summer 2002 sunday august 4, 2002 and here i am, home again... i have been tossing around a few ideas in my head about what i should write about returning back to the states. i was thinking about sharing the kinds of things that i learned about being abroad and interacting with different and unique people. i think what i will end up doing is referring to these events for many days and months to come. right now i am just facing the challenges of being back in my own country, trying to make sure that the positive changes in my life remain, especially when sometimes i feel that i have been thrown into a sea of negative energy.    so for now i will just be thankful to be home safely, drink lots of chocolate soymilk, and remind my friends abroad that i miss them and am grateful to have met them. if you haven't been reading my livejournal, i will post the entries below so you can catch up: Thursday, August 1st, 2002 12:36 pm ok, it's not that bad so i was in a bit of a bad mood the last time i wrote. arriving in mykonos was a big change from my close-knit community that was forged in crete. there are so many tourists here and tons of americans. is this a good thing? not so sure!!! ooh, i am in the internet cafe here (which charges 3x as much as i am used to) and some decent 80s music is on -- she's a maaaaniac maniac maniac. that's nice. so i am only here on this side of the world for a few more days, then loooook out, because here i come! i have no idea what i will do when i get home, what am i gonna do! hopefully visit with all of my friends and dream up new adventures. gotta go, the clock is ticking and i think my computer is about to turn into a pumpkin. Monday, July 29th, 2002 6:45 pm get me out of here i hate mykonos Saturday, July 27th, 2002 8:02 pm where did the time go? i'm done now. it's all over. wow, that's so weird. my sister is here now and tomorrow we leave to go to mykonos for a week. it seems so strange to be going on holiday now, after all these months in this place. i am not sure exactly where i fit in or where i belong or where i am supposed to be, but i guess that's normal for me. yesterday was an incredible day. it was my last day of work and a changeover as well, which is one of the most horrible days. it's the big cleanup day between sessions (every 2 weeks) and the work that is done is hard and long. the air-conditioner in the kitchen broke yesterday, go figure -- murphy's law anyone? it was absolutely 100% sweltering and i really didn't think i was going to make it. molly, the new cook, and i loaded up on rehydration salts and emergen-C and doused our head under the cold water tap as often as possible. it was completely unreal. what a way to finish out my work in agios pavlos. the nice part of the story is that me and my friends all went out last night to celebrate my last night as well as one of our birthdays (happy birthday steve!). they presented me with a handmade book that everyone had signed, it was so beautiful. i cried and cried because it made me so sad to think about leaving all of these special people in my life but also because i felt so loved. thanks everyone! i am sure the story will continue to unfold. i am in for a big change when i head back to new york city. i am sure you will hear all about it. cheers Wednesday, July 24th, 2002 6:07 pm one more day of work for meeeee so this is it... i am in iraklion, less lost this time, with friends... and with a CAR! in under an hour, we are going to pick my sister up from the airport, then back to the bay for a full moon party and supposedly a midnight moonlit swim. one more day of work on friday, the very last dreaded changeover. and then that's it. off to mykonos i go for holiday with my sister. and then what? LIFE and evolution.... Thursday, July 18th, 2002 5:06 pm will i see agia galini again? so here i am, on my day off, working my last session here at yoga plus. i never thought i would make it to this day.. well somedays anyway. it's been quite an experience if any of you have been following along. i have been learning a lot of stuff about myself and forging strong bonds with the people i am here with. it's going to be hard to say goodbye, and i am sure people like tony, ray, stacy, and saaaaammmmm know this. miss you guys :) i didn't write the last time i was here, sometimes i feel like i really don't have anything of interest to say. it's really hard to convey the emotions that are felt here with just a few sentences on a computer screen, but i try my best. soon enough, i will be back to semi-regular updates on stellargirl. i am looking forward to seeing everyone from home.. and special bon voyage wishes to michelle who will be leaving for japan before i even get back. good luck michelle!! that's all i have to say... as these days wind down... until then. Thursday, July 4th, 2002 5:19 pm i forgot what i found today YARN :) 4:58 pm lost in heraklion i must admit, i have been pretty bored lately. i have 3 more weeks of work left and i have been really antsy about being stuck out in the country. i decided to resolve this boredom by making an excursion on my day off, today. so last night i came to the usual spot, agia galini, stayed over and took a bus to heraklion this morning with the full intent of doing cultural things like visiting the archaeological museum and the palace at knossos. what did i do instead? i got lost. that's right. for the first 2 hours i was in heraklion, i wandered about aimlessly with my lonely planet map in hand, thinking i was coming from a completely different bus station than i actually was. mind you, i was wandering around mostly residential streets and wondering whoever said heraklion was such a big city. well, i finally figured it out after asking "milas