Sat/Sun 6.5-6.6: Rainy Days, Beaches, and a Week in Review

It has been a little over a week since I've been in Athens; sometimes, it feels like I've lived here for much longer and sometimes, I cannot believe it's already been a week since I landed. The weekend was a little rainy, but nice and cool and though that put a damper on some people's very insistent plans to go to the beach, everything turned out nice and relaxing. It was a weekend for me to reflect on how far we had all come. I know the streets here now [some of them, the main ones], I've taken the bus to work twice, and I've made six dinners. I've dealt with unsavory people and met some awesome ones, and I've held my own in social situations. I can clothe myself, feed myself, and make sure I go to sleep at a decent hour. What I've found is that I'm capable of making it myself, even in a foreign country, which is a scary thought. Although I can, I'm not sure I'm ready to strike it out on my own yet. Still scared, I suppose.

I have also [re]discovered several things about myself in the few short days I've been here.

1. I am not a tanner. I don't like to sit in the sun and roast and people who lather themselves in oil and plop themselves under the sun annoy me. If I wanted to see a roast chicken, I'd make one myself and have the satisfaction of eating it. It's just unsavory to watch a person broil themselves on the sand and getting skin cancer. DO NOT WANT. 
2. I am not a swimmer. I don't like getting water in my mouth and up my nose and, having swallowed sea water before, swimming in the ocean doesn't appeal to me. I have no endurance, can't really tread water, and I'm really short so where the water reaches some people's chests, I'm already swimming. DO NOT WANT.
3. Items 1& 2 lead me to believe that I am not really a beach person. Sand gets everywhere. Salt gets everywhere. People dump disgusting things into the ocean, esp. if it's next to a big city. You step in holes people make, and trip over bottles people leave, and at the end of the day, even though you've done nothing, you're incredibly tired and hungry ALL THE TIME. If I'm going to darken to the color of a burnt cookie, I'd rather do it doing something, like climbing a mountain or riding a mule. Can't just lie there and bake. However, I do enjoy relaxing under an umbrella with a good book (or a beach book, w/e). The waves on the ocean can be very soothing, and I'll admit that some of the best sunsets and bonfires I've ever been to were on the beach. And beach naps are second to none. But still.

I liken going to the beach to my eating a melon. Usually, I'm not a melon person. I'm not sure what it is about them, but I'm just not fond of them. I'll eat them if they're presented to me and I have no other choice (like on an airplane or at a Chinese person's house), but I will never go seek out a melon by myself. There are times, when I really want to eat a melon, but it goes away soon after I take the first couple of bites, and I remember that I really don't want to get sand in my shorts all that much.

So what are you going to do in Greece if you don't go to the beach??
Greece has plenty of history that doesn't involve getting sand in your sangria. And that's what I'm going to aim to do for most of my trip here, I think. Plus, since coming here, I'm rather leery about revealing any more of myself to Greek men.

The most important thing to take from this, of course, is that it's not really where you go or what you do; it's the people you do it with. I've had awesome times everywhere with my friends, especially in places I wouldn't normally go alone. Whether it be chowing on melons or getting sandy, I'm up for an adventure with people I know will make it awesome. :)

Still finding sand everywhere,

Angela