Counting Down

I just got out of my final religion class and conclude all work tomorrow when I take its final at 9 AM sharp. The reality of the conclusion of my trip is raining down pretty hard right now. I've started trying to pack all my possessions back into my duffel bag (with souvenirs, the situation can best be described as "tight") and think about the last few things here in Athens I want to try and accomplish before I leave. I've even started making plans and appointments for when I'm back in the States as I'll have a couple of days in Connecticut before I fly out to California to visit Pepperdine's campus to sort my life out there. Still, there's the mental block I have about imagining myself back in the USA. I know in just a few short days I'll be back on US soil, but envisioning myself there is just hard for me to figure at this point. Sure, if it were another European city I was jetting to for the weekend to meet up with some old friends I would have no trouble accepting what lies ahead. But as ready as I am to head back home, I'm still expecting a culture shock of sorts to occur when I'm paying in the greenback and not speaking in Euro-English to locals to get them to understand me. Of course, most of my college friends will still be at school for about another month, so I'll be able to sink into some quiet anonymity for a bit and relearn what it is to be an American. Hopefully it's like riding a bike.

Come On, Connecticut

Honestly, what the hell...

Student suspended for buying Skittles at school

NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (AP) -- Contraband candy has led to big trouble for an eighth-grade honors student in Connecticut.

Michael Sheridan was stripped of his title as class vice president, barred from attending an honors student dinner and suspended for a day after buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate.

School spokeswoman Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo says the New Haven school system banned candy sales in 2003 as part of a districtwide school wellness policy.

Michael's suspension has been reduced from three days to one, but he has not been reinstated as class vice president.

He says he didn't realize his candy purchase was against the rules -- although he did notice the student selling the Skittles on February 26 was being secretive.

Really, New Haven? Really?

At least they recognized the error of their ways.

Michael Sheridan, an eighth-grade honors student who was suspended for a day, barred from attending an honors dinner and stripped of his title as class vice president after he was caught with a bag of Skittles candy in school will get his student council post back, school officials said.

I tell ya, sometimes I wonder what what home is going to be like when I get back. This is leaving me kinda worried...

Down to My Last Euros

If you wanted to use aviation metaphors to describe my current financial state, the appropriate one to apply to me currently would be a crash landing. I'm basically broke and I'm spending my final Euros. It's difficult plotting out how I'm going to buy souvenirs for family and friends back home, visit some final museums and historical sites here in Athens, and eat all on the budget of about 80 Euros. Sure, thats over $100, but that doesn't buy much love here in Athens. As it is, I will be trying to squeeze as much work in this summer as possible, especially since I'm trying to live off-campus next year at school. But unfortunately the realities of capitalism have caught up to me, and if I'm to avoid that cruel temptress Debt, it'll be cheap cheap cheap from here on out. Sorry mom and dad, that means no authentic Middle Eastern carpet!

A Connecticut Yankee In: the old Ottoman Empire (Turkey)

