Ok, I didn't mean to keep such a break! After the first posts I had a worse week in Athens when the weather was crap and it was very cold in the flat (central heating, you are my enemy!), I wasn't too happy about one of my teachers and many more things so then I didn't feel like writing. Later, a couple of times I tried to make some update but I failed miserably.

Anyways, about the rest of the time in Athens: it was quite ok, nice people on the course, but I wasn't always happy with the course and the organization. I missed knowing Greeks (tutors would have been great.) We went for organized trips almost every weekend which was nice but maybe the guide was a bit too enthusiastic for me and I'm not sure if I have already recovered from the museum and archaeological sites-overdose. Athens itself is huuuge, neverending and full of nice places, nice cafés, nice shops, nice streets, nice graffitis. This was the first time I lived in a capital, or a big city and it was very nice because I have been playing with the thought of at some point of my life I should try to live in a bigger, more lively place. Well, problem solved, no, Jyväskylä is perfect for me. I really missed seeing green and trees and the sky..because yeah, often we couldn't see much from the sky since the buildings in many areas are so closely built to each other and have so many floors that you can only see a small piece from the sky. And yeah, the metro life:fed up with it. People just can't behave there and I probably bothered about it just too much but still. I mean, it wasn't the first time I was using crowded metros but geez, if I'm standing in the door and if we arrive to a stop which is not mine, I still get out so that those who want to get out can do it, and when they finished, I step back. Noohhooo, not here! No, don't move, just take your stand and do not help others. Also, if the metro arrives, try to get into it before the others get out, because it is just sooo much FUN to do it that way..or something...mystery for me.

During our stay there were several strikes too but that didn't bother me so much. There weren't many 24h strikes and often the strikes were only from around 11-15 so it wasn't so irritating. When in the morning it was raining and you were supposed to walk 45-50 mins, that was annoying. Or when you had to leave from your friends place in time so you fetch the last bus/metro before at midnight the 24h strike starts, that was annoying too. But mostly if you knew beforehand what was on strike and when, then it was ok for me.

Overall, I'm happy I didn't need to stay in Athens for longer than those 5-6 weeks but I don't regret that I chose to go there for the EILC. At least I got to know Athens (and hey, I still haven't really done my tourist rounds in Helsinki during the past 5 years, so who knows if 6 months would have been enough to check Athens out) and seriously, I'm glad that I know that JKL is just about perfect for me.

So about a month ago we came to Thessaloniki, and actually I think we were among the first ones who arrived for the second semester, though we arrived almost a week later than it would have been ideal. Thessaloniki is much nicer (you can see the sky!), more spacey, cleaner in general, and thank God, they still haven't managed to finish building the metro line though I think it should have been ready a couple of years ago already. It's also slightly cheaper here, though not much.

We live in a dorm here, at least at the moment. The dorm itself was actually a positive surprise, it looks better than expected. But the rules are more stupid than I would have ever thought. Ladies and gentleman, the kitchen doors are lock after 10 pm, that is, no cooking after that. Also means, no hot anything after that. Just wanted to have a tea or something last week, but I arrived to the kitchen 10.07 and it was locked already and I could say goodbye to my tea plans. Also, you are not allowed to stay in the dining room after 11 pm (which is the only place where a bigger group of people can be in the same time because we have no common rooms or anything) and parties are not allowed. We have our own private security guy who makes sure we don't do anything that is not allowed. We have a “study room” but no way I ever would be able to study there. It's the only place you can connect to the net so it's always full. It's very cleverly done btw: There are I think 17 plugs for the internet cable in a dormitory that can place more than 70 people. The internet part is the most irritating part because sometimes you just would like to have a peaceful moment at the net, or talking but that's not really possible. The water situation hasn't been too bad so far. I was lucky and I always happen to go to have shower when happens to have warm water. They did say that there's warm water between 18-22 or sth and also in the morning some time, but in reality that isn't always like that, or actually, I don't think it has ever been really like that. But yeah, it's not that bad and the only times I had to take cold showers were when there was no warm water at all, at any point of the day. But, what I like here is the people. It's them why we came here, to get to know the others, and I'm very happy with this decision. The other thing I really like is that the sea is really really close and you can take there really nice walks:).

So that's about the dorm. Now university: it's a chaos. They are sending you from place to place, when you get to the place one sent you, that place says you have to go somewhere else. When someone tells you to do something and than go back to the same place, and they you do what she asked go back to her, she is telling you you didn't need to do that. Everything is open only for 1-2 hours a day, around 11/12-13 and then you, and all the others, should do everything else. Of course no tutors to clarify anything. The Erasmus office people don't seem the nicest so I don' feel like asking them about things. So, it took time to get things done, but it wasn't so irritating as it may sound. I mean, things are upside down, but I didn't expect things to work perfectly anyways, so the only time I didn't like this running when I was tired.

Although the university doesn't seem to me to well-organized and effective in its administration, the courses are actually nice and I can't really complain about them. Of course I can complain about having 8.30 classes 3 times a week but it was basically my choice. And to tell the truth, I still prefer that than 6-9 in the evening. I have one Spanish course that I'm pretty sure JKL won't accept because it's only Spanish 2, but actually it rather different than our Spanish 2 was and I learn a lot. Besides the Spanish course, I have 3 English classes, 6 credits each. Language and Style in The Media, with a nice teacher who, to me it seems, sees propaganda in everything and can have heated lectures about the media and how it messes with our minds. Then I have Race and Ideology, with a nice female teacher, though she uses a type of cynicism that I don't like. The course dealing with America and it's pretty ok, but I feel that the teacher takes a too big role in the class and she basically tells us how the texts we read are supposed to be interpreted. And finally I have another literature course, African American fiction. I have no idea how I ended up with the literacy courses out of 3. But anyways, the teacher is from the States and he seems very nice. Coleman-ish:) Has very similar gestures and way of speaking/explaining as Coleman does. What is nice also that I ended up having two courses dealing with America and it feels like that finally I can fulfill my original dream, which was to study American Studies. I know it is only 2 courses, but I'm also not that into American Studies as I used to be so it's a good-enough deal. Anyways, this Friday we won't have a class because it's a national holiday here, and next time we have class, it's time for the Mid-term exam! My first Mid-term of my life! Have no idea what to expect but luckily the teacher said that by tomorrow he will prepare some study-guide for us and we can use that in our preparation. Scary scary, and the part that I don't do literature doesn't make it easier, but I suppose I will survive it.

In the meantime there were nice things happening to me that are not related to Greece. I visited England which I really really enjoyed. I need to get back! I also applied for a week-long training to Turkey and I got accepted, so I'm heading to Antalya, or actually like 70 kms from it in the end of April. And also, yesterday I got an invitation for a phone interview for the Intecultural Communication MA program that I applied for the day before I left for Greece. I'm not loving the idea of a phone interview but I cannot do much about it. The ratio is not that terrible, every 3^rd person who gets interview won't get in. Oh, I so want to be in that 15 who gets in!!

Anyways, I should go to do my homework because today I'm going to go to the aerobic lesson here for the first time (as I heard, it doesn't even make you sweaty so I'm actually really curious what sort of humppajumppa they have in here) and after that we are making tortillas with Merja.