I know something you don't know!

One of the first things we all noticed while trekking the streets of Athens is the incredible amount of dogs. At first glance we were all distraught by the sight of so many dogs with absent owners. Everyone was really affected by the idea of these pups not having a home or possibly going hungry at night. Upon further inspection we saw that all of them have collars around there necks. The collars left us all puzzled. If someone owns these dogs why are they aloud to roam the streets and follow spontaneous groups of tourists?! Each dog had its own character and Khadijah presented each one with a new name, such as Mittens and Rusty. They were all sweet, well behaved, and in need of some company. Some quietly trotted beside us from street to street, while some would stop in the middle of the street, bark at passing vehicles, then catch up to us down the street. In just two days we have already gained over 5 new companions. Upon further investigation (aka. asking Dr. Finitsis), we learned that the dogs are a mix of pets and strays. Some of them are pets of shop owners and are aloud to roam the streets and expected to come home at the end of the work day. The others are in fact strays but they have collars because they are taken care of by the city of Athens. The city provides care and basically "health insurance" for all of the stray dogs. I think it is beautiful that the city cares for these dogs who don't have homes to go to at night. They are all so sweet and make for great entertainment while making the long walks across the city and some even follow us home.

 Something else I learned just today is that a lot of the small cafes only carry small amounts of menus. Our group of twelve shared two menus and ordering became a little challenging pretty quick. To avoid bombarding the owner with overwhelming drink and meal orders we collaborated and wrote it all down for in outside the cafe. When the menu had finished its rounds we handed him the list and he timidly told us it could take 10 mins, which we reassured him we had plenty of time. The owners were incredibly accommodating and sweet. And our meal was $98 for twelve meals and drinks! Another small fact is that we haven't seemed to see any male waiters while eating out. I don't think this is bad, just as another small fact to add to the list. The city of Athens is bursting at the seams with secrets. There are little hidden cafes and fruit shops, as well as secrets of how they care for stray animals. I look forward to learning as many little secrets as I can during my visit to this beautiful city!