It's All Greek To Me

 Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. Our family moved to England when I was just shy of 13 and spent the next 6 years across the pond. This month, as part of an A-Z blogging challenge. I am reflecting on the time I spent overseas during my teens.

G is for Greece

When I think about my travel experiences from these years, I always tend to group them into two categories. Trips I took with school or Young Life and then trips I took with my family. And as far as the family trips go, our trip to Greece is one of my favorites (although, the number 1 spot is saved for a later post). I think one of the reasons I loved this trip was because it was very much a relaxing vacation with just the right amount of sightseeing thrown in. 

Based on the pictures I have, it would seem most of what we did was go out to dinner. But I'm positive we did more than that, I just don't have as much photographic evidence of it. We were staying outside of Athens, right on the Agean Sea but we did spend one day touring around the sites of Athens. 

We checked out the former Olympic Stadium. And greatly amused my sister with our podium poses. 

Honestly, the thing I remember most about our day in Athens was how unbelievably HOT it was. With not a spot of shade in sight. But we still packed in plenty of fun. 

We visited the Acropolis. Looking back at this picture, all the scaffolding makes those columns seem a bit precarious doesn't it? 

We spent most of the rest of our trip closer the hotel. But we got a real taste of the culture and beauty of the area. We ate our weight in Greek Salads and spanakopita, and stuffed grape leaves.

Also, if you're looking for some evidence of how hot it was while we were there, might I point you in the direction of my hair. Goodness that humidity was something! 

We visited some local shops and perused the windows full of art, clothes, jewelry, honey, olives and more. Greece is where I learned that they actually consume more olive oil than any other country. And of course my sister and I had to pick up some handmade sandals. 

And when we were't strolling the streets in our sandals, we were dangling our toes over the sea, swapping sister stories, probably telling our parents to quit taking our pictures and wondering how we managed to get so lucky that this was our life. 

We enjoyed the salt and the sun. (And no sand!)

We relished the sea breeze in our hair. 

We relaxed by the pool with a book in our hands. 

And soaked up every gorgeous sunset. 

F is for Fego

Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. Our family moved to England when I was just shy of 13 and spent the next 6 years across the pond. This month, as part of an A-Z blogging challenge. I am reflecting on the time I spent overseas during my teens.

F is for Fego

I'm hitting pause on the travel button today and we're hanging out around home for today's post. If you read letter A, you know my family moved to England when I was just about to turn 13. And while we had many adventures traveling outside of England, I had plenty of memories from just living my life in my new hometown. The summer before my Senior year ,4 years after I had settled into this town, I got my first job at a restaurant on the local high street. Sure I had babysat plenty but I consider waitressing at Fegos my first real job, which is pretty significant. 

I loved that restaurant. It sat right in the middle of the high street (main town road) and was a sweet little breakfast and lunch spot with the tastiest menu and best customers. I became quick friends with the other waiters and waitresses and while I  had friends that were from all over the world, these were some of my first local friends. 

I served full English breakfasts on plates so hot they left marks on my forearms. I served paninis with bacon that to my American eyes looked an awful lot like country ham. I entertained customers with my American accent or some days tried out my British accent to see if I could pass as a local. I knocked over a jar full of salt and a regular couple clapped and then reminded me of it every time they saw me working from that day forward. I beamed when my parents would come to visit me for brunch and bring my dad his usual order of a cappuccino, milk shake and fresh squeezed orange juice with whatever he ordered. I ate lunch on my break, testing out all the things on the menu. (It's a good sign when you still eat the food at the restaurant you serve at). I bussed tables and rolled silverware. I honed my shorthand skills on my notepad while taking orders. 

I loved my tiny cafe in my tiny town and still think about the days I spent growing up inside those 4 walls. 

E is for Egypt

Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. Our family moved to England when I was just shy of 13 and spent the next 6 years across the pond. This month, as part of an A-Z blogging challenge. I am reflecting on the time I spent overseas during my teens.

