After 6 days in Vienna, Bratislava, and Budapest, I set out on the second part of my trip: Greece. In this post, I’ll recap my visit to the Acropolis and my relaxation time on Corfu. I’ll also touch on the friend time I spent in the UK before going back across the Atlantic to Tucson.
The Acropolis
After more than my fill of city time, I was eager to get to the ocean. But as luck would have it, on my way from Budapest to Corfu, I had an 8-hour layover in Athens.
This turned out to be the perfect amount of time to get my luggage into a locker at the airport, take the hour-long train from the airport to the Acropolis, walk around for a few hours, have a meal, and get back to the airport without feeling rushed or worried I wouldn’t make the flight.
The Acropolis is pretty amazing, and I really enjoyed reading all the signs describing the history behind every monument. There were also some really in-depth descriptions of the ongoing restoration work, which is fascinating.
I also found a few cats, which served as excellent models.
A cat at the base of the Acropolis.
Another Acropolis cat lounges in front of the Parthenon.
In front of the Parthenon.
Corfu, Greece
My flight landed at the Corfu airport around 10 pm, and by the time I got to my accommodation in Paleokastritsa on the other side of the island, I was ready for bed.
I spent the next three days hiking, checking out Corfu Town, and relaxing on the beach. Last time I was there, I did some diving. But that was July and this was May, and the water was too cold and cloudy for it to be worth it.
Looking down a side street in Lakones.
The old footpath I took on my hike up Mt. Arakli.
Some really cool bugs I saw on my hike.
The view of Paleokastritsa from the top of Mt. Arakli.
As amazing as the scenery was, I also got a bit down while I was there. Sometimes this happens and I don’t always know what’s caused it, but this time I think there were several contributing factors. The biggest: my birthday. Every year around my birthday things get a bit tough for me emotionally, so it’s not all that surprising that it happened again. There’s a reason I haven’t spent a birthday at home in a number of years – I try to run away from it and give myself distractions. But for whatever reason, those distractions were less effective than usual this year.
Don’t go feeling sorry for me though – it was still a wonderful time! It’s been more than 4 years since I first acknowledged my depression and I’ve come to learn that sometimes I just have a few weeks here and there that are tougher than usual. But rather than get mad at myself and dwell on this as I did in the past, now I tend to accept it. I do this by allowing myself to feel whatever I need to feel (i.e. cry), and by carrying on doing the things I want to do. It doesn’t stop me in my tracks like it used to.
A cat begging for some food. Can you tell I was missing Maude?
The reason the cat in the previous photo was so hungry – kittens!
On the beach in Paleokastritsa.
London and Oxford
The last leg of my trip was the UK, where I spent 5 nights total in London and Oxford.
Having lived in Oxford for 4 years, I don’t feel much of an urge to do touristy things in either city. Which is perfect, because it meant I could dedicate the whole time to seeing friends and taking care of myself.
Activities included: catching up with women I coached at Oxford, watching friends compete in a triathlon at Blenheim Palace, watching the Oxford Summer Eights rowing competition, having dinners with friends, walking around Oxford with friends, eating picnics with friends, and stopping by the Oxford Botanic Garden (you guessed it…with friends).
Some of the women I coached at Oxford.
Tricked them into making goofy faces!
Friends are the best!
Another photo with Oxford friends.
This pretty much sums up a stereotypical Oxford summer afternoon.
Obligatory photo of the Rad Cam in Oxford.
All the friend time was really helpful, given that I was having a tough time emotionally. Most of them had no idea that was even going on, but they helped so much just by being around.
I did also take some time to myself. One morning I spent a few hours in the St. John’s College gardens, by myself in a secluded area where there weren’t any distractions. I’ll be honest – I just sobbed for a while. At the time I didn’t even really know why, I just knew I needed to get it out. It’s nice that Oxford is a place where I can give myself the space to do that.
A secluded part of the St. John’s College Garden – a perfect place for a therapeutic cry 🙂
A caterpillar at the Oxford Botanic Garden.
I don’t know what type of flowers these are but I really like them.
My favorite flowers – foxgloves. And so many of them!
Overall, the trip was a mix of places I liked and places I didn’t like, feeling loved and feeling alone, and feeling overwhelming joy and feeling impossible-to-ignore sadness. But I am so glad I went.
Up Next
Up next: an adventure on Rapa Nui (also known as Easter Island)! I’ll explain how I got this amazing opportunity when I write about the trip.
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