The Great Ski Escapade!

Yesterday I finally got to cross off one of my real legit bucket list items. (I have two lists—the real one and the this-would-never-happen-in-a-million-years-but-would-be-crazy-awesome one. This comes from the first.)  Now, for most people this item is a yearly vacation they've been doing since they were 5. But for me, this was an entirely new experience. I went SKIING!!!

So, I'm from Texas right. I can count on one hand the number of times I've been in real snow (not sleet or ice or the drippy stuff that melts after 2 hours. REAL SNOW.) So I loved it. It wasn't freezing outside, but the snow was still a perfect powder. Probably because we were so high up. We left the Artemis at 6AM for the three hour journey to Mount Parnassus. It took almost an hour to wind our way up to the part of the mountain where we bought our tickets (that took forever. With Greeks, you have to be aggressive in line. They don't wait quietly.) But the view was totally worth it. Here's a glimpse of our drive up (taken through the bus windows, sorry about the glare)

Our group had a few experienced guys who had planned on skiing during their free travel and were totally prepared with the right clothes and skills, but most of us were pretty new to the whole thing. Nevertheless, we were EXCITED!!

Part of the group!

First off, let me say this. If you've never skied before, it's probably best to start with the bunny slopes. You're going to have a much better time, embarrass yourself a lot less, and most importantly learn how to turn, and oh yeah, stop. We found out fast that was pretty important ;)
A group of us, ready to jump right into it, hopped onto closet ski lift after riding the gondola lift up the first part. And, well, we went up. Like, ALL the way up. To the top of the mountain.
(Also, let me say this. My exit off the lift was horrible. Horrible as in my foot got caught and was drug around and they had to stop the lift to make sure I was alive. I was THAT person.)
ANYWAYS. At first we we're like WOAH. Dude this is awesome.

THE VIEW. It felt like we we're touching the clouds.

And then we figured out we were going to have to get down...skiing. Which we barely knew how to do (I couldn't get off a lift right...and now I had to get down??!) The experienced ones took to it like pros and were gone, and the rest of us scrambled around, falling and losing our skis in the snow for a while. It was definitely an experience hahaha.

This is my sad trail down the steep slope. I got really good at skiing backwards. It kept me from losing control hahaha.

Finally, I reached the end of that slope with a few others. Turns out that the first slope was part of the red course (aka, the hardest) and we had reached the green course (the middle one), which was where I really had a blast. After finishing it we took a break and then did the same one again (and, I might add, I got off the lift perfectly the second time. So there.) It was so fuuuuun! Just wish we had more time. Apparently January 30 is a holiday in Greece (for the three holy hierarchs? Not sure.)
Oh yeah. Did I mention I had my baby, my really nice SLR Canon rebel T1i camera with me the whole time? I should be given an award because that baby is fit as a fiddle, no harm done at all! (I really wouldn't advise it though haha, I was more focused on protecting it when I fell than I was about falling correctly) I'm so glad I did though. Totally worth it to me for pictures.

Overall, the day was a success. I'm so so glad I had the opportunity to go skiing while I was here in Greece and had an amazing time. Standing at the top of the mountain gives you this feeling I can't even describe. It feels like the whole world is beneath you at your feet. It's beautiful. Feeling super sore and tired today though hahaha.

Today was not nearly so adventurous, but interesting all the same. We got to set foot on American soil for the first time in over 2 weeks. How is this possible, you may ask? Today, the HUG group visited the US Embassy! Alas, I have no pictures to prove this feat, as you're not allowed to take electronics into the building and you have to go through security and have your passport examined. Dr. J had set up a special meeting for us with them just to go over safety basics, how to travel, what to look out for, etc.

Greece fun facts:

• People don't drink to get drunk here, like in America. They drink socially here, which means they'll be sipping on one or two drinks over the course of a couple of hours. They rarely get rowdy drinking. It's just not how they do.

• They DO however, like to protest. Having protests is like an art form to them, and they will do it daily. Most of the time it is peaceful though, and it's not how it's depicted in the media.

• The main thing to worry about when traveling here are the pick pocketers, especially when riding the Metro to Athens or the ports, really touristy places. They will appear friendly or try to distract you, but take advantage of your wallet and your ignorance and naivety if you let your guard down.

 I was able to talk to the vice consul of the embassy, John Reed Payne, for a little bit afterwards which was awesome. Seriously thinking about interning or working with something like this in the future. Wouldn't that be the greatest job ever? They have a two year post in a country, then are moved to a different one. That's the dream life, baby. I want to travel like that. Being here in Greece had opened my eyes to so many more opportunities, changed my view of the world. It's so much bigger than I ever imagined. There are so many possibilities.

Ta ta till next time!

<3 Rachel

PS LEAVING FOR ISRAEL IN T MINUS 4 DAYS :)))