E is for Egypt

When I was a freshman in high school, I decided to join the swim team. Now, I was not a swimmer. I mean, I could swim. I grew up going to the pool in the summers and we had a boat when we lived in Annapolis so I could physically swim but as it turns out swimming as a sport is much more challenging. So why did I decide to take on this new challenge at 14 you ask? Because that year, my high school swim team would be headed to Cairo, Egypt for the International School's Sports Tournament (ISSTs). While most school sports teams in the U.S. compete in regional and state and national competitions- most of our regular season sports competed solely against the other international schools nearby.  But at the end of the season one school would host the ISSTs bringing a huge group of international students together to compete. And in the 2003-2004 swim season the Cairo American College would be hosting our big meets. 

So my best friend rallied me to join her on the swim team and I agreed. I will probably share more about my swim team experience in future posts but for now I'll leave you with the fact that while there was one moment where I thought I might drown (in one of my first meets), I did learn to be a competitive swimmer. And then we packed up and headed to Cairo. 

This trip was amazing for a number of reasons including: it was my first trip to Africa, I got to see one of the 7 wonders and I was doing it all with a group of people I loved (a must for a good trip in my opinion).  But before I go any further I have to tell one story that still makes me parents laugh. After my first full day in Cairo (the day we spent sightseeing at the pyramids, the sphinx and Egyptian market), I called my parents to talk to them. They asked me all about the sights and I told them they were "cool, the sphinx isn't as big as I thought and GUESS WHAT! Our host family has cinnamon toast crunch cereal!" 

Are you confused? Let me explain. We had been living overseas just over a year and some of the food choices in England are different from American grocery stores and so having "American" things like a a particular brand of peanut butter, or reese's cups or kraft mac n' cheese or yes, cinnamon toast crunch felt like such a treat and a small taste of home. So when I discovered that our host family had base access, meaning their pantry was full of American nostalgic goodness I was pretty pumped. 

Now 30 year old me is thoroughly embarrassed about my response but I digress. I was impressed with the pyramids, despite my lackluster retelling of the experience. And I actually went back to Cairo as a senior (again for ISST's) and got to see them again and I can confirm that they are impressive- more impressive than Cinnamon Toast Crunch. The Sphinx is also an interesting sight to see, although i stand by my statement that in my head I always pictured it as more towering. Don't get me wrong, its very big and I definitely undersold it to my parents- but pictures in textbook can be misleading. 

Speaking of pictures being misleading... I always imagined the pyramids being in the middle of this desert type area, kind of on their own. But you know what stands directly behind you when you're snapping pictures of the pyramids? A pizza hut. Its the funniest dichotomy to be standing feet from one of the most famous landmarks in the world and at the same time you are steps away from pizza. 

You don't see that in textbooks or in google stock photos now do you? 

I mentioned it earlier but I was actually fortunate enough to come to Cairo as part of our swim team twice. The second time, along with the previous landmarks, we also made a few stops we hadn't gotten to my first visit. We visited The Citadel which is home to museums, mosques and was an important part of Egyptian military in the past. Its a beautiful space architecturally and was truly an interesting space to explore. We walked barefoot across the limestone floors in the robes they gave us and admired the beauty in front of us. 

We also spent some time in the markets which are impressive and overwhelming at the same time. The market we visited was HUGE. It had stalls for so many different things- food items, clothing, jewelry, art, spices. And everyone you walk by reaches out to you with their best offer. As you wind through the labyrinth that the market creates your senses are overloaded and then you emerge on the other side, probably with a trinket or two, unsure how you managed to end up at the same spot you started. 

Whew...I had a lot of words for that one didn't I? My trips to Cairo stand firm as one of the most "exotic" places I've been but stay tuned for letter F because I've got more adventures coming. 
 

D is for Dubai

Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. This month I am reflecting on the time I spent overseas during my teens. 

