9/26....Visiting the Acropolis, Mars Hill, and Ancient Agora

9/26

So we took our first daytrip with Aphrodite today…We went as a group to the Acropolis, Ancient Agora, and Mars Hill. Whatever I write here simply won’t do a justice to how amazing those places were. Even the pictures can’t show the impressiveness of those buildings, the antiquity of the ruins, or the feeling of standing where the apostle Paul stood 2000 years ago and preached to the Athenians. It was just awesome. We got on the metro and went three short stops (prob 5 minutes total) and when we got off the Acropolis was right there. We had all seen it before, but everyone was pretty pumped to get up there. First we went to Ancient Agora, which was basically the town meeting center, situated at the base of the Acropolis. It was beautiful and basically filled with gardens, ruins, temples of Greek gods and more ruins. Ancient Agora, for those who don’t know, was where the concept of democracy was thought up. It was awesome to sit there where Plato, Aristotle, and other big time philosophers thought up that stuff, especially, when it has such huge implications on our society in America today. Very cool stuff. We sat and listened to Aphrodite tell us about everything for about and hour or so, then made a quick stop at the Acropolis museum before we made the hike up to the top. The museum was cool…My favorite thing was the Spartan shield on display. It was easily 4 feet by 4 feet of pure bronze. I can’t imagine holding it, let alone fending off guys with swords.

Our first stop after that was Mars Hill. There was a plaque (see facebook pics) that I got a picture with before we climbed about 50 feet up rocks that marked the spot where Paul preached. It was in Greek so I had no idea what it said. However, the climb up the rocks was worth it. It was an amazing view and even cooler, it was cool to stand in a place that remains pretty much the same from biblical times and has such great significance in my faith. It was easy to see why Paul would preach from here. He had a natural speakerphone and could basically preach to huge crowds from a very recognizable point. Again, this was one of my favorite parts, just because it was cool to think of the spot that I was standing in, I’ve read about in scripture.

The main destination was the Acropolis. And man, it was up to the hype. The Acropolis consists of a bunch of temples, but the most famous is the Parthenon. I really can’t say how impressive these buildings were. Not only were they huge, but the way they were made must have been awesome for them to stand this test of time. It was a little disappointing to see scaffolding on the Parthenon, but still cool, nonetheless. There was really only one word to describe it…impressive. The Acropolis, according to Aphrodite, was built after a huge victory by the Greeks over the Persians. They built it to basically thank their gods for seeing them through victory, and while they were exhausted from battle, they went right to work. I couldn’t help but think, man, these Greeks must have loved their gods. Which led me to think even more, what would we, as Christians do for our God? Their gods clearly were fictitious, but ours is real, alive and more powerful than any figment of their imagination. He also paid a price for us that we will never be able to pay that is was more significant that any assist in battle…It made me wonder how willing I would be to carry rocks the size of Volkswagens up mountains for my God... It was a little sobering to think about that. It was definitely an awesome day filled with some great memories and I got to see some really awesome things. And that was all before 4 p.m.

Now, were heading out to dinner at one of the girl’s apartments and then out and around the city with a newly made Greek buddy, Deo.

Later

Ryan

First Post from Athens....

-9/24
So I stayed up for about 30 hours after we left…it turned out to be a pretty solid decision. In effect, I haven’t felt jet lag at all, which I am really pleased about. We got into Athens and proceeded to get our key (which resembles a prison key from the 1800’s) jammed in the door shortly after we were shown around the place. It’s a real intense wood door with steel on the inside so eventually a locksmith had to come within the first 2 hours we were here. About 80 Euros later, it was fixed....Fortunately, we didn’t have to pay, and the lock itself is getting replaced Saturday. We went from there to a Greek taverna (restaurant) and had a traditional Greek meal. The know how to cook. It was awesome and so far the food as been amazing. By the way, their mealtimes here, are way different. Hardly any breakfast, then a huge dinner type meal at lunch followed by what you would call a siesta. This city pretty much shuts down between 3 and 5 pm. Then, around 8 or 9, maybe 10, people come out and go out to dinner, then usually get coffee or drinks or just relax outside with friends because the weather is always so great. After dinner, we walked around our neighborhood (which is about a 15 minute walk from the center of the city) and checked out eachother’s apartments, etc. My apartment is pretty solid. There are some weird things, I guess, but it’s pretty nice. The rooms are comfortable, the kitchen is up to date, the actual apartment complex is really nice, and it seems like it’s gonna be a great place to stay. Check out the pictures on facebook I posted….The apartment even has stained glass windows. Pretty cool. The two annoying things are that you can’t flush the toilet paper…you have to place it in a can. And two, internet is really inconsistent. That aside, the apartment this city is awesome. There is a ton of culture and endless things to do. The group went out tonight to dinner then headed down to Syntagma Square (the main square in the city). We wound up kind of lost and ran into some cool places, even got to see the Olympic Stadium. Eventually we got to the center of the city and it was awesome. People stay out here until late into the night, so there is always stuff to do. It is just all around a really cool place. I could write a lot more, but I’ll save it for when I get back. There aren’t words to describe walking a few blocks out of your apartment and looking up and seeing the Acropolis lit up and being the only thing shining on top of a huge hill in the night sky. We have orientation again tomorrow, then some more free time to roam the city and stuff, so it should be another good day.
Later
Ryan

