Wrapping It Up

As of tomorrow, we will officially be in our last two weeks of school, and life, here on Paros.  The realization that this is all coming to an end is beginning to hit me hard, and I’ve noticed that the only times I have cried here on the island are when I have thought about leaving it.  I have so many stories that link all the fun and quirky characters living here, that make this place so unique to me.  It’s hard to explain the connection I have here, but I’m sure you can understand why leaving will be so difficult.

Fall here is wonderful.  The sunsets this November have been unlike anything I have ever seen in my life.  Every day I go for a run up to the cliffs where I can watch as the sun sinks behind a distant purple island somewhere out in the sea.  The clouds and the sky have the most brilliant shades of hot pinks, turquoises, oranges, purples, and deep deep reds.  Now picture it behind a dazzling blue water with the sailing team practicing out in the bay.  It puts any painting here to shame.

The weather is brisk but still beautiful, and last weekend I had a fun day with my friends when we decided to help out our director by picking olives from the trees in his orchards.  Turns out, it was very difficult manual labor that we got “Tom Sawyered” into doing, but I think I can say that it was the best day any of us had ever had thus far on our trip.  My friends Amy, Brooke, and Phil stripped every last olive off of the trees (mostly laughing while we did it), and finished just in time to watch the sunset from the roof of our professor’s house in the hills.  The view was breath taking.

Things with school are beginning to get very very busy, but I am feeling surprisingly ready for the final show coming up on Dec. 5^th.  I have all of my final projects figured out and now it will all just come down to getting them done.  All the local kids running around this town who I have come to love have been telling us about their big hip hop show they have been practicing for.  A couple of us from school were invited by our little friends and their moms to come for the big show.  It was held at one of the bigger bars that we all used to go to before it closed for the season.  Watching a bunch of kids you love under the age of 10 dancing in a hip hop show was all you could ever imagine and better, but my friend Blen leaned over to me and pointed out that these kids looked way better than we ever did dancing on that floor.  It was sad but true.

            After the show we went to a friend’s BBQ where an older couple asked if they could adopt me.  I was seriously considering it.  But that’s not to say that they are better than my family at home.  NO WAY.  I think Thanksgiving is going to be really hard for me to miss (it being may favorite holiday and all).  All that good food and even better family traditions…ugh.  It makes me miss the cousins.  I can only hope Petey still fits in his turkey costume from last years Halloween, that the girl cousin party is alive and well, and that everyone participates in around-the-world paddle tennis for me.

            Speaking of family, the school had an excursion to go to the Tao Center (a zen meditation center and very good Tai restaurant).  For the philosophy class we had to participate in a zen meditation exercise with one of the monks.  We all walked into this quiet, calm, peaceful room and took our place on cushions on the floor.  It probably would have been a really cool experience if I wasn’t so darn immature, but as soon as the lady monk walked in and banged on a gong I knew I was going to lose it.  She spoke with a lisp and had very large buck teeth, and for some reason, her head was always pointed down to the ground when she looked at you and spoke.  Sitting cross legged for more then 10 minutes at a time is way too hard for someone as un flexible as myself and I kept trying to squirm into more comfortable positions.  Even though we were supposed to have our eyes closed, she must have been watching me because she kept insisting that we remain still.  Then a fly came.  And it kept distracting me and I kept swatting at it to get it away… and sure enough the monk says “even if a fly lands on your nose you must remain still.”  I snorted a laugh, breaking the silence.  I felt awful, but the more I tried to hold it in, the more I wanted to laugh.  When we came to an exercise where we had to put our hands on each others backs and say “ohhhhhhhhhmmmmm” I lost it.  I was shaking so hard from trying not to laugh my friend Amy next to me started to lose it too. All I kept picturing was if my family was in this room, and how ridiculous we would all be trying not to laugh.  One fart and we would have been goners.  Oh gosh, I was picturing Mike and Fain doing these meditation exercises and I just couldn’t stop laughing.  We ended by having to put on blindfolds and dance around the room.  Amy apparently refused to do it so she took off her blind fold and watched us, which we didn’t find out until afterwards, when she reinacted everyone’s signature moves.  We like to bust those out when we go out at night now.

Anyway, only a short time left and so much still to do.  Trying to swim as much as possible while the weather is still nice but I do have to spend a lot of time working on my paintings and stuff.  It’s a tough life I tell ya.  I feel like this place is Neverland, and leaving here means I have to come home and grow up…something I am not too thrilled about.  But I will be excited to see my grandpa and grandma again!

