Don't Touch Please!

Man, I'm really starting to gain a good appreciation for all of the history here in Greece! Today we spent over 2 hours standing around various statues and ancient artifacts in the Acropolis museum, phew that was a ton of information! I'm truly blessed to be able to experience all of this in person and not just read it out of book. Unfortunately, we weren't really allowed to take pictures in this museum, but if you're ever in the area I would definitely recommend going! The museum itself is built over an ancient site that's being excavated, but the even cooler part is that some parts of the floor are glass so you can actually see what's down there (be careful not to wear skirts/dresses ladies...).

One of the things that I've been noticing during site and museum visits, are all the not so nice guards. They're everywhere! While we were in Delphi some students from my class were acting out the seen with the oracle from the movie "My Life in Ruins." At first the guard on site didn't mind all that much, but after a while, she decided we had enough play time and abruptly told us to "stop the theater."It wasn't even like we were touching or demolishing anything, just doing a bit of role playing. 


When we were in class we discussed how Greeks can be protective over not just the physical aspect of an object but also it's meaning and significance. This explains why the guard become agitated when we were nonchalantly enjoying our time in Delphi.

As I was thinking about it some more, I realized that in America, we tend to focus solely on the "no touching" aspect, and as long as you aren't creating any damage to the artwork or anything around you then your fine.

I feel as if this reaction from the guard in Delphi can reflect on Greek culture in that they really take , pride in their history and protect the home and places of their ancestors, whereas in America we don't always seem to be as concerned at times (not always though). Another comparison that can be made is that in America the guards are actually guards, uniforms and all. Here in Greece, all of the guards seem to be locals and can be distinguished only by a whistle around the neck (for calling out visitors).

On a less educational note, I had something different for lunch today. Well different for me that is, not so different for those of you back in the United States. Wanna know what it was? It was a big, fat, juicy burger (100% beef, yumm!). This was on of the first times I had experienced another cultural food group while eating out in Greece, and I must say, it was quite tasty! I might even be going back for seconds sometime before I leave. Because even though I love experiencing all the different traditional Greek dishes here, I was craving some familiar comfort food!

Tomorrow we've got an early start at the Agora (the ancient city below the Acropolis) for another 2 hours packed with historical knowledge, but afterwards we might go exploring downtown to areas that we haven't yet visited yet (with cameras in hand!), so hopefully we don't get lost!