Random Act of Cuteness

So I have been back in New York now for about 48 hours. I am still planning (though I am lazy and cannot guarantee) a Naxos roadtrip post.

I was inspired to update this evening by a letter I got in the mail moments ago, sealed in an envelope with no obvious sender.

I had lost my luggage tag (at Gatwick airport, apparently). It arrived alongside this letter, which, if you can't see in the photo, says the following:

Hello Joanna
I found this in Gatwick, so here it is. I though we could be pen pales. I do not know how old you are but I am 9. I am called molly culme-seymour. 
Bye
Molly 


This is the most adorable thing... ever.

So at present I am back in London for another 40 hours or so.

I will update on the big Naxos road trip of 2010 once I have all my photos uploaded and whatnot.

The last four or five nights we were on Naxos, the Galanado (village) taverna was serving dinner! Needless to say this was a wonderful surprise, as evenings at the taverna are a big part of what I reminisce about when I think of summers on Naxos.

Although the "our age" crowd still hadn't arrived for the summer, the atmosphere there is just great. Katherine and I were able to interact a lot more with the children, as well as the mom, in the evenings than we had been able to before. Though, sadly, no photos of the children were taken. Taverna mom seemed to be giving us free fries and wine at an even higher rate than past years, and by the time we left I think Katherine and I had gotten our fill of Greek food for the near future.

Yesterday Katherine and I got into Athens around 4 and it was raining...first time on the trip. The Athens streets apparently double as slip and slides. Dirty, dirty slip and slides. I slipped four times over the course of our journey to the hotel—which involved a trek up a massive set of stairs. Luckily, the stairs meant that it was on the top of a hill with a pretty awesome view. From our room we could see a park through one window, and through the other we had a few of a residential area and behind it a mountain/cliff with a church on top of it (of course).

We walked around a bit, the hotel neighborhood was really cool, close to the center but simultaneously off the beaten path. In the city center, everything was going as usual, but we passed several cops with riot shields... it was pretty surreal.

Anyway, now I am in London with Kaitlyn! I'll be home so soon!

I forgot to mention in my last post that yesterday while on the bus, we heard a greek song which sampled " sound of da police," but the rest of the song was totally not fitting and sounded more like a ballad. It. Was. Hilarious.

Today we went back to our favorite beach (that is within the reach of the Naxos bus public bus system), Plaka. We now frequent the same umbrella man. Yesterday I forgot my floaty tube, but I am happy to say that umbrella man saved it so I got it back today!

 After the beach we got souvlaki pita and then went to watch the Greece - Nigeria game at the 4 euro drink place (though now more and more of them seem to be 4 euro places). We got frozen strawberry daiquiris which were decent. The game was pretty fun to watch, particularly since it was being broadcast in Greek, so the announcers were yelling A LOT. Katherine and I missed the first (Nigerian) goal because we were 20 minutes late, and of course there was not a single replay of it. In addition the bar next door seemed to be getting their broadcast with a three second delay, thus it was funny to hear everyones reactions: gasps, clapping, etc... three seconds after ours. We were all like yeah, old news guys.

Tomorrow is our last day before our weekend car-based excursions... exciting! That being said, after tomorrow I probably won't be online till Monday. I know I know, that's just crazy.

Today Katherine and I went to the beach early and splurged on renting an umbrella and beach chairs. Let me tell you, it was pure luxury. We are addicted. This was the first time we allowed ourselves to give in and spend 3 euros a piece but ah... I forgot how crucial they are. Never again will I spend a scorching hot day without one.

My dad is grilling octopus tonight, so I am trying not to eat anything too filling before dinner, but I'm stahvin! Err... not too much else to update on, it's really lovely here, still, and I am enjoying the change of pace and lack of endless internet, hello, I have almost finished an entire book! Unprecedented in the past 6 months.

HELLO. Katherine and I are currently sitting at "Klik Cafe," a cafe/waffle place that is designed in a really snazzy, over the top fashion but that has few customers (like many of these restaurants here in Chora, they all have SO MUCH seating, that even if there are some people there it always looks empty). We bought a banana and nutella waffle to earn our free internet access and now we have been lingering for around two hours.

Last night was my first time on the moped this year. The first minute was kind of horrifying but after that it was pretty awesome.
Today we didn't get up till around noon and had a breakfast consisting of many parts (Greek yogurt + strawberries + corn flakes, eggs, and lots of Chocapic cereal on its own). It was sooo hot. So. Hot. Though spending the early afternoon at the house still beat being out in the blaring hot sun.

