Update (It's (still) alive!!)

Greetings from the land of myths and gods.

I haven't been updating my blog for two reasons:

a) Nothing extremely interesting has happened. Yes, we are facing another mini heat-wave (what's new?), we had our usual amount of forest fires (for those of you that do not know that, forest fires are very common in Greece during the summer and they are mostly NOT naturally occurring phenomena-damn you, arsonists!-) and I am still in Athens trying to make sure everything is OK with my study permit and my return ticket (which BTW is hard to find.)
b) I have a dial - up connection at home that makes uploading and even accessing websites with pictures a time-consuming experience.

Anyway, hope everybody is having a good time and hopefully my next post will contain stories about the sea, the beach and... everything that summer is supposed to be about

Keeping these promises...

As promised previously, here is a link to a slideshow with pictures of Frankfurt airport. These pictures were taken last Thursday while I was still under the impression I would travel that day...
Overall, I really do not like that airport:

• It is difficult to move around (unless you ride a bike)
• There are limited choices to get something to eat (the food was not bad, but I just want more choices!)
• A decent place to have a nap is hard to find and
• ...let's just say that if you get a nature's call, hold it (if you can). Most of the WC's are available only after passport control and the ones in the main building are just terrible....

Airport slideshow

Finally, here are some pictures from my hotel room. You can thank my camera and my early awaking for the poor quality:

This is a picture of my bed. No complaints there; it was very comfortable, but I did not enjoy it for long....

Packed and ready to go....

And that is all for pictures.

In other news, I am currently doing my papers for my new study permit. I must have everything in order before I start planning my vacations. (A friend of mine reconfirmed her invitation to spend some time in her house at an island).
After all, you do want me back, don't you?

My little Odyssey

Hello from Athens!

I am glad to report I arrived safely in Athens yesterday (Friday) afternoon after an adventurous trip.
So, details:
After a 13 hours waiting in a not so nice airport, I headed to my gate where my flight was set to depart. Well the airplane took off alright, but I was not in! Why?
It turned out that a person in AC (you can figure out the initials, hint: it is a carrier) FUCKED UP with my flight.
You see, when I made my ticket reservation (3 weeks ago; it was a return ticket), I got an itinery that had BOTH flights (the one leaving from Montreal, and the one leaving from Frankfurt) confirmed (status, OK) and it was so noted on my ticket.
The fact that when I checked in on Wednesday I got only one boarding pass should raise some suspicions, but the person there (AC again!) told me not to worry since I would get my pass in Frankfurt.
So, imagine my surprise and my frustration when I got my boarding pass to find out (at the gate!) that I was in a waiting list because there was NO RESERVATION under my name....
I had already spent about 13 hours in that airport, I was already tired, so you can imagine I had a really explosive reaction. Of course getting angry and swearing never helps, but anyway, I was directed to a ticket person to see what to do. It was almost 22.00, there was no other flight to Athens for the day, I was tired, almost broke (after all, I was not planning to stay in Frankfurt) and stranded in this @@**!! airport.
The person there explained me that this was not Lufthansa's fault but AC's, because they wrote down on my ticket that both flights were confirmed although the second wasn't.
Furthermore, there was more bad news since

• All 3 flights to Athens for the next day were overbooked (this is holiday season) and the lady there (the ticket person) could just put me on the waiting list for all three of them and
• Since that was not Lufthansa's fault, they would not pay for a hotel room (remember, I had already stayed for 13 hours in this airport and now I had to spend the night in Frankfurt). I have just one thing to say, thank God for credit cards!

Anyway, the cheapest hotel room in the area would cost me € 60, but what to do? I got in the shuttle bus that would get me to the hotel, checked in and told the people to wake me up early in the morning (at 5.30). You see, the first shuttle bus to the airport was departing at 6.00 and although the first flight to Athens was scheduled for 9.30, I really wanted to get there earlier to get a chance to have téte à téte conversation with somebody from AC.
I barely slept for 5 hours and got to the airport the next morning. I eventually managed to speak with somebody from AC who told me that the time I booked (and probably checked in as well), both of my flights were O.K., but (I guess somehow until I got in Frankfurt,) the status of the second flight was just "magically" changed.
She suggested to get to the first flight I was in the waiting list of, since (according to her again) I had a good chance to get on board). When I got to the gate, the people there told me that it didn't look good but they would do whatever they could...
So, I waited and waited and about 15 minutes before the flight was about to leave they found me a seat. "Thank God" I said and got in the plane happy for my good luck. And that would be all you may think...

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO and NO

You cannot even imagine the expression on my face when the captain announced us that there was a LEAK and we would have to deboard the plane......I just started laughing nervously in the cabin. I had been traveling since Wednesday, it was Friday morning and I was still in Frankfurt.

Eventually, they found another plane and we managed to leave at 11.00. After a rather uneventful trip, (well, no complaints there, the crew actually gave us champagne, chocolatebars extra refreshments, you know, to ease the discomfort from the delay) I arrived to Athens yesterday at 15.00 local time.

Right now, I am still recovering from my trip. (I will post the pictures, I always keep my promises, I even took some pictures of my hotel room). But when I fully recover, the AC person in Athens will have such a nice day. You see, I am determined to get to the bottom of this.

From the regularly warm capital of Greece (we had 34 °C today) I greet you all...

Trip Details

Hello from Frankfurt!

As promised, here are some details of my trip:

I left Montreal yesterday at 19.40 local time:


For the whole night I have been traveling across the Atlantic...

