Olympia

For Anita's last day (booooo) we decided to drive to Olympia.  It is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Patra, and since Brian has Monday mornings off from practice we thought it would be the perfect thing to fit in.  As I'm sure most of you know, Ancient Olympia is the site of the first ever Ancient Olympic games.  The first official quadrennial Olympic Games were declared in 776 BC by King Iphitos of Elis.  By 676 BC they were open to all Greek males and reached the height of their prestige in 576 BC.  The games were held in honour of Zeus, popularly acclaimed as their founder, and took place around the first full moon in August.

We weren't quite sure what to expect but it is actually an archaeological site with remains of what once was a magnificent combination of athletic complexes, similar to what we

 now know as Olympic village.  Unfortunately due to fires and many earthquakes, there is not much remaining, but it is still an idyllic place to visit.  I am going to copy a little exert from my travel book to give you some history on the ancient games.  "The Olympics were undoubtedly the Ancient World's biggest sporting event.  During the games warring states briefly halted their squabbles, corporate sponsors vied to outdo each other, and victorious competitors won great fame and considerable fortune."  Sounds fairly familiar to what the Olympics still constitute today.  One main difference back then being that only men could compete ("and they did most of it sans underpants."  Interesting lil tid bit).  It was an exciting place to be, and lucky for us there were not TOO many tourists.  We went on the perfect day, not too hot or too cold, and not too crowded.  We practically had the place to ourselves at some spots and y

ou could imagine the buildings completed standing tall amongst some of the very first athletes of our time.  One of my favorite spots was under the arch leading into the stadium (pic above with Brian & I).  You can feel the energy that rushed through the many people who have traveled under this arch, some to compete and most to experience an ancient historical site.  You can imagine that it must have been similar to seeing football players as the rush the field from The stadium is just an open field surrounded by hills (there was no formal seating for the spectators, only the judges).  It is still a breathtaking sight.  

Here is some more info if you are interested.  "The athletic festival lasted five days and included wrestling, chariot and horse racing, the pentathlon (wrestling, discus and javelin throwing, long jump and running), and the pancratium (a vicious form of fisticuffs).  Originally only Greek-born males were allowed to participate, but later Romans were permitted.  Slaves and women were not allowed to enter the sanctuary as participants or spectators.  Women trying to sneak in were thrown from a nearby rock.  The event served purposes besides athletic competition.  Writers, poets and historians read their works to large audiences, and the citizens of various city-states got together.  Traders clinched business deals and city

-state leaders talked in an atmosphere of festivity that was conducive to resolving differences through discussion, rather than battle.  The games continued during the first years of Roman rule.  By this time, however, their importance had declined and, thanks to Nero, they had become less sporting.  In AD 67 Nero entered the chariot race with 10 horses, ordering that other competitors could have no more than four.  Despite this advantage he fell and abandoned the race, yet was still declared the winner by the judges.  The games were held for the last time in AD 394, before they were banned by Emperor Theodosius I as part of a purge of pagan festivals.  In AD 426 Theodosius II decreed that the temples of Olympia be destroyed.  The modern Olympic Games were instituted in 1896 and, other than during WWI and WWII, have been held every four years in different cities around the world ever since, including (to much celebration in Greece) the 2004 Olympics.  The Olympic flame is lit at the ancient site and carried by runners to the city where the games are held."  Below is a picture of the site where they light the torch!

It is all so interesting!  So glad we were able to go see it.

Life in Patra

Here are some more pictures from our trip to Athens.  Since my last blog Brian and I have been introducing Anita to our domestic life here in Patra.  We have been bowling, to the movies and to lots and lots of meals.  She is enjoying the Souvlaki and Pita (Gyros) as much as I do :-).  On thursday night Yanis, a guy on Brian's team, took us to this really cool bar near the center that played only classic Rock N' Roll.  It was decorated with posters of bands from U2 to Aerosmith to Bon Jovi to Metallica.  It was a really cool place.  On Fri. night we hosted Yanis and Billy for a Mexican meal!  They had NEVER eaten Mexican food before, can you believe it???  We found a market that had some tortillas and avocados and I made some really good guacamole and tacos and we made margaritas.  I think it was a hit.  They liked putting hot sauce on their tacos and ended up crying and sweating all night, but they didn't want to look like they couldn't handle it.  It was really fun.  