We took the 2:20 bus, but went to the taverna 25 minutes early to buy bus tickets and chill in the breezy outdoor area and drink frappes. This turned out to be an excellent idea as we got to chat with one of Cula's friends—Ekatarina—who was nine and spoke some english, and we also got to watch Valadi (also 9ish) smash open an old meat grinder with a hammer.

We went to Plaka beach again today, except this time we had a floaty tube, which proved to be the ultimate luxury and I basically played dead for three hours in the ocean, it was awesome.

This weekend we are renting a car and are going to drive around the other coasts of the island as well as through the mountainy part (well, my dad will do the driving, obviously). I am guessing this will be the best part of the trip, as we'll get to see the most beautiful and sparsely populated beaches, and lots of other gems you can't reach by bus with ease.

Okay, gotta go!

Naxos Day Three

It saddens me to report that the taverna, apparently, doesn't do dinner until July. I cannot express the disappointment I felt upon finding this out last night! I am longing for the nights of endless greek salad, souvlaki, free fries and (even more free) wine. Moreover, Katherine has never seen that side of Naxos, so I am additionally bummed that she will not be able to experience it.
Also, as I mentioned earlier, Gabriel (English speaking son of the taverna family and therefore default translator) is not here, so we have no way to communicate with the children! Despite this, they still say "hello!" every single time we walk by.
Today we went to Plaka beach, spent a lot of time in the water because it was so hot. Glad I can be complaining about the heat, for a change. Not too much else to report on!

Day Two in Naxos

So last night Katherine and I went to a bar with an outdoor area and TV where we watched the England-USA game surrounded by England fans (some even wearing jerseys). Though we weren't really planning to root for anyone (and I was particularly torn given America's general listlessness toward soccer, and my recent relationship with the UK), after England scored a goal in the first four minutes we couldn't help but root for the "underdog."

Today we went to Agia Anna, and it was glorious. We went in the water a bunch, and despite my manic reapplying of SPF 50 I am still getting tan and at times I am suspicious that a sunburn is creeping. I am currently reading a book I found at the house called "The Summer of My Greek Taverna," which needless to say, is quite appropriate. Tonight Katherine and I are going to eat at the Galanado taverna for the first time this trip! I am excited for fries and greek salad (maybe even a millionth souvlaki).

There is a dude currently chainsmoking in the internet cafe and I am sensing the beginnings of a headache. He is the axis of evil, so I must go before I go homicidal on his ass.

Till next time!

Naxos!

Hello hello.

Katherine and I made it to sunny Naxos around 1 pm this afternoon. I am thrilled to be spending the next twoish weeks on the beach, at last! We took a ferry from Piraeus (outside Athens) this morning. During that five our period I had approximately twelve outfit changes. It went from warm to hot to colder to freezing (because of the wind). I ended up falling asleep in my jeans-sweatshirt-denim jacket ensemble. When I woke up there was a tan like on the left side of my face from having my hood up, score.

After eating souvlaki and then dropping our stuff off at the house in Galanado, Katherine and I hit up the taverna for some Nestea and bus tickets. We waited for the bus there which was, of course, half an hour late. The taverna children are just as wild as usual. Cula looks exactly the same, Valadi is now chubs and looks like Marios, Marios is slightly taller and basically has a beer belly, and Vagelita is like twice as tall as when I last saw her, cray cray! Gabriel is apparently at college elsewhere and doesn't get back to Naxos till July, alas, we shall see whether any of the old crowd shows up. It has been three years!

Anyway, we did eventually make it onto the bus, and to the beach! Hooray. It was the beach nearest the main town (Chora), so it wasn't as wondrous as all the other beaches are, but it was still great and I cannot wait to go somewhere amazing tomorrow! After this short internet cafe stop Katherine and I are headed to watch the UK-USA soccer game at a bar. Don't even know who to root for!

Best Sunday

Today I went to Caravan for brunch with Miranda, Adria, and Adria's friend Marissa. I had the Caravan Fry Up which is perhaps the most "boring" thing on the menu, but all the ingredients are top notch so it's not just your average breakfast. It will be my last Caravan brunch! le sigh. I'm about to be having a lot of "lasts" here in London, as well as a bunch of rushing and running errands... 

But on the bright side, today was really great!

After brunch Adria, Marissa and I went to the Camden Green Fair, which took place in Regent's Park.

There were a ton of people there, way more than I had expected. With live music, and tons of stalls, activities, etc...

