Week two proved to be a great week filled with new friendships and minimal sleep, as well as more bug bites than I can count.
My week started a little hectic, with a shift in my class schedule. Initially, I was enrolled in Introduction to Biochemistry, though was told by the Food Science Department head that it would be too easy for me. I figured I would go to one class period and see for myself. He was right. The class was very basic as it was for first-year students. Having taken both biology and chemistry at the college level and being a third-year student, I decided I needed to switch to the higher level Biochemistry ASAP. Thankfully, the admissions and professors allowed this to happen, and I have already reaped the benefits by learning some new material and completing a lab. There are twelve of us in the class, which is too big for the lab, so we will now be split into two groups for the rest of the semester. Now I only have to go to lab every other week, so I’m happy about that!
The students in my biochem class are cool, and even invited me out to coffee with them after class! It was a lot of fun, and the cafe was right on the water and super nice. The wait staff also happened to have some of the most beautiful people I have ever seen. We drank our coffee - freddo espresso with medium sugar, please - and shared some laughs and facts about our different cultures. I have already become good friends with one of the girls, K, and I look forward to our friendship growing. They are also a very touchy culture, so I have had to get used to being more comfortable with accepting hugs. I think it has already made me a more open person.
On Wednesday, most of us headed downtown for some shopping. The stores here are usually pretty cheap, along with the food. We stopped at a cute little burger joint for dinner, finding the burgers to be both good and only €2.50! On Thursday, a few of us girls went to our new friend, Lefteris’ apartment. It was fun, but a late night. We didn’t get back to our dorm until nearly 2:00 am! It was worth it, though, and we even got some yummy pasta out of the night.
Friday proved to be a busy day. Our study abroad group went downtown with a professor to take a walking tour and learn some history about Thessaloniki. It was amazing, and we all have a great appreciation for this beautiful city of ours. The arch pictured above was likely built between 298 and 305 AD to commemorate Galerius’ victory against the Persians, earning it the name Arch of Galerius. North of the arch is the Rotunda, which has served many different religions over the centuries. The inside is beautiful, and you are still able to see most of the mosaics on the ceiling. We also saw St. Demetrius Church, which was more recently built, yet still historic and beautiful. Near the church, we saw the Roman Market, which is mind-blowing. The archeologists who unearthed the structures had to convince the city to let them dig, and it is a good thing the officials permitted them. Most of Thessaloniki is built on top of old structures and roads, so it is neat to see a lot of this stuff unearthed and in pretty good shape.
That night turned a little wild, but lots of fun. We enjoyed our first night out on the town! In Greece, and most of Europe, people don’t go out until close to midnight, then come home around 4:00 am. That’s exactly what we did, and boy, were we tired. Thank goodness the weekend is not demanding of homework, and we were able to sleep Saturday away for the most part. Some of us did run into Thermi for brunch, and Des and I shared the most heavenly Oreo pancakes. Our Saturday night was much more chill, but if you ask me, a little stressful. What caused that stress, you ask? A four hour game of Monopoly. Des, Erika, and I spent the night with our friends Stasa, Valerjia, and Srdjan. I started the game off strong and rich, but ended the game bankrupt and mortgaged out. The game never even officially ended, it was just agreed to call it quits due to the late hour and lack of money. After I took myself out of the game, I was able to FaceTime a friend from home and catch up. It’s the little pleasures in life that make you the happiest.
The temperature is still in the 70s here, which is nice, but also making us a little grumpy. The school turned off the air conditioning, as the 70 degree temperatures are chilly to Greeks. But for us, we're still warm! Nights have been a little uncomfortable and sweaty, but we're pushing through it. We were told to open our windows and leave our doors open to create air flow, but that's a little difficult when a breeze is absent from the atmosphere. The windows in our room also don't have a screen, so the mosquitos are feasting on our arms and legs throughout the night. We keep waking up with new bright red bumps every morning! Lord, help us.
Today has been another relaxing day with typical Sunday activities like cleaning, laundry, and enjoying a good rooftop garden hangout. Next weekend will be much more exciting, so stay tuned to find out if I’ll catch a glimpse of the pope. ;)