For the last three days we have also been watching lots of water polo.  Brian's team (NOP) hosted a tournament this weekend for three other teams.  Two from a town near Athens and the other team here in Patra (named NEP).  On Fri. night they played a team from Vouliagmeni that has another American player on it from the Olympic team, Tim Hutten.  Brian's team won 8-5, Brian scored one goal.  It was good to finally see their team in action!  They have a lot of potential.  It was also good to see Tim, he met us out last night for a drink.  We will be seeing him again next weekend when the tournament travels to their home town.  On Saturday Anita and I went shopping and then to see Brian play the hardest team in the tournament.  They lost by a few but it's ok because it was a really tough team and they are still working out the kinks.  Today they played their rival team, NEP.  There is a HUGE rivalry here between the two because NOP, Brian's team, has been around for basically forever.  At some point some disgruntled players broke away from NOP and created their own team here in Patra, named themselves NEP and gave themselves dolphins as mascots as well.....as you can see they started the rivalry right away.  The rivalry continues on, even more so now because they are currently having to share a pool.  NOP's pool is a really cool outdoor pool on the sea.  Unfortunately, once it gets cold the team can no longer practice there because it costs too much to heat.  They have to bargain with NEP to use their indoor pool for practices and games, and obviously this is quite a challenge.  Their practices are now starting at 9pm at night, often times they turn the lights out on them before they are even finished.  We will see if there will ever be a mutual solution to this problem, after witnessing today, I am not optimistic.  The game started off week for NOP.  The boys, maybe not being used to having to wake up for a 12 o'clock game, seemed a bit sleepy the first half and were down 4-1 after the first quarter and by half time they were down 5-3.  After half time they woke up and started showing NEP what they had and things really got exciting.  It was a very physical match and we all discovered that Brian's coach is quite the screamer!  But Brian scored three goals, the last two being the two winning goals, and NOP won 10-8.  Brian was quite the star after the game.  We were all so happy they won!  After the game we heard that someone (rumor is someone from NEP's "family") had written an article on the Internet basically saying that NOP was going to lose SO badly against NEP that families should not bring their children to the pool to witness such a slaughter.  It was very harsh.....they showed them!  Hopefully they will keep it up and kick their butts next weekend as well!!!

Kefallonia

The last two days Anita and I have been on a Greek Island adventure!  Despite the non-beachy weather we decided that Anita HAD to see a Greek Island since she traveled alllll the way out here.  Without any planning we decided to be spontaneous and just do it.  The closest, and easiest island to get to from Patra is Kefallonia.  It is a good sized island just west of the mainland and I had heard wonderful things about it, so we decided to go there.  I had  been avoiding driving here in Greece for pretty obvious reasons but it was determined that in order to really get the best experience from the island we would need a car.  Brian generously offered us the car for the two days, and for my first experience behind the wheel in Greece, I drove him to practice.  We knew we had to get on a ferry to Kefallonia, but we weren't sure which one.  We also weren't sure exactly where we should stay, so with ignorance on our side I drove us towards the port around noon, having heard a rumor that ferries leave for Kefallonia around this time.  We found a travel agency that sold us our tickets and we drove towards the enormous ships that set sail daily.  These ferries are not the ones I had always pictured ferries to be.  From my experience ferries were the small chug boats that might take you from NY to Staten Island.  Despite my insistence that these giant ships must be cruise liners, they in fact are the vessels that ship people, and vehicles, from one island to another.  I had never driven a car onto a boat before, but the belly of the ship opened up and I did just that.  The ferry ride to the island was very enjoyable.  It was a beautiful day and we sat on the top level taking in the beautiful scenery.  Minus the smoke from the ship's chimneys billowing in our faces it was an enjoyable 2+ hours.  We learned that the capitol of Kefallonia is Argostoli and that we should stay there, so once we departed the ferry with our car we headed straight for the Argostoli signs.  We had anticipated the drive to be somewhat scary, knowing the tendencies of Greek drivers and Greek roads, but I think I handled it fine and after a quick gas break and to blow up our flat front tire we made it to Argostoli.  Argostoli is a beautiful sight to drive into from the mountains.  It is a small town that sits in a bay.  Once you arrive into the city it is not all that impressive so we checked into the first hotel we found that looked suitable, happy they had an available room last minute and decided that we needed to find a beach, since that is why you go to the Greek islands.  We drove about 10min. and found our first Greek Isle beach.  It was getting later in the day and it is late in the season so there were only a few people there, who left shortly after we got there.  We did not mind and we relaxed on the beach chairs and settled in until the beach boy started stacking the chairs.  Afterwards we decided to walk around the town, have dinner and look in some shops and then hit the sack.  The next day we were on a mission to find the beach we had heard so much about.  It is called Myrtos Beach and it was in the Lonely Planet Greece book I have (thank you Leonor & Francisco) with a picture, and it looked like every beach you imagine to be on an Greek island.  We drove about 45min. and it started to rain.  The drive was beautiful though, up into the mountains, along the coast, Anita said it reminded her of driving in Hawaii.  We did find the beach and it was everything we had imagined.  The water is this perfect turquoise/royal blue color.  Since it was sprinkling there was just one other couple taking pictures, so it felt like our own private island.  These pictures above were taken here.  The water, despite the complaints of the Greeks, was warm to us Californian standards, and we stuck our feet in.  Once we got our fill we headed back in the car to Sami, the part town where you get the ferry back to Patra, and incidentally the town where Captain Corelli's Mandolin was filmed.  We had about 4 hours until the ferry arrived so we decided to check out one of the many caves that is mentioned in all of the travel guides.  It is not a massive cave but big enough to hold concerts, which also incidentally have been damaging the stalagmites that call this cave home.  It was still an impressive sight, and we were glad we were able to fit it in.  After the cave we headed back into town for a long, large lunch of Pizza and wine and we waited for our ferry home.  The ferry home was much less enjoyable then the one there because of the rain and we had to sit inside the boat with the smokers and nagging children, but we survived.  We got home and I safely got us to my apartment in one piece.  I am now a confident Greek driver.  