Some kids painting at one of the many arts and crafts tents.

Adria in Whoville!

Kids inspecting the animals

Bicycle powered sound system

After the fair we headed down to Brixton to the Juniper Leaf album launch (flyer pictured below). I was mainly interested in seeing The Magic Lantern. I had stumbled upon them at Clerkenwell Design Week and thought they were wonderful.

There was free BBQ involved! (Shayna, Marissa and Adria)

Steph Hannah and Dory (who didn't make it into this photo) met up with us there as well.

Watching one of the outdoor performances.

It quickly became apparent that we were the only people here who weren't the friends of any band, and as a group of seven Americans we definitely stuck out. Regardless, it was a grand ol' time. I wish I had more photos of the bands and such, alas, it is difficult to take lots of photos in an intimate setting without feeling like a huge jerk. Adria also took some photos, including a series of "Africa burger." I unknowingly ate my burger in such a way that its remainder bore a pretty remarkable resemblance to the African continent. Perhaps I'll post these at a later date.
It turned out that only the lead singer of The Magic Lantern would be performing, but he was great solo. I wish I had heard of them earlier in my stay in London, but I am happy to have found them at all! 

The final countdown

So I leave London in a week... ahhh! It's really hard for me to believe.

Maeve visited me for 48 hours and left yesterday afternoon, she is the last of the people I will be hosting while I'm here. It's... odd, to say the least. While I feel that I am quite ready to move onto the next phase of my life, I will miss all the hidden corners of London I've discovered and learned to love—and frequent.

On our last night together Maeve and I went to the Duke of Cambridge (the organic gastropub I went to on my birthday). Afterwords, we went to see Sex and the City 2 at the Islington Screen on the Green—which is an awesome movie theater. There are "sofa seats" which are slightly bigger and have foot rests (though these seats costs £2 extra), and there is a bar at the back of the theater. Waiters bring your drinks/food orders to you. Although Maeve and I were completely full on delicious organic noms, it was still a cool experience and I'd definitely love to go back to that theater (if only I had the time...). They play lots of older and independent/foreign films as well (primarily, in fact).
The movie itself was ehh... horrible but still highly entertaining. I had extremely low expectations so I wasn't really disappointed, what little integrity Sex and the City had left after the first movie was lost and went into the negative numbers after this one.

Yesterday, as I was sitting on a park bench reading (italics here to emphasize the novelty), I was thinking about how lucky I am to be living in this amazingly charming part of London. It never ceases to amaze me how you can step two blocks out of the chaos surrounding the tube station and be somewhere that just feels like a homey little town. As I sat there, a squirrel eyed my sandwich (I cannot emphasize enough how bold the squirrels here are, I was quite convinced we were going to end up in a wrestling match over it). A couple of people got into an argument where the woman yelled that the man she was talking to was a "bloody fuckin tramp!" The cell phone of the woman sitting on the adjacent bench rang the tune of "Empire State of Mind," she answered with a British accent. Just as I was getting all misty-eyed over leaving this lovely place, I was reminded that my amazing home city awaits my return—and apparently it's not just the (not born, but) raised New Yorkers that know what's up. This became even more evident this afternoon.

Today, after absorbing sunshine in the Myddelton Square, Miranda and I walked around lovely Islington, where a six year old boy on a scooter asked us if we wanted to buy car insurance. Miranda informed him that we couldn't drive, and his companion, an older girl (around 10, roughly), asked us if we were from America. We responded that we were indeed, and she asked where about. "New York."
She said, "Ah, that's the place to be."

A fellow park dweller

Daisies!

Regent's Canal. People's backyards face this. *sigh*. 

I almost lived on this street! Another sigh. Also the street on which the Duke of Cambridge is located.

Fairly common bike racks in london

Kids have been running around and playing in the streets all day

Early evening pub crowd—the London idea of nightlife.

It is a shame the weather here is so erratic and the warm and sunny days rare, because when you do get one of those perfect days, it's hard to imagine a place more ideal. It almost makes you forget all the shitty weather you've had to put up with to get there.
Miranda and I inevitably indulged in organic fro-yo at FRAE, which seems as committed to playing awesome soul jams as it is to serving deliciousness in low calorie form. Then in the evening the £3.95 vegetarian indian buffet which had been flirting with me from across the street last night, finally made its way into my belly. Today has been yet another money-saving fail. but a tasty win!

Oh, and lastly, I am not one who is often in awe of wedding dresses (or ever, really), but this vintage store in London has the most beautiful wedding dress in the window, I had to share! Don't mind the feathery thing layered over it...

