More picts for you to enjoy

July 21, 2011 - Crete

Today was a lovely day on the "swagnificent" island of Crete, specifically; the quaint town of St. Nicolas. Twas a pleasant surprise when no one woke up with leprosy after our trip to Spinalonga. It was the usual routine of class and good taste all day. Academics filled the morning, and we all headed into the afternoon significantly smarter people. In the afternoon there were games on the pool deck for those wishing to exert their bodies. Half the trip went to Todeledokie (a quaint little restaurant down the street from our hotel) for lunch (delicious toasties). Can you parents locate a McDonalds in Crete? I’m sure we would all journey to the four corners of the island for our lips to be graced with that succulent Big Mac sauce. For others the afternoon was filled with frantic essay writing and book reading to meet those deadly deadlines. The Cretean sun is somewhat distracting and some people ate dinner a few shades darker. Speaking of dinner, oh boy is it delicious. Who knows what shenanigans the night holds.

Kalispera from:

Cole, Sam, Eric and Adrian

July 20, 2011 - Spinalonga

Good fortune smiled down on the Gritaly trip today. We voyaged through blistering winds and scorching sun. Nothing could stop us from reaching the tropical destination that is Spinalonga.

After waking up and going to another delicious hotel breakfast filled with Greek yogurt and honey we had a normal morning of classes. We changed up our routine with a trip to the island Spinalonga. We were reassured that there were no more lepers on the once disease ridden colony. Then we all headed back over to the beach on Crete played soccer and cooled off in the beautiful sea. After dinner it was time to hit the books, by the pool of course!

July 19, 2011 - Crete

Another beautiful sunny day in Crete has passed. The sun was especially hot today at a temperature of 36C. A good way to cool off was to get some fruity drinks at a fun local restaurant, where students caught up on their daily chit-chat after classes. After a delicious lunch with friends, many students wound down at the beach, having fun splashing in the salty sea. This was a great break, as most hit the books hard in the afternoon on the pool deck. With mid-term marks just having been posted, students are pulling up their socks and getting ready for the busy week ahead of us which includes exams, essays, books, and other related assignments. We all are really enjoying our stay in Crete, and are excited to be visiting Spinalonga tomorrow!

Chloe Zivot, Claire Bourque, Brenna O’Leary

July 17, 2011 - Knossos Palace

Today we woke up on the Knossos Palace (our ferry) which docked at 6 a.m – everyone was exhausted. Breakfast was served, and we quickly got on our tour bus to visit the actual Knossos Palace, an ancient Minoan society landmark. After touring around and learning about this new culture, we enjoyed fresh lemonade and strawberry slushies. When we got back on the bus, we made our way to the market downtown for a quick lunch and some souvenir shopping. After we left we finally got to see our last hotel – Hotel Hermes in St. Nicholas on the island of Crete. The beach is beautiful, with clear blue water right across the street. The pool is also amazing, as well as the rest of the hotel. After a quick meeting, everyone had an hour of classes, mostly to review our midterms, and then we had free time to tour the town until dinner. The hotel served us a lovely buffet, and we had the night off to further explore our new temporary home.

July 16, 2011 - Athens

This morning we woke up in Athens to spend our first and only day in the city (for now). We checked out early and prepared for the busy day ahead of us with amazing breakfast offered by the hotel. Our group then took a bus to the Acropolis, where we met our tour guides ready to educate us on the sites. We climbed to the top of the Acropolis where we were fortunate enough to have an amazing view of all of Athens. We visited the Parthenon and various other structures built within the middle of the 5th Century. Mr. Mabrucco gave us a quick philosophy lesson about Socrates, Plato and other famous Greek philosophers. After the Acropolis our group visited the Museum of Archeology where we were able to see many artifact including jewelry and weapons used by the ancient Greeks. The museum also had ancient statues found all over Greece on original buildings like the Parthenon, other temples and tombs. As soon as we finished at the museum, we took the bus to the middle of the city, and on the way had the opportunity to visit the first ever Olympic Stadium. We were given 3 hours of free time to explore Athens, and appreciate the delicious food. After a long day of exploring Athens we all boarded an overnight ferry, which was comparable to a cruise ship to enjoy dinner and some relaxation.

July 15, 2011

BEWARE THE IDES OF JULY. If you have ever read Julius Caesar, like we have, you will understand our joke.

Today, July 15th, was mostly a travelling day. We woke up at 4:30AM so that we could take a 2 and a half hour bus ride to the Rome airport. The plane departed at 10:35AM, and the group of students just barely made it onto the flight. After a 2 hour flight, we had to wait in the bus for a student because he had lost his luggage. This is the second time the airport has lost an Italy/Greece student’s luggage on this trip! Fortunately, our bad luck seemed to end upon our arrival to Athens, and everyone was exited for our new exploration of Greece. After a 45 minute bus ride to the hotel in Athens, we relaxed for a couple of hours. Some people went to the pool, others did laundry, and the rest just took it easy until dinner. Dinner was buffet style, and it had a very wide selection of food. The hotel was 4 stars, and although we were only staying for one night, it was still very nice. Instead of going out that night, we decided to enjoy a relaxing evening in the hotel, and many people started their CPT essay. Some of us however, got together for some old fashion fun and games. The Ides of July was halfway point of our trip where we transferred from Italy to Greece. If you are really missing us, just know that our trip is half over! We all miss everyone at home, and the next 2 weeks will be filled with beautiful beaches and blue waters.