I’m No Pirate: An Afternoon in Delos, Greece

Whenever anyone asks me what my favorite day in Greece was I don’t say my birthday exploring the Parthenon or watching the sunset on the cliffs of Santorini  (Both of those activities are ranked immediately after this.).

Delos was my favorite.

A small little island, off the coast of Mykonos, it is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island are among the most extensive in the Mediterranean. The island is uninhabited and accessible by a 30 minute ferry ride from Mykonos. With a student rate of only 6 Euros it’s worth the little excursion. There is no food or water establishments present on the island so be sure to stop by the local markets in Mykonos to get some water and pack a lunch.

Grab a map from the visitor center and begin your fun archaeological scavenger hunt, searching for the best preserved spots on the island. For my friends with limited mobility the lower ruins are relatively simple to maneuver just make sure you wear proper shoes and we aware that the walk ways are dirt and not paved. For everybody else my advice? Head to the top. As a hiker I always find that giving yourself a bird’s eye view of the area is always a wonder and this does not disappoint.

Now I could list off facts about the site like how it is the birthplace of Artemis and Apollo or how the mountain you scaled, Mount Kynthos, is a crowned with a sanctuary of Zeus himself but I am not an expert. I am just explorer with a passion for history and access to the internet. With all of its history this powerhouse did not have the natural resources to sustain life as the trade centers shifted during ancient Greek and Roman times. Its original inhabitants had been piratical Carians expelled from Crete. Never more than a way station for foreign dignitaries and goods, the island had no self-supporting community of its own. Frozen in time and space.

So, here Delos stands to this day, awaiting the curious traveler to make their way.

Stay curious my friends.

Pink, The Reason I Stood Out

Most girls are engrained with this love of the color pink. They are dressed in it the very day they come from the womb. Their toys are dyed various shades of this obnoxious preppy red gone wrong. I thank my parents everyday for not thrusting society’s favorite color at me.

As a tomboy kid I embraced everything that did not fall under the title of girly girl. Blue, getting dirty, and dressing for comfort. I was bullied by the girls and cast out from feminine circles until middle school, when my “rebellious” nature became cool. I stayed the same others changed, being too stubborn and content with my own lifestyle to change and get others to like me. This disdain for the status quo molded into my extreme hatred for the color pink and all it stands for. 

I hate the color pink. If that isn’t evident already it’s time to go back to the top of this short rants post I am writing at the edge of the bar. 

When did pink become this color that defines femininity? When did blue define masculinity? Why? And who decided this? Why not green and orange? Purple and yellow? The world may never know. 

The Forty-Eight, Unplug & Unwind

In a day and age where we are all plugged in all the time it is hard to imagine time without any technology. But here friends, I challenge you to do something that is liberating and eye opening.

Go without technology of any kind for 48 hours straight.

No computer. No phone. No TV. No radio. And don’t go to the countryside to do this. Do it right in your normal hub. No excuses.

I did this as a part of a class requirement back in my introductory Telecommunications classes at my University. It was meant to show how much technology is ingrained into modern culture and daily life. My other professors were informed that during a 2 week period I would go technologically dark. My friends would leave sticky notes on my door to let me know of plans or if they were stopping by and just missed me.

For a millennial these are strange concepts, but for those who are older and remember these times this may be a nice practice to get back to the simplicity of life without WiFi. You older generations are no better than we are. Don’t play the shocked victim, you are all just as guilty. So give it a try.

Tell your co-workers, friends and loved ones you are doing this beforehand so people don’t panic when you do decide to do this.

Is there a TV in your normal bar/coffee shop? Sit with your back to it or consciously be aware of its presence as you avert your eyes to people in front of you. Engage others. Tell them what you are doing, it’s a great conversation starter. Start reading that book you always wanted to start but never had time for.

Make a journal of your experiences, stress, and observations of others. People watch. What habits have others developed because of this technology addiction? Call your friends out for paying more attention to their phone than to you when you are hanging out.

Challenge yourself and challenge others.

I will say that the first 24 hours are incredibly difficult. But stay strong. You can make it and honestly you may want to try it again sometime (But maybe for not as long).

Have fun. Do things you don’t normally do but think about. Sit at a coffee shop, go on a walk, play with puppies at the pet store, whatever!

Report back here on what you’ve done or how you felt afterwards.

The sky is the limit. Just remember: No selfies.

 

How I Get Through the Day: It’s Only Temporary

Coping. People have millions of little tips and tricks. It all really depends on how you handle stress and how you relieve that stressful tension.

