The Mediteranean Odyssey

Sorry this has taken so long for me to finally post something but I have finally gotten all settled in with my host family in Florence and set up wireless.

So let me tell you a little bit about Greece. After many hours of traveling with the group of 30 of us including Professor McClean whom we call Alick and our TA Sarah we came to the town of Sounion. This is the location of the Temple of Poseidon and is located on a cliff overlooking the ocean. We went swimming in the crystal clear water where the beaches are at first rocky but then turn into sand once you enter the water. A bunch of us had dinner on the beach and this is where I had my first authentic greek salad, which by the way dont have lettuce! The next day we visited the towns of Mycenea and Epidaurus, Mycenea is where the tombs of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra are located along with the city of the Myceneans which is located on a hill that we had to climb. Epidaurus had a theatre where when you stood in the middle and yelled upwards the entire stadium heard you. Here fig and olive trees surrounded you in this location for healing during the ancient times. We stayed in the port city of Nafplion, which I did not know but was a former capital of Greece. The next morning we woke up at 5 am for a grueling and terrifying bus ride up the side of a mountain to the town of Bassae. I forgot to mention that traveling with us as tour guides and aides were our bus driver Dimitrios and his wife Rebecca who translated in all the small towns we visited. No one spoke English in this little town which only had one road going through it. Goats and sheep roamed freely because of the remote location of the town. We drove to the top of the mountin where the Temple of Apollo at Epidaurus was located. There we were actually able to work along side the local masons and restore a few parts of the temple. The next stop was Olympia where we sprinted in the stadium and were able to see the Temples of Zeus and Hera. We had our first real gyros and baklava in the town which itself was very touristy. Athens was the only real city we visited... it is pretty dirty and a bit rundown but the ancient sites really make this place so fascinating. We saw every site possible including the Parthenon on the Acropolis. Greeks are very welcoming in general but at times Athens seemed a bit dangerous. My favorite part of the seminar was our trip to Naxos the largest of the Cyclades islands in Greece. We took a 5 and a half hour highspeed ferry here and when we arrived at the port all we could see was what I imagned Greece would look like... the blue ocean and the white houses with blue shutters. All the streets were cobblestone and wound up the hills in a maze like fashion. We had a tour of the town which had beautiful flowers everywhere and incredible views. We went swimming on an incredibly warm and sandy beach which had a shelf that extended so far into the water. At night we attended a cultural fesitval where there was greek music, dancing, and culture which was amazing because for the first time I did not feel like a tourist but instead part of the general population. I was surprised at how similar some of the greek music was to Ukrainian... literally i was able to humm along with some of the tunes. The ferry ride home from the island was extremely sad but we were heading to Rome for a day and then finally to Florence. Rome was exciting as always and I do believe that I had the best espresso, or caffe as the refer to it in Italy of my life.

What I wrote above does not give justice to the amazing time that I had in Greece but I just wanted to update you and give you a quick summary. Now onto my first 3 days in FLorence. Syracuse's campus is five buildings located at the Piazzza Savanarola. They have gorgeous architecture and a garden between them where all the students hang out. I have registered for my classes and start on Monday!

My host family is more than what I could have asked for. I live about a 20 minute walk from campus in a stone townhouse built by my host mother's grandfather in 1935. It is at the foothills of Fiesole and is on Via Augusto Baldesi. I live with my host family the Meluccis on the 3 and 4 floor the second floor is rented out and the first floor is occupied by my host mother's parents whose father was a professor of Economics in Princeton and Berkley. The basment has my host mother's brother and his two boys who are the same age as my host mother's children. And next door are my host mother's cousins who are hosting students from Syracuse as well. My host mother's name is Caterina and she is a graphic designer who speaks fluent English. Her husband is named Alberto and he works but I dont know what he does but climbs mountains in his free time. They have two boys Pietro who is 6 and Dario who is 4... they do not speak any English but make sure to teach me things in Italian and have me play with them any chance they get. My roommate Alyssa and I have our own wing in the house with a spacious bedroom, our own bathroom, and an extra room to hold our belongings. I am really so happy and enjoying myself in Italy and cannot wait to start my classes and get into the groove of things.

Sorry for the long message but alot has happened in the last two weeks. Pictures are coming soon!

Ciao and with love,

Tania