"What is this place?" -"Uhh...Awesome." GREECE!

     Well if I'm being honest, Greece wasn't awesome until we got there after 21 hours of traveling. After an hour at the train station Monday night trying to find ways to get to the Milan Malpensa airport, we finally figured out the most convenient way. And here it was:

1. Catch the 12:45 AM bus from Florence SMN train station to the Florence Campo Maria train station 15 minutes away (the last train was at 11:08 and our train from Campo Maria wasn't until 1:45 AM, so we didn't want to hang around there for 2.5 hours if we didn't have to. And good thing because that place was SKETCHY. The "station" was a place where all the homeless people went for a warm place to catch some shut-eye, while those who were traveling didn't dare get to close.)
2. 1:45 AM train from Florence to Bologna Centrale where we waited for an hour till our next train. This train was lovely. Our seats we paid for were occupied by scary looking men, so we didn't dare fight them for it. Also, everyone's cabin doors were closed and covered with the curtains. So we decided to sit in the hallway and wait. Am equally sketchy man offered us a seat (there were two of us), so we shared the seat while being stared at by 5 Italian men. I pretended that I couldn't understand them, because, well obviously, I didn't feel like talking to them. So, I pretended to be really confused and answer incorrectly in hopes they would let me sleep. But, when I heard them say they were from "Napoli" aka Naples aka the sketchiest place on earth, I knew sleep was out of the question. I HAD TO GUARD MY BELONGINGS! But, nothing happened and we finally reached Bologna. There, since it was 3:15 in the morning, it was absolutely freezing and there was no more chairs, so we resorted to sleeping ontop of our bags that we placed on the ground.
3. 4:15 AM train from Bologna to Milano Centrale. This train was equally entertaining/draining. Once again, our seats were taken and we found 2 together in another cabin. But, only one of us had a seat in that cabin (it wasn't me), but we weren't about to split up! I got in there before the guy with the ticket, and old Italian men helped me settle in as the angry, seatless man stared everyone down. He and another guy with a seat got into a fight about how no one had seats and he'd have to find one because everyone was settled. Instead of finding another, he stood outside our cabin and stared at each of us. Creepy. So, again, another sleepless train ride. When we finally arrived at 6:15 in the morning, we were exhausted, cranky, hungry, and tired.
4. 6:30 bus from Milano Centrale to Malpensa airport. I finally got some sleep!
5. 11:00 flight from Malpensa to Athens. We had a 5 hour layover so we decided to venture out and get some food. A taxi driver ripped us off and took us about 25 mins away from the airport and charged us an excessive amount. We complained a little and then enjoyed our lunch. Wanting to get back to the airport on time, we struggled to read the Greek letters that covered the signs of every "bus stop" on the long street. After waiting for 40 minutes and no bus, we hailed a taxi. This guy said he wouldn't take 5 girls because there weren't enough seatbelts. Thankfully, another taxi was driving by so I asked him, he agreed, and we ditched the first guy. Well he grew very angry and tailed our taxi for a good 10 minutes before pulling along side him on a narrow two lane street to flip him off. Luckily, our driver was cool and just stepped on the gas and brought us to the airport for half the price of the first cab. 
6. 7:30 PM flight from Athens to Santorini. We got to the tiny airport around 8:15 and were met by a cute, chubby, old guy with our hotel name on a sign. He drove us about 20 minutes around a mountain and led us to our hotel that was about 15 ft. from the water. Finally, our day of traveling was over. 

          After getting the keys to our room and information of the activities of the island, we threw our bags down and went out to find the nearest bar. We figured that would be the best solution to potentially the worst traveling day EVER. So we walked along the water for a few minutes and came to the Beach Bar...original name. Figuring this would be our best bet, we went in and had a few Long Islands and saw on the couches by the sand. After it got cold we went inside to watch the soccer game. Greece was playing Real Madrid so we had some conversations with the bartenders about which soccer players are better and which ones are just popular for their looks (a.k.a. Christiano Ronaldo). After the game was over (they lost 1-0 to Real Madrid) we decided we could use a good night's sleep, so we headed back to our cute little apartment.

Shelbs!

