Studying abroad is all fine and dandy until something bad or scary happens. Don't get me wrong, I would go back to Europe in a heartbeat, but this particular experience in Mykonos, Greece was wild. Here's the story about how minding my own business at a Greek bakery went totally wrong.
The Background
My study abroad program (IAU College - whoop whoop!) was awesome because we actually got two "spring breaks," one in March and one in April. So, it was near the end of April and my friends and I decided to spend the week in Mykonos. Little did we know, we would basically have a series of bad luck and unfortunate events on this vacation (but don't worry, it's a year later and we're all laughing about it).
We stayed at Mama's Pension, which was an adorable little place. You actually get to meet "Mama," her daughter, and granddaughter, and they are all extremely welcoming. I 10/10 recommend this place for any future travelers out there.
With just a short walk down the hill, my friends and I found ourselves at a gorgeous beach. Even though it was probably about 57 degrees (felt like freezing), we did everything we could to get our tan on. This is when the first unfortunate event happened...
Unfortunate Event #1
Picture little me on the beach. I definitely had goosebumps (because... frozen) but you can bet I was doing everything I could to absorb that Greek sun. Now, picture a tsunami (ok, not a tsunami, but a pretty big wave). Yeah, that's basically what happened on the beach that day.
Not far from the beach, there was a port where cruise ships docked. Lucky for us, a cruise ship captain decided to get a little too close to shore that day causing a literal ROGUE WAVE to crash upon the shore. Everything was wet. Phones, purses, towels, clothes, literally everything. Now we will take a moment of silence for the two iPhones and single flip flop we lost that day. RIP.
What else could go wrong?
But really, what else could go wrong? Funny you'd ask. It's only downhill from here. So we've got the coldest April weather ever recorded, a rogue wave, and now... the bakery incident.
Fast forward to the day after the rogue wave. We finally calmed down and all was going well. We found this AMAZING place called Attika Bakery (literally we ate here EVERY day, 10/10 recommend). We were sitting there enjoying our spanakopita, gelato, and various greek pastries (all delicious), when all of a sudden this Greek man came up to us and got just a little too close. Just like anyone would do, my friend instinctively placed her hand on her iPhone to protect it (we had just lost two, wasn't trying to lose another). This man literally LOSES IT and accused us of being "disrespectful Americans."
But it only gets worse. After being extremely rude to us, he finally left... but not for good. He came back over to us and told us we didn't know who we were messing with. We were in "HIS country now." Then, he literally REFERENCED 'TAKEN.' You know, the movie where a young American girl gets ABDUCTED while TRAVELING ABROAD. Anyway, our encounter ended when he walked away while simultaneously pouring a bottle of water out on our heads. Nice.
So, we were all shaking and freaking out. How could this go from enjoying pasties to a potential abduction? It was wild. We were sufficiently shook. But finally, it was over.
Other than that, how was Greece?
Truth be told, Greece is a country that is nothing short of amazing. I loved Greece. Looking back on these crazy experiences only makes me laugh now, and I wouldn't trade this vacation for anything. We ended the vacation with a trip to the bars (even though we had an 8 am flight). We met some cool people and even got to ride on four wheelers back to Mama's Pension. The friend I was with almost fell off and ended up with some nasty cuts and bruises, but at that point, it was all in good fun.
All in all, I have to say that I would absolutely travel back to Greece. I mean if the views aren't enough, the food is to die for (spanakopita, gyros, greek salad... yum). It would take a lot more than a crazy experience to keep me away from this beautiful country.