Inside My Heaven

08 August 2010

EUROPE - Part 3

GREECE

The Saronic Gulf Cruise

The second day in Greece was a Cruise. Thank goodness for that! After the heat exhaustion we experienced from the day before, the hike up to the Parthenon, we needed to rest! So, we hopped on a cruise ship and headed out to see 3 of the Greek Isles: Poros, Hydra, and Aegina.

1st Island: POROS

It took us about 1 1/2 hours to reach the first island of Poros. During this time, we snacked, relaxes, rested, and watched a few dolphins jumping out of the water alongside our boat. The island of Poros was really nice. We had about 30 minutes there. The small allies were neat, and the shops were very detailed. Of course, you know something had to happen to one of MY students in this short time frame, right? Yes, her and her mother got left behind. They both saw the boat pulling away, and just stood there on the island. Well, it was a simple $200 to take a water taxi for them to meet us on the next stop. I guess they should've flagged us down, or looked at the watch a little sooner, eh?

Pic#1: This is what our cruise ship looked like. See the Greek flag flying at the top?

Pic #2: This is the island of Poros, as we were approaching it. The water is so clear and beautiful!

Pic #3-4: These are a few snapshots of the allies & shops on the island of Poros. So cute, yet so close together!

Pic#5: Of course, Steven would document the moment we were sailing away, when we notice we are missing two members of our crew: (the daughter is the one in yellow shorts, and the mother in a pink top to our right...they had just stood in line to purchase some snacks at a small shop at the top of the stairs to the right of them...I hope it was worth it!)

2nd Island: Hydra

This was by far my favorite of the three islands! We spent over and hour here, and the shopping was simply wonderful! I bought Greek jewelry (necklance & bracelet) with a traditional design on it (the one that represents eternity, that keeps repeating itself) adorned with turquoise. Together, Steven & I a beautiful globe - the water is onyx stone and each country is cut from a semi-precious stone like mother-of-pearl or lapis lazuli.

Pic #1: The island of Hydra, as we were approaching

Pic#2: I just can't get enough of the Greek houses...they are so...GREEK! This pic was taken right before we got off the cruise

Pic #3: A few of the first shops we ran into on the island. If you look at the one that is on the left, that is the store where we bought our treasures.

Pic#4: No cars are allowed to drive on this island. So...what do they do for transportation? Well...they either walk or go by donkey, of course!

Pic#5: Steven & I, just enjoying the Greek atmosphere. Ahhhh...vacation is wonderful, isn't it?

3rd Island: Aegina

This island was for relaxation mainly. We could swim in the Greek waters. We stayed here for 2 1/2 hours. We rented a small umbrella on the beach, ordered a few drinks (non-alcoholic, of course...it's a school trip!), and I sat on the beach watching Steven & some of my students swim. Why didn't I swim? I had a headache, and we were going to a Greek show that evening, and I we didn't have time to change...so I didn't want to get dirty. :)

This island is also known for their pistachios. You could buy them by the kilo, or in prepared bags. We ended up buying a kilo (which was definitely NOT enough), and some Steven bought some interesting jars of pistachio makings--one is a cream, and the other is a honey mixture. Don't ask me what you do with them...but they are currently still on the kitchen counter. The pistachios...are mostly gone. I am trying to make them last as long as possible...but it is tempting seeing them open everyday on the counter top.

Pic#1: Steven swimming in the clear blue waters of Aegina.

Pic#2: The shops we passed on our way back to the cruise. These were mainly pistachio vendors.

06 August 2010

EUROPE - Part 2

GREECE

Our visit to the Parthenon

Okay, so I know it's been a while, but if you go back and read about our HORRIBLE flight situation from earlier, you'll remember that it took us 3 days to get to Athens, Greece. My group was a group of 12. I had already sent a group of 5 early that day, so I had prayed that they made it safely.

Now, Steven is MUCH better at words than I am. So....in his own words (from his own diary...yes, that's right. He was the official photographer & journalist for the trip. What else do you expect?...I had to try and manage the whereabouts of a group of 45, with the majority of them being hormonal teenagers!!):

"Sometime in the early a.m., Tuesday June 15 - Greece. A very appropriate label right now. It not only describes the country we have just entered, but also the relative condition of our personal cleanliness. We are/feel/look/smell so gross right now, not even the livestock-bathing stall that is our hotel room shower can dissuade us from washing. The room is small and Spartan but the air conditioning works and the water runs, and we are content."

That's right. We took NO PICTURES of this day. We were smelly and just plain 'ol gross. We arrived sometime around 2 a.m., and got up at 9 a.m. to see the Acropolis. Well, let me just tell you that communication was NOT the best attribute of our tour director, Holda! So...there my group is (all 12 of us), ready to leave by 10:30 a.m. (as directed to before heading off to bed the night before). At 11:30 a.m., another member of our group (who got re-routed through London, and had landed at 5:30 a.m.) came down to get breakfast and informed us that we were now meeting at 12:30 in the afternoon. Needless to say, we went back to bed for another hour. Yes, this was only the beginning of a SUPER STRESSFUL DAY!

