Things you probably don't know about Athens, Part 1

Apparently, when the Sahara has a big sandstorm, Athens suddenly has smog.  Except it's not smog.  It's sand.  I was convinced that Athens was a dirty, nasty city.  DS kept telling me it was beautiful before I got there; sunny, clear, perfect temperatures.  All I saw was clouds and sand smog.  So here are some smog pictures, all but the last taken from the Acropolis*.  After looking at a map, I'm fairly certain we would have seen sea if not for that sand.  So that sucks, but how often do you get to come home and say you experienced the effects of a Saharan sandstorm??

That's Hadrian's theater, which is part of the Acropolis tour.

This is a view of the Agora from the Acropolis.

The Temple of Zeus, with the Olympic Stadium from the first modern Olympics in the background.

General city.  Pretty crowded!

* As it turns out, if you're short for time, you can see pretty much everything of interest from the Acropolis.  So go there with a camera that has a good optical zoom, and you're set!

Allergies Suck

It's been exactly two weeks since DS and I returned from Athens.  I have to admit that I've spent most of that time either sleeping, sniffling, coughing, or playing Harvest Moon Cute.  Tree pollen is crazy rampant right now, and it would seem I'm very allergic to whatever trees they have here.  It was like magic.  The Saturday after we returned, I attended a baby shower at a house that had its windows open.  As I'm leaving, I feel that icky feeling you get in your throat sometimes when you're catching a chest cold.  The next morning, I can't breathe.  Allergies are AWESOME.

So, the three different prescription medicines, plus the special steroid inhaler I take twice a day for my asthma, are doing squat.  To cope, I'm taking three times the amount of claritin I'm supposed to, and I can get by.  Benedryl does nothing.  Tylenol Sinus does nothing.  So far, the only thing that helps is rain.  I'm guessing it forces all that crap to stick to the ground.

At any rate, I haven't been feeling up to much of anything except lying around and doing things that don't require much thought.  Work is exhausting, and all I do is sit at a desk.  But the weather.com says the pollen levels are moderate instead of high now, so that's a good sign I guess.

Anyway, that's where I've been.  I haven't forgotten that some of you want info about the trip, and it is forthcoming.

Home at Last!

After 24 hours (no kidding!) of travel, we're finally home.  We missed the cats terribly, but they aren't even acting as if we've gone anywhere.  And here I was worried about them.

Pictures will have to come later, as I'm tired, and I think the batteries are dead on the camera.  But until then, I can tell you that we had a wonderful trip, and I saw some of the most magnificent things!  

Packing, Working, and Freaking Out

I leave for Greece tomorrow!!  I am both terribly excited, and terribly nervous.

Nervous:

1. Until about an hour ago, I was completely stressed about getting work done.  There's a deadline right after I get back, so I had to have my stuff finished before I left.  I managed to get enough of it done that no one should be upset with me for what's left.

2. Yesterday I made a list of odds and ends that I wanted to get done before I left (like making sure all the dishes were clean so my apartment doesn't smell awful when I get back).  Then I got home and found my new Hello Kitty crochet book had a

rrive from Japan... still have that whole list to get to.

3. The cats have given up on DS coming home.  They no longer run to the door when the outside fire door slams.  They do like waking me up at 4 in the morning because they're not getting enough attention...  So I'm a little worried about their sanity when I too leave them.  They don't know I'm coming home!

4. I think I'm going to have to close off half the apart

ment.. There are things I definitely don't want the cats around if they decide to punish us for leaving like they did for our last vacation..

Excited:

1.  I'm going to see the Parthenon!!!!  And lots of other things I studied in college!!  Being an art history major brings joy on every vacation :)

2. I get to see DS again!!  And he's promised to "put me to bed".  Because I'm obviously not capable of recognizing that I'm tired on my own.

3. I don't have to work for 7 days!!!!

So... I know there are more things in the nervous list than there are in the excited list, but I promise the excited things outweigh the nervous.  

Now I have to find a new book to put on my iPod, since I don't think there's enough left in The Count of Monte Cristo to get me there and back.  Some things about planning a trip are really fun!

Also, while I'm thinking about fun trip planning, let me tell you about my new suitcase.  I'm so in love with it!!!!

Is it not the most beautiful thing you've ever seen?  It's purple, and has 4 swivel wheels!!  I can spin it around like a top!  AND it's HUGE!!!  I want to travel travel travel now. :)

Note:  I did NOT pay that much for it.  Turns out it's true what they say in the TJ Maxx commercials.. you can find some really good bargains (and also a lot of junk).

Punch-Out Freak Out!!!!

HOLY FREAKIN CRAP!!!! If I thought for one second that my husband would actually wear this, I'd buy it in a heart beat!