           Day 2 started with a nice little surprise: given the time change we all accidentally slept in an hour! Oops. Once we finally rounded all the troops, it took quite some time for everyone to get ready. The "shower" was an issue given that it was just in the middle of the bathroom. There were no curtains or doors, AND we had to wait a few minutes for the water to go from freezing cold to scalding hot. Oh, and when we checked in, Steve warned us not to drink the water and after brushing our teeth the night before, we understood: it was salt water. So showering in salt water didn't make us feel the cleanest of clean, but what could we do? Also, 5 girls had to share 2 tiny mirrors. That didn't work out too well either, but we managed. So, continuing with day 2, we had no idea how to get around, so Steve told us where we could catch the bus into town. We found our way to the bus stop, waited for 15 minutes before realizing it probably wasn't coming, and then decided that we wanted breakfast/lunch at the bakery we passed. This bakery was amazing! They had nutella croissants, sugar doughnuts, pizzas, calzones, water, yogurt, EVERYTHING! And it was cheap, so you know we went there a few times. So we got our cheap pastries and decided to rent a car! That's when good old Shelby entered our life. Cars there are so cheap! It was 20 euro/day so it basically cost less than the bus would have, and we could stay out as late as we wanted because we had Shelby for 24 hours at a time! So we finally got our day started when Shelby took us to the little city of Fira. Fira was beautiful! We just wandered around there for a little bit.

View from Fira

This was where we found all the shops and got to find our way through all the little alley ways and up and down all the stairs you see in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants! We got lunch at this cute, but pricey, restaraunt that overlooked the water; but by lunch I mean 3 different types of wine and then some Bruschetta. We're college students! After that we continued to wander and just get our bearings. We naturally got lost on the way home (this was a daily occurrence), but we recognized a Sponge Bob sign and knew where we were! Once back, we decided to relax in "common room" of our hotel. (I'm not sure if it was a hotel or hostel. The rooms were super nice, but there was a bar, pool, common room, computers, chairs, couches, and a shelf with DVDs to watch on the big screen or books to read.) Either way, it was an awesome spot! After relaxing we went to dinner and then out to a local bar with some Aussies we befriended at our hotel. There was this one really drunk/crazy/braless in a see-through top Australian chic who no one was a fan of and she kept grabbing me thinking I was too shy to dance when, in reality, she was just really sweaty and I didn't want her touching me.  Our bartender saved us and brought us some drinks and then proceeded to teach us how Greek people dance. Once we got the hang of it, the locals would throw napkins at you and I guess that means they liked our dancing? Anyways, we finally escaped the loud noise, smoke, napkins, and the drunk Aussie and took refuge in our cozy beds.

The Boys: Zeus (post accident), Big Red, and Orange Julius

           Day 3 started a little earlier than Day 2, but it brought much more exciting events! After prolonging the moment, we finally had to return Shelbs (but don't worry, she makes a come back!) But then we rented...The Boys. Zeus, Orange Julius, and Big Red took us on an all-day tour of the island. All the things we ended up seeing weren't really what we meant to see that day, but wanted to see eventually, so it was a good day. After renting the boys (ATVs) we made a pit stop for gas and breakfast at the bakery again. Then we hit the road. While trying to find our way around, one of the boys got in an accident with a vespa. Thankfully it wasn't the ATV I was on, but I was right behind them and got to watch the whole thing. Driving the vespa was a 15ish year old boy and what was probably his girlfriend. We wanted to stop and take pictures at this lookout spot and he must not have seen us have our blinkers on so he passed us (on the inside?) and colliding. Zeus stood strong and was fine but the boy and his girlfriend got a little bloody. It was pretty awkward because we all stopped to see if they were okay, but we couldn't understand Greek and they hardly spoke English. So, we just waited around anyways, and a few minutes later, a group of teenagers came flying up the road like they were in the Mafia. We thought they were really mad at us because they sounded like they were cursing and one of them threw a broken peice of the vespa across the road. We really thought we were in trouble then. But they told us to wait right there and they drove away. Trusting people. But we did and they returned with a girl who spoke English. She asked what happened and then asked if we were okay and then sent us on our way. ????? That's not how things work in America, but I like it! We were all shocked and weren't really sure if it was okay to leave or not but after they left we bolted for our ATVs and went the opposite direction! Needless to say, we looked both ways and always used our blinkers after that.

Ancient Thira and the view

Me with my tablecloth sweater.