D is for Dubai

Dubai was not a place I had even heard of before I moved to England. And for any of you readers unfamiliar, it is essentially a "state" in the country the United Arab Emirates which is a country in the middle east, situated on the Persian Gulf bordering Saudi Arabia and Oman. 

My school had a 2 week spring break and each year I spent the first week on a service project trip with Young Life. The second half of the trip we would either relax at home or take a family trip somewhere. In 2007 though, we took a big trip to Dubai along with 6 other families from my school. This made it an even more memorable experience since I had several of my close friends with me. 

Most of our time was spent around the resort where we stayed. We hung out at the beach, the pool, played soccer and volleyball and enjoyed getting to have all that time with just the "kids". 

We ventured out one evening for a boat cruise. One of the dads had arranged the excursion and we got to tour the area by boat. 

We saw the Burj Al Arab Hotel. Also known as the sail. And we headed to the mall one night. The mall? Yes. That doesn't sound like it would be a "tourist" adventure but this mall was pretty special. It had a ski slope...inside the mall! We were also pretty excited about the Cinnabon store because there wasn't one near us at home. Teenagers can be pretty easily pleased guys.

I also got to parasail one day. Normally heights are not my favorite. And while I definitely had some running dialogue with myself in my head about the potential for falling, parasailing was actually really fun! Would I do it again? I don't know, but I'm glad I did it then. 

We made a daytrip to WildWadi, a local waterpark, with one of the waterslides reaching 108 feet (I'm pretty sure I skipped that one). 

And we headed into the desert for dinner one night. We took jeeps to get there, over sand dunes and into what felt like the middle of nowhere. We sat on pillows in the sand in tents, and had a delicious more traditional middle eastern dinner. 

The trip was relaxing and fun. It was exciting and interesting. It was different than so many other places I had been. I got to enjoy it with my parents. And I got to enjoy it with some of the best friends!

C is for Cyprus

Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. This month I am reflecting on the time I spent overseas during my teens. 

C is for Cyprus

At our school, as is common I'm sure for many schools, the senior class often took a trip together to celebrate finishing high school together. Living near London at the time left us some pretty cool options for destinations that were just a short plane ride away. After some deliberation with different ideas being tossed back and forth, we opted to head to Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean Sea. Relatively speaking our senior class was small- only 60 students. But for our school we actually had one of their largest graduating classes. And our of that 60, most people were in and ready to go! So about 50 of us headed off in early June (just days from graduation) ready to celebrate! 

That's me on the left! Sometimes, I feel like I still look so young, like I could pass for high school. And then I see a picture from high school and realize I've changed more than I realize. And when I look back at this picture, mostly I think it's incredible my parents were on board with putting that girl on a plane to Cyprus at 17. 

But off we went! We spent a week living it up in the sunshine.  Exams were done, college and gap year decisions made. The only thing we needed to worry about was sunscreen and relaxing. 

So we spent our days by the pool, soaking up the sun and each other, knowing in just a few days we'd be going our separate ways. I know everyone feels this dichotomy of feelings as they reach the end of high school. You hold joy and sadness in the same hand. But I think in the international community we grew up in, it was intensified. So many of us were going back to our "home countries" after graduation which meant, we weren't just going to different schools but we were going to be countries and even continents apart. So those last few days together were savored. 

How we were going to live life without these people by our sides? There is something so beautiful about this season of life. The impending life changes. The feeling of being on the edge of adulthood while still holding on to your childhood.  We fried in the sun (ok maybe just me on that one), and dressed up for dinner. We toasted our years spent together and what was coming. We went out dancing. And sang karaoke. And drank slushies at Senor Frogs (you have to right?). We got gyros from a cart on our way home. We played games and told secrets and then did it all over again the next day. 

My memories from this trip are sun-soaked, sea-salty, full of music and dancing, out too late, too loud nights in hotel hallways, laughing till your sides hurt and the peaceful joy of a 17 year old whose life is just about to start. 

