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I am exhausted, fatigued, and yet…I want more.  As we begin day 2 (or is it 3 with the time change?) I am yearning for more information and experience. Whether I was just so sheltered as a kid, or the media has…

We arrived in Israel about 12 hours ago and I’m already blown away by this amazing country. When I told friends, colleagues, and family that I’d be visiting Israel for two weeks this summer the most common response was, “Is it safe?”…

I keep recalling all of the wonderful, inspiring things that we saw and heard while in Greece, and I truly can’t believe that I had the good fortune to have been a part of it all.  I am excited when I think about…

As I said goodbye (Jen and I are not flying home with them, but instead heading to Santorini. Sorry, I had to throw in one last jab. 😉 ) to the people I have met on this trip tonight, I felt myself…

We met with the daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Thessaloniki. She shared the story of how her father survived because his family spoke Greek AND German. As the Jewish families were brought to the train station to be transported to concentration…

It was early in the morning (well, more like 10am, but it felt early to me) as we climbed off the bus in the harbor of Thessaloniki. After taking in the inspiring view, our group soon found itself facing a magnificent monument to Alexander the…

So we’ve just left Thessaloniki and we’re headed west for the day. We have plans to visit the home of Alexander the Great. Take a look at Mandy as she maps out our day. Thessaloniki is a bustling city nestled on a…

EARLY OBSERVATIONS “I will pay 50 euros to the person who can name 20 Greek Gods by the end of the trip.” I wish that I could accept that challenge. I’m usually very good with names, but I’m so busy taking in…

Check your watch (set to CE time, of course) and add seven hours, dispose of all belongings, trade your clothing for conservative long clothes covering your shoulders and knees, and move to an isolated rock pillar. Welcome to a Greek Orthodox monastery!…

Yesterday we visited the cliff monasteries of Meteora and then traveled to Trikala and Larisa to meet members of the local Jewish communities and see their synagogues. Both these communities and the one in Volos where we will visit today are Romaniote…

When I applied to this trip, I was grasping for a connection that me, as a Spanish teacher, could make to this program in Greece. I was willing to explore, and just assumed I would collaborate with a Social Studies teacher in…