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June 24, 2014 at 09:39AM

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