Souvlaki Heaven!

I felt I had to devote a whole blog to this simple, yet amazing dish, Souvlaki.  Our last night in Athens, Anita, Brian and I went in search of a yummy dinner and we stumbled onto a block that was brimming with cafes and restaurants and we knew we had found the spot.  We sat down at a small restaurant and ordered one order of the chicken souvlaki, thinking we would just all three share it, since we weren't THAT hungry (riiiight).  After our second plate we were stuffed but all had grins of satisfaction on our faces.  There is something about this dish that makes it so special.  It might be that you get a hardy meal for under 2 Euros, in most local places, but in my opinion it is the combination of all the tastes mixed together that make it so perfect.  There is a garlicy, oniony, lemony zest to the chicken that is divine, coupled with pita bread (yumm) and tsatziki sauce (yumm yumm) and the onions and tomatoes (yumm yumm yumm)......THEN on top of it all they give you the perfectly salted potatoes (french fries) that add a cherry to your sundae.  As you can tell I could eat Souvlaki every day....and have eaten it most here.  After that comes the gyro, and my Greek diet is complete. 

Athens with Anita!

Sorry again for taking so long to write but I have been in Athens for the past three days.  Anita came to visit!  YAY!!!  I took the bus to Athens to meet her there on Fri. and we had a weekend packed with sightseeing.  We stayed in the best situated hotel in Syntagma Square.  Within walking distance to everything we wanted to see.  Of course the first thing we did was set off for the Acropolis.  What a magnificent sight.  You can almost see these buildings from any point in the city.  They hover over Athens as if looking over and protecting a heritage of thousands of years.  The history of Athens is what has really taken my breath away.  As you walk up the marble stairs to the Parthenon (in the picture) and the Temple of Athena Nike you can only imagine what it might have looked like at the height of the ruling Greek era.  It is truly unbelievable how this structure was made without any of the luxuries we have now in the world of architecture and construction.  We stayed there for a while walking around and taking pictures (I will post more pictures because we took A LOT).  Then we headed down and back up a hill (in the top pic) just under the Acropolis that offers the most beautiful view of the city.  We sat for almost an hour talking and enjoying the view.  Athens is HUGE.  Something like 60% of the population lives in this city.  Houses creep into every crevice of every mountain, and the Acropolis looks down on all of them.  To be honest, the city is a little too packed for my taste.  I am glad to have the opportunity to live in a smaller more laid back town like Patra.  Athens is rich with history and archeology but is also filled with tourists, traffic and strangely enough, stray dogs.  After a long day of walking we had an early dinner and went to bed.  I introduced Anita to veal souvlaki and a Greek Salad, that I have to admit, did not live up to its Patra standards.

The next day, Saturday, Anita and I went off by foot, in the rain, to see the archaeological museum.  We wanted somewhere to get us out of the rain but where we could continue to appreciate the antiquities of the city.  The museum was impressive but filled with pottery, bronze artifacts and Greek statues that we admittedly got a little sick of after about an hour.  After this we hit the department store!  Anita talked me out of buying $250 shoes (I am going through shopping withdrawals) and all we left with were some underthings that I needed since we JUST got a washing machine (FINALLY!).  After two days of walking and sightseeing we were tired and had an early dinner and hit the sack.