Again, in Steven's words:

"10:32 a.m., Tuesday June 15 - The Acropolis. The Parthenon. A symbolic cornerstone of civilization, and we have to hike there? In the hot Greek afternoon sun?" (I know he wrote 10:32, but we hiked to see the Parthenon at 2:00 in the afternoon, when it was well over 100 degrees outside. You can't even BEGIN to imagine the number of headaches, achy stomachs, and complaining that was going on...not to mention that we had skipped lunch that day--don't forget, my group had eaten at 9 that morning, and hadn't eaten since).

"The darkness of flying in at night kept us from enjoying what surely would have been spectacular views of the ocean, Athens and mountains. Whereas Frankfurt was delightfully unfamiliar, Athens feels utterly alien. The language both spoken & written, is indecipherable. Yet our joy to be here, all together, and at last, is tangible.

That, my friends...was our first day in Greece. EXTREMELY hot. EXTREMELY long. And EXTREMELY frustrating. Although the view, and the experience of walking around the Parthenon was breathtaking.

Pic 1: the view of the Parthenon from the bottom. Yes, it was REALLY HOT. We were all thinking "are you kidding me? We have to walk up that thing now" And all the kids were thinking, "do they have an elevator?"

Pic 2: As you can see, the only way up/down is to walk. It is quite the hike, especially in the heat of the afternoon...but luckily our tour guide took us up bit by bit, and we got to sit and listen to her tell us about history in partial shade (which you can see....there is little to no shade).

Pic 3: We are so glad to have made it to the top! :)

Pic 4: The view of Athens, from the Parthenon.

Pic 5: The Parthenon, in all it's majestic glory. Amazing.

(you can see them doing small repairs to it on the left. They are trying to keep it in good condition. The tour guide said they are ALWAYS restoring bits & pieces of it. You can see some of the columns have white patches in them...that is the part that is restored. But by the time the crane finishes and makes a full circle...it is time to start all over again! ha!)

05 August 2010

SOooooo Sorry!

Let me just apologize.

I am in a funky funk right now.

I just don't know what to do about it.

Seriously, I think there is something wrong with me. You see, I have traveled so much this summer...and now I'm home. It's like I have "vacation blues" or something. It was so thrilling going to Europe. I had a busy time going to Philly and seeing the sites...time passed by so quickly! I had a blast (just not in the heat) when I went to see my three nephews in Arizona. Then, I enjoyed the relaxation of Nauvoo this weekend.

And now...I'm at home. Yes, I am enjoying my new home.

I really am.

I'm enjoying not having to get up early.

I'm enjoying watching talk shows, game shows, reality shows, and late night shows.

I'm enjoying the joy of cooking, cleaning, and shopping whenever I want.

I'm enjoying not being so stressed and putting my husband before school-related things.

I'm simply enjoying everything about my TIME. OFF.

But, why do I feel so silly for yearning to be back on "vacation"? I mean...I'm on vacation (at least from my teaching job), yet I feel like I need to go on another vacation? I want to be anywhere but here. And in 2 weeks...I'll wish I was back here, not going to work.

What's wrong with me?

I need to learn to be satisfied with where I am.

I'm too antsy. I'm never satisfied. I always need "one more". One more beverage. One more milkshake. One more bargain from the clearance rack. One more place to go to. One more minute to finish my online game or movie.

This is definitely not good.

Ugh.

For your pleasure, I'll put some pics up of the new home. I hope you enjoy.

The master bedroom:

The living room:

The kitchen:

The house:

05 July 2010

Europe - Part 1

Well, there is no guarantee that there won't be 10 "parts" to our 12-day experience in Europe. There were so many things that happened (both good & bad), and most of them are "news-worthy", so I'll do my best to give the most accurate description of our travels. I hope you don't get bored on our journey...if anything, I hope you enjoy the pictures. It was quite a trip...so for those of you all that live far away, that haven't heard much about it...I'm doing this for you! :)

Day 1--Sunday, June 13th

St. Louis & Chicago, USA

This is the day that was longer. than. you. can. IMAGINE!

Our group of 45 got stuck in St. Louis...that's right. We hadn't even left on a single plane, and we had no idea what was in store for us. This is the first thing we saw:

That's right...we were the first flight delayed to Chicago! This caused us to miss all of our connections, and our group was quickly separated. We were all so happy...a group of teenagers stuck in an airport, waiting for American Airlines to "do something" about our flights, in Chicago. Look for yourselves:

When we finally got word...we had to run! 17 of us were headed to Germany, and the other 28 we flying "standby" to London. Needless to say, I was in the group that got to experience Germany "at it's best".

Now, the flight was probably the most memorable flight I've been on in my life! On the flight to Germany, I met a guy named Seth. Seth was a soldier headed to Afghanistan, and let's just say...he was "not in his right mind". By this, I mean...he was already waaay past drunk when I met him, and he was high as well. You get my drift....this kid was completely wasted! The mother of one of my students (who was sitting directly in front of me on the plane) was the lucky gal who got to sit beside Seth. If you can imagine...the next 2 hours would be full of Seth: air-drumming, sharing ear buds, yelling to his friend about 5 rows up, talking to everyone loudly, taping his feet, laughing, and so forth. It was quite a site, let me tell you.