 

The Natives Are Restless

So upon my mother’s arrival, she immediately informed me that people we extremely upset about the lack of updates on my blog… like, to the point of violence.  And although she sounded like my life was being mildly threatened by irate home dwellers, I am, at long last, here to appease the situation.

 

Where did I leave off?  Well, I was in Turkey for 10 days with all of the students from my school and it was an interesting experience to say the least.  I guess a little bit of immodium can only get you so far when 17 staff and students come down with some really bad bouts of food poisoning.  The trip, for them, was a very scenic view of the lovely Turkish toilets.  Fortunately for me, I was able to be out and about, enjoying the ancient ruins of Ephesus, getting yelled at by psychotic shop keepers trying to sell me lamps and carpets, navigating the Bazaar,

 sneaking into the natural pools on the cliffs of Pammukale, breaking the hearts of smelly Turkish men with long hair,

 smoking hookah with friends, and watching the sunset over the hills of Ephesus while drinking Turkish apple tea.  I was Turkish Delighted.  The history in Ephesus had me floored, and being by myself, walking out of a tunnel onto the sand of an arena where gladiators fought and Christians like myself were fed to lions was something to behold.  It left me amazed, well, I guess I left it amazed, but needless to say, pulling out of the port in Ephesus left me seriously heart broken to this place I connected with.

 

On the boat trip home from Turkey, we had to stay on a Greek Island called Samos.  

Now, I know I loved Santorini and all, but let me tell you, Samos is by far my favorite place in all of Greece.  It’s Venetian style buildings, mountainous landscapes, and BOMB gelato seriously won me over.  We went on a hike here that lead us into a forest area with old church ruins and patches of sunlight streaming in.  Back in the heart of it we came to a pool of water leading into a small opening between the rocks, which we

 followed into a maze of rocks and waterfalls we had to climb.  It was AWESOME.

 

My mom came to visit me for the past 5 days and that was just as exciting for my friends as it was for me.  We here are starving for some motherly love so I had to share her and Kim with all my friends.  They were passed around and I’m sure are so exhausted from all of the things we all wanted to share about our lives here on the island.  I don’t think they have ever heard anyone talk as much as my friends Brooke and Amy.  We took them on hikes, to other islands, swimming in the Aegean Sea, through the other towns of Paros, and, most importantly, to the best food you will find anywhere in the world!  I’m sure you will hear about the food.  In fact, it will probably be the first thing mom tells you if you ask her about it (other than how stunningly beautiful I am, of course).  We went to Karen’s where she would never miss an opportunity to be profane and rude – even to my mother.  We played cards at the love café on the waterfront while the sun set.  Mom pet Bruce, which is never recommended, and grossed out nearby locals.  We did it all.  *see Kerry for more details.

 

Basically, now, I am coming into the home stretch.  As I waved goodbye to my mom on the ferry I realized how much work I have ahead of me.  Time to buckle down and make some art, I guess.  It was fun to have a taste from home, but I am still so very happy to be here on this silly little island where I am making the most of every day I have left.  It doesn’t really feel like I have been gone long at all, but I guess that’s normal.  Seeing all of your faces again is incentive to come home, but I will bring back a special treat to whoever is the first to talk Jonny into getting rid of all that hair on his general head region within the next 3 weeks.  My bet is that it will be Grandma.  Or Petey.  I don’t know.  Love you all and I wish more of you could have been here with mom to soak in all the culture, humor, entertainment, and beauty this island has to offer.  And so more of my friends could latch onto you!  Hope all is well back at the shire!

Catching You Up, Kyle Style

It’s pretty incredible, how quickly time flies

I'm late on this blog post - but that's no surprise.

One month today, and I still love it all

I’m hooked on this place, especially in fall.

The weather’s still nice, so it’s beach everyday.

But the turn of the seasons has chased tourists away.

I know every face and their same morning perch.

The fishers, the vendors, the old man at the church.

The routine of life, is somehow still fresh

My sign language is good, but my Greek’s just a mess.

I’ve completely adapted in these past few weeks.

I have accepted their culture and I’m one with the Greeks!

A trip to Santorini made my life come undone.

How could a place so beautiful be also so fun?

Hiking volcanoes, pirate ships, and hot springs.

THESE are a few of my favorite things.

Cliffs overlooking a painted pink sky.

Shopping and crepes, (things I just can’t deny)

Jumping off cliffs (you know I jumped first)

Swimming, exploring, this place was the worst.

My sarcastic tone, shouldn’t scare you away.

Get on a plane to Santorini, and see it - TODAY!

It was terrible to leave, as you probably could guess

There’s just something about it… alas… I digress

Back home to Paros, where it gets better each day.

