6/13 I still have no time for a great post.. my apologies

The kids in the schoolyard across the street had a recital of sorts last night. They were adorable. They were all dressed up in white dresses and white suits. The girls danced around with hoolahoops (sp?) and then paired up with the boys later. After the recital, the parents got up and joined their kids. They broke from routine and just went crazy. The kids were jumping around everywhere and dads were twirling their daughters around to the music. The mayhem was unbelievable. May I remind you that this was night time. It was around 9-11 PM. To think this all took place on a basketball court. Can you even remember the last time you danced with your parents? Maybe the last wedding you went to? Maybe it was a Batmitzvah? Did we ever have parties with our parents like that when we were little? It made me smile.

A little clip of the party that is always on the other side of the street and right outside my balcony....



It seems that all of the kids that you never seem to see in the daytime, come out at night. It's too hot during the afternoon, their naps are from 2:30-5:30 PM, so they come out to play from around 7-11 PM. If I was out with my friends that late at night, my parents would have killed me in middle school, let alone in elementary school. It's a very close community here and all the grown ups look after the kids together. I don't know which kid belongs to which parent. They seem to all mesh together with the parents yelling at all the kids together.

I had Greek class yesterday. After learning the alphabet, I can read Greek now; albeit I have no idea what I'm reading. I feel like I'm in first grade again. This is the first time I'm in a country where I do not understand the language at all and no one understands me. At least in Italy I could get by with French. I love Greek though. It reminds me of Spanish because I have to roll my R's... but it's more staccato? Perhaps?... I'll have a better description when I have a better feel for the language. Quick Fact: Museum = Place of the Muses. And it's not Athens, it's Athena.

My art history class scares the crap out of me. Apparently everyone that's taken the class before has gotten anywhere from a C to a D. Great. One midterm, a final, and a ten page research paper. Kill me now. How am I supposed to focus in Greece?

It's not exactly like France or Italy... but it has its own quality about it. I can't say I feel a sense of nostalgia or romance... But it's definitely beautiful. Peaceful amid the chaos.