Adventures in Greece: Ouzo Candy

Γεια σας,

I've been dreaming about Greece a lot lately, I miss being there very much. I've been talking to friends I made there; making me miss it more!

So a little story from Athens;

Myself, my roommates, and a few girls from our program went shopping/exploring in the Monastiraki/Plaka area where we found a cute little shop pretty much geared towards tourists (as are many shops, but hey we had gifts to buy) and the woman that owned it was so sweet and genuine the second we started speaking to her in Greek (not that she wasn't nice before lol). When we would talk to people in Greek they generally, with the exception of one woman on the island, treated you like family (love).

Well this woman in all her sweetness gave us ouzo candy after the exchange of the usual pleasantries (where is your family from? the response of "I have a cousin there", where are you staying? the response "my family has a house there". Don't get me wrong I love these pleasantries).

Yes it did taste like ouzo, just no where near as strong lol..very licorice-y of course. Not something I would sit there and snack on but I'm not a big candy person anyway.

The sweet woman then proceeded to give us directions to good shops & such and offered us a discount on some jewelry because we were Greek-American students, which by the way got us some nice discounts along the way!

-For those of you still curious about the not-so-friendly woman from the island, not a whole lot to the story but she worked at the local market and I always spoke to her in Greek (except when I couldn't think of the words for laundry detergent) and I always wished her well when I left; example: at the beginning of the week "Kali Evdomada" (Have a good week) and such. When I said that she went "Hmph"... hmph? ummm I was confused... though I do understand she sees a lot of tourists and they probably annoy her but I was not a tourist per say & I've been told my accent is good so it couldn't have been that bad. This bothered me because I had to shop there for 3 weeks and every time same deal..oh well!(I don't mean to highlight her she was a very small encounter in my amazing time there)

Besides her all the people I encountered were very friendly and enjoyable.  

More little stories an pictures to come.

-Here is a song my sister and I have been liking a lot lately, enjoy!

The lyric "Heaven doesn't seem so far away now" sure fits this picture, no?  Ellada, always be my favorite place on earth. :)
 

Ellada Mou

Geia sas! I am alive yes lol! Still in Greece & having an incredible time, posting doesn't work so well on my iPod & it won't let me add pictures either :( but when I get home I will write about this amazing place we call Ellada! :)
Kali Evdomada!

Do you ever get the urge to just throw away half your wardrobe & buy all new stuff?

I had that last night & i did throw away a few things & bought one new item (i'll be doing a haul when items arrive) Andd i was at Target last night & they don't have the rain boots i wanted (post below) :( but i can still buy them online. While i was at Target i noticed they are selling a much bigger section of E.l.f.! I'm so excited because if theres one thing i don't like about E.l.f. its their shipping cost, as i've said many times.

I bought their liquid eyeliner for $1 & some new hair-ties (not elf). Then i went to a department store with my mom looking for some decent pajamas, that was hopeless but i did get a new strapless bra i like.

I booked my ticket for Greece last night also! Sadly i can't get my new Canon camera & go on this trip so i'll havta wait on that one. I am beyond excited but it also makes me slightly nervous having never left the country without my family, i know God will protect me though.

I hope to see my cousin(s) in Greece if they can make it to where i will be in the time frame. Its also a great opportunity to make new friends & i am so looking forward to that & having an entirely new experience with studying abroad. 

Random Info***

Geia sas everyone! I hope you guys are enjoying your summer & taking advantage of the beach!

So i didn't end up getting my wisdom teeth out on Wed. but i made an appointment for 2 weeks from now on July 7th. I will be getting i.v. sedation..sounds scary i know. They told me it'll feel like 5 minutes to me, i hope so.

But anyway today's post is kinda some randoms & stuff i've been liking & wanting lately. So keeping with that; i have always been crazy about Zebra gum (which i only recently learned its not actually called that lol) so the search is on for a store that sells it.

My siblings & i loved to eat multiple pieces & use the 'tattoos' that you get in each piece. I remember having huge wods of gum in my mouth at times when there doctors appointments & my mom bought us 'zebra gum' if we behaved lol.

On a good note Greece won their game vs Nigeria on Thursday! I was cheering in my empty house & my dogs were looking at me like "girl what is your problem" haha. I was also happy they put in Sotiris Ninis(above); who is looking up to be the next great star of football..ehhem soccer sorry, listening to the European commentators & people say it all the time its caught on. That's kinda like visiting the south you come back sounding less Yankee like haha.

Oh & i wanted to let you guys know Coastal Scents is having a buy 2 get 1 free on their gel liners. Which i'm thinking about doing, even though i was only going to buy 1 if i buy 1 more i get a free liner. This is how i justify the spending sadly lol. But definitely check it out if you're interested!

Okay next up is a product i want because it gives your hair a weightless hold. Its the Ion Volumizing Solutions Vitalizing Shaping Mist

I'm also wanting THIS brush by e.l.f. But i would use it for foundation not powder. I've heard it gives great coverage & is fabulous for foundation & for $3 i am willing to buy it for sure!

And finally i wanted to share what i have been listening to & today i have been having a Luis Fonsi obsession & the 2 songs i keep listening to are ¿Quién te dijo eso? & Nada Es Para Siempre, watch the videos HERE & HERE. Enjoy the view too cuz he's a cutie! ...& a great singer! :)

Talk to you all soon!

