It's been a while since I posted. We have just been falling into a groove here in Greece. This month, we hiked again at Mt. Olympus, lamented the results of the election, and joined an internationals in Thessaloniki walking group. It's been a good month!
We started the month with a great final hike before winter on Mt. Olympus. We began where we had left off in Prionia and continued up the mountain for about 2.5 miles. In the spring, we plan to try a multi-day hike, staying at one or two of the camps along the way. Check out the awesome fall views from the hike below:
This view reminded us of hiking in Wisconsin.
This is the view from the beginning of our hike, looking up at where we were going.
A view from our stopping spot for the day.
Look at those great fall colors! Because of Greece's mild weather, we only get the great fall colors while hiking on Mt. Olympus.
On our way home, we had to stop for a goat crossing! (That is my finger in the photo. :P)
November was also exciting as we voted for the first time abroad. It was a bit tricky, lots of red tape and procedures to follow. However, Ben and I both got our ballots in on time to be counted. After we found out the results, we met up with a bunch of American friends to lament and make each other feel better. It was fun to find out that their is a genuine Irish pub in Thessaloniki run by an Irishman.
The group of us Americans at Thessaloniki's Irish pub.
Finally, we joined an International Walkers group. The group meets up periodically to explore a new place, or if someone has some knowledge on a place, they plan a walk and teach the other internationals about the area. We went on our first walk last week, and it was great! It was run by a British man who loved the history of Thessaloniki. He led a walk along the old outer walls of the city (the city has expanded miles beyond these walls at this point) and talked about what it was like to live behind the walls before the 1900's.
A great view of Thessaloniki from the top of the city.
Check it out! Mt. Olympus has snow on it now!
A great look at a very well preserved section of the wall around Thessaloniki. The state of the wall greatly varies depending on where you are. In some spots, it is barely perceptible it is so broken. In other parts it is beautifully intact like this section.
Miller and I are still enjoying school. Miller was lucky enough to go on a field trip this month to the Thessaloniki Jewish Museum. Thessaloniki had a huge population of Jewish residents prior to WWII. Miller was able to go to the museum and a local synagogue to learn about how the Jewish residents of Thessaloniki shaped its culture and history and the impact of the Holocaust on Thessalonians who were Jewish, as well as the huge impact it had on Thessaloniki as a whole.
I also went on a field trip with my students. We had the amazing opportunity to help clean up a local beach. It was the perfect way to tie in our most recent units in science and social studies about being global citizens and habitats.
We were given gloves, bags, and a bit of training and then headed out to find plastic!
My students had a ton of fun, and I think it really helped them tie all their learning together!
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. As Greece obviously does not have Thanksgiving as a holiday, we still have school. However, we will celebrate the holiday as a school with a feast of food prepared partly by the administration of the school and partly by parents who have volunteered. The food will be completely different, as staples of Thanksgiving cannot be found in Greece, and it will be a crazy new way to celebrate the holiday (at school instead of with family), but I am excited for the new experience!
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