Day 1 - April 12, 2017 (Hailey) Itinerary and Budget Included

Everyone was expected to arrive at my house at 3:30, but at 3:10 I was still trying to decide how many battery packs I needed for my camera and checking that I had extra European outlet adapters. I checked the weather a few more times, silently thanking the universe that only good weather was foretasted with a predicted heat of 15 degrees Celsius. My pre-departure panic was not aided by an abrupt appearance of one of my travel mates. Just gliding in with her family and puppy following, Jay comes in yelling “Ready for the trip we’ve been dreaming of since seventh grade?” I laughed at her grand entrance but nodded at the question nonetheless. Her parents and sister dropped her bags by the car and started chatting with my family as Jordan helped me drag my bags down from my room. Olivia and Gladdie we next to arrive, dropping their bags at the base of the driveway and coming to meet Jay and I on the porch. We chatted for a while about what we were most excited to see while we waited for Abby. When she finally showed up we all crammed into the car, of course, I called shotgun. On the ride to RDU I connected to the Bluetooth audio and we a jammed out to our favorite songs.

Airport
When we got to the airport, my mother helped us check in our bags and walked us to the gate. We found a cluster of seats secluded enough for us not to feel uncomfortable and surrounded by strangers but close enough for us to watch the gate. We talked for a while about how excited we were before eventually ending up showing each other pictures of cute guys on Instagram. When our flight was finally called I turned and hugged my mother goodbye, she wished us safe travels and reminded me to take a lot of pictures. We loaded on to the plane (I got the window seat!) and struggled to reach up and put our luggage in the compartments considering three out of our five group members are vertically challenged. 
Flying
The first flight wasn’t long, so Olivia and I just talked and looked out the window until we arrived in New York. We rushed to get off the plane after we landed. Abby and I managed to convince Jordan to look around the airport shops as we waited out our layover. At around 9 we headed back to the gate for boarding at 9:15. Jordan and I ended up next to each other with Olivia and Abby behind and Gladdie across the walkway. The flight went fairly smoothly, Jordan and I rocked out to some country music and watched Deadpool and Thor 2.
We could hear Olivia and Abby laughing behind us, and every few minutes Gladdie would get our attention to whine that she had to sit next strangers on the longest flight until she fell asleep. When the flight attendants brought our meals, Olivia leaned into the aisle marvel about the dinner’s contents. The food on the airplane seemed edible, but I opted to only eat the small cakes that came with our meals as I didn’t want to chance not liking something and getting sick. Our trip seemed short until about the last hour, when everyone decided they just wanted to be on the ground again. Once we unloaded in France our energy and high spirits we returned and we bounced from shop to shop and collected some European chocolates. For the last flight I sat alone, but it’s okay because once again, I scored the window seat!

After our plane landed in Athens , we waited for the people who knew what they were doing to exit first, deciding not to make fools of ourselves as the stewardesses helped us retrieve our bags. Slowly we exited the plane and headed down towards the luggage claim. It took us a little bit longer than it probably should have as someone would occasionally make a wrong turn or wander the turn we needed to take. Eventually we were able to sort ourselves out as we waited to spot our luggage in the sea of bags. With some slight translation issues, (Thank you google translate!) we followed the signs to the bus stop near the airport.

Euros!

Landing and Airport Terminal
As if our wide eyes and foreign tongue didn't scream out that we were tourists already, our struggle to find out and count the bus fare in Euros did it for us. Jay was on the job, attempting to figure out how much we needed, what time the bus was coming, and what time we would be arriving. Olivia and I were amazed by the currency’s colorful appearance, why doesn’t America have colorful money? Americans are so bland. Abby and Gladdie laughed at our childish behavior, but did nothing to aid in our understanding of the European currency. Our small group gathered many awkward stares from the Greeks as we hollered and laughed at each other. Thankfully, the bus arrived and the driver had clearly encountered his fair share of confused tourists and waited patiently for us to pay the correct amount and find seats on the bus.

Food/Music 
Pulling up our favorite friend, Google translate, we decided to go order the only thing we could decode, turkey or ham on toast and Sprite for all of us. We had a nice dinner and listened to a live band. Olivia, Abby and Jordan were dabbing to the beat of the music while Gladdie and I just laughed and appreciated the instruments as we couldn’t translate the singing. I took a picture of the band name from one of the posters hanging on the windows and decided to search for them later.
Byzantine and Christianity Museum (History):

Next we headed to our first museum. One reason I would recommend attending the Byzantine and Christianity Museum was to ogle at the intricate mosaic patterns and watch as art developed through history within the Byzantine Empire. I spent the hour falling behind the group as I stared at the astonishing patterns displayed. My favorite exhibit was the From the Ancient World To Byzantium exhibit and the Byzantium and Modern Art section. I could get lost analyzing and marveling at some of those brushwork forever. I learned the museum was built in 1914 and originally was located on the ground floor of the Academy of Athens. The collection of sculptures were pieces collected in the monuments around Attica and brought to Athens. These pieces were then stored in National Archaeological Museum storage facilities and also harbored in the Theseion (now known as the temple of Hephaestus). This three-level building is a staple to Athens and contains an over fifteen thousand piece collection.

After the Museum, with a little less struggle than last time, we mounted the bus and headed to Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe back to the hotel. I can only imagine how distraught our group must have been. The jet lag was starting to catch up to some of us and we were all exhausted. Jordan and I gave the run down of our itinerary, trying to see where it would fit into our budget. Gladdie almost passed out in the small chair in the lobby while Jordan and I checked in. We got our room key and argued over sleeping arrangements. Eventually I surrendered and took the pullout so Jordan, Olivia, Abby and Gladdie could split the two queen size beds.