Back to Reality

Even though I didn't have class today, I woke up at 7 to finish homework for my online class that was due today. I had gotten most of the work done before I left for Greece, but still had a bit left to do when I got back. So between 7 and 11 I wrote two 700 and one 350 word essays. Luckily, it was all in English and about the United States. Most of the stuff that we had to read and respond to dealt with the US post 9/11. It was all interesting, just time consuming. I do like that the professor for this class allows a week or more to complete assignments so there aren't a ton of due dates for things.

When getting ready today I noticed again that I hardly have any warm clothes. And it is COLD outside. So I decided to pick up a sandwich at a bakery and then go to H&M. I bought two sweaters and another long sleeved shirt. I love shopping there when I have a ton of time to try on all kinds of things. I stopped by PennyMarkt on the way back and got some groceries and such for the week. The line was sooo long and my arms were full of stuff. It's definitely been an adjustment remembering that I have to bag my own groceries. It's kind of like you have to bag as they scan the items and then pay and quickly get out of the way. I've gotten better about it, but I'm just not very skilled in that department.

As I was walking out the door, Heidi jumped out and scared me. She had seen me waiting in line and then waited for me to come out. She is having Maressa and I over for dinner tonight so she was buying groceries for that. She came over to my place after she finished there and I showed her all of the pictures and videos I took in Greece. I had bought this latte macchiato mix and we made that too. It was sooo easy and super yummy. It only cost 2.50 which is the same price for just one drink at a cafe. I can totally work with that! Around 5:30 we headed over to her place to start making dinner. On our way the bus drove past us and we saw Maressa! Heidi was really into scaring people today, so we stood behind a little tree and waited for Maressa to come. The three of us went to Heidi's and cut up tomatoes and mozarella while the Knoedel cooked. I don't know exactly what Knoedel is, but it's like a little ball of potatoes and bread. Usually they are really big, but Heidi got the mini version that you can cook in 5 minutes. It seemed like forever since the three of us had been together and we had fun laughing (as always) and catching up.

Our program was going to the opera tonight at 8. They also arranged for the Director of the opera to come talk to us before hand so that we would be sure we knew what was going on. He talked for about 30 minutes and then I went back home to change. For once I was excited to get all dressed up. Charis came over too and then we walked to the theater which is pretty much next door to where I live. We had pretty good seats, but we were all over the theater. I sat with Charis and Heidi for the first half. Maressa came and joined us for the second half since there were available seats. The opera was called La Boheme. Of course it was in Italian and then they projected German subtitles above the stage. It was...interesting. I understood what was going on, but it just seemed really random. I think the take that this theater did was pretty different than the original. Charis seemed to know everything about the opera so she gave us some insider info. She's just a little expert on everything.

When I got home I talked to Brittanie on Skype for a little while. I still think it's so weird that I have to schedule times to talk to people. I miss not being able to pick up my cell phone and call my friends and family just to tell them something really quickly. For the most part we use text messaging here since it's significantly cheaper without an actual plan. I don't send texts at home but now I definitely want to sign up for them when I get back!!! So convenient!