Loving June; Birthday, World Cup, Yoga, & more

Geia sas!! So it's officially June; my favorite month! They say your favorite month is usually your birthday month, well i don't know about that but mine is for sure! My birthday is June 7th & i'm excited, though i'm sure in a few years i'll stop being so happy about it lol. (but i hope not!)

Also this month is the FIFA World Cup; June 11th. Now i must tell you i am a hugeee Cristiano Ronaldo (CR7/CR9 )fan, who usually plays for Spain's Real Madrid but for the World Cup since he IS Portuguese he plays for Portugal under # 7. (His # in Real Madrid is 9)

So the 3 teams i'll be watching are Portugal, Greece, & USA. (Though i fear our beloved USA won't win let's hope they get far!)

So another player i'm a fan of is Mixalis Sifakis, who will be on Greece's national team as goalkeeper & normally plays for Aris Thessaloniki. So here are a few pictures of them in action to represent the occasion.

I couldn't resist this one lol *insert cheesy grin*




Now onto yoga! This month i am working really hard on doing more of my yoga so to celebrate that here is a yoga pose i enjoy. This is Sphinx pose & its very relaxing i find & gives you a nice stretch. It is of course called Sphinx because you lay like a Sphinx, observe:

There are so many more great things about June that i'm looking forward to, like swimming & volleyball. Just being able to relax from college & knowing it's just the beginning of summer is really nice too!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of the week everyone!
Let me know who you want to win the World Cup or something you love about June!

My Eurovision Favs 2010

Geia sas! So Eurovision song contest is going on right now & here are my favorites so far:

(in no particular order) here is Cyprus. Nice song but who is this guy who looks British & has a non-Cypriot name?? I'm a little confused by that but he did well: (Edit, i later found out he IS British LOL but i bet they didn't use a Cypriot because the Greeks & Turks can't agree; shocking lol)

Next ISRAEL, beautiful song. He SHOULD have won no doubt! I love the language i think its beautiful & knowing its the language of God is really cool to me. But anywho the song is great & this guy has a lot of passion when he sings:

Ireland, this was such a sweet, pretty song i thought! Bravo Ireland!




And of course Greece (i'm not a trader after all lol) but Greece can do SO much better i wasn't thrilled when i heard this was the song that was chosen; it's just ok i think. I've seen them win with much better, but at least this one makes you wanna dance!


.........................

I wanted so badly to like Armenia's but i really wasn't impressed:

Whats your favorite of these or another?

Bring Them Back!

'Bring Them Back' is a campaign by Greece to return the stolen items from the Parthenon back to Greece from Britain's Museum. As you will see in the video below, 200 years ago a British Lord stole thousands of items from the Parthenon. The video explains it all:





They need people to 'sign' the petition by entering your email address. Also here is their facebook:Bring them Back. Please help bring our treasures home! Thank you to everyone who signs it!

Much love,

Once Upon A Time In Egypt

Hey its SassyAgapi with my 1st blog!
Today I just wanted to talk about something I love and a new book I've been reading; ancient Egypt & the book The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran. First I just want to say that I have a great love for all things ancient Egyptian & Greek, so when I heard of this book I was dying to read it! The book is centered on Nefertari, the orphan princess of Egypt & niece of Nefertiti who they call 'the Heretic Queen', because her husband (Pharaoh Ahkenaten) banished all gods except one(Aten) from Egypt. So many in Egypt have built up hate for her & her late family. You might know from history that she marries Ramesses(II) the Great, the book focuses on that a lot also. The only thing I don't like is that she has Ramesses with RED hair!??! Sorry but i cannot picture him without dark hair, but anyway... I'm not going to ruin the book for anyone but if you like Egypt, romance, & a good story I highly recommend The Heretic Queen.
So back to my love of Egyptian & Greek things, well first I am Greek & I love & am proud of my people's culture, history, & beauty, so that's a given. As far as ancient Egypt I have always been drawn to it, it fascinates me so much, just the mystery & adventure of it all. Oh & the clothes, jewelry, make-up, architecture, & decorations! :D Another thing I love about both are the names, here are some of my favorites:

Ramesses -Egyptian[male]
Asha-Egyptian[male]
Demetrius/Dimitrios-Greek[male]

Αlexandros-Greek[male]

Achilles-Greek[male]

Isis-Egyptian-'supreme throned one'
Iset-Egyptian-'(she) of the throne'
Nefertiri-Egyptian-'form of beautiful one'
Nefertari-Egyptian-'most beautiful'
Nefertirian-Egyptian-'another form of beautiful one' {nefer-teer-i-in}
Arsinoe-Greek(Αρσινη) [Egyptian Queen]- {arsin-o-ay}

Selini-Greek-'moon' (Σεληνη)

Briseis-Greek-(Βρισηις)

Eleftheria-Greek-'freedom'- (Ελευθερια)

Deianira-Greek-(Δηανειρα)

That's just a few lol!

*Note I did not add an accent to the Greek text*

But there are so many beautiful names its hard to pick just 1 or 2.

Here are some pictures of Greece & Egypt to end this post:

{Oh &  'Agapi Mou' means 'my love' in Greek, to anyone whos wondering}