Things I've Learned in Greece

1. The Heel-Toe Express
Coming from a suburban area, the idea of walking anywhere (other than for exercise) is unusual.  Here, you walk... and walk... and walk.  After only a few days, my legs hurt from the unaccustomed use!  The public transportation is fantastic - except, of course, when they are on strike - but even the distance from the nearest bus stop to campus is a 10 minute walk, plus another 10 minutes from the front of campus to Ladas House.  I believe that this exercise calls for more gyro consumption.

2. Water, Water, Everywhere - and Every Drop You Drink
As you probably know, it gets hot in Athens, and not having air conditioning is common.  Neither our on-campus housing nor the school have air conditioning, and even the buildings in Greece which do have it (retail, for example), don't keep it at the arctic temperatures of American stores.  So, you're going to be drinking a lot of water.  Luckily, we can drink the out-of-faucet water in Ladas, but most of the water that you purchase in Greece is going to come in a bottle - even if you get it at a restaurant - and all of the drinkable water on the islands comes this way.  The tap water is also very soft water; I haven't yet figured out how to counteract the strange things that it does to my hair.

3. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
...and in your hair, your clothes.  Forget the restaurant smoking ban that I had enjoyed in Memphis.  Here, the joke is that a Greek breakfast is coffee and a cigarette, and nearly everyone smokes.  Reconcile yourself to the fact that you may have to shower before and after going to dinner, and buy a bottle of Febreze for your wardrobe.

4. Loos of Last Resort
One of the fellows found this term in a travel guide of Greece, and I couldn't resist using it.  The "loos" that I have seen in Greece are surprisingly nice.  But don't flush the paper!  Luckily, this is not a rule that we have to remember in Ladas.

5. Relax - You're in Greece
Everyone takes a decidedly relaxed approach to, well, everything.  Dinner can take well over two hours in the traditional, laid-back atmosphere of a taverna.  Schedules change, and nobody worries about having things accomplished right away.  The only people who seem to be in a hurry are the drivers, and they drive as if their life depended on shaving a few extra seconds off of their commute time.