I finally got to Athens yesterday, after almost a day of traveling and no sleep. Flying in to Athens, I was amazed by how big the city is. Even though we flew into the airport that is in Athens it took us almost an hour by taxi to actually get to the apartments. The taxi driver we had was a crazy driver, but it seems everyone is here. They told us at orientation today that although Athens is the safest city in Europe it has the highest rate of motor vehicle deaths.

My apartment is nice but also small. We do have a balcony with a table and chairs, which is nice. Our apartment is in the Pangrati area of Athens, which is only about ten minutes away from the Academic Center. We have air conditioning in the bedrooms but unfortunately the one in my room is broken. It is so hot here! It’s also a lot more humid than I was expecting. There is a really nice bakery directly across the street from our apartment and the woman who works there is half American and has already taught us some Greek phrases.

I haven’t really seen much of Athens yet, just our neighborhood and the academic center but we have a walking tour tonight and almost all of tomorrow to explore. Hopefully, I finally get to see the Acropolis and other famous sites. This weekend we have a field trip to some archaeological sites and then a picnic/swimming on the beach. I think next weekend my roommates and I are going to go to Mykonos and then the next weekend Santorini.

I only get steady internet access in the school building but sometimes we get it in the apartment so I’ll try to update often.