anglika?" (do you speak english) about a 100 times, because no one seems to speak it in heraklion! anyway....once i did get to the city proper, i have to admit, i was pretty overwhelmed. there was so much everywhere, so many people, so many shops, so much of everything. i didn't even know where to look or where to go. i thought i would stick with my plan to hit at least one museum and i couldn't even find it. i thought i was there and then i just wasn't. i might have toughed it out longer, but it was so hot, i was sweating buckets, and i was realizing that i did kind of want to be back in agios pavlos, where i can silently stare into the sea and know where to find people who care. i suppose it was a weird and necessary perspective shift on my part. i am going to be really sad to leave this place. i know it's almost time to go, the right time to go, but i am sure i will feel differently once i leave. damn, i got sunburned today and let's not even talk about how i smell. home to shower at once. cheers and happy 4th to you. Wednesday, June 26th, 2002 5:51 pm and the weeks go down i was near a computer last week, but i decided to spare all of you the misery that i was feeling. this experience has been a pretty positive one, but last week things were just off. i really wanted to leave my situation and i was really unhappy and questioning / doubting absolutely everything. but you know how the saying goes, what goes up must come down... what i mean to say is, that the opposite is true as well (what's with my fixation with opposites recently)? to make a long story short, i am feeling so much better now. i think i came to crete with certain expectations about the kinds of things i would get out of this experience, and it didn't seem like things were going according to plan. but when have i ever really planned anything? i can finally begin to comprehend some of the other things that i am learning about myself while being removed from my normal insane life. i can even appreciate the good things going on back in the states, just as i am sure i will see even more clearly the things i have learned here... okay, that was getting a bit convoluted there. i don't have much else to say besides thanks to everyone for the letters. if you are gonna send me a letter, please do so now or never, because i leave greece in a month and the mail is so dang slow that i probably won't get it in time if you don't do it soon!! love and kisses! Thursday, June 13th, 2002 12:07 pm on my own in the bustling metropolis i got a lift to rethymno today, not exactly sure why. change of scenery? it's my day off today, so i figured that i might as well get out of dodge. of course, now i kinda wish i was "back at the ranch" in my comfort zone that is agios pavlos. it's starting to get really hot here. i know this because i experienced my first bout of dehydration this past weekend. i have been doing lots more astanga yoga, thus sweating buckets, but i was also perhaps drinking a few too many Mythos'at the bar (think Greek budweiser). anyway, working in the kitchen can be really draining in a lot of ways, one simple way because it's really hot and you sweat. i was already low on fluids, so i pretty much just freaked out and had to leave and go to bed. i was given rehydration salts and they definitely helped, quickly. i have to be a lot more careful! the weird thing is, it's only june. it's going to get much hotter. people talk about august in crete, how you basically just have to slow everything down because it's just so hot. i am definitely not a summer person. i prefer spring and fall, which signify coming out of extremes... or heading towards them if you prefer. if all goes according to plan, i won't even be here during the month of august. but... the time has been flying and it has made me realize that perhaps it would be best for me to stay on for a few more weeks, months? help! what do i do. i know when the time comes to leave, i won't be ready, as much as i do miss new york city and america in general. so it's hot hot hot and getting hotter... what's it like for you? cheers Friday, June 7th, 2002 6:29 pm what's cookin'? just came to check some email and stuff in galini.. we are going out to dinner tonight at this place called cosmos (i think) that is really fun and delicious. i love going out to get greek food! that reminds me, elemental posted a comment about me posting some of the things that i have been cooking.. so i will share some of the recent dishes that i have prepared: beet-walnut salad chopped boiled beets with yogurt-olive oil-garlic dressing and roasted walnuts honey-mustard-dill gigante bean salad fava yellow split pea mash with sauteed onions and garlic, drizzled with olive oil, very traditional cretan dish hortopita / spinach pie i have done these greens pies either with horta (wild greens) or spinach, sauteed onions, sometimes cheese or egg. then i put them together with either fillo pastry or homemade pastry corn chowder potato corn soup with red pepper slivers briam roasted mixed vegetables : eggplant/aubergine, zucchini/courgette, potato, green/red peppers tzatziki grated cucumber with yogurt-garlic-olive oil dressing. very thick, like a dip there are so many more, but that's what's at the top of my head right now. i am going to have a big greek dinner party when i get home, so get your tastebuds ready!! xoxo Saturday, June 1st, 2002 11:58 am we all have our ups and downs this has been an interesting week between going to rethymno the other day and taking a nice long scooter ride to agia galini today, impromptu. i sent out a bunch of letters yesterday basically with a lot of negative stuff in them about being frustrated with being out here, particularly because of the small group