The day after we got home, we walked across the graduation stage together,  with hair still salty from the sea and sun kissed skin. And I framed the picture above and hung it in my dorm room that fall, holding on to the old as I stepped in to the new. 

Brussels and Bruges and Antwerp...Oh My!

Continuing along today with the April A-Z Blog Challenge and my travel adventures. 

If you popped by yesterday, you know that during this months challenge I'm revisiting my teen years. The years my family lived overseas in England. I want to write down the memories of all the traveling and living we did during those years. So here we go!

B is for Belgium

I was fortunate enough to  go to Belgium a few times while living overseas and was never disappointed. When we were overseas we had a revolving door of friends and families from the states coming to visit us. And on one of those occasions some close family friends hopped across the pond to pay us a visit. This was an exciting trip for me because their daughter was my best friend! And we had been devastated to have to part when I moved. So we jam packed a whole lot of fun into their visit. After tooling around England for the first half we put ourselves on a train to Belgium- specifically to Brussels. 

We spent our weekend in Brussels but scooted over to some other cities via train each day. Day one was exploring our home base, starting with The Grand Place. This is the city center of Brussels and it's teeming with businesses and restaurants. With its stunning architecture and long history it's also a tourist hot spot. While we often like to try and scout out the "local" spots while traveling, we always hit the hotspots too. They're popular for a reason right? 

 As I've grown up over the years, I look back and feel so blessed to have had all of these experiences. 

And while, at times, some of the history may have gone a bit over my head, the value of  time spent with my people did not. 

After our Brussles day it was time to head to Bruges. Now this trip was over 15 years ago so my memories aren't as detailed as I would like. But let me tell you, what I remember clear as could be is how beautiful Bruges was. There are canals that run all through the city which makes meandering down the streets the most pleasant of activities. 

We also did a boat tour, giving us some stunning views of the city. Could it have been a prettier day weather wise? I think not. 

The final stop of the weekend was Antwerp. Fun fact for you...Antwerp is the diamond capital of the world. So what did we do? Went to the diamond museum of course! 

And then there was some sightseeing at their beautiful city center, some churches that were displaying Paul Rubens (woah!) and the necessary stop to snack on some french fries (which are actually attributed to Belgium, not France). Living overseas is where I developed my love of dipping my fries in mayonnaise. But not just any mayo will do- you need the good stuff like what they serve at the Belgian restaurants. 

Antwerp wrapped up our trip and we headed back to England for a few more days before our guests had to depart. And that wraps up the letter B for us here. 

Stay tuned for the next adventures...we'll be headed to the middle east, more of Europe and one of the Wonders of the World. 

A is for Adventure

We're off on an adventure this month! Well technically, I've already been on all of these adventures, but now I'm bringing you along. I am fresh off of a month long, everyday writing challenge. So what did I decide to do? Start a new writing challenge obviously! Today marks the start of the April A-Z Blog Challenge hosted by a number of different people, but you'll find the information and sign up details over on Blogging From A-Z.  My mom has participated in years past and encouraged me to jump in this year as well. So here we are. 

While you don't technically need a topic or theme for the challenge, it's nice to have one I think and my mom actually helped me come up with mine. When I was just shy of 13,  my family moved overseas to England. Over the next 6 years we had the best of adventures as a family and I did so much learning, growing and loving life in those years. I want to be able to remember all the wonders, challenges and excitement from that  period of my life so for the next month, I'll be bringing you along my trip down memory lane. 

A is for adventure. 

It was an adventure leaving the place I was most familiar with and moving to a different country. 

It was an adventure exploring new towns and cities in this new place we now called home.

It was an adventure starting at a new school filled with students from countries all over the world. 

It was an adventure making new friends who I would share a lifelong bond with despite the miles that would someday separate us. 

It was an adventure traveling to different countries with cultures and customs so different from my own. Soaking up every minute (as much as a teenager can). 

And it was the greatest adventure doing this alongside my family.