Day 2: already calling home for more $!

Today we started the day with breakfast at the hotel. It was pretty good! I had an breakfast quiche that was basically like scrambled eggs, toast, a croissant, a boiled egg, and Greek yogurt. The yogurt here is very different from our yogurt so I wasn't sure if I would like it. It is usually thicker and what we would think of as plain or no flavor added. They had different types of jelly for the toast so I just mixed in a little strawberry jelly. It was delicious! I will probably be having that for breakfast every morning!

Then we had a little overview and syllabus discussion with Beth Ann and Robbie. We had a chance to break into our community groups. I am so excited to be a community group leader! I love my girls even though I have only known them for two days. Our group, Team Aphrodite, spent a few minutes brainstorming about why we chose Global LEAD, specifically Greece. It was so cool to hear why everyone was so excited about the LEAD program. Here are some of the things we came up with: http://twitpic.com/1myb31. Looking forward to more great discussion during community group time.

George Mesthos, an American expert on the Greek Orthodox Church and Immigration, gave an great presentation that was so interesting and gave us a little insight into what has been and is going on in Greece in history and now. He also helped us out with some Greek phrases (but I'm so bad at the language so far)! Beth Ann taught us the phrase "got kefi?". Kefi is a Greek word that describes a mood and it means joy, fun, excitement, etc. I would so describe the first two days with this attitude!

After we grabbed a delicious sandwich at Old Baker's for lunch we went to the ATM and got some groceries. I bought a few things like apples, bread, chips, pretzels, Oreos, and pasta. When we got back to the hotel we grabbed our swim suits & sunglasses and hit the pool! It was so relaxing and I was able chat, nap, tan, and read a few pages of my book (Crazy Love by Francis Chan). Then we showered and got ready for dinner. We ate at this great Mexican restaurant here in Glyfada called Vamos Amigos! All the cafes and restaurants have outdoor or porch seating which is just beautiful! The food, waiters, atmosphere were all great at the Mexican place. It was so fresh, a lot different from our greasy American-Mexican food. I had a cheese quesadilla and rice. It was fun to sit and talk with 6 of the other girls and Beth Ann. We got gelato after dinner. I had a hard time deciding between the more chocolaty flavors and the lighter fruity flavors. I ended up with Lemon, which was good, but next time I plan to try the Toblerone kind.

I promise I will get better at taking more pictures. Today wasn't really packed full of events, we just were on our own for the afternoon and it was kind of a lazy day. But tomorrow we will be touring so hopefully I'll pull out my camera more! Here are a few pictures from today:

This is our hotel pool at night. There are lights and a waterfall that we can see and hear from our balcony.



Me and my roomies Kelsey and Rachel!



The girls after dinner at the gelato place, outside with the gelato man!



My half-eaten lemon gelato. (realized afterwards it would have been prettier if I took a picture before I ate it! haha!) It was so refreshing!



I also realized today that I didn't budget enough money for my trip. In all the hustle and bustle of moving out of my place in Athens, unpacking and repacking at home, and getting ready for my going-away party, me and my parents forgot to sit down and talk about money. So on Day 2 I was already skyping home for more money. I didn't really think about it and just planned on only using my own money from my bank account, but it would be empty by the end of the trip. Even though things are pretty cheap here, with the exchange rate it can get pricey. Thankfully, I have sweet parents who care about my well-being and have decided to help me out with the cost of food. I will use my money for gifts, additional/optional tours and excursions, and shopping- all the extra stuff. Thanks Mama & Daddy and Granny and Aunt Sandra & Uncle Ed and Aunt Sharon for all the help and support! I love and miss yall!

I am so blessed to be able to study abroad on an amazing trip like this! Global LEAD is an amazing program and I'm so thankful for this opportunity. This is going to be the adventure of a lifetime and I'm so glad you (whoever you are reading this) have decided to keep up with me and my blog.

I am so excited for tomorrow! Can't wait to see Ancient Athens! And to share it all with you!

xoxo,
Jenna