people dynamics of the staff. i was having a hard time because i was feeling like no matter how much things get better, something always happens that makes you feel like you are back to square one, but the truth is.. you have still learned something about yourself in the end. i am learning a lot about my boundaries with people and also the limit to which i will take their crap. additionally, everyone has their own shit going on and we are all going to have our ups and downs... hence the subject of this entry. on a lighter note, we had a great party at the taverna last night. it was adonis' birthday and we were treated to a big feast with all of the trimmings. it was a really great way to blow off steam after this last change-over day (happens every 2 weeks when new guests arrive). we danced all night long and finished off the night by having a cake fight. i was an innocent victim of the cake... i literally had to wash my hair, drunk, before bed... this was not fun. but i did not want to wake up with bugs in my hair and icing all over my sheets. know what i'm sayin'? looks like it's june now... don't forget to write! here's my address again :) {address removed due to irrelevance} Wednesday, May 29th, 2002 1:01 pm i came to rethymno hey everyone, thanks to everyone for the heap of letters i received yesterday. i am glad the power of suggestion worked so well. hehe. now if anyone wants to send me some yarn, i can't seem to find any here in crete and i would really like to knit some scarves. i just might reward you with that very scarf... yes, looking for some thing to pass the time.. a coworker of mine rented a car to climb the highest mountain in crete for a few days and he took some of us to rethymno today. rethymno is a northern port city and is known (at least in my lonely planet guide) to be one of the most modern cities in crete, which is kind of a laugh, but nonetheless it's great to be here. i need a change from agios pavlos from time to time. we are just headed out to get some traditional greek food for lunch today. i need to pay attention to the tastes so that i can recreate them in the kitchen... one month down, 2 more to go. see y'all soon kiss kiss Saturday, May 25th, 2002 6:41 pm today was the best meal ever i thought i was starting to wean myself off of weekly internet access, but spontaneously some lovely lassies from yoga plus decided to accompany me to galini tonight, where we are all feverishly checking our emails and will relax over dinner and drinks later. i was out of sorts last time i was here, it was a crazy day, but the week since then has been really wonderful. the new session is much bigger than the last and there are loads of men, which means they eats TONS of food. it's been a bit stressful cooking for a bigger and hungrier group, but today i made one of the best meals i have ever made: beautiful and delicious. so that was a really great thing. i have really been loving and appreciating my surrounding in crete lately. it's a different sort of feeling than when i first arrived here. now i am feel like this is my home, for now anyway. that's all i can think of. i miss everyone. i wish you should see this place.... Friday, May 17th, 2002 7:28 pm city girl / country girl :: remote control i just arrived in agia galini... brought here by a lovely german couple whom i hitched a ride from. i missed the boat today by a few seconds and i was really determined to get the hell out of dodge for the night, so i walked up the hill until i decided i was crazy.. about 1.5 hours later and turned around and lo and behold, someone picked me up. every week has presented new challenges since i have been here. things in the kitchen went really well this week, a vast improvement over last week. and i swear every time things feel like they are on the way up, boom. something happens that really pisses me off. today was changeover day, which means that we are between sessions and guests leave and new guests come tomorrow. on these days, we do a major cleanup which takes the entire day. i worked from 6 to 4 today and literally ran to try and catch the boat when i was done. the work was so annoying and tedious and i was so happy to be finished it. after i missed the boat, i went back up to the kitchen and everyone just seemed really pissed that i was around, even though i started working 3 hours before them and my job was done. i don't know. i really like where i am and i am usually completely amazed by my surroundings, but work is work sometimes.. and when you really want to get away from things, you can't really get too far. but today i made it! i can't believe it! i have never hitched a ride in my life. learn something new every day. so here i am, really enjoying what i am doing, most of the time. wondering where i will end up next, missing home, but also falling in love with my environs, knowing that they are temporary. don't know what else to say.... Saturday, May 11th, 2002 5:26 pm i took the boat and the boat won back in galini... this keyboard is nice and greasy. so this week was a lot different than last week. i worked my ass off cooking up a storm. some days were amazing and went really smoothly, while one day really wiped me out to the point of tears. i am currently in the middle of a 3 day 6am start stretch. it's rough!! i am learning a lot of incredible stuff though. cooking in volume, working faster, being inventive. i never really cooked much before and even attending cooking school didn't exactly make me feel prepared to actually do anything with my skills. being here is like being thrown into the fire in a different way than working in a restaurant -- i actually get to plan the menus and be really creative, within limits. we don't have all of the same