For the first time I got some sleep on a plane. I guess the thought that I had to wait for 13 hours in Frankfurt for my connecting flight helped! BTW, I did not get a boarding pass for my flight from Frankfurt to Athens. (Correct me if I am wrong, but I think they did that on purpose, so that in no way I would be entitled to a hotel room!)

Finally we reached Frankfurt at around 9.00 am local time. (03.00 am Montreal):

Now, as already stated above, my flight would leave almost 13 hours later (21.30). Unfortunately, when we arrived in Frankfurt it was raining, so touring the city was out of the question. Thus, I stayed in the airport, got some sleep on some not so comfortable chairs (I do not like this airport at all) and did what Émile would do; started taking pictures.. (A relevant link will be posted later).

Now, I am sitting at a gate lounge waiting for my flight to depart....
That's all for now...

Next stop, Athens...

PS: I have just seen on the news what happened in London: It is just terrible...

An awesome evening

Although I am leaving for Greece this Wednesday and I should already be packing, today, I had the last get together with some friends from the department before I leave. The plan was dinner at Ouzeri (a Greek style restaurant at the corner of St. Denis and Gilford) and movie or something else for later on.
We were supposed to meet there at 6.00, but somehow I managed to get there 25 minutes later. Although the place is located at a central street, apparently you can miss it. (To be honest, I did not only miss the place but I also missed Gillford; yeah, don't ask!).
Émile, Erin, Tobin and Josh were already there waiting patiently for me, who somehow managed to be late for my own farewell event.
The food was good but not ordinary Greek. There were tzatziki of course, taramosalata, melitzanosalata (eggplant dip), spanakopita and other Greek delicacies but the cuisine was definitely influenced by non-Greek, and in particular local, elements (this is actually stated on the menu), something I found very interesting. Honestly I really got fed up with the commercialized version of the "Greek" food provided in "Greek" restaurants here.
So, I ordered the chicken pie and some home made pilafi (rice, I believe the word is of Turkish origin) and no regrets there. The food was really good and the quantities quite generous. In fact, we were all feeling full afterwards, but maybe that was also because of the water we drunk. (Detail: I really liked the water being served in a glass with a lemon slice, but I love lemons anyway.)
So time happily passed with eating, chatting and Émile taking pictures, Émile taking pictures.....and Émile taking pictures. (Il paparazzo della compagnia).
At around 8.40 we got out and we started discussing where to go next. Since we couldn't find a suitable movie for our taste and time limitations it was suggested (I think Josh, or Erin had the idea) to go for bowling.
Now, just a sec. Bowling? Moi? The only time I had seen a bowling ball at close was on TV and some of these instances include the Flintstones. Needless to say I had never played bowling before in my life. However, life is about trying new things, so after I warned the people that I was as knowledgeable of bowling as of the theory of Relativity (Please do no start laughing at me!) I agreed.
So, we took the metro to Sharx at St. Catherine and when we got there, my bowling experience started. First of all, I had to put on the appropriate bowling shoes. Then, Erin and Josh explained to me some basic stuff, you know, how to hold the ball, what ball to use etc. Finally, the games began. Well, at least my worst fear was not realized. You see, I was afraid that my fingers will get stuck in the ball and I will throw myself away. Yes, I know I watch too many cartoons but still, it could happen!
Now, of course I couldn't match the professionals (Tobin and Josh) and experienced (Émile and Erin) but, believe it or not, I actually had a strike!!! and some spares. In fact, in the second game I exhibited significant signs of improvement. I guess I was more relaxed and all that beer we were all drinking in the meanwhile, really helped. My lucky strike (not the brand!) happened at the first game, while at the second I had some spares (that could be strikes if these were not my second turns). Thanks to Michael Jackson, my performance reached a peak when Billie Jean (BTW, one of my favorite songs) was playing.
So, despite my initial fear of making a fool out of myself, (even among friends, it does feel kind of weird when this happens) and the relatively hot atmosphere (could somebody turn on the air-conditioning, or even a fan?) I really had a blast.

Top 3 highlights of the games:

1. Erin's dance bowling technique that summarizes as follows: Shake your body before you throw and you get a strike. Awesome oh, today you truly lived up to your name and reputation.
2. Tobin and Josh's relentless battle at the end of the second game which ended with Josh achieving a narrow win at the very end. Poor Tobin though; for so many times he came very close to a strike, but there was always that ONE pin in his way.
3. Émile dividing his time in two. Playing the game and guess what? Yes, being the paparazzo again. (I am looking forward for these pictures Émile!)

After the second game, we got on our way home because it was already getting late. Erin rode her bicycle home, Tobin and Josh walked to the metro, while I walked/ran with Émile (again) up to his place and then walked back home (after I stopped for some ice-cream). I guess, failing to go the gym the last three weeks, this was a good opportunity for physical exercise and for my body to get rid of all that alcohol.
As I finish this post, I really want to thank again all and each one of you guys for this wonderful evening. So, thank you Erin, thank you Émile, thank you Tobin and thank you Josh, for organizing this evening, coming, teaching me bowling and generally contributing to one of the best times I have ever had. Thank you all and see you in almost two months...

And Émile, now you can stop taking pictures!

To all my American friends

...A happy 4th of July!

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

From the Decleration of Independence
July 4, 1776

...καί τό εύδαιμον τό ελεύθερον, τό δ' ελεύθερον το εύψυχον κρίναντες...

"...believing that happiness presupposes freedom and freedom, bravery..."

Thycydides Historiai, 2,43

Celebrate Canada / Célébrez le Canada

To all my Canadian friends, a happy Canada Day
À tous/tes mes ami(e)s Canadien(ne)s, une joyeuse fête du Canada