For the past week, my program has departed from our (temporary) home and been touring Turkey as part of an Educational Field Trip revolving around the historic and religious offerings of the former Ottoman Empire. Starting off in Istanbul (or is it Constantinople? or Byzantium?), we spent a few nights in the city along the Bosphorous before crossing into Asia and spreading all along the Aegean coast from Pergamon to Izmir to Ephesus. It was probably one of the most eye-opening and incredible experiences of my life. And I didn't even get to experience a Turkish bath.
I'll be the first to admit that my expectations for the week were very low going into the trip. I had heard from others that Turkey was more of a Mexico than anything and I've never been in a predominantly Muslim country. To tell you the truth I had no idea what it was going to be like. But from the moment we touched down in Istanbul, I knew at the very least it was going to be different. After a flight that lasted a little over an hour we were herded onto a bus eerily similar to the tourist one from "Babel" and driven straight to our hotel, The Golden Horn, which is a stone's throw from Asia. It was a nice place with a fantastic view of the city and great location to an active, bustling shopping district (unfortunately where one of my friends had her camera pick-pocketed). And while there was so much in Istanbul we didn't get to see or experience or take in, believe me when I say we had a pretty good itinerary of the city on two continents.
Among the things were saw were the Chora Church, the Hippodrome, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia, Dolmabahce Palace, the Underground Cistern, and the Egyptian Spice Bazaar. The Blue Mosque was only the second active mosque I've been to (along with London's Central Mosque) and provided a glimpse into a culture far too many Americans and Westerners have been sheltered from in their life. But most fun was the Spice Bazaar, which contained dozens of shops each promising a good deal and provided me with some inexpensive souvenirs. The shopkeepers were just as colorful, if not more so, than the ones here in Athens (and even one guy who promised to give one of the girls in our group anything she wanted for free in exchange for five minutes with him. Wow). Our local soccer club from our days in London, Chelsea, were even in Istanbul playing a Turkish squad while we were there, offering plenty for us to joke about with the locals (though they were doing most of the joking as Chelsea choked 2-1). At one of the museums stops we made, what must've been 200 Turkish elementary school students swarmed my friends and I on the steps as we were waiting for our bus to arrive and begged us for pictures, autographs, and the like. It was awesome and really enjoyable from the cultural perspective (though again, I got a lot of shouting at me about Chelsea. Why did they have to lose?). Overall, it was a fantastic place I would love to visit again.
The second half of our journey took us squarely into Asia as we turned our attention to deeper in the past and a look at the footprints of ancient Greece and Rome in Asia Minor. After our flight to Izmir, we bussed up to Pergamon and toured the ruin there before retracing our steps and heading south to Kusadasi where our hotel was located. Kusadasi is a tourist town like others on either side of the Aegean Sea and a good launching point for our next day's journey to Ephesus. Ephesus is the crown jewel of all ancient ruins as it contains, largely preserved, the third largest city in the time of the Roman Empire. We scampered through the ancient site in wonder of just how real it all seemed. I've seen some ruins before, but this was an example of a place we could easily imagine ourselves back in time. There was so much left there, it wasn't hard to dream up a walk down the city center to the second largest library in the ancient world or past the statesmen on their way back from the forum. It was all so real. Afterwards we went to St. John's Basilica, burial site of the Apostle John, and then back to our hotel. The next day we departed back to Izmir and began a series of flights to take us back to Athens.
It was quite amazing, the trip as a whole, when I stop and think about just how many firsts I had accomplished. Beyond my first trip to Asia or the fact it was the first Islamic country I had been to, I'm talking about actually walking down the street and hearing the call for prayer echoing through the street corners. Or being the first Americans some of these Turkish children had any interaction with and trying to leave a positive impression. Or the first time I had haggled a store owner from 30 Euro down to 15 Turkish Lyria for a knock-off soccer jersey. Each one was a step further and further away from what I have known in my life. It even makes my prior travels across Europe seem trivial in comparison.
I have less then a week before I head back to the USA and I'm trying to take every ounce of Athens in before I go. Don't get me wrong, I love it over here and I am so very grateful for my time abroad. I can only hope that I get to spend more time in Europe and abroad some point in my life. But I'm ready for America. I've confirmed just how much I appreciate home in my own heart and what America means to me personally. Many folks are staying over here a few more weeks and trying to accomplish all that they have yet to do or see, but the one place I really want to see at this point is the Statue of Liberty as I'm flying into LaGuardia and the familiar images of Fairfield, Connecticut. That will all come soon enough. For now, well I'm going to catch my breath and enjoy a few my gyros.

Free Airport Internet

This is my first time online in a while as our internet in Ephesus was... well... non-existent. We're back in Istanbul right now en route to Athens so I'll give a detailed account of our Turkish experience one I'm there. Well, thats assuming the internet works there. At the very least I won't have to worry about sleeping while sitting. I've done far too much of that these past few days.

Istanbul Gone Wild!

The Turkish soccer club Fenerbahce just toppled the English goliath (and my personal soccer team) Chelsea 2-1 here in Turkey. The streets of Istanbul are going wild and the echo of sirens, screams, and horns can be heard everywhere. I'm almost scared to go onto the streets it sounds that bad, We would be out watching the game at a pub or something if not for out early flight to Izmir tomorrow. Oh well, watching the game in the hotel was an experience in and of itself. The hotel erupted after Fenerbahce's second goal, leaving us London program-ers in a dismal state. At least the excitement of the city makes up for the loss. So how much you think a knock-off Fenerbahce's jersey price went up overnight?

Bad News

I just went out for a stroll with a few of my friends through the shopping area here in Istanbul that we've been frequenting in search of some post-dinner goodies. One of my friends, who is of Greek origin and was sporting a "Hellas" t-shirt started drawing some taunts from passersby but none gave us too much trouble. We should never have gone down that back alley, but we were looking for a quick way to the coffee shop we had spotted before. Well, a gang of Turkish youths, aware of the past and present hostility between Greece and Turkey, approached and encircled the five of us, jostling the girls and holding back the guys. My Greek friend was held at knife-point and we were all robbed of our money, some losing their cameras and one their passport. We've reported this to the police but they seem of no help. I'll keep y'all informed as we try to recover.

Update: OK, I have an update on the progress of the situation. After a rigorous inquiry and much reflection, it has come to my attention that it is APRIL FOOL'S DAY! Bwahahahaha. And no, this post will not be finding its way onto "A Connecticut Yankee In:"