Our hotel was right next to the Parliament so on Sunday morning Anita and I woke up to catch the changing of the guards.  It was an elaborate ceremony.  The soldiers, dressed in the funniest outfits, marched down the street right in front of us led by a band.  The soldiers wear funny little shoes that have pom poms on the top and wood bottoms that make a loud stomping noise as they march away.  Once at the front of the parliament they do a series of rituals (that we couldn't see b/c we were behind a crowd of people) and then march off.  It was fun to be a part of.  Afterwards we walked back to the Acropolis to see some more of the ruins that we missed the first day and then Brian came to meet us.  The three of us walked through the National Gardens that were massive but didn't offer a whole lot to see.  There was a small zoo that entertained us for a while with peacocks, billy goats, bunny rabbits & donkeys and there was a pond with a ton of turtles that was also fun to watch.   What we really wanted to see were the Greek Baths!  We kept walking and ended up at the Temple of Zeus.  This was one of my favorite sights in Athens.  It is only a small portion of what the temple might once have looked like but you can still understand the enormity of what it was and it has a presence that is magical.  Here we found some baths!  We had fun deciding how they might have looked like and what the Greek men and boys might have done there....oh the stories.  After, we kind of stumbled on the Ancient Olympic Stadium that housed the very first modern Olympics.  It is beautiful, all in marble, and so well preserved.  There was some sort of set up for a concert of some sort that kind of ruined the view, but it was still cool to see.  After we walked to the War Museum (which was closed!).  Later we met a friend of my cousins for coffee and then off to dinner.  I am going to write more on this tomorrow.  I think I have caught up as best as I could for now!  Please keep checking in, I promise to be much better at writing from now on!  XOXO.

Sorry I haven't written anything in a few days.  We broke our Internet stick.  My computer fell off of the couch, oops.  Well I am back!  This picture is of a frappe, or "frappedaki" as Kate calls them.  Greeks have at least one a day.  They are basically iced coffee with blended milk and sugar.  They are pretty good, but I mostly drink them because everyone else does, haha.  I don't think Brian really likes them so much.  

Yesterday we went to Billy's house to celebrate his mother's name day birthday.  Here they have days that celebrate certain names.  Like the first week we were here it was Alexander day, so Brian enjoyed that.  It is basically like a birthday celebration, people bring you gifts etc.  We should definitely pick up this tradition back home.  Billy's mom cooked tons of food, it was so nice to have us over for their family celebration.  After that we went to a beach called Poco Poco b/c they were celebrating the last day of summer.  It is a really cool place, a bar and restaurant on the beach.  It was definitely a celebration.  Lots of drinking and sunbathing.  They had a special guest, an entertainer guy who Billy calls a "sissy girl" so... you can imagine.  He had on an interesting outfit, red cowboy hat and everything and was dancing and singing on the bar when we got there (and of course I did not have a camera with me!).  He eventually walked around dragging his microphone chord singing and flirting with the boys.  I think he especially liked the water polo players with their shirts off.  Brian was just uncomfortable.  The entertainer guy even took a picture with us as we were leaving, I guess he liked us.  

Poco Poco was right on the money as far as naming the last day of summer.  Today we had our first thunder storm.  Unlike the ones in California, the thunder actually shakes the ground.  The rain has started.  I have heard there is not really a Fall here....there is a summer and then there is a winter.  So I guess here comes the winter.  We will now get to see what the indoor clubs and restaurants look like, can't wait!

CONCERT

Here are some pictures of Brian, myself, Fotis and his girlfriend Maria at the concert we went to last night.  It was Greek musicians (I have no idea their names) but it was still good, good music is universal right!?  We got there too late to get a seat though, so after 1 1/2 hours of standing we left early.  It was still a cool experience.  The concert was on the field of a huge futbol stadium.  You can see the stage in the background.  There were three singers, two females and one male, with like 10 musicians accompanying them playing all sorts of instruments from the violin, keyboard, guitar, to the Bazoukia (sp?), which is a Greek instrument similar to the guitar or banjo.  The male singer was especially good, and is Fotis's favorite so he and Maria sang along.  It was a true Greek experience.  Afterwards we went for dinner (at midnight) and had gyros at a yummy restaurant near by.  In the picture you see them making faces.  This is the Fotis face when he wants to say that something is really nice, Brian has picked it up.

