Travelin' Man

I woke up this morning and shaved (those that know me know that this is worth mentioning because it is a super big chore for me, I hate it). I had a pineapple creme pastry from a bakery at Syntagma Square (picture 1). My mouth is watering just thinking about it. I sat in the square and read from my guidebooks some more. I can't believe I am leaving Greece today! I came back to the hostel and finished up yesterday's post. I was basically waiting for 10 am to rolll around so that I could go to the Museum of Cycladic Art (it opened at 10 am). I walked over to the museum and went inside. Part of the museum is in a refurbished 19th century mansion (picture 2). That was really cool. The main part is in the adjacent building though. The floor with the Cycladic Art had a tour group so I went up a floor to the Cypriot Art (Cyprus). That said it was closed until 1 pm. Bummer. The next floor had Ancient Greek Art which was closed for refurbishing. Bigggg bummer. The top and last floor was open. It was a display of Ancient Greek Art but in a new way. They organized the artifacts into categories like marriage, war, burial, children, etc. It was realllllly interesting and there was a video showing actors acting out how the Ancients used the artifacts. One of the best displays I have ever seen in a museum. I went back down the stairs to discover that the Cypriot Art gallery was actually open. That was eye-opening as well. I had no idea that Cyprus had that much history and stuff. I hit up the Cycladic Art last. Loads of those very modern looking guys. Pictures were allowed but I didn't take any. It didn't feel right somehow. I really liked seeing all the statues though. They were carved 2000 years ago... Jeez. I ate at Everest again. It is just too good and cheap to not (picture 3). I went back to the hostel and grabbed my backpack (garden I sat in last night picture 4).

I rode the Metro to the airport and then hopped on the plane to Milan. While waiting for the flight, I met a few girls from Indianapolis who had been studying in Milan and were on their way back so that they could go home. They were cute and nice. The plan ride was pretty uneventful. I ate some crackers and read more of Zorba the Greek. Ever since Heraklion I had not really felt like pleasure reading. I listened to music or read guidebooks instead before I went to bed or rode a bus. But I was tired of reading guidebooks and was back in the mood of pleasure reading so I hit Zorba the Greek hard and was pretty far along by the time the plane landed.

I talked to a woman from Wales on the bus ride from the airport into Milan. She does yoga classes for a living and gives advice about nutrition. I did not ever tell her what my diet had been since I came to England (loads of carbs). She was really nice and in great shape for her age. She was taking the train to Venice to visit a friend that evening. The bus dropped me off at the train station (picture 5). It took a while to find the city bus I needed to get to my hostel because he bus ahd a different place to stop. The directions I got online were "take the #9 bus to Piazza Susa, the hostel is two blocks away". Um, thanks. Once off the bus, I had to ask three different people to help me find the street it was on. I had a kebab sandwich (in foccacia bread, not a pita) for dinner. I loved the different spices and the different bread. I ate it on the balcony that came off my dorm room. I read more Zorba for a while and then went to bed. Milan did not impress me on the first day because it was cloudy, rainy, and confusing. But first impressions are quite often wrong. I liked being in Italy again.

Ciao!