The Experience of a Lifetime

            Hello! I have just landed in Portland, and I’m leaving PDX in a cab. I am taking this time to reflect on all the great experiences I had this past month.

            For one, I was able to visit Europe, which most people never get to do in their lives. I was also able to backpack across Europe, so I saw some pretty amazing wildlife. I learned so much while visiting Luxembourg, Lithuania, and Greece, it is almost unfathomable. I never expected that I would ever live to see any of these places. Also, it was even more exciting for me because I love history so much, and there is loads of history compacted into every European city.

            To conclude, I had a fantastic journey and I learned a ton. I met some amazing people, saw some remarkable sights, and had the experience of a lifetime.

                                                                            -Keeanna <3

Spectacular Sparta

                   

            Yειά σου! Translation: Hello in Greek. I just arrived in Sparta, but I did not arrive the usual way. Bored of flying, I decided to take a ship across the Sea of Crete and the Mediterranean Sea. I traveled from Athens to a coastal city near Sparta on the Hellenic Seaways. I then took a train the rest of the way to Sparta. It was really nice to shake up my means of transportation a bit.

            Sparta is completely surrounded by mountain ranges. It is also very different from other Greek cities, because instead of being one big unified city, it is a collection of small villages spaced out along the country. This beautiful town is perfect to visit if you enjoy history, culture and walks in the mountains.

            In fact, the first thing I did in Sparta was take a long hike through the gorgeous Taygetos Mountains. It was perfect for me to be able to get away from all the rush of Europe. That’s the main reason Sparta was my final European destination. It’s a very relaxing town, and I was able to take a lovely walk through the mountains to cool off and enjoy myself.

            While in Sparta, I visited a museum known as the Museum of Olive Oil. It was kind of strange to me that they had a whole museum dedicated to olive oil, but I decided to give it a shot. It was actually pretty interesting. Because Sparta is a main producer of olive oil, there were actually a lot of fascinating demonstrations that taught me how to make olive oil on my own. This museum was a place I never expected to visit, and I actually enjoyed it a lot.

            As you can see, I had a really good time in Sparta. I might explore a bit more in the morning, but my flight to the U.S. leaves tomorrow. I enjoyed the rural city of Sparta a ton, but I’m exhausted and hungry. I am going to check in at my hotel, eat something there, and go to bed. See ya!                                                                    -Keeanna <3

                                   Taygetos Mountains

Museum of Olive Oil

                                                                                                                                         

Abstract Athens

        Hey hey hey! I have just arrived in Greece, my last but not least country that I will be visiting on my backpacking trip to Europe. I have been looking forward to visiting Greece the most out of all the countries, and now I am finally here. I am currently in Athens, and I can’t wait to get started on my Greek adventure.
        What would be a visit to Athens without a visit to the Acropolis to see the Parthenon? I was very excited to visit the Parthenon and I headed there as soon as I landed in Greece. The Parthenon and other main buildings on the Acropolis were built in the fifth century by Pericles as monuments to the achievements of the Athens people. Acropolis means “upper city” and many city states are built around an acropolis to provide safety to the people in case of invasion.
        The Parthenon is an amazing place for many reasons. For one, it looks like it is in many different pieces. Though it appears that you could replace a piece from a column with a piece from another column, that is not true. Each individual piece is unique and none are the same. Even lines that appear to be straight are not. The ancient Greeks were very advanced in the knowledge in construction and understood that to make a line appear straight it must me tapered or curved. The Parthenon is the most perfect building in the world, and that’s a fact.
        Another great place to visit in Athens is the National Gardens. It’s a beautiful place to get away from the hustle-and-bustle of the city and enjoy some peace and quiet. There is all sorts of wildlife to enjoy here, with two duck ponds and a large population of ducks. There are also many plants and flowers to observe.
        The National Gardens was also the place where King Alexander was killed. One day when he was enjoying a stroll through the gardens, he received a bite from a monkey. He ended up dying three weeks later. After hearing this story, I was very disappointed to find out that there are in fact no wild monkeys in Athens. He was bitten by someone’s pet.
        It has been another great day here in Greece. It’s getting late and I’d better hit the sack. Tomorrow I will head off to the Sparta. Goodnight everyone!
                                                        -Keeanna <3

The Parthenon

                                                                               
                                                                 

Greece in a Nutshell

        Below are a few things to know about Greece and it's people.

