Between Parkland and Pangrati

My first week in Greece has been quite an adventure for me and has kind of forced me out of my comfort zone into a whole new environment. There are so many new things in Greece that I have seen and done, it’s a little overwhelming. Being in a country where everyone speaks Greek and only some speak English is a whole new experience. The phrase “it’s all Greek to me,” really has shone itself through.

These last couple of days it has been adventure after adventure. On Thursday we drove to the city of Delphi. The towns that were before Delphi were absolutely picturesque. The mountain scenery surrounding the town was breathtaking while the town itself looked as if it was plucked off a postcard. At night the mountain seemed almost illuminated because the sky was so clear. I never thought I would be so lucky to see so many beautiful scenes in my life.

Today we went to a beautiful island off the coast of Greece, Corfu, where the waters are bluer than the sky, and the town is full of rich history and inspired architecture. We first went to a beautiful museum that was gorgeous both inside and out. The gardens went out to a view of the deep blue Mediterranean. My favorite part of that building was the entryway with the multiple levels of staircases leading up.

We then headed off the yet another museum. My favorite part of that museum was the blue and shite ceiling decorations on the second floor (or first floor here in Greece). I thought that it as not only beautiful to look at but also reflected the blue and white colors associated with Greece.

We then went into the main part of town. Here we were only allowed to walk so we had to say goodbye to the bus for a while. We first went to a restaurant for lunch, which we were all happy about since we were quite hungry. This was quite a fancy restaurant and luckily we were all given a 20% discount, which was very generous. I got a smoked salmon pasta thing that was delicious. I also tried some goat cheese, which was heavenly, and the bread and oil, which I normally do not like in the states but here in Greece it was quite delicious.

After lunch we got to wander around the town and see how the architecture was inspire by the Venetian. It would seem that Corfu is between two cultures, Greek and Venetian. This can be seen in the language (which is a combination of Greek and Venetian) and their architecture and their food. We also got to go into a beautiful Greek orthodox church. The ceiling was outlined in exquisite patterns of gold.

My favorite part of Corfu was the fortress that we got to visit. It had a very interesting history because it was used for protection and was able to be closed off from the rest of Corfu. It was made mostly of stone but it was majestic and had a perfect view of the deep blue sea.

I have leaped out of my comfort zone into a whole new world. While back in my home city with the people and things that I have always counted on studying away for a month did not seem like it would be that big of a change. I could not have been more wrong. In just one week my world had been turned upside down (both literally and figuratively). I have experienced and seen so many new things that my visions of the world as I knew it will have changed. I am now between two cultures, the one I left behind and the one I am in but not a part of. This aspect has really put into perspective what it means to be between and how identification can change in regards to environment and the people that dominate that environment.