But continuing on with our day, we ended up finding our way to this beach that was really remote and pretty. We took some pictures, played in the rocks they consider sand, walked around some of the shops and then headed out again. We stumbled upon this ginormous hill that had a winding road all the way up, so we figured why not?! It got a little scarier the more we kept going, but once we finally reached the top it was amazing! After parking the boys and walking up the rest of the hill, we found the Ancient town of Thira that was supposedly from 300 BC. Since it was a national holiday in Greece, there weren't any tours, so we just made our own as we walked through the maze of a town. These people must have been midgets because the walls were like 3 feet tall. The town reminded me of Pompeii a little, but with prettier views. After an hour or so of wandering around, we were ushered our by the workers, which we didn't understand because they weren't there when we arrived. But we made our way back to the boys and then down the steep, steep hill and had a late lunch. This was my first experience with Greek salads, and might I say they are sooooo goooooddddd. And there's nothing to them! We ate at this pretty restaurant that overlooked the water and cliffs. It had started to get cold, and once we got up to leave it had begun pouring rain. Lucky us. So the owners told us to sit and wait it and, and because I didn't have a jacket, the lady brought me a tablecloth to keep me warm!

Ancient Thira again

The rain didn't stop, but we got tired of wasting time in a restaurant when there was more of Greece to see! So we cleaned off our seats and headed out to catch the sunset at the lighthouse. We were told that we had to see the sunset in two places: the lighthouse, which was at one end of the island, and from Oia a.k.a. Sunset Village, which was at the other end. So, since we were close, we decided on the lighthouse and made it just after the sun set. It was still pretty though! But freezing. After sunset, we returned to the hotel and hung out in the common room area with our Australian friends and ordered takeout. After deciding we didn't want to venture out to the club again, we rented a movie from Steve and headed back to our room to trade normal American words for funny Australian slang!

Boat that took us around

At the top of the volcano

          Day 4 started off a little bittersweet. We returned the boys but got Shelbs back! We got the bakery again (obviously it was that good!) and headed back to Fira. This day we had plans to go on a boat tour to see the volcano and swim in the hot springs. It was supposed to be a warm day, but Greece tricked us. We hiked down the ridiculous amount of stairs to get to the port, only to be lost and not know which boat was ours. No one was really great at giving us information, either, but we finally figured it out and hopped on the right one just before it was supposed to leave. Of course, being that it was cold and we were the last ones on, we had to sit up at the top instead of the heated inside. We survived. We eventually made it to the volcano and were given an hour to walk around and check it all out. It was so windy that we couldn't hear the tour guide so we ventured on by ourselves. It was pretty scary because it wasn't very safe up there, and it was extremely windy so we felt like we were going to blow right into the volcano or craters. There were even little kids who weren't able to walk because the wind kept blowing them back. It was hilarious! And some were even crying! I'd be scared if my parents took me to the top of a volcano that was due to erupt "sometime in the next 100 years" and it was so windy I couldn't run away. Anywas, yet again there were amazing views at the top of the volcano, but it's Greece so we expected nothing less. After some time on the volcano, we headed back to the boat, which then took us to the Hot Springs. I was really looking forward to the hot springs, that is until they told us the temperature of the water we had to swim through to get to the hot springs, as well as the temperature of the hot springs. They probably thought we were all stupid tourists and wouldn't know how to convert Fahrenheit to Celsius, buutttt I can, and I was NOT going in water that cold! It was i think 50 degrees in the regular water and then 71 degrees in the hot springs. I'm pretty sure my pool is warmer than 71 degrees and I don't call that a hot spring, also, why would I want to get into freezing cold water only to come out and sit on a boat as the wind whips by. So I said No, Thank You and waited on the boat. Two of my friends went, though, and tried to convince me that it wasn't that cold, but I didn't care. It was enough for me just to see them. Plus, they had to wait on the outside of the boat until they were completely dry before they could go in the and change, so HA!

