Day 7: All roads lead to Athens

Wow, what an odd experience.  All is well, but we've done nothing but travel for the past day and most of us are more exhausted then when we finished touring through Rome.  I suppose it is the change of pace that caught us off guard.  Tonight's post will be a combination recap of Day 6 and some things that occurred today.  It is probably going to be a little bit disjointed, but hopefully, you will all enjoy it.

I think the basic premise of this post is summed up in the title.

All roads lead to Athens.

While that is not necessarily true, Athens was our destination as we left Sorrento on Tuesday morning.  Our driving time was lengthy, but we had a planned stop in the little town of Alberobello. This destination, as I implied on Facebook, was truly a dream come true for Signora Morando.  As a little girl, she had wanted to visit, but it wasn't until this trip that she was able to make her dream come true.  The village was super cute.  The village is known for the unique homes built there called "trulli."  They are conical structures made of stone.  We entered and were instantly enamored with the town. John gave us a time to return from lunch and we were off. A few of us, two tables, chose one restaurant in the town square. The had meal deals on their menu and it looked like it was the kind of place that catered to tourists...it wasn't.  We sat and ordered.  Most of us got pasta, panini, or pizza.  Shortly after we ordered, a group of Italian boys sat down.  They ordered too.  About 10 minutes later, the boys received their food.  They ordered mostly pasta, panini, or pizza.  It seemed like forever before our food arrived, and the other table of Saugus kids, waited even longer.  John has stopped by to chat and recognized that we wouldn't make our meeting time.  He said not to worry about it, but to try to eat quickly so we wouldn't miss the tour.  We did the best we could, but all told, we ended up wasting about 30-40 minutes waiting for our food...and then eating it.  The restaurant even messed up our order taking even more time off of the clock.  While it was frustrating, we didn't let it ruin the rest of our day or the tour of Alberobello.

The group in front of the Trulli homes.

The homes were unique in their decorations and capstones.  Most people are Catholic, but for those who are not religious, they had a point on their capstone.  These homes date back hundreds of years.

Many of the Trulli are little shops selling souvenirs, meats, and other items.

Bianca and Pranaav hanging out in Alberobello.

Jeff and Pedro petting one of the local puppies roaming the street.

There are lots of these homes scattered along the hillside.

Amanda catching me taking a picture.

Gabbi and Emily

Walking through the village.

Signora and Pranaav.

At an observation deck overlooking the city.

We eventually had to leave this charming little village.  Our overnight ferry awaited us.  It wasn't that long of a drive, but we did hit a little bit of traffic.  John was great at explaining the different steps that we would have to take to board.  It was a little intimidating, because of the wind whipping across the port, but we all made it safely on board the ship.  The ship was actually much nicer than I expected.  A few years ago, we traveled across from Ireland to Wales.  It wasn't an overnight, and the ship was nice, but we ended up sleeping on chairs...this time, however, we had our own rooms complete with bathroom and shower.  The quarters were tighter than most of us would like, but they were serviceable.  We met for dinner and were served a meat patty.  I promise you that most of the kids who tried it said it was good, but then word got out that it was lamb.  At that point, many stopped eating, lol.  If it was lamb, it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't outstanding either.

We gave the kids a curfew and told them how important a good night's rest would be.  The chaperons stayed up, in the cruise lounge, for a little bit, but we slowly went to bed.  I decided to take the last turn at room checks.  I made my rounds at approximately 2 am.  I didn't wait that late because I thought that the kids were up to no good, instead it was a combination of several elements.  The first is that I am usually up late.  The second is that we had had a time change.  It was really only 1 am.  The third is that there was another school group on the boat who were not well supervised...and I was a little nervous of our kids seeing bad behavior and tempting fate.  The fourth was that I was waiting up to hear the announcement of who the School Committee had selected as Superintendent.  

[Side Note: I am involved in a lot of other endeavors of the Saugus Public School system besides teaching and chaperoning trips.  In those other capacities, it is in my best interest to stay informed and involved in the things happening within our district.  I knew all four candidates that had made the final list for the job and I did not envy the committee for the decision it had to make.  I wish Dr. DeRousi good luck and I am sure he will do a fantastic job.]