People turn to sex, drugs, alcohol, meditation, working out, or even the old fashioned screaming into a pillow. Something works for everyone. At the moment I need a moment for myself to vent. So here I am writing but also thinking. Thinking “out loud” as it were.

I currently hold a position in a broadcast center meant to be run by two people. I work 7 days a week for 6 months straight with minimal time off during my day. Weekends are not a thing here. But here’s the kicker that I’ve been putting through my head. My new partner is coming soon. This is only temporary.

Now as I continue to think out loud through this stream of consciousness writing I find this thought as being in denial, and possibly self destructive as I push forward at 110%, on all thrusters instead of pacing myself accordingly.

I feel like I’ve been through this situation before. The strangest feeling of deja vu resonates beneath the surface of my consciousness.

But here I sit. I guess those moments were only temporary as well.

via Daily Prompt: Temporary

Exposed: The Young False Prophet

I’ve always been the person to turn to for advice. I don’t know what divine power or whatever decided that I was the person to turn to for all of the answers in the universe but it just happened that way.

For one I look and carry myself in a way that does not reflect my age. At the ripe age of 22 I am often mistaken for someone in their thirties. Now I don’t look that way (At least I don’t think I do) it’s just my disposition.

I have no experience with the situations people bring before me  since they all lead down the road of relationships. I had two relationships that both ended once we went long distance. It’s just the nature of the beast.

You have to be able to cut through the superfluous feelings and get to what is really going on: is  there another player in this game of love?, are you overreacting to a text message he/she probably didn’t put any thought into sending? (Probably and almost always yes.)

For relationship advice I’ve found it helps to know the backstory, of course, but also just the facts. Human behavior is fascinating but when we try to describe certain points of a situation we dabble in the tiny details rather than the bigger picture. So if there is ever a freak out you probably need a different, uninvolved perspective so you can take some time to look at the bigger perspective yourself.

However, the key in this part of the advice process is to actually listen.

Do you have to take anything your friend says to heart? Absolutely not. It’s their opinion and their observation but you may be able to alter your perspective just enough to understand your situation if you do listen.

Like I said the facts vary and the advice changes. How the heck do I pull this wisdom beyond my years out of my thin air? And more importantly, why can’t I ever use it when making my own decisions?

It’s narcissistic writing about how hospitable I am but you know sometimes I want to kick back and relax.

 

via Daily Prompt: Exposed

None of the Above: Why I Hate Multiple Choice

Hello my lost friends.

Now as a student when I did not study well enough for an exam I knew a multiple choice exam could be make or break. For one it offered options on answers to the questions of which I had no knowledge to answer. However, there were those questions that would catch me half way.

This was the case in exams that I had over prepared for as well. Strangely worded questions with even more ambiguously worded answers. With short answer or essay I almost felt more prepared. I could do what I like to call “writing in circles” and it would appear as if I understood the concept but I wouldn’t get overly specific for fear of misquoting or disrupting this illusion of understanding.

On a multiple choice exam in college I even wrote in an extra answer to the test with a full explanation of why my answer was more correct one time because I was so frustrated with the exam’s use of overly simplified answer. My sense of understanding of a topic can be different than another’s. That is where opinion and fact meet to make theory.

And I theorize this: If you really think None of the Above is a legitimate answer option to write for a test then it best be entirely correct and not on the fringe of “pick the most correct answer”.

Rant over.

via Daily Prompt: None

Control: An Exercise in Patience

As a young Millennial I feel like there are numerous things I could write about the concept of control. The world is crazy right now and many people my age seem to struggle with the idea of control.

We flounder, we doubt, but in the end we persevere.  The fact that we have goals show that we are in control. We know the factors, the risks, and we move forward in some way. We ponder, we think, and we wait.

Sometimes to move forward some people take steps back. When I was a goalkeeper my coach called that a stutter step, a habit that took weeks to break, and it is basically taking a strong step back to lunge forward. In reality all you need to do is put more force in your planted foot and just take a step. Sound easy?

After doing the same thing over and over again it is not easy to break such a habit. But it is possible. With patience comes control and I think society today is lacking patience which contributes to this idea of a lack of  control.

We live in a time where everything is available instantly. If we took a moment to merely sit back and listen you might notice how much control and power you really have.

via Daily Prompt: Control

The Frozen Olympic City: Innsbruck, Austria

My very first journey of my study abroad experience, other than to my “home city” of Prague, was to none other than Innsbruck, Austria. I have skied since I could walk and I wasn’t going to miss this opportunity of proximity to the Alps for granted.