The night before last Maria and I went for a little window shopping in the center.  It was nice of her to get me out of the house and I got some things I needed, like a hairbrush and some lotion.  Then we walked to Libido, a cafe/bar in that area where the movie theater is that I mentioned before.  We sat on the roof and had some wine while we waited for the boys to finish up practice.  We had a nice conversation.  Her english is very good b/c she studied in the UK for 6yrs.  She now works for the government and we talked about an interesting situation that is happening in Patras right now.  There are many Afghanistan & Pakistan refugees that have arrived here fleeing their countries.  They come to Patra because it is such a ferry hub and they try to get on a ferry or truck to Italy or Germany.  What has happened is that the police here have not been able to stand up to them and they have grown in numbers.  They are quite harmless but they have become quite a nuisance because they are constantly fleeing from the authorities and have created a small community, building shacks in what was once a high-end part of the city.  You can see their shacks from the street and you often see them loitering around the beaches and walking the streets.  For Greek women they pose a threat simply by their appearance but she has said that they never do any harm, they don't even make eye contact with you.  I had actually not even noticed them until Brian came home one night and said there was a riot going on in the street by the port.  Refugees were on one side of the street and cops were on the other and the refugees were throwing rocks at the cops, breaking windows and creating quite a driving hazard for the cars trying to get through.  Maria says that the government has said that they need to do something for these people, have a place where they can go for clean water and food and a place to sleep, but she is weary at the reality of this happening since they have yet to actually name a location.  I just find it all interesting, there are struggles all over the world.  Now I am off to the gym, will write more tomorrow!

Yesterday was pretty uneventful.  Brian has Mon. mornings off from practice so we went to get a coffee (and see if we could find brkfst anywhere, no luck).  We went for coffee at a cafe in a shopping area that has cafes, a GIANT children's/baby/toy store and a movie theater.  We went to the movies last week and the movie theater is actually REALLY nice.  They had the most comfortable chairs and all of the candy you could want from a self-serving candy station, it was awesome.  We saw WANTED with Angelina Jolie, you should ask Brian what the guys here call her.  Let's just say they are big fans, not to mention I've noticed that women aren't exactly respected here the same way they are back home, but I guess that is nothing new in Europe.  The strangest thing happened though, right in the middle of the movie, just as I was getting into it, the screen went black.  Brian and I both went, oh no, it broke.  But the lights came on, everyone gingerly got up, some went to have a cigarette, others to the bathroom.  Apparently they have intermissions here at every movie.  We just thought that was stupid.  Oh well, what do we know.

I wanted to share with you my kitchen appliances in the pictures above.  I think my aspirations to become a gourmet Greek chef have been destroyed :-(.  As you can see, Greeks do not have the same "super size" mentality that us Americans have.  Not everything has to be bigger and better, just cheaper.  The "stove" actually works fine (we didn't know what to do with it so we propped it on a chair).  The refrigerator, on the other hand, is not just small but it is also old and barely closes so we heard a rumor that we will be getting another one of those (probably same size) but I don't believe it until I see it.  You never really know what you're going to get here, I've realized.  I'm learning to live with it.  On a brighter note, Emanuela (the other girl in the picture below with us) invited me over to her house last night (after our workout) for dinner.  It was so sweet of her and we had the best dinner.  Ema, Kate and I just devoured our food, but it was comforting to be able to just relax and eat with friends the way I am used to, haha.  Her mom cooked us chicken and steaks and potatoes and broiled green pumpkin (sounds weird but was pretty good) and hard boiled eggs (first egg I've had since I've been here) and Ema made a delicious salad.  For dessert we had little ice creams on a stick dipped in chocolate.  Everything was perfect.  After that we sat in her room, played on the Internet while she gave a fashion show, haha, it felt just like home!

Sea Bath

Yesterday we went for a "Sea Bath," or what we commonly refer to as "going to the beach."  It was a little beach called Lekopetra about 35km South of Patra.  It was a perfect day and I relaxed and read in a beach chair, under an umbrella, while Brian played volleyball in the water with his coaches' kids and paddle ball with his team manager Fotis.  The water here is calm, no waves, and it is the perfect temperature to just relax and float along.  It is not the crystal blue clear waters that surround the islands but it is still wonderful.  I could really get used to this.  I think it is a common Sunday excursion until it gets too cold so hopefully we will get to enjoy the beaches for a few more weeks.  People in Greece really know how to relax.  After the beach we went to an adorable restaurant overlooking the water.  We ate a ridiculous amount of food, again, and then headed home to relax some more.  Fotis joked that the Greeks invented so many things because all they did all day (in ancient times) was lay in the sun, get fed by their servants and come up with things to do, like build the Acropolis!  You kind of had to  be there but the way he put it was hilarious.  