Diego and I. (See what I mean about the steep stairs)

          After we finally reached land, it was DONKEY TIME! This was by far my favorite part of Greece! The donkeys were so cute, but feisty, so I liked them! I named mine Diego and he was awesome. He was very calm in the begining, but I think that was because we were stuck two of my friends, because whenever he was an opening he would bolt to be ahead of everyone. But then my friend Mackenzie's donkey liked to pick on Diego. We suspected that her donkey and my other friend's donkey were a couple, and mine was the player that liked the girl one in front of us. Mackenzie's donkey would purposely stop in the middle of the walk and wait for mine to catch up and then he would run us up to the edge. At first it was weird and a little scary having a donkey run mine up to the edge of a steep staircase, but then it just became hilarious. He was doing it on purpose and his ear would shoot back and he'd sprint at my donkey. I felt bad for the people around us though because we were having more fun than they were. The only thing wrong with the donkey ride was that they didn't have reins. People walking down the stairs were at out mercy and I almost ran over a few kids. Also, Diego got a little spunky after Mackenzie's donkey started picking on him, because he bucked a lady's donkey behind me, and then tried to bite my foot. I forgave him though, because I think he was just crabby. I would be too if I had to walk up and down 600 or so stairs with someone on my back.
           Once we made it to the top, we shopped around and then met up with Shelbs and went to Oia. This was where most of the scenes from Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants were shot, and we understood why! It had the prettiest sunset! And it was also what you imagine when you think of Greece. It had all the white houses and buildings with the blue rooftops and water in the background. We had some dinner and then made our way to this lookout spot that our waiter suggested to us, and then we waited for the sunset. It was absolutely freezing, but totally worth it in the end!

After the sunset, we headed back to Shelbs and then to the hotel. We got lost again and drove around for about 20 minutes trying to read the Greek road signs in the dark. We finally noticed something familiar and went with it and it led us to Sponge Bob, which led us home. We got a few drinks at the bar and popped in another movie and played a few games with the Australians!

Red Beach

          Saturday was our last day in Santorini, so we were up early to get the bakery and re-rent Shelby again. We made our way to Fira again for some last minute shopping and to ride the donkeys again! We made a deal with the guys to go all the way down and up for a discount price because we were repeat customers and there were 5 of us. They agreed and we were on our way, but half way down the guy made us turn around and go back. He wouldn't explain why, he just kept saying "Up, Up, that's what you pay fo." Sooooooo, we were all a little upset but I was a brat and wouldn't leave until we all got half our money back, since we only got half the ride we paid for. I think our guide didn't really understand, he probably just did as he was told by the guy we made the deal with, who happened to be hiding in the back of a nearby store. He finally came out and gave me the money back once his workers kept calling for him because I wasn't leaving. But oh well, we got our money back and a short donkey ride in before we left! After donkeys we had a last late lunch on the water and headed to the red beach to check that out. It's exactly what it sounds like: a red beach. It has red hills and red rocks and red sand, so it was cool to see. We hung out there for a while and then headed to the lighthouse for another sunset. This one was a perfect sunset! It was soo pretty and we got to sit down and watch it for like a half hour before we had to leave to catch the shuttle to the airport.

Sunset at the Lighthouse

Everything went smoothly with our flight, and we landed in Athens around 10:30 PM, which was not a smart idea. Athens is veryyy scary, especially if you are traveling with a group of girls at night. In the 3 blocks from the metro stop to our hostel, we received cat-calls by every guy we saw, and we were followed and taunted by a select few. Our hostel was locked, which we thought was weird because they knew we were coming, but then again we understood given the area. After setting our things down we were starving and so we asked the guy at the desk for suggestions. He said there was a good, fast place on the corner but "it is safer to take it back here and eat it." Hmmm that made us feel safe. But he was right. Getting the food was an experience. Everyone was either blowing kisses at us and looking us up and down or they were cracked out of their minds and talking to themselves in the corner. We just huddled together and watched each others backs after a local walked by and told us to do just that: watch out purses and our backs. Never have I ever felt more scared for my life than I did in Athens. We got our stuff and bolted back to the hostel to eat in the cafeteria! After dinner we went to bed.
The next morning, since we had a few hours until our flight, we ended up checking out Athens. In the daylight, we counted 9 syringes in the 3 block walk from our hostel to the metro. Good thing we were leaving! Central Athens was really cool! We went up to see all the old buildings and read about all the myths and rituals the ancient Greeks used to do. After that, we went into town and did some shopping at the markets. Everything was so cheap, we couldn't pass it up.
Soon enough we were all ready to make our way to the airport and relax. It was another long night of traveling, except this time we were smart enough to catch the fast train from Milan to Florence, so we got home around 11:30 PM. Greece was amazing, but after 10 days of traveling, I was happy to be home.