• GOVERNMENT
• Greece has a parliamentary republic.
• LANGUAGE
• The most common language in Greece is Greek, but Turkish, Bulgarian, and Romani are also used.
• CURRENCY
• Greece used to use a drachma, but have switched to a Euro like most European countries.
• RELIGION
• The prevailing religion in Greece is Greek Orthodox.

                                                         
                                                         Greek Flag

                                                                                       -Keeanna <3
                                                                             
                                                                                 

A Map of Greece

        This is a map of my final stop on my trip to Europe; Greece. I am looking forward to visiting, and I will be exploring the cities of Athens and Sparta.
                                                                   -Keeanna <3

                                                                

Super Siauliai

        Sveiki! That’s hello in Lithuanian. I’ve just arrived in Siauliai, and I’m very excited to explore. Just from walking around, I’ve noticed two theaters, fourteen museums, four cinemas, and five shopping centers. Wow! I also saw a really cool statue of an iron fox that I enjoyed observing. There was one very interesting thing I saw while strolling the area. There is a large park in the middle of the city. This seems normal enough, but you have to pay a fee to walk in the park! I thought that was kind of weird. Paying to visit a park? Hmm.         After grabbing a bite to eat and visiting a small souvenir shop, I walked down to the Hill of Crosses. The Hill of Crosses is the Lithuanian national pilgrimage center. There are hundreds of thousands of crosses of various shape and size on this hill.
The city of Siauliai was founded in 1236 by the Teutonic Knights. The tradition of placing crosses goes back to this time and was probably started as a symbol of defiance against invaders. By 1895, there were about 150 large crosses, in 1945 there were 200, and by 1940 there were as many as 400, not to mention the thousands of smaller ones surrounding them.
        After being captured by Germany in World War II, Siauliai was retaken by Soviet Russia. The Soviets repeatedly took down the Christian crosses on the hill. Three different times, the hill was leveled, the crosses were burned and turned into scrap metal, and the whole area was covered in sewage. Each time, faithful Lithuanians would replace the lost crosses. In 1985, the Hill of Crosses was finally left alone.
        I’ve droned on about the Hill of Crosses for long enough. I hope I haven’t bored you with my high interest in the history of this fascinating place. Quite obviously, this was by far my favorite place to visit in Siauliai.
        Well, it’s been a long day and I’m tired and ready for bed. I will probably stay in Siauliai for a little while longer, but then I’m off to Greece, the country I’ve looking forward to visiting the most. Adios!
                                                            -Keeanna <3

                                                            The Iron Fox
           

                                                                    
                                                     The Hill of Crosses

                                                                    

                                                                 

Vibrant Vilnius

            Hi! I just touched down in Lithuania. I am currently visiting Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. It is also the largest city in Lithuania with a population of 560,190. It’s a really big city, with tons of buildings. I’ve been walking around admiring it all.

It really wears out your body to walk around all day, so I get hungry a lot faster. I think I’ll stop and eat here pretty soon. I don’t really don’t want to spend a lot of time eating, so I’m just going to grab some McDonald’s.

While I was walking around eating my Big Mac, I noticed Old Town. Old town is the largest surviving medieval town in Northern Europe. There are all sorts of traditional pubs and shops here, and that interested me. I visited a few, and I fascinated with the variety of merchandise they sold. There were all sorts of products, such as amber and linen.

My favorite place to visit in Vilnius was the castle at Trakai. This castle is the one time capital of Lithuania and was the home of the Grand Duchy, whose reign expanded all the way to the Black Sea. This castle is located on an island in the middle of Lake Galve. The castle was built in three stages, with different things added each phase.  Grand Duke Kestutis began the construction of the castle in the 14^th century. The major construction was finished in 1409 by Kestutis’s son, Vytautas the Great. He ended up dying in the castle in 1430.

While in Vilnius, I also visited the Vilnius TV Tower. It is a little taller then the Eiffel Tower, measuring 1,071 feet! It is also the tallest building in Lithuania. The Vilnius TV Tower is the home of Lithuanian Radio and Television Center. I had the unforgettable opportunity to bungee jump off of this tower, which is something I’ve always wanted to do.

Well, today has been very exciting. I learned a lot and got some amazing experiences. I am going to be in Vilnius for a couple more days, and then I’m heading out to Siauliai. Goodnight!

                              -Keeanna <3

                                                                  
                                                               
   A collage of Vilnius

A Monument to Basketball in Vilnius