The eating patterns here are quite bizarre.  Nobody eats breakfast (or at least we have not witnessed it nor been able to find a restaurant that serves anything but coffee and toast in the morning), then people have coffee in the afternoon, a HUGE lunch around 2 or 3, and maybe a light dinner around 10pm.  By lunch time Brian and I are starving and about ready to pull eachothers hair out but are either out of groceries (our refrigerator is about the size of the one I had in my 12x12 dorm room freshman year of college) or cannot decide on a restaurant to go eat (or the one we want is closed!).  (Side note - I might get this wrong but Mon. & Wed. everything closes around 2pm for the day.  Tues. Thurs. Fri. everything closes from 1:30ish-5ish and then re-opens until around 8 or 9.  Sun. everything is closed.  As you can imagine, you have to be really on top of when you are going to go shopping).  We have begun to sincerely appreciate the availability of food in the States, from giant super markets with everything imaginable (including pre-made meals) to our quick favorite eating spots, eating here is either a 2hr social event or a private cooking bonanza at home.  Neither one necessarily suits either of our personalities yet and we are amazed that there are not EVEN MORE obese people in the states, what with all the amazing available food at their fingertips WHENEVER they want it!

FOOD, FOOD & MORE FOOD

All we have been doing for the past two days is eating!  The food here is AMAZING.  On Fri. night (after my intense workout with Kate [girl in the picture with the white sunglasses]) we went to dinner at this adorable restaurant in Rio.  Rio is kind of the upscale suburb of Patra.  It is right off of the Rio Bridge, which you see Brian and I standing in front of in the top picture.  Rio has some of the best restaurants and bars for the summer because they are all outside.  The bars sit right on the water.  At the restaurant we ate souvlaki (chicken on a stick), kebabs (not what we think of as kebabs), pita, greek salad, potatoes (french fries, they eat these with EVERY meal), tsatziki sauce, everything was to die for.  Especially the kebabs, but Billy says not to order these everywhere.  They are a mixture of different kinds of meat and he said you never know when they'll try to slip some dog meat in there, EW!

Yesterday (Sat.) we went to Billy's house for a barbecue.  We were asked to bring two bottles of Havana Club Rum and we couldn't find it in any of the markets so we stopped at this OUZO store in the center and met the NICEST old lady.  Apparently she and her husband have owned the store for 40+ years and it had been in her family for 2 generations!  We will be going back there for all of our Ouzo from now on!  Brian's whole team was at the bbq (you can see most of them in the first picture above).  As you can see everyone was having a great time!  There was so much food, we almost exploded.  Billy cooked on a huge cement bbq, with a chimney and everything.  He bbq'd souvlaki, chicken, sausages and the girls were in the kitchen making Greek Salads and Caesar Salads and Potatoes and cleaning up after the boys!  Brian was outside manning the bar, making Mojitos.  It was REALLY hot so each boy would come inside in the kitchen and stand under the air-conditioning for a minute and then head back outside, it was pretty funny, everyone was sweatin, thank God for air-conditioning!  After we just about stuffed ourselves silly Billy came out with PASTA!  Amazing pasta with chicken and chunks of mozarella and parmagiano reggiano.  After that there were ice cream pastries and a cake and then that was it, no more food for a week.  This is when the party really started.  Billy started coming out with TRAYS and TRAYS of shots.  It started with this drink called Tedura, a dark cinammony kind of alcohol that was sweet but pretty good.  Then started Tequila, Vodka, a BLUE vodka.  The boys started to get silly.  Yanis, a player on Brians' team said, "do not worry!  We go get a cafe and all is good."  So Yanis, his gf Vaskia (sp?) Brian and I headed to one of the bars/cafes in Rio and Brian and I had a Fettocino (basically a milkshake with coffee) and then we came home and passed out.  What a day!!!

St. Andreas Church

I have changed my template, thoughts?  I like it better b/c you can see the pictures better.  Anyways, this picture is of Brian in front of the biggest, most famous church here in Patras (they use both Patra and Patras).  It is the church of St. Andreas and is named after Saint Andrew who came to Patras to preach Christianity during the reign of emperor Nero and who was crucified as a martyr.  He has ever since been considered the patron saint of the city and the relics (which consist of the small finger and part of the top of his cranium) have been kept in this church since 1964 when Pope Paul VI sent them back from The Vatican.  It is well known that the Greeks are very religious people and you see people making the sign of the cross whenever they cross in front of a church.  There are many superstitions in the Greek culture, one of them being that it is bad luck to see a priest outside of a church.  One solution for many of their bad omens is to spit twice on to your collar, I kid you not.  

