YOB: International Adventure 2010 (Part 3) Olympia/Mycenae/Athens

By Lara

We woke up in Olympia in order to see the site of the ancient Olympics... and the former site of one of the ancient wonders of the world. There isn't really much left of Olympia. There are ruins of gymnasiums and bathhouses. The famous temple of Zeus and the temple of Hera. The remains of the Olympian stadium comprise a patch of dirt and a stone gate. Several members of my group took the obligatory crossing the finish line photo. I did not. Pshf. I don't RUN. Not even for pretend in pictures... Unless I was running for my life, but even then...

Karen had promised us that Olympia was flat. I seem to remember walking uphill for quite some time to get back to the bus. It wasn't "the sheer cliff on a mountain" steep, but it was not flat. Olympia was nice, though. I have some lovely "ruins" pictures. We also saw a lizard. He ran away before I could photograph him, but he was very cute.

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YOB: International Adventure 2010 (Part 2) Kalambaka/Delphi/Olympia

By Lara

Where was I? Yes. Kalambaka.

It had stopped raining in Kalambaka by the time we left the hotel. We drove back up into the mountains of Meteora. We visited the monastery of St. Mumblecough. I could reach over to my little pile of things to include in the eventual scrapbook to look up the name, but you won't remember in five minutes anyhow. It was beautiful no matter the name. There were more stairs to climb than I had expected, but it was worth it.

After I finished poking around in the various dark corners, running into monks, and wishing I could take pictures of the velvet-bound Bibles, I walked back down the stairs to find a place for some quiet reflection. I sat on a small stone wall where I had a view of a rose garden and two mountain peaks. I contemplated the surreality of it all. I was in Greece having a once in a lifetime experience. I tried to really take it all in. The cool mountain air. The distant birds. The sheer history of it all. The radio of the vendor behind me playing AC/DC...

Far too quickly, it was time to get on the bus. There were long periods of time on the bus. I know that we had lunch. I am fairly sure it was in Lamia. Yes! I had my first taste of genuine Grecian baklava. It was heaven.

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YOB: International Adventure 2010 (Part 1)

By Lara

ParthenonSeveral people expressed interest in my recent vacation. I have decided to encourage that interest by writing about the experience. It will probably take me several articles to fully describe my adventures, but people keep telling me that suspense is good for the heart. Ok. Part one. Buckle your seat belts, stow your tray tables, and put your seats in their upright positions.

I will not bore you with the details of GETTING to Greece. Suffice to say that Mandi and I rode on planes and waited in airports for many many hours. I slept a little bit. Then we got to Athens.

The Athenian airport was a blur of luggage carousels and currency exchange booths and customs agents stamping my passport. Once we cleared customs, there was a sketchy looking man in jorts with a "Cosmos" sign. I approached him and asked if he was here for us. He showed me my name in his iPhone to prove that he was legit. The background on his iPhone was a very young woman in a very small swimsuit. Nice to see taxi drivers across the globe keeping it classy.

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YOB: Next Up... Greece and Egypt

By Lara

I am aware that it's not on the Year of the Birthday list; however, I am currently on a cruise enjoying an optional excursion in Egypt. That is correct. Egypt. I am prepared with my Egyptian tourist visa and everything.

It's actually a funny story involving one trip getting cancelled and another trip becoming available. My friend Mandi wanted to go to Athens to visit her friend Bruce. As I had no desire to impose on Bruce for an extended period of time, I agreed to go with her so long as we went on some sort of a tour.

Mandi suggested that I start looking for tours. I found my dream tour. One week in Greece. One week cruising the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas. Once I saw that there was an optional excursion to Egypt during which we would see the pyramids and take a river boat up the Nile, I was SOLD.

It was slightly more difficult to sell Mandi on my two week dream tour encompassing three continents. Fortunately, I have been blessed with the gift of encouragement. I encouraged Mandi to agree that this tour rocked. Soon we had booked our flights and sent in our tour reservations. Yay!

And now I'm here. In Egypt. Rest assured that I will have plenty of stories to tell when I get back. I will also have pictures. I'm excited.

Tasty Bites: Are We There Yet?

By Candy, RN (Steele the Day)

Preparing for vacation is daunting. Count underwear, match one pair of shoes with four outfits, and find someone to feed the cat. Rarely does the preparation turn to you – are you physically ready for your trip? It’s important not to forsake healthy habits in the haste of making your plans. Travel, particularly long airline flights, can wreak havoc on your body, so here are some tips to get you safely at your destination, feeling as well as you can possibly feel.

What Not to Wear

Choose loose fitting clothes and slip-on shoes. You don’t want to be tying tennis shoes when navigating through security. Wear either low-cut socks or better yet, a pair of compression stockings. Blood tends to pool in your feet when you sit, the back of your knees hugs the seat, and it’s important that you minimize the risk of “traveler’s thrombosis,” better known as a blood clot.

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