Lightning Round

Lots of things have been going on since I last updated. Last time I promised a post on Brussels. Instead I am going to be a cop-out and cover the last two weeks on my life in 60 seconds.

Miranda and I went to Brussels! We walked around a lot...

took really cliché photos...

and ate at Le Pain Quotidien in its natural habitat.

Caitlin visited me in London!

Adria and her friend stayed in London for a night

We saw some bands perform at Clerkenwell Design Week

Martyna is visiting me presently but leaves tomorrow

I saw a Dr. Dog and Booker T live! I took Toby Leaman's (of Dr. Dog) set list at the end (cause we were standing front row yeyuh!). We also met the drummer (Eric Slick) and shook hands with him! Practically famous.

I am spending these last weeks trying to soak up what I love about London. Here I am, soaking up no sun on my block.

Birthday

So it's been a week and a half since I turned 21! I had been meaning to post sooner, alas, my Berlin post was still looming. Putting off things I (kind of) enjoy = procrastination at its finest. I had a lovely day—and I hadn't been expecting much. The weather was surprisingly pleasant (as the entire time I've been back from Spring break—aside from the first two days—has been November cold). I went to brunch with my ladies Miranda and Hannah, at my favorite diner here (Andrew's!). 

Flowers from Hannah

I spent the afternoon running a few errands, walking around, and sipping coffee. 

For dinner, we went to an organic restaurant called The Duke of Cambridge which also has an adjoined pub area.   

Miranda and I walking to the restaurant

Hannah and I outside the restaurant

The food was delish, I wish I could afford to frequent the place! Hopefully I'll go there at least once more before I leave. Leila joined us after dinner for a bit, and eventually Miranda, Hannah and I returned for cupcakes!

Birthday cupcake!

Overall, my birthday was a good reminder of what I have gained from this year abroad. Most importantly, it has brought me close to some wonderful people I would have never met otherwise, and I am very thankful for all their efforts on my bday!

This past week I went to a She & Him show, as well as a Jose Gonzalez show! Both were really great. 

Zooey Deschanel of She & Him

My friend Sean from Tulane is also staying with me for a while. Here we are before an unsuccessful night out. Damn you London nightlife.

Miranda and I outside at Cargo (bar/club/venue)

I should note that I have been done with finals since May 12th! It's such a relief to have them over with, and I'm pretty sure I did alright on both. I am a little bit stunned by the fact that I have so little time left in London (three weeks and two days), and for about half of that time I will be entertaining guests. I am already feeling nostalgia for London. It's going to be really weird parting with it. 

For the rest of the time I am in London I will also be volunteering at Coram's Fields (a children's park/center) doing some minor gardening. I don't have a set schedule or anything, so I am hoping I will have the willpower to go at least a few times a week. 

I am actually in Brussels right now, heading back to London tomorrow, so expect a post on that soon! 

Berlin!

Okay, this is my long overdue post. The last stop of my Spring break journey before my extended stay in Poland, was Berlin. Prepare for a subpar entry as my memory is waning, as well as my patience for writing about things that happened over a month ago.

The first time I went to Berlin was three years ago, and I had wished my stay had been longer than two and a half days. This time around I spent another three and a half days there, and the appeal of the city had not faded. It's hard to really explain why, but I could see myself living there (if I spoke German, of course). Berlin isn't glamourous, like Paris, but it just seems mellow and a place one can actually live. It's big enough, without being hectic and tiring (and overrun by tourists!). 

Maeve being an Ausfahrt upon our arrival to Berlin.

I found certain parts of Berlin to be oddly utopian looking, I'm not sure if this photo really captures it. 

Maeve, Christine and I went on a free walking tour that was much like the free bike tour I went on with the ladies three years back. Though most of the information was familiar, the tour was just as enjoyable the second time around.

The Reichstag

Berliner Dom

Shmaif and I

NYPD Party Police-Berlin: fighting crime with a gun in one hand and a latte in the other.

The Berlin Wall

One night we went to a really great German restaurant, my meal:

We also went to a jazz bar, the music was good but the audience was being super uptight about us whispering (really, quite inaudibly) to each other. Never mind the fact that the same people giving us dirty looks were later committing similar crimes!

Maeve and Christine left a day before I did, and I switched hostels to be in the same one as my friend Shayna, who was traveling with people from her study abroad group. I'm glad I didn't leave after only two days! And... the weather was lovely.

Donezo.