There is a guy on Brian's team named Billy who has gone above and beyond to help Brian and I with everything we need.  He and his gf Kate (the seatbelt avoider who I mentioned yesterday) have really gone out of their way to make sure we are feeling at home and welcomed.  Lucky for me Kate is an aerobics/tae-bo/personal trainer and she has snatched me up and has been taking me to her gyms.  She is INTENSE.  The girl does not have an cm of fat on her and I think she could beat Brian up, but she is the sweetest thing and I am so appreciative of her for getting me off of the couch and sweating!  It was an interesting experience, my first time to the gym with her.  First of all I have to tell you, when I was waiting for her to pick me up (with her scooter, no helmets [ok I'll stop]), I was sitting on our front steps of the apt minding my own business when out of nowhere this little homeless girls with tattered clothes, matted hair and some crummy bike pulled up next to me and plopped practically in my lap.  I looked at her and thought, ok this girl is either a professional pick-pocketer (think Oliver) or I have just made a new friend.  She procedes to talk to me energetically in Greek, which I respond, "I am sorry, I do not speak Greek and I cannot understand you."  She didn't care, she went on and on...even screamed at me about something, hit me on the arm and pointed in the opposite direction (I glanced and held tighter onto my purse).  I just looked at her and shrugged.  Finally she just pulled out a juice box and was content with my company.  Luckily, Kate showed up and jumped onto her scooter gladly getting away from the uncomfortable child.  As I turned around to get one last glimpse the young girl trotted off leaving her juice box on my door step.  She must not have been that thirsty afterall.

Back to the gym.  The first gym Kate took me to was a cute, one studio gym in the center of Patra.  She taught an aerobics class that I gleefully participated in, trying my best to follow along with her Greek commands, ena, thio, tria, tesera, pendeh, exi, epta, okhto, enia!  That's 1-9 in Greek.  What was a little bizarre though was the owner is an older women who has muscular dystrophy.  She sits behind the counter SMOKING A CIGARETTE and telling Kate what to do, who to pick on, how fast to go etc.  It is an interesting situation, one Kate is even annoyed by, but I thought it just another quirk of Greece!  We are going to her other gym tonight, which she says is much better.  Mekhri Avrio!  Until Tomorrow!

Here are some pictures of our new ride!  As you can see, I think Brian could pick it up over his head, but it is surprisingly roomy inside!  It is brand new and has air-conditioning so we are more then happy with the little sucker.  It is easy to park also, a very important attribute in this city of traffic.  Brian is managing to drive with no major problems.  I am amazed everyday at how the people in this town manage to survive the roads on a daily basis.  I first hand have experienced riding on the back of a motorcycle here (sorry mom) with no helmet.  It is a sobering experience.  Safety devices in Greece seem to be very pase and I can count the number of helmets I have seen on one hand.  All you see are bopping heads everywhere.  Youngsters on their cellphones, driving in stilettos, weaving in and out of cars......so irresponsible (I'm getting so old).  But seriously, even seat belts seem to be only an annoyance.  Just last night I went out with a couple of girls and the girl in the passenger seat (Kate, a guy on Brian's teams' gf) buckled the seat belt BEFORE getting in the car and sat on top of it so that it wouldn't beep.  She went to all that trouble instead of just putting the darn thing on.....as you can see, I am bewildered by this.  Anyways, besides quite a few missed turns Brian seems to always get us to where we want and need to be.  We wonder if we will ever successfully be able to drive in this town with out magically arriving at our destinations.  Thank God for the Sea, if all else fails, drive towards the Sea.

On another driving note.  We learned today that the drive from Athens to Patra (the one we traveled just a few short days ago) is one of the most dangerous drives in ALL of Europe.  I think when we traveled it I was too jet-lagged/delirious to fully notice.  What I did notice, and what Dimitris pointed out to us, was that it is a one lane "highway."  One lane being a VERY loose term b/c people in Greece see this as merely a suggestion.  In reality it has been turned into more of a two lane highway, with slower cars creeping onto the shoulder and faster cars freely passing on the inside, going both ways mind you.  When I say faster cars...I mean all cars.  There is a state of mind here in Greece that everyone needs to be in front.  So, you are challenging all drivers for first place on a one lane freeway going about 200km/hr.  Did I mention it was curvy and had cliffs off the side?

There is not some magical gene in Greek people that make them talented race car drivers either.  Apparently about 20ppl die on this freeway every week and you see the results of these deaths with little crosse

s and mini memorials sprinkled all over the sides of the freeway in memory of those who have perished.  The drivers also fail to take the GIANT signs on the road telling them "DANGER many deaths have happened on this freeway" seriously.  I say this because Dimitri  translated these signs to us on our drive with a little chuckle.  In conclusion, Brian nor myself will be picking anyone up from the airport who will be visiting us, sorry.  We have researched other modes of transportation and there is a bus and train (I recommend the train, although we've heard they derail quite often) that will take you right into Patra from the airport.  SAFE TRAVELS!

