So I am already getting into a habit of putting this off. It has already been over a week since I have been back from Northern Greece but it feels like we just got back yesterday. As a matter of fact it feels like I was just getting ready to pack for Greece yesterday so I guess that doesn't really say a whole lot. My roommate Ben and I were just talking last night about how crazy it is that I really does feel like just a few days ago we were talking about how we couldn't wait to be here and now its half over. Two months from now I will be sitting at home wondering where the time went. But for now I am going to take in each day at cherish every moment I have in this beautiful country because I know when I get home I'm only going to wish I were back. The Northern Greece trip was one of my favorite trips so far. It was a little more laid back and it was a lot of traveling. The first day we drove straight to Delphi. In Delphi we went to the archaeological site and walked through the ruins of the Roman Forum. We saw things like the Athenian Treasury and the Temple of Apollo and then we walked up to the theater. The theater wasn't unlike any of the other theaters we have seen but I still enjoy every theater we see simply because of how beautiful they are (or at least would have been when they were actually still being put to good use). Some of the theaters actually are still active but obviously not always in the same way they used to be. The last thing we saw before the museum was the stadium. The stadium kind of goes along with the theater for me because I could see stadium after stadium and enjoy it each time because of what athletics mean to me. This stadium was a little bit different than the stadium at Olympia but for the most part it was basically the same thing. This one is where the Pythian games were held after the Olympic games were started. One of the cool things in the museum was seeing the biblical inscriptions that are used to date Paul's journeys. We drove to Kalabaka that night where we stayed and got to go eat in the city wherever we chose. We ended up eating at a pizza place with cheap pizza and calzones bigger than our heads so it ended up being a pretty good night. The next day we went to Meteora and got to into a monastery. This is one of my favorite things we have seen so far. The monasteries are up on cliffs that have an amazing view. Inside is just like the Greek Orthodox Churches around here but they are beautifully decorated and painted. Most of the paintings were of things like martyrs being killed and the resurrection and the crucifixion and the apostles. All of the monasteries are still active as well. It was really cool getting to go in and see all of it and it was just different than things we are used to seeing here. We left Meteora and went to Pella which is where Alexander the Great was born. Honestly this has been my least favorite place of the semester and luckily we only stayed here for about 30 minutes but it was cool getting to see where Alexander the Great was born. From Pella we went to Thessaloníki where we stayed for the next two nights. Thessaloníki is the 2nd biggest city in Greece next to Athens. It wasn't anything really special but once we found the nice part it was actually a pretty cool place. We got a good nights sleep in a very nice hotel that night. The next day we went to Phillipi. We went to the river outside the city which is around the place that Paul baptized Lydia in Acts. We had a devo there and again it was cool getting to sing and listen to Paul's words where he actually preached. From there we got to go to the archaeological site where we saw the "traditional prison of Paul and Silas." It probably wasn't their actual prison but it is similar to
what they would have been in. We went back to Thessaloníki and stayed the night again and the next morning we were on our way home. On our way home we stopped in Beroea, Vergina and Thermopylae. Beroea is where we saw the Jewish quarters and also saw where Paul visited the synagogue. In Vergina we saw the tomb of Phillip II. That was pretty cool because his tomb was actually turned into a museum. It was under a huge mound. There were actually four tombs in their. The museum had everything found in his tomb like armor and weapons and golden crowns. It has been my favorite museum so far. The last thing we did on our way home was stop in Thermopylae and went up on the hill where the 300 Spartans had their last stand against Xerxes and his Persians. It was really cool being there especially since the movie 300 just came out and we got to see it the next day. This trip was really a great trip and we all had a lot of fun. I really am learning so much more every day especially being able to be here and see everything we are studying. When we got back the International Program Conference was about to start so there was a lot of faculty here from other international programs so it was kind of a hectic weekend. It was nice though getting to see new faces. Pete Snell, AB, Cath and Ashley Little got to come over from the HUF program on their 2nd free travel and spend some time with us in Athens for the weekend so it was really good getting to see them. It was definitely a change from the normal this semester and it was obviously just nice seeing some good friends that we haven't seen in a while. This week has been another lovely week of classes but the classes have come to an end before we leave for Israel. At the moment though I should actually be studying for a test that I have in about...30 minutes but this needed to be done so as usual I am continuing to procrastinate. I am more and more thankful everyday for getting to be here this semester. I really can't wait to go to Israel on Monday. I never thought I would have the opportunity to go to a place like Israel and walk where Jesus preached and walked. This is going to be an amazing experience and I thank God for the opportunity. Hopefully when I get back I wont continue to put this off. On a random note, March Madness just started and my bracket is already going down the drain. I am a believer in upsets but I guess believing Belmont could beat Georgetown was just a little overboard. Maybe the next few rounds will play a little more in favor but its looking doubtful at the moment. Hopefully while I am gone nothing too exciting will happen so I won't miss much but I don't think it will really matter that much considering I will be in Israel. Thats all for now.