I took a Student Agency bus from Prague overnight to the two time former Winter Olympics host city. I would definitely recommend http://studentagency.cz/ if you are looking for a cheap, comfortable bus to travel in. Yes it does take a bit longer but if you are one a budget it’s nice. There was a screen on every seat for movie or television viewing and even a bus attendant that offered you free hot beverages and other items for an additional fee.

I arrived without much trouble. I even slept for most of the bus ride. I had to use the phone navigation to briefly locate my hostel, silently praying that my mom would forgive me for the data fee.

My accommodation? Hostel Marmota in Innsbruck, located next to a barren field and neighbor to a crematorium. I chose this place for convenience but also because of the reasonable reviews on HostelWorld. Unfortunately my room was not ready upon my 7:30am arrival. I was able to store my bag and hung around the lounge for a while before I decided to venture out and explore.

Honestly I didn’t know much at all about Innsbruck before I arrived there. I only knew that I had come here to ski the Alps and that the Olympics had been here twice. Now you could imagine my surprise when only a short walk away from my hostel was Ambras Castle, which I stumbled across my accident. It is a gorgeous place even in the cold winter weekend I was there. There were suits of armor, beautiful artwork and finery from the days of Austrian Emperor Franz Ferdinand.

I always feel like the dumb American coming to a place like Austria and not speaking a lick of German. I guess I look too European because people assume I speak every local language. It’s nice in the Czech Republic because I I do speak enough to get by but here it’s just terribly awkward as I silently pray that the person also speaks English. I ended up at a local pizzeria for lunch on the other side of Innsbruck. The waitress was very helpful and hospitable so I left a nice tip before I walked back to my hostel. My feet hurt after that adventure but I didn’t feel that I was ready to use the public transit system just yet. When I get lost I tend to get VERY lost.

I got back to my hostel and could move into my single room where I relaxed and began researching places for skiing the following day. There were quite a few:

• Patscherkofel
• Götzner Bahn Muttereralm
• Axamer Lizum
• Stubaier Glatscher
• Schlick 2000
• Kühtal
• Rangger Köpfl

After deciding that I would go to Schlick 2000 or Stubaier Glatscher the next day I went out once again to explore the historical center of Innsbruck at night. One of my favorite things to do in Europe is wander around the city at night. Not always the smartest or safest thing to do but I feel as if the city speaks to me on it’s barren cobbled streets. Whispering secrets of the past, present, and possible future. It was really quite nice as I wondered about without much direction. I popped into a grocery store and bought some simple supplies for dinner I could make in the hostel kitchen and managed to fake my way through as a local or at least as a fake German tourist. After the beating my feet took that evening I decided to try my hand at the trams since I knew that there was a tram stop very close to my hostel and had a very comfortable ride back as it tutted along the streets and across the river back towards the hostel. Success.

After a quick breakfast and checkout I meandered over to the Ramada Inn close by to hop on the ski bus that would bring us to the main departure point. I’m not sure if I was actually allowed on this bus or not but no one seemed to notice me so it didn’t matter. From there I waited with a group of skiers and boarders for a bit before the buses all arrived and hopped on the one headed towards Stubai Glacier. Unfortunately it was closed that day due to dangerously high winds but it was headed to Schlick 2000 as well so it was really a win for me.

I rented my skis and boots and hit the slopes. The ticket was my first suprise as I got on the gondola. Its a card that you stick in your coat pocket and then a sensor at the gate reads it and lets you right through. It was very cool and super efficient. I’m a north eastern skiier and we are still on the “scan the bar code system”. The whole day was pretty amazing especially the views from up there.
It was so big that I could go down a slope and not even even see another person, allowing me to go at any speed I wanted. A huge change from the American North East skiing I’m used to where I have to weave in and out of people and ski lessons.

My center of gravity was slightly thrown off since I had decided to ski with my pack on rather than being smart and actually locating a locker. Whatever it wasn’t actually that bad plus I had a lunch on my person so I didn’t have to buy expensive mountain food. On my last run of the day I got horribly lost on a glade. For those of you who don’t ski a glade is basically skiing through the woods and this particular glade was off mountain so if I got hurt… Well that would have spelled trouble. It got uncomfortably steep and grassy at one part so from there I clicked off one of my skis and slid down on my side.

