Day ThReE (June 11)

I finally walked the streets of Florence (Firenze) for the first time in my life! It honestly was nothing like I pictures it, but better!


When we woke up, we came downstairs and had a simple breakfast of just bread and jelly/butter. It was a very nice way to start off the day. After we all completed breakfast, we stayed in the eating area and had orientation with the National Geographic leaders, David and Carolyn. They went over the rules, guidelines, and some elements that we need to keep in mind when we are shooting. 


We left the hotel and walked down many streets to the common area. The huge chapel was located in this area, along with other amazing elements as well. The first activity of the day was a Scavenger Hunt. David and Carolyn put us into groups and had us complete a list of photos and videos that we needed to get. I was grouped with Claire Hogan and Demeris Burritt. I had a great time with them. We went all over the common area in search of every key thing on the list of "Photography To-Dos". We were able to complete almost everything on the list, but some things were not possible to accomplish. 

This is a picture of one of the elements on the Scavenger Hunt list: make a human pyramid in front of a famous building. (I am on the top, Demeris Burritt is on the left, and Claire Hogan is on the right.)

This is a picture of one of the elements on the Scavenger Hunt list: "I can't believe we can all fit!"

This is a picture of one of the elements on the Scavenger Hunt list: take a picture of your reflection in something other than a mirror.

After the time was up for the Scavenger Hunt, we met back in the common area and headed off to an amazing Italian Lunch. We ate at Pizzeria Huti, and I ordered Spaghetti with garlic, oil and crushed spicy red pepper. It was so good! I actually got to taste real spaghetti! For dessert, we had a honey coated waffle with nutella on top. Delicioso!


We then headed off to the museum where we saw the famous statue of David. I never knew that it was actually that big. I always thought that it was smaller and life-size, but it measured out to be seventeen feet tall. I was able to see all types of sculptures, paintings and many other types of art in that museum. It was an amazing experience to be able to see something like that. Caroline Leggett didn't fall asleep or anything at the museum.

This is a picture of Caroline Leggett on the benches in the museum with the statue of David. 

We finished our day off with an Italian Cooking Class. We made Spinach Ravioli, Chicken with tomato sauce and sauteed onions, grilled vegetables, and for dessert, Tiramisu. We made everything from scratch all in two hours. Everything was delicious! I love Italy!

This is a picture of the Spinach Ravioli that we made. 

 This is a picture of the Tomato Sauce Chicken with sauteed onions that we made.

This is a picture of the Grilled Vegetables that we made.

This is a picture of the Tiramisu that we made.

Here are some pictures from walking around the common area...

This is a picture of Ellie Hopper.

Day TwO (June 10)

We got off the plane from Houston to France at 1:05 (Houston Time) and had to go through security again! The security lines were set up differently, here in Paris. The conveyer belt was in the front of the line, but the person checking the baggage was on the other side of the room looking at a computer screen of that specific belt. It is very interesting how things differ from one country to the next. 

This is a picture of the Paris, France airport's roof. 

As we passed through security, some of the girls had to use the restroom, including me. Ms. Cannon took me, Rachel Owens, Ellie Hopper and Stephanie Skolnik with her and we went to use the facilities. Not only did we have to take an escalator up, but we had to fit into a tiny elevator (about the size of a tiny walk-in pantry) to take us down to the restroom area. You never know what you have to do be able to use the restroom. 

In the Paris airport, we had a five hour layover before our next flight to Rome. I got hungry, I was in the mood for some French food, and that's exactly what I did. Caroline Leggett, Callie Phillips, Abby Waring and I all went to a small little airport restaurant named EXK and got some sandwiches. I ordered a tomato, basil, mozzarella and olive spread sandwich on sourdough bread. It was delicious! I love French food!

This is a picture of the small restaurant that we ate at in the airport. Yum!

After a good snack, I went off and took a 4 hour nap on the airport floor. That was really helpful considering I did not get any rest on the long eight hour flight on the way there. 

We boarded the plane again and I had a seat next to Ms. Hartman and Ms. Cannon. This was a quick 1 hour and 40 minute flight to Rome. It went by really fast! 

As soon as we landed, we went directly to baggage claim with our backpacks on our fronts to keep away from the pick-pocketers. We arrived at the baggage carousel and everyone of us sat directly on the cold, tile floor because the plane ride was quite warm. All fifteen of us together gathered our bags and met David and Carolyn outside the baggage claim doors. 

David and Carolyn are our National Geographic Photographers that are going to help us as we visit Italy and Greece. They both work for National Geographic in helping take photos for the magazine, website, and other things as well. They led us to the train station which was going to take us to the main part of Rome. We arrived at the airport that was on the outskirts of Rome, so we needed to use some sort of transportation to get to the area where we would be staying. 