So I am already getting into a habit of putting this off. It has already been over a week since I have been back from Northern Greece but it feels like we just got back yesterday. As a matter of fact it feels like I was just getting ready to pack for Greece yesterday so I guess that doesn't really say a whole lot. My roommate Ben and I were just talking last night about how crazy it is that I really does feel like just a few days ago we were talking about how we couldn't wait to be here and now its half over. Two months from now I will be sitting at home wondering where the time went. But for now I am going to take in each day at cherish every moment I have in this beautiful country because I know when I get home I'm only going to wish I were back. The Northern Greece trip was one of my favorite trips so far. It was a little more laid back and it was a lot of traveling. The first day we drove straight to Delphi. In Delphi we went to the archaeological site and walked through the ruins of the Roman Forum. We saw things like the Athenian Treasury and the Temple of Apollo and then we walked up to the theater. The theater wasn't unlike any of the other theaters we have seen but I still enjoy every theater we see simply because of how beautiful they are (or at least would have been when they were actually still being put to good use). Some of the theaters actually are still active but obviously not always in the same way they used to be. The last thing we saw before the museum was the stadium. The stadium kind of goes along with the theater for me because I could see stadium after stadium and enjoy it each time because of what athletics mean to me. This stadium was a little bit different than the stadium at Olympia but for the most part it was basically the same thing. This one is where the Pythian games were held after the Olympic games were started. One of the cool things in the museum was seeing the biblical inscriptions that are used to date Paul's journeys. We drove to Kalabaka that night where we stayed and got to go eat in the city wherever we chose. We ended up eating at a pizza place with cheap pizza and calzones bigger than our heads so it ended up being a pretty good night. The next day we went to Meteora and got to into a monastery. This is one of my favorite things we have seen so far. The monasteries are up on cliffs that have an amazing view. Inside is just like the Greek Orthodox Churches around here but they are beautifully decorated and painted. Most of the paintings were of things like martyrs being killed and the resurrection and the crucifixion and the apostles. All of the monasteries are still active as well. It was really cool getting to go in and see all of it and it was just different than things we are used to seeing here. We left Meteora and went to Pella which is where Alexander the Great was born. Honestly this has been my least favorite place of the semester and luckily we only stayed here for about 30 minutes but it was cool getting to see where Alexander the Great was born. From Pella we went to Thessaloníki where we stayed for the next two nights. Thessaloníki is the 2nd biggest city in Greece next to Athens. It wasn't anything really special but once we found the nice part it was actually a pretty cool place. We got a good nights sleep in a very nice hotel that night. The next day we went to Phillipi. We went to the river outside the city which is around the place that Paul baptized Lydia in Acts. We had a devo there and again it was cool getting to sing and listen to Paul's words where he actually preached. From there we got to go to the archaeological site where we saw the "traditional prison of Paul and Silas." It probably wasn't their actual prison but it is similar to 
what they would have been in. We went back to Thessaloníki and stayed the night again and the next morning we were on our way home. On our way home we stopped in Beroea, Vergina and Thermopylae. Beroea is where we saw the Jewish quarters and also saw where Paul visited the synagogue. In Vergina we saw the tomb of Phillip II. That was pretty cool because his tomb was actually turned into a museum. It was under a huge mound. There were actually four tombs in their. The museum had everything found in his tomb like armor and weapons and golden crowns. It has been my favorite museum so far. The last thing we did on our way home was stop in Thermopylae and went up on the hill where the 300 Spartans had their last stand against Xerxes and his Persians. It was really cool being there especially since the movie 300 just came out and we got to see it the next day. This trip was really a great trip and we all had a lot of fun. I really am learning so much more every day especially being able to be here and see everything we are studying. When we got back the International Program Conference was about to start so there was a lot of faculty here from other international programs so it was kind of a hectic weekend. It was nice though getting to see new faces. Pete Snell, AB, Cath and Ashley Little got to come over from the HUF program on their 2nd free travel and spend some time with us in Athens for the weekend so it was really good getting to see them. It was definitely a change from the normal this semester and it was obviously just nice seeing some good friends that we haven't seen in a while. This week has been another lovely week of classes but the classes have come to an end before we leave for Israel. At the moment though I should actually be studying for a test that I have in about...30 minutes but this needed to be done so as usual I am continuing to procrastinate. I am more and more thankful everyday for getting to be here this semester. I really can't wait to go to Israel on Monday. I never thought I would have the opportunity to go to a place like Israel and walk where Jesus preached and walked. This is going to be an amazing experience and I thank God for the opportunity. Hopefully when I get back I wont continue to put this off. On a random note, March Madness just started and my bracket is already going down the drain. I am a believer in upsets but I guess believing Belmont could beat Georgetown was just a little overboard. Maybe the next few rounds will play a little more in favor but its looking doubtful at the moment. Hopefully while I am gone nothing too exciting will happen so I won't miss much but I don't think it will really matter that much considering I will be in Israel. Thats all for now.
