First I apologize for not personally posting in over three weeks. But how could you be angry – my “College Life Experience – Life Outside of Rindge” has overtaken my life.
You see life in Athens is nothing but routine, anything but average, and full of excitement. Since I last posted so much has occurred, from beach excursions, market bargaining, and island hoping, but I guess we’ll have to skip up to the point of last, the week of Turkey.
We started our adventure by taking a plane to the Island of Samos where we caught a Ferry to Kusadasi, Turkey, where we stayed for a few days. Here we went to the Ephesus Museum, Ephesus itself and the House of the Virgin Mary all hosted by our tour guide “George.”
Ephesus itself was a phenomenal sight. Indescribable in words, but I will try to describe its beauty. To see an ancient city its actual form was incredible. From a library, to a bathroom, to a hospital it is a sight to see the structures of a former society and how they are similar and yet vary from today’s modern society.
The House of the Virgin Mary was a powerful sight to see, one that I will never forget. No matter what ones religion a monument like this is dominant in spirit.
The following day we made a 6 hour train ride journey Istanbul, Turkey where we stayed for the remainder of our trip. Here we went to the Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Topkapi Palace, Archaeological Museum and visited a Turkish Newspaper called, “Today’s Zaman.” You would think we were here for a month the amount of things we did, but it was only a long intensely traveled week.
The Grand Bazaar was an interesting experience- one where our newly intensified bartering skills from Athens came in handy. Often we were told that we were getting “the best quality,” or “best product.” I was never satisfied until I got a product down to at least half the original tag price, and I did this with most all the items I bought from Turkey.
Today’s Zaman was a unique and exciting experience for myself, being a student of journalism. To see how a newspaper is run and produced in a completely culture interests me. The newspaper itself is in English and is one of only two English newspapers in Turkey. It is also the largest overall newspaper with a daily circulation of 750,000 and is the 75th overall biggest newspaper in the world.
Food in Turkey was slightly different but not too bazaar. There were lots of “shish” meals, lots of pizzas and burgers, casseroles and salads. Nothing was like American food but at the same time it wasn’t too odd in taste.
Yesterday, we returned after an 18 hour long bus ride from Istanbul, Turkey. The bus itself wasn’t too terrible; I mostly slept and wished for time to pass by more quickly. It felt good to be back in Athens. After only one week away it feels as if this has become our home, and it feels so good to be back.
Nicholas Vitukevich, Assistant Editor-in-Cheif
Pierce Arrow Blogger
Editors note: The Pierce Abroad: Athens group has been doing too much to just write about. I encourage you all to check out our photos, look at our video clips at www.youtube.com/pierceabroad and check out Alex Terrill and our friends at FPTV-25 as he does a bi-weekly documentary on this trip at www.fptv.com.
Be First to Comment