Our group got on the train with all of our baggage and got off 25 minutes later. This train ride was a quick one, as for the next one, not so much. We got off this train and had a little snack break. I ordered a spinach panini with cheese, and it was SO GOOD! I love Italian food already, and it has only been one day! We waited for the next train to arrive and finished up our delicious snacks. 

This is a picture of some postcards that were outside of the little store where we sat and waited for our train to arrive. 

The train arrived about thirty minutes later, and we made our way down to the train cart number 10. I sat at a table with Callie Phillips, Caroline Leggett and Ellie Hopper, and across from us was a table with Holly Hepper, Erin Kreindler, Ariel Wilkes, and Demeris Burritt. We were on this train for two hours which actually went by really fast. I was watching Eat Pray Love, and everyone else was either sleeping or making bracelets.

As we got off the train, many of us had to use the bathroom. So we got a group together and made a quick bathroom run, without any money on us. In order to use the bathrooms, you had to pay one Euro for every person that had to use the bathroom. Well, we did not follow that policy exactly. Thankfully I had a Euro on me so as I went in, Madeline Stewart followed right behind me before the gate closed, so we got two people in for one price. 

This is a picture of what the train station looked like, kind of. 

We arrived at our hotel and went straight to go and get fresh gelato. The gelato was amazing! I ordered Mint Chocolate Chip and a Cookie flavor. I love Italy!

This is a picture of the place where I had my first REAL Italian gelato!

CIAO BELLA!

Let the FuN Begin!

Our trip has officially started! When I stepped foot into Terminal D of the Intercontinental Airport in Houston, I was ready. At around 1:15, everyone arrived and we were on our way to check-in our luggage. We said our goodbyes and lined up in the Air France baggage check-in line, curiously waiting to see if our bags were over 50 pounds. Thankfully, no one was charged with an oversized baggage fee, even though mine weighed 51.9 pounds. We cleared baggage check and then we moved on to security.

Security was a breeze, thank God. Usually the lines are enormously long and annoying to wait in, but today there were no problems. We gathered our belongings and went to the gate.  We boarded Air France and I sat next to Rachel Owens and Caroline Leggett on row 28. 


It was an 8 hour and 41 minute flight from Houston to Paris, France. During the flight, we were served two meals: dinner and an early breakfast. For dinner we had a choice of shrimp or chicken with mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, lemon cake, grapes, cheese and cuz cuz rice. And for breakfast we were served a blueberry muffin, fruit, yogurt, and a glass of orange juice. On the flight they had individual televisions on the headrest of the seat in front where we were sitting. On the TV's you were able to watch movies, listen to French music, play games, and even track the flight. I chose to watch movies including, No Strings Attached, Charlie St. Cloud and Hall Pass. The idea of falling asleep on the plane for 8 hours was great, but it was hard to do. Sitting up and trying to sleep is very challenging, and I can never manage to do it. 

The plane that we flew to our first destination: Paris, France.

Even though I could not shut my eyes on the plane, the flight was very enjoyable, It was not too long, but definitely not short. 

Greek for the Non-Greeks

Here are some words that will be helpful on the 2011 Greece and Italy trip:

Thank You ----------------- se parakaloh

Hello ------------------------- yiasoo

Good Morning ------------ kalimerra

Good Night ---------------- kaliniktah

Yes --------------------------- neh

No ---------------------------- ohee

Please ---------------------- efkahristoh

A Little ---------------------- leegoh

Big --------------------------- megahlos

Small ----------------------- mikros

Good ------------------------ kaloh

Bad -------------------------- kakoh

Excuse Me ---------------- sighnomee

Long Live! ----------------- opa! 

The gREEk Life

In 1994, I was born into a Big Fat Greek Family. Both of my parents are of Greek heritage and as a result, I have been raised under a Greek roof. If you have seen the movie Big Fat Greek Wedding, that is my life. 

When I was younger, I was sent to Greek School to learn the Greek alphabet and the basics of the language. Twice a week, my parents took me to the Church for my two hours of Greek tutoring and then asked me what I learned. I am still able to understand basic things that are said in conversations and am able to say a few things in return.


Learning the language is just one element in the Greek culture. Every year in October, Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral hosts a Greek Festival consisting of Greek food, Greek dancing, Greek music, and the Greek atmosphere. I am a part of the Folk Dance Show every year, along with my friends and family. I have been a part of the show for nine years, and love learning and spreading the Greek culture. Opa!

This is a picture of me and my Greek School teacher dressed in my traditional Greek Dance costume. 

This is a picture of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral's Greek Festival Dancers.

This is a picture of Katherine Cokinos dressed in her Greek Dance costume. She performed in the Greek Festival's Folk Dance Show this year. 

This is a picture of my sister, Victoria (right) and her friend, Christina dressed in their Greek Dancing costumes. 

Opa!

I am SO excited to travel to the land of my ancestors. YAYY ZEUS!!