Brian and I have taken to going on little walks almost daily to get acquainted with the streets, cafes and shops around our apt.  This square in the picture is called Psilalonia (sp?) and is just down the street from our house.  It has cafes and restaurants surrounding it with a little fountain, statue and some sort of circular empty space, I am not quite sure of its purpose.  I like the palm trees :-).  The picture below is for anyone who knows my cat, Whiffle.  I found his ancestors!  Who knew he was Greek!

When we first arrived we were told everyone was on "Holiday" but to wait and in no time this town was bustling with people.  Brian and I walked to the main center a couple of days ago, which is a square similar to the one in the picture but much larger and with much more going on.  I was taken aback because I had not really understood the vibe of Patra until we got there, and after spotting a Starbucks (I gasped aloud with joy), I realized this town is much more happenin then I had originally thought.  Just off of the main square (Vas. Georgiou Sq.) there is a street called AG. NIKOLAOU.  This street is lined with outdoor cafes, shops, hotels, and is apparently the place to see and be seen in Patra.  It was packed with people (you wonder if people work here) sitting in the cafes, drinking their frappes and enjoying life.  At the end of this street are the giant ferries that take you to Italy or Corfu or Kefallonia or anywhere else romantic you can think of.  Being on this street really gave me an appreciation of where I am.  It gave this town a life and an attitude that I had missed my first couple of days here.  After that we found Sephora and my day was complete ;-).

To my family & friends, and whoever else is interested in my adventure, I hope this blog is somewhat entertaining and keeps us seemingly closer then we really are.

So we finally got Internet!  To start things off our trip to Greece was long but pretty uneventful.  Thanks to Kate we had a place to stay in NYC for our 16hr layover and then on to our 9+hr flight to Athens.  Luckily we had our own row so we sprawled out and watched the little plane-ticker fly across the globe.  Brian's coach, Dimitris picked us up from the airport.  We were fooled by the abnormally strong wind at the airport to just how hot it actually was until we got on the road.  Thanks to the sputtering air-conditioning in the car we survived the 3hr drive (also thanks to a McDonalds stop to get a cheeseburger & frappe [more on those later]).  Just as we were pulling into the pool in Patra my motion sickness was kicking in so I was more then happy to jump out and meet some of the players and get a tour of their outdoor pool.  The heat really hit us then and we gladly accepted some Loux juice (Patra made, they are very proud).  The pool is really cool.  It is pretty big and sits right on the Ionian Sea (I keep getting corrected that here it is not an ocean, it is a SEA!).  Brian's team is called NOP and they are young but have some good players (according to Brian).  I think they are looking up to Brian a lot to be a leader and admire where he has come from, especially after the USA boys won a Silver Medal!!!  They will play only a few games at this outdoor pool until it gets too cold (and too expensive) to heat.  After that they move to a very large indoor pool (seats about 4,000!!!).  We have heard their fans are CRAZY and I cannot wait to see what is in store.  Their first game isn't until Oct. 25th so we have a while to wait.

These pictures above are from the bedroom window of our apt.  As you can see, we have a beautiful view of the sunset.  We look down into the backyard of a church.  It is nice not being surrounded by apt. buildings, which are everywhere here.  For the most part it is a great place.  Good size, and as quiet as an apt. in a city can be.  Besides the church bells at the wee hours of the morning and the bizarre street sweeper at 11pm all we hear are the typical buses, motorcycles and car horns that are common within any cities limits.  If you look closely from either of our two porches you can even see a sliver of the ocean, which is very comforting to this beach town girl.  We are slowly by slowly making this apt. feel more like home.  When we showed up, to our surprise, there was no furniture, only a small (twin or full sized is debatable) bed, a table in the kitchen with ONE chair.  This was obviously not acceptable so the next day Dimitris, Mary (Fotis the team manager's gf [more on them later]), and I went to a store that is the equivalent of IKEA called Protiker (they even have the blue/yellow signs).  Mary especially helped me stock up on all the kitchen supplies we needed and we got a couch and coffee table and some chairs.  It is still a very meek decorating job, but I am encouraging Brian to invest in more homely items like rugs and pictures for the walls!  Haha, this will be a challenge but I am sure by April we will have this place spruced up :-)!  Well I think this is enough for now.  I will write more tomorrow and post more pictures!  I miss & love you all!