So, Deb (the mother of my student), being the motherly-type, listens to him, asks him questions, and is a bit fascinated in this character. She is listening to his music, putting up with his air-drumming, and his yelling...and every now and then, she'd tell him to quiet down. She was a trooper! Then came dinner time. By this time, Seth had quieted down a bit, and was getting tired. His drumming was smaller, and he wasn't as loud. He ate on his stomach...the flight attendant even showed him how to use the fold-down tray. But, Seth, being as crazy as he was...wanted to just use his own belly. Now...Set was all of 100 pounds, I bet. Deb was not as small. After dinner, this is what we saw:

Very picture worthy, eh? Yes, Seth was completely passed out! Every now and then, he'd wake up and "fluff" Deb's arm...as if it was his own pillow. It was hil-arious!!!

So...this now takes us to Day 2:

Frankfurt, Germany

This was nor part of our original itinerary. We had not planned on going to Germany. But, once we found out we could get another stamp in our passport...we were excited.

However, the excitement didn't last for too long. Once we arrived in Germany, we quickly found out that we only had 5 confirmed seats to Athens, Greece. Our group had a total of 17 passengers. So, I went along with Misha, another teacher, to go sort things out...don't we look like we're having a GREAT time?

Well, that is me laughing...yes. However, what the picture doesn't tell you...is this was the third time we'd visited the Lufthansa airline desk...it was so crazy!! After 6 hours of going from the American Airlines desk to the Lufthansa desk, only to do it 3 more times...we finally got tickets for everyone! We were in 2 different groups...but we all had confirmed seats to get to Greece!

So, what did we do in the meantime? While we waited for yet another departure? We ate, of course! For our "trouble"...American gave us vouchers, each valued at 22 Euros each. That is about $30 worth of food for each person. So, here are a few things we ordered...hot dog, potato salad, drinks, dessert platters, etc.

We arrived in Athens, at midnight on the 3rd day!!! Stay tuned for our adventures in Greece. Don't worry...things get better (and a bit worse, too).

28 June 2010

The long awaited day of travel...

Sorry to disappoint you.

But, Steven took most of the photos of our travel experience to Greece.

There is one problem, which is why there are no photos, and I refuse to tell you the whole story of our trip, until we can get ALL of the pictures, and tell you step by step what we experienced.

You see, it all started a few days before departure. We bought a "new & improved" SD card for Steven's camera, and it supposed to be "ooh so nice". Well, new & improved things don't always work with old/outdated electronic items. You see, our computer is old, and my camera is also too old to read the new memory card.

I even thought I was a bit ahead of the game, since I really did think of this BEFORE the trip. I went to Amazon.com and bought a "card reader" that plugs into a USB outlet on the computer. So, I thought we'd be okay when we returned and we'd get to upload our pics using our new SD card reader. Well...this didn't end so well. I shipped the card reader to my parent's address, who live nearby, but they are in Arizona this week...so I can't get my card reader until next week.

Ugh.

Sorry guys, but you'll have to wait another week to hear of our marvelous adventures to Europe with 40 teenagers. :/

For now, enjoy the pic of our HAPPIEST of faces. Obviously, this is BEFORE the drama all started.

Stay tuned for more details & pics...

25 June 2010

Just because I can....

Here are a few pics of our recent trip

to Greece, Italy, & Spain.

Don't be too jealous!

GREECE--

This first pic comes from the METEORA region of Greece. We visited 2 monasteries (one for nuns, and the other for monks). There were originally over 25 built on the rocks of Meteora, but today only 5 are still standing. A.Maze.Ing.

This second pic, is obviously, from the acropolis. Sorry about the random guy's head in the foreground. He wouldn't move. R-u-de. Anyway, we hiked up to the top in over 100 degree weather, at 2pm, right in the middle of the hot-ness, having had no lunch. Yes, I can't believe it myself. This is only ONE of the many "unbelievable" things that happened to us (that were not-so-pleasant). But we'll save the ugly part of the trip for later. Regardless, it was amazing to see such sites as this.

We took a day cruise to 3 of the Greek isles: Poros, Hydra, & Aegina. This was my favorite place to shop, relax, and enjoy the atmosphere of Greece. My favorite souvenirs came from Greece. It was hotter than hot, let me tell you. BUT, well worth it!

ITALY--

Of course, who can go to Italy without going to Pisa?! Little did I know, the leaning tower wasn't the only thing around...there was an entire square of things to visit and see. In the background, you can see the famous tower...but the cathedral in the middle was quite impressive! The large round building you see a small piece of on the left was the baptistery...and oh my! It was incredible. Steven has a video of the acoustics demonstration...it is something to look forward to seeing!

SPAIN--

This is only part of the famous cathedral, La Sagrada Familia, the Holy Family. It will take over 200 years to complete. No, we didn't get to go inside...but to walk around the entire square was simply breathtaking. The total cost of building this is astronomical, but I'd love to go back and see it if it is finished in my lifetime.