ingredients that we had at school. i am struggling with having to bake with only white flour and white sugar!! eek!! today i actually made a cake sweetened with apple juice and honey... it turned out really good. to all my NGCS friends, you will be happy to know that i poached pears for dessert the other night! being away from home. it's a challenge. the first week i was here was absolutely a vacation. i was still working and finding my way, but now i have started what i came here to do and i am still getting used to what that is... trying to know exactly what that is. since this is a very intense astanga yoga center, most of the staff are here to take advantage of the classes and the instruction/guidance of 2 very incredible teachers who run the place. they get up everyday and get on the mat at like 6:30 am and work through their asanas for up to 2 hours. i only went to practice once since i have been on the early shift almost all of this week. that's another thing i have to work out... in my spare time i have been reading a lot, sitting by the water, trying to learn the greek alphabet and some conversational greek. yasou! ti kanis? (hi! how are you?) it's slow going. i am going to try to rustle up some yarn tonight so i can knit something. whee! exciting! i thought i had a lot more to say, but whenever i get to a computer everything i thought about sharing all week evaporates. my frame of mind is shifting all the time! best be off for now.. p.s. thanks for the comments on here.. if you had trouble leaving a comment, just be sure to select "anonymous" -- that way you don't have to log in and keep those letters coming!! my address is a few entries down.. xoxoxoxoxox Sunday, May 5th, 2002 5:23 pm raki is an acquired taste somehow i managed to get back to agia galini again to check email and stuff. today is my first official day off since i arrived here. i actually didn't know what to do with myself! i went for a long walk / hike today in the hills, on the rocks. the landscape here is pretty unreal. big change from city streets. me and a coworker took a boat out from the bay today. it was so much fun. the water is so clear, you can see straight to the bottom of the sea. today is easter sunday in greece, a very big holiday, the biggest perhaps. we have been treated to lots of special easter breads. in fact, on the boat ride over here, we were given raki and easter breads. they can't get enough raki over here!! and they store it anything that will hold liquid. when we went to dinner the other night, they served it in an ouzo bottle. and today on the boat they served it in a beat up water bottle. i thought they were passing out water, and i was thirsty! but it was the dreaded raki. i guess it kind of compares to grappa in italy. and i never really got into that!! so crete has been pretty cool so far. i need to start lugging my camera around more so i can remember it. i see so many things that are so surreal to me, they remind me of faded memories from my time in italy. things that i know happened, but i don't have a really clear picture of. which is why i need pictures! more pictures!! i can't think of anything else to say right now besides write to me write to me!! i want some mail! also, thanks for coming by to read this drivel. you can comment on any of these entries clicking the link below. it's a quick way to sort of reply and maybe say a little something about what's going on with you, something we'd all like to know perhaps? in any event, i miss you all... damn, 3 more months!!! yasou!! Friday, May 3rd, 2002 5:55 pm look at me! i am in crete!! dear friends: i am finally here.. after nearly a full day of traveling (and by that i mean 24 hours) i arrived on the beautiful island of crete. so far, the week that i have been here has been pretty interesting. the people who i am working with are really great and the scenery is absolutely stunning. it's like nothing i have ever experienced before. and it's only been 4 days! eek! the first set of guests arrive tomorrow, so the challenges of cooking for these large numbers of people should prove to be interesting. it's very strange to not have a cellphone to pick up or a laptop to chat on... i will only be able to connect about once a week when and if i make my way out to Agia Galini, the nearby tourist town where i am currently. i would really love some mail!! here is my address: {address removed due to irrelevance} please please please write me a letter or something.. and check your mail for postcards and such. i am just way too excited to be near a computer right now... all of the staff came out tonight to go to dinner and check email. so i don't really have time to write it all out. when i come back by myself, i will be a lot more thorough.. i miss you all!!! kisses write soon!!! Friday, April 26th, 2002 10:17 pm on my way to crete i leave in just a few days for crete, so welcome to the new posting ground. new because i am too lazy to set something up on stellargirl to work right. what this change means is that on the road i can post some stuff. chances are i might not post anything, but if i do... this is where you can find it. i hope everyone has a great summer. i will be in touch soon... xoxo april 2004 march 2004 february 2004 january 2004 december 2003 november 2003 october 2003 september 2003 summer 2003 may 2003 april 2003 march 2003 february 2003 january 2003 december 2002 november 2002 october 2002 september 2002 august 2002 summer 2002 april 2002 feb / march 2002 january 2002 december 2001 november 2001 sept / oct 2001 july / aug 2001 june 2001 may 2001 april 2001 march 2001 february 2001 january 2001 december 2000 november 2000 october 2000 september 2000 summer 2000 copyright © 2000-2005 - www.stellargirl.com