First Day on My Own….

It’s Tuesday morning, close to 11. Spent yesterday walking around with mom, getting more supplies for the apartment. We had a really nice dinner before saying goodbye. She left this morning really early, so I won’t see her again until June. It was really hard to say goodbye, because it feels like I’m grown up and out and I’m not ready! I feel a little out of my depth right now but I’m glad my mom was there to help me settle in, etc. I miss you already mom!

When I got back to the apartment a bunch of girls were in the hall getting ready to go out, so I went out too. It turned into a huge caravan of practically the entire building as we trooped towards the water. I introduced myself to a bunch of people but don’t remember many names.

A group of us stopped at one café to get some food, and as we were sitting there outside a protest marched by. I had been told—and some of the other girls too—that protests and riots only ever happen in Athens. It was a huge group marching down the street with Greek flags chanting something. There were police ahead and behind them, and police with riot shields walked and formed a line between the protestors on the street and the people on the sidewalk. The march wasn’t violent though, the police were there as a reminder, just in case, I guess. Some of the girls were freaking out, saying don’t speak English, don’t look at them, but people were running out of their restaurants to see them, so it would be weirder if we avoided looking at them completely. It wasn’t really scary, just a reminder that we are NOT in the USA anymore and have to be careful.

Some went out to get drinks and go clubbing afterwards, but I was tired and headed back with some others early. The girl across the hall couldn’t open her door so she hung out with me for a little bit. I finally got into bed around 1, but people came trickling back home from 2-5, and it’s so loud in the entry hall/common areas—everything echoes—that I couldn’t really sleep for the drunken parade.

I haven’t really met my roommate yet. She wasn’t in the room when I got back home but her stuff was, and then someone introduced me to her when we were heading to the café. We talked for a minute, but she stayed out til 230 and I haven’t really spoken to her. I can already tell she is the life of the party. She’s pretty and outgoing, and already is the leader of the pack, the pack being our building. I guess as a shy person, it’s nice to have a vivacious roommate who will drag me out occasionally, but I’m not really sure how this is going to work, keeping such different hours in so loud and echo-y a place. She’s still asleep, even though her alarm has gone of several times, and I don’t really know what to do. I want to ask her to lunch so we can get to know one another and talk about what we need for the room, etc, but I also don’t want to be a creeper, waiting for her to get up.

Some pictures of my room, the street:

The beginning of my street.

The entrance to my building.

The street my balcony looks over.

 

My balcony is the one with the teal towels.

When you walk in, you’re greeted with my little kitchen thing. The fridge juts out from the wall, and the door behind is the bathroom.

My room: I’m standing by the kitchen stuff to take the picture. My bed is the far one. There’s a little table by my bed, and a more kitchen-y table fits into the wall in the left back corner. The balcony is out the curtain.

The tiny, dirty bathroom, and the shower, the bane of my existence. Can you see how tiny it is from the pictures? I should probably get something in there for size reference, but anyway…..