I called it a day after that and instead of waiting 30 minutes to get on the bus I walked 10 minutes to the small town below to the tram which brought me back to Innsbruck. The route was very scenic and I enjoyed every second of it since the bus would not have offered such an opportunity.

Innsbruck was gentle in my first trip alone and it is certainly a place I will never forget.

The Quiet Country Side: Lidice & Terezin, Czech Republic

There are many towns in the Czech Republic that are worth the day trip. A trip to Lidice and Terezin will bring you to the WWII section of Czech’s history.

About 30 minutes outside the city of Prague is Lidice, or at least, where Lidice used to be.

The Nazis leveled the town to nothing, killing almost all of the inhabitants and sending Aryan looking children to SS families in Germany. This town was not Jewish if that’s what you are thinking. It was Christian.

It was punished for hiding the assassins that took down the Protectorate Reinhardt Heydrich, the mastermind behind the “great extermination” and Hitler’s right hand man.

Lidice is now a grass valley filled with memorials. Talk a walk down the path and you will find a collection of child statues. It is for the 88 children of Lidice that were sent to Poland and gassed. At the foot of the bronze statues of children are stuffed animals and candles that people have brought in remembrance.

To say it is powerful would be an understatement. An entire community completely obliterated for selflessly all to keep their hero keep out of reach of the enemy.

Continuing onward, Terezin is about an hour from Lidice. We arrived at the ghetto museum. Terezin is a normal town, unlike what I had seen in my previous visit to Krakow’s ghetto. So it may catch you by surprise on how different it looks from other ghettos. This is because this ghetto was the beautified by the Germans to trick the Red Cross delegation to think that the ghettos were nice places for people to be kept. The Germans succeeded.

Many artists and well known and respected figures were kept here. People who would be missed if they simply vanished like many families and neighbors did during this time. After the delegation left more than half of the population was sent to Auschwitz.

The small fortress itself was interesting and worth the tour. Again different from the Auschwitz I had seen as Terezin was built in the 18th century.

It has tunnels and a sturdy foundation (If you are claustrophobic avoid the tunnels). In the cell block you may come across a wreath in remembrance of the assassin who started WWI. He is regarded as a national hero to this day in certain parts of the world.

Take your time. Take it in. If this is your first concentration camp be respectful. I always tell people I am with to picture themselves walking through a cemetery or a museum to help frame their mindset.

 

And I will Christen thee… with bones? Kutna Hora, Czech Republic

To start a blog I thought I’d start with something eye catching that many people actually do not get the opportunity to see when traveling in the amazing country that is the Czech Republic (or Czechia, whatever they are calling themselves today.)

That would be the sleepy city of Kuta Hora located east of Prague in the Czech Republic. Although Prague is known as the “City of One Thousand” spires and Kuta Hora is known for the Gothic St. Barbara’s Church, which is adorned with medieval frescoes and flying buttresses, there is a hidden gem here.

Sedlec Ossuary.

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Also referred to by many as the Bone Church. It’s probably something you’ve seen pictures of plastered all over the Internet but never truly knew much about it none the less where in the world it is.

A little history for you about Sedlec so you know what makes this space so special.

In the 12th century an abbot returned from a mission to  the Holy Land with a small amount of earth from Golgotha, also known as Calvary, where Jesus was crucified and sprinkled it over the cemetery there. Naturally this holy aspect added to this place caused people to flock here so that when they passed they would be buried there. As one may imagine, when the plague ran through Europe the death toll rose dramatically in this area and there was no long
er any room for the approximately 40,000 people that were buried there. One of the abbots erected this Gothic church in the middle of the cemetery and under it a chapel which would hold the bones of unearthed graves.It was later remodeled in Czech Baroque style.

The present arrangement of the bones dates from 1870 and is the work of a Czech wood-carver, František Rint
(you can see his name, put together from bones, on the right-hand wall over the last bench).
Also out here is the Czech Museum of Silver. Kuta Hora gained its wealth from the Silver mines. The minting of local currency took place here for over 200 years here, beginning in the 13th century before plague, war and later fire closed the mines down for good in the late 18th century. You can still go down into the mines today to explore on tours but also take a look into the museum as they have an Old  Master of Coin there that will demonstrate how they actually minted coins back in the day. And hey if you’re lucky you might even get a chance to do it yourself.

Now Kuta Hora is not difficult to get to from Prague. There are buses that go out there every so often. I’d recommend spending a day out there as you can fill your day up there, grab some local food and beer for lunch and that’s what I’d call a ‘Prekrásny Den’.