I’ve had the time of my life (if that’s not cliché)

SO many friends, SO much to do

Tennis tournaments, celebrations, backyard barbeques.

The people I’ve met are one of a kind

The entertainment, the excitement, it’s not hard to find.

Knowing everyone makes me feel pretty cool.

I get picked up on scooters, on my walk to the school.

We traveled to an island a few minutes from here

Where we swam through sea caves, in water so clear!

And deep in the mountain, what can be found?

Caves that sink into earth, at least a hundred feet down!

I feel like my life is just one great fairy tale.

I try to explain it, but words continue to fail.

So I sit at a café and try to write desperately.

Hoping for inspiration as I gaze at the sea.

I work in the studio, painting, and such.

I sketch on the streets, and write way too much.

I have more pictures of Greece than I know how to handle

I embrace the excitements, the drama, the scandal.

On Wednesday we leave but no more island hopping

Instead now to Turkey! – (any requests for my shopping?)

But as hard as I try, I can’t put into words

How much I love Paros…um… it’s kinda absurd.

A full night of sleep? – I cannot recall.

And I think of who’s reading this, and I am missing you all.

Then I think of having to wake in the morning for school.

So I head to my bed, dream of you all, and drool.

"...the wind was against them..." Mark 6:48

I thought that I would write the blog a little early this week, only because I have a good feeling you will laugh at my expense.  So here it is…

            Yesterday (Sunday) our group had plans of going island hopping to Delos and Mykonos for the day.  Because the weather was looking slightly questionable according to forecast, it wasn’t decided until the night before that yes, we were going.  Great news, right?  Wrong.

            The morning was already extremely windy as we arrived at the port, and the sea was looking terribly ominous.  For precautionary reasons, my professor handed out motion sickness pills for everyone to take.  RED FLAG, KYLE.  I got a little nervous when this was mentioned.  We loaded onto the boat and pulled out of the safety of the harbor, where we were immediately hit with the wrath of Posieden.  Up and down, side to side, free fall, side to side and up again.  Within minutes of taking off, of the hundred people on the boat, only of a handful of us weren’t projectile vomiting.  I was completely surrounded.  It was literally everyone around me.  And it didn’t stop.  For an hour and a half, stuck on a boat where sea sickness bags are getting handed out like candy, and rolling around and around and around – Kyle Olson Hell.

            Fortunately, most everyone moved outside up the stairs for fresh air, and easy over-the-side access.  I stayed down inside with my friend Brooke, who was afraid she would lose it if she moved.  Basically, it was a sick joke the universe decided to play on me. 

            When I got out of that hell hole, I got to go explore the ancient ruins of Delos Island.  I took a long climb to the top of the mountain (this thing ain’t got nothin’ on Half Dome though) and the 360 degree view was breathtaking.  I thought I might have blown off and down to my death because of that wretched wind, but according to Greek mythology (some drama went down between Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Posieden, and some prostitute), no one is allowed to give birth or die on that island.  And that is a law still in effect today.  I don’t really know how they enforce that kinda thing, but it made me feel better on the edge of the cliffs.

            Then we had to get back on the boat.

            The gale force winds had only gotten stronger since the morning, and by now, even the crew on the boat looked nervous.  As we rounded out of the harbor we could see swells coming in that were the size of the boat itself.  They cleared everyone off the deck and force everyone to stay down and inside – making it incredibly crowded.  We plowed full speed into the first swell and it felt like we hit a rock.  I was in the front seat and my window was completely submerged under water.  NO SKY.  We surged through and then dropped into valley of water.  There were times where we got stuck in between swells going sideways and twice I was sure our boat would capsize.  People were screaming, things were falling and it was pure pandemonium.  Crew members were running back and forth trying to get control of both the people and the boat. 

I loved it.  One of the most exciting 30 minutes of my life.  It felt like adventure.  I felt like a pirate.  My adrenaline was pumping as I braced myself in my seat and watched as we got tossed about like a toy.  I scanned my emergency exit, but I’m not going to lie, it was so thrilling I couldn’t help but laugh.  I think I just got to the point where I was beyond scared, and was ready to embrace disaster. When we landed in Mykonos, the crew applauded. 

The town of Mykonos paled in comparison to the excitement of the journey.  It was crowded and expensive and it just made me love Paros more.  Paros feels like home.

Well that about does it for this story.  Hope you enjoyed my misery, and my adventure as well.  I thought I would end with a picture of Bruce.  He eats small children.

Getting to Know Paros...

Hello!