Finally, I heard the announcement via Facebook and Twitter and decided to go to bed.  The hallways were quiet...our kids were long asleep.  We had a late wake-up call and I was able to get a solid 4-5 hours of sleep, which is my norm.  We had a small breakfast and began to prepare to disembark.  We landed in Greece on schedule and met our new bus driver.

Ms. Payne being super fast in the shadow of the Super Fast II

My morning view.

A mixed group of SHS kids playing heads up with John's Ipad.   

We had finally made it to Greece and to today.

I am sitting in our lobby and it is just past 11:30pm.  Our day in Greece was quite limited.  We had roughly a four hour drive since we landed at Patras.  Along the way, John explained much of the details surrounding our upcoming cruise adventure.  He also remarked at some of the landscape and pointed out important cities.  We stopped for lunch in Corinth.  The restaurant had about 10 options and pictures were included.  Many of the kids ordered the fried calamari.  I did not. I ordered a Moussaka.  I can't really explain it, so I included the Wikipedia link for everyone!!! I really liked it.

There was something about Corinth that I did not like, however.

The canal

I've said it before on this blog. I do not like heights.  I don't let the fear prohibit me from doing things however.  John had showed us this canal from the bus, but he had our driver park so that we might walk across the pedestrian bridge to get a closer look. Underneath us, but closed today, was a bungie-jumping platform. [Side note 2: No one would have been allowed to jump if it was open]  The canal was really deeply cut into the landscape.  It looked like the scene out of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, except higher.  I walked out there, took a picture, and walked back.  Some of the kids seemed to share my fear while others laughed at it.

The kids making their way to the bridge while I've already taken my photo and decided to get back onto solid ground.

Here are some photos from lunch:

After eating, and seeing the canal, we left for the hotel.  We didn't hit much traffic, but the drive seemed to take a long time.  It was probably because of the spontaneous singing that the kids were doing.  The even dedicated a few songs to John...Men At Work's Down Under and the song It's Raining Men.  John was a good sport about it and even sang along.  [Side note 3: the singing didn't really make the drive seem longer, I'm exaggerating, it was actually cute]

We arrived to the Hotel Savoy and went to our rooms. We had dinner and prepared for bed.  The dinner that we had was pretty good, and so, I've decided to share some thoughts on it with you.

It was a stuffed pepper and a stuffed tomato.  The stuffing was rice seasoned with some interesting flavors.  It was accompanied by potatoes.  It was different than I've had at home, but it was definitely a home-style meal.  I find, when on tour, that a home-style meal, every once in a while, really resonates with me.  It made my think of my parents, but my mother in particular.  She is in the process of retiring from a long career at North Shore Community College.  Today was her last Wednesday.  Monday, when we return, will be her last day.  [Side note 4: My groups late return doesn't really bother me because I know she can sleep in]  In many regards, I wish I could be there to celebrate these last few days with her.  She knows, however, how much these trips mean to me and she tells me often how much she enjoys this blog, lol....so to my mom, who I am sure is reading this...I am thinking of you today as you begin your next great adventure.  I get a lot of compliments from parents, grandparents, and family friends of students who travel with me...these compliments are a reflection of the parenting you and Dad gave to me and as I work on these things, I really try to make you guys proud.  I hope I succeed.

Tomorrow, we tour Greece, for real.  I am so excited for what we are about to see. As an historian and a government teacher, this tour really connects with some of my favorite subjects.  I also think of myself as a little bit of a philosopher.  This is a new country for me and I am very anxious to see what it has to offer.

Okay, it is about midnight.  I am going to wrap this up and get a good night's sleep again.  Thanks for your time and continued words of thanks.  We are hitting the last few days of this trip and are getting more and more excited about what is to come.

Mr. Lavoie, retiring for the evening while his Mom is retiring from her career!!!! Congrats again!!!