Athens
3 minute read
Athens
After two nights in Urnasch, we set off at 5 AM on December 30th to Greece! We spontaneously planned to meet my friend Domenico and celebrate New Year's together. We arrived in the afternoon and spent the day wandering the streets, searching for a gluten-free restaurant we had found online for Tuia. In the evening, we met up with our friends and bar-hopped until the early morning. The cultural customs on display in Greece’s local bar scene were very entertaining—at one bar, the owner was incredibly stressed about the noise, repeatedly telling the mild crowd to quiet down and respect the neighbours. But then, a group of busking drummers marched right through the bar at full volume, and the owner welcomed them with no concern.
After a slow start the next morning, we met up with our friends again to explore Athens' central district. We strolled through bazaars, tried local lemon drinks, and made our way to the bustling municipal markets, where we had delicious food (grilled eggplant, stuffed peppers and moussaka), enjoyed gifted pastries, and watched older Greek women dance joyfully in the alley next to our table, cheered on by friends and passersby. It was such a warm and bubbly experience!
Later, as I was waiting for the bathroom, one of the women we’d seen dancing came out, grinning from ear to ear. She gave me a playful shrug, wiggled her fingers at my friend in a bullhorn fashion, and strutted off. When I entered the stall after her, I discovered, that there wasn’t a single inch of the seat and floor that hadn’t been covered in pee. Iconic behviour.
Our group split up, and Tuia, Domenico, and I ran to a stone lookout to watch the sunset over the Acropolis, while the others went to gather ingredients for dinner. It was an incredible rush running through the streets of Greece, past ancient ruins, glowing in the evening sun. The view was breathtaking, and as we shared our reflections on the year, it felt like the perfect final sunset of 2024.
That evening, we relaxed until it was time for our 10 PM New Year's Eve dinner! Our wonderful Argentinian friends had generously offered to cook, and at 11:40 PM, we were seated around the table enjoying squid, roast vegetables, salad, eggs, bread, and roast beef. As we ate, fireworks erupted in the streets, and we moved to the balcony to watch the show.
2025 had arrived!
On our final day in Athens, we explored the Parthenon at sunrise and grabbed a bite at the markets. We savoured our last moments with Domenico before prepping for our final travel days before heading home.
Zurich
We flew back to Zurich for our last night in Europe with Tuia’s parents. Although we arrived late, we squeezed in a Vietnamese dinner and stayed at a nice hotel to treat ourselves for our final night. Our final day was spent exploring Zurich, hearing about Tuia’s father’s childhood growing up there, and then—just like that—our trip was over.