Update from Paris...9/22

-9/22

So I’m sitting in the airport in Paris…pretty much miserable and sleep deprived, just like the other 20 something kids in the group. We got in at 6 am Paris time (midnight on our bodies) and don’t take off until 12:45 (6:45 am on our bodies) so basically, it’s an all-nighter. I personally am not a fan of France so far. Everyone in the airport has pretty much lived up to the stereotype. The security was borderline ridiculous. A lady yelled at me because I stared at her when she ordered my to “Open” several times my already-open bag. Finally she realized she meant “close.” She was opening my bag because we had to go through security here (something none of us expected to do) and I left a water bottle in my bag with liquid in it. I offered to drink the remaining 2 ounces of water, but the crazy Frenchwoman proceeded to walk me out of the security area, point at the bathroom and make a dumping motion of the bottle and say “toilet.” She then made me go through the entire security procedure all over again. Awesome. And people say no one loves the French? I really can’t see why. Also, there is this noise coming over the loudspeaker every 2 minutes that resembles a text message notification on a cell phone. It’s followed by a bunch of noises (which I guess is someone speaking French). Needless to say, it’s getting old. I also am a bit ticked off because I bought a 7-up for 3.4 Euros, which translates to about 5 bucks. Greaaaaaat. We’ve been sitting, trying to sleep in the airport for the past 3 hours and still have a buck forty five to go. Should be interesting.

The good news is, despite all this annoying waiting and the long flights, and complete lack of sleep, everyone seems to be getting along, and to be honest, everyone in the group seems pretty cool. The guys living in my apartment all seem to be good guys and it looks (at least at this point) like they are going to be great roommates. Anyway, things are going great and life is good in Europe thus far. Tonight, after we get settled into our apartments, we have dinner at a Greek taverna in Athens as a group. At this point, it seems like forever away, but in reality it’s only about 7 hours or so. I’ll post again when I get set up in Athens.

Peace

Ryan

How to Get a Hold of Me...and a few last thoughts before departure

Of course, I'll be on facebook, so feel free to hit me up there...I'm sure I'll be checking it.

However, here are a few other ways to get in touch...

Mailing Address:

Ryan Hibbard

City University-Athens Site

1, Karitsi and Kolokotroni Str.

105 61 Athens GREECE

Skype me @: ryanhibbard

Email: rh1262@messiah.edu

All the bags are (mostly) packed, so I'm getting pretty excited. There are several trips to really cool places such as Meteora, Peloponnesus, some islands, and to sites such as Sparta and the Oracle of Delphi. Those are only a few of the things that I'll be doing (or places I'll be going) in the first 2.5 WEEKS! I'll be sure to keep up on this and share what we did on those trips and how life is going in Athens...For pictures, you may wanna just check out facebook, though.

Anyway, I leave in 3 days and still feel like this isn't really happening. It's weird to think about something for 6 months and when it finally starts to arrive, it feels unreal. Thanks for following on here...I'm sure mail will be awesome, but if you don't feel like spending the 500 bucks to mail an envelope be sure to keep in touch on facebook, email, whatever. However, the best thing you can do for me is pray...Pray that I will continue to follow hard after God even when I'm in a foreign country and having the time of my life....Pray that I don't lose sight of the fact that I wouldn't be seeing these awesome things and having this great time if not for God's provision and grace (along with my parent's provision and blessing :)) Pray that God gives me the opportunity to reach out to others, and to be a great example of how someone models their life after Christ. Pray that He gives me wisdom and discernment in decisions I have to make. Even pray for my parents...this won't be easy on them! But most of all, pray for me however God leads you. Thanks again for all the support from the states.

I'm confident that God will bless me in my time abroad, as He has my whole life no matter what the circumstance. I'm incredibly less stressed about this trip than I was even going to college last year, and that is due to learning over the past 12 months that God always provides and takes care of you (even in ways you don't originally think of). I'm really trying to take these next three months and enjoy them to the fullest...In fact, I think Paul said it best in his letter to the church in Thessalonica (That's in GREECE!): "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thes. 5:16-18)."

First Post...

I'm a week out from going and I was urged by a few people to create a blog to capture my experiences overseas. Since you're reading this, I'll assume you know where and why I am going next week, but if we haven't talked in the past 6 months, I'll fill you in...

I'm studying abroad in Athens, Greece from September 21 to December 19...It's with a program called BCA Abroad and they are putting all of us up in an apartment complex in downtown Athens. It will definitely be a big change of scenery and way different than anything I've done or anywhere I've gone before...From what I hear, though, Greece is a beautiful country with alot to offer, so hopefully I keep on this blog (along with facebook, of course) and keep you all updated and informed as to what I'll be up to.

I don't anticipate writing on here again until I get to Greece (or at least until I am 12 hours into the flight over there and need something to do) so, my next post will be from the other side of the world.

Till next time,

Ryan