Well, life is settling here in Greece and I still can’t seem to believe it. My apartment is fun and very inspiring. It is very much a struggling artist’s studio in Greece. I don’t know if I am struggling, but I am officially an artist in Greece. School started up this week, and I have each of the 5 professors here for a different class. One for painting and drawing, one for poetry, one for creative writing, one for digital photography, and one for black and white film photography. With all these classes though, I have a ton of work. I kinda forgot about homework until my assignments began piling up in the first few days. I am most often found out in the streets of our cute town taking pictures or writing on my lap-top at a café on the waterfront.

We had a tour around the rest of the island and I got to snap some pictures of some beautiful ports, towns, and beaches. This place is pretty gorgeous. I get lost on cobble stoned streets that were made to confuse pirates, but really only just make me late for class. I can’t help but to think of it like the island of Catan though. The only difference is that there are marble quarrys instead of ore.

Days consist of cafes, class, and usually playing volleyball or swimming at the beach till sunset. I’m sure that will begin to change when it gets a bit colder, but for now, I am in study abroad heaven. There is a dog here who is so fat, he could easily pass for a prize winning fair pig. I thought it was prego, but we found that he was a boy. We call him Bruce. Bruce can be found taking about 15 steps and then breaking to lay down on his side all around town. But he’s most commonly near the bakery.

Because I can’t get it anywhere here, peanut butter is the one thing I crave the most. As a substitute, I have been using nutella in mass amounts on everything I eat. People here are getting to know us students and I already walk through town and see familiar faces. The students here love to go out way too much, so sleep is sometimes hard to find. The bar that we all like to go to is small and owned by a 5 foot nothing, little Scottish woman named Karen. She is 45, rude, has the dirtiest mouth I have ever heard, and she loves me. I don’t know why.

I love hearing news from home, because not much really ever changes on this island. It’s so fun and simple and inspirational here, and I try to remain busy so as not to get to thinking about everyone I love at home. For now, my heart is happy. All of you with babies back at home, keep practicing the word “Kyle” for me, cus I’m not there to drill it into their heads, and they need to know who their favorite person is. Love you all!

~K

my address:

Kyle Olson

c/o Barry Tagrin - HISA

Box 11

Parikia, Paros, Cyclades 84400, Greece

Here I Am!

Two long days of traveling and I had finally arrived!

Two in the morning, with two bags at my side.

I meet with a girl who was on my same flight

So we call for a taxi and go off into night.

 

I arrive in the hostel, and, most interestingly…

I meet my new roommate!!!

(She sleeps naked, you see)

Two beds are taken but one still remains.

The girl that I’m with, makes quick on her claim.

So I crawl into bed - with the clothed girl - no doubt,

But she suffered from night terrors, as I’d come to find out.

 

The acropolis by day, and Plaka by night

Everywhere with marble and ruins in sight.

Dinner with the group and then out to an “art bar.”

Our teachers lead us to, like the locals they are.

But we found our way home, as a matter in fact.

It’s such a beautiful city, I just have to go back.

But my poor weary eyelids could take in no more,

Back home at one, and up then at four.

 

Out on the ferry we waited for day.

Heading off from the docks we’re now on our way!

The Mediterranean – an indescribable blue!

It’s so rich in color, but also clear too!?!

The wind whipped up water, what a salty surprise!

Tastes good on the tongue, but it burns in the eyes!

 

Then out pops the island and I feel home at last!

We get assigned to our rooms and unpack and relax

So here now I sit, in my room at my desk.

Looking at all of your pictures, and knowing I’m blessed.

 

We toured our town, got a feel for the beach.

Everything everywhere is in walking reach.

A bit like balboa, but a little bit old.

The marble streets I get lost on are sight to behold!

And my school, we saw for the very first time.

It was like out of a dream, it’s one of a kind.

Tucked in the streets and up marble steps,

Through gates and arches – it’s as good as it gets.

 

Glasses of wine, with our orientation.

Being this happy was an overwhelming sensation.

Classes of poetry, painting, and writing galore.

Did I mention photography – ugh, my school’s such a bore.

The professors are wise, but they let us pick what to do.

There are some strange students, but there are great ones here too.

Santorini, this weekend, Mykonos the next.

Then off to Turkey! Who would have guessed?

I love all the people, I can’t wait to explore.

But don’t worry everyone, I still love you more!

 

I must get some sleep, I’m becoming a clutz

And there’s a bug in this room that is driving me nuts.

I wish I could see you and give you a hug

Seriously now, what’s the deal with this bug.

Goodnight friends and family, I’m missing you here!

I love you!

Yamas!

(oh, ya, that means, cheers!)

 

~K