Glancing up from my laptop, I noticed that it was already evening. How had that happened? I had been working, and then working, and then working some more–and somehow, the time had slipped away. My thoughts became dark and cloudy as I realized that life was becoming a checklist. I didn’t like this, not at all. Something had to change. A single tear rolled down my cheek, quickly morphing into a torrential downpour, a childlike meltdown.

The tears weren’t random. I had been awakening at 2am for the past few weeks months, questioning what I was doing with my life. Being in your late thirties will do that to you. I knew that I was living too passively, working too much, playing too little, caught up in the day to day. Simply put, I wasn’t writing the script to my own life anymore, and that was a problem. So after my boss told me that I needed to take a vacation, coupled with the startling realization that twenty years had already passed since high school, I started researching travel groups.

You see, I loved traveling and exploring new languages and cultures, but I had pushed pause on that for several years simply because I was tired of traveling solo. My friends could never join me either because they were married with kids or financially unable, and I didn’t want to travel anymore if I had to go alone. I was perfectly capable; I just didn’t want to.

Thankfully, the algorithms led me to OWR. Their philosophy fit me like a glove. It was so on point, in fact, that I kind of thought some AI robot was playing tricks on me. OWR had a trip to Greece leaving in two weeks. That was a pretty tight timeline, but after verifying that the company was legit (it is!), I jumped and booked it. It was time to make some changes, and here was the perfect opportunity. Was it a rash decision? Probably. Was it worth it? One thousand percent yes.

---

I arrived a day early to Greece to help with jetlag. The airport transfer to the hotel was incredibly helpful because after a long international flight, it is nearly impossible to think clearly or pretend that you know how to read Greek airport signage.

My very first impression of Greece was breakfast at the hotel: after one bite, I texted my friends to tell them they needed to fly here immediately, just to taste the avocado toast. It was extraordinary. I walked around a bit during the day, and decided that I wanted to move to Greece because of the toast.

Still tired that evening but inspired by the fact that I was actually in Athens, I went to an Open Air Ancient Greek Theater performance. The backdrop was the Acropolis lit up at night. Was this real? The performance was hilarious–and even more hilarious was the fact that right before it started, I was about to ask the guy beside me if he had seen it before; however, it was good that I didn’t have time to, as he turned out to be one of the principal actors!

I walked back to the hotel that evening, soaking in the bustling nightlife, eating my first Greek gyro, and feeling very alive, despite the jetlag. After asking the gyro vendor how to say, “delicious” in Greek, I was delighted to learn that it was the same word that the actors had told me after the show when I asked how to say, “amazing”. In both contexts, you can say, Υπέροχο[ς]/ “e-PAIR-roh-hoe[s]”. I love BOGO words in a new language! Wonderful, amazing, delicious… this was an excellent start to the trip. I let the foreign sounds reverberate on my tongue as I drifted off to sleep. Υπέροχος…

The following evening, I went downstairs with my new roommate (Sophie) and met my eleven new travel companions. I don’t know how our tour leader, Aris, did it, but within 12 hours, it was as though we had known each other for years. We laughed and talked and laughed some more.

I think the idea of “next level” started that first evening at the Welcome Dinner. Aris would frequently mention details about Greek culture and how to do things “the Greek way” throughout the trip, and liked to say, “Let’s take this to the next level”. The first lesson was 1) to break up the Feta cheese before eating a Greek salad; and 2) to soak your bread in the vinegar at the bottom of the bowl after you finished your salad. Υπέροχος! Delicious!

One of my takeaways from this trip was “leveling up”. I could keep plodding along in my life, working the 9-5 and then the 6-9 after work; or, I could take it to the next level, and start actually living life. Little did I know, the adventure had just begun.

---

Every day after that first dinner was better and better, as if Aris and OWR had intentionally created a schedule in which we “leveled up” each day. First, we took the metro to visit the Acropolis (Parthenon) with a tour guide, were given Greek god and goddess names, and learned all about the history behind the ancient landmark. Our tour guide was fun and informative.

After a delicious lunch with the group (I could not get over how rich the flavors were in every meal — even a single tomato slice was a flavor explosion, an experience), Sophie and I walked around Monastiraki Square and Plaka, and then got lost in the gardens behind Parliament. We knew many others in the group had gone to the gardens, but we couldn’t find them; and just kept walking and walking — past chickens, birds, goats, lemon and orange trees, beautifully maintained paths, flowers, palm trees, and more — until we eventually found our way out. We immediately bought something to drink; it was in the 90s that afternoon (32 Celsius).

That evening, some of us hiked up to see the sunset. We stopped partway down the hill and sat, talking until it was dark like we were best friends, and watching the Acropolis begin to glow in the distance. Walking back to the hotel, we all bought gold crowns, and I accidentally told a store owner in Greek that I loved him — instead of what I meant, which was that I loved the crown. All of the girls and I couldn’t stop giggling after that.

I fell asleep in my comfy bed at the hotel that night with a huge smile on my face.

---

The next day, we took a three or four hour long ferry ride to the island of Paros. I was nervous about being seasick and had imagined a dinky little 10 foot wide “ferry”. How wrong I was! The ferry was massive and basically a cruise ship, with cars below. There was no need to worry. I wrote and enjoyed the time to reflect, and began indulging in my newly formed Greek habit of drinking a Freddo Cappuccino (iced coffee) at any time of the day.

We toured an organic farm that afternoon, and the raw beauty of Greece began to reveal itself. I couldn’t believe how vibrant the colors were. The olive trees and grape leaves and capers weren’t just “green” — they were emerald and jade and forest green. The water wasn’t just “blue” — it was sapphire and cerulean and azure and turquoise and cobalt and teal. In Paros, the flowers weren’t just “red” against the whitewashed buildings, they were scarlet and raspberry and salmon. My eyes couldn’t get enough, and neither could my stomach. We talked and laughed over dinner at the farm, rich flavors and colors alike bringing everything to life, nourishing the spirit. The friendships forming were warming my heart.

The hotel in Paros was different than in Athens, but equally charming. I liked the minimalist chic vibe and easy walk to town. I slept like a baby.

---

The following day was spent on a catamaran, sailing around the Cyclades Islands. We anchored near Naxos and — after some serious persuasion — I was able to jump into the water. I will jump into languages, cultures, buy a flight to who knows where; but jumping into water? Not so much.

The captain’s wife had chatted with me by this point, so when she saw me hesitating, she squatted down beside me and said in Greek, “Τρία, δύο, ένα, πάμε!!“(“Tria, theo, ena, pame”/ 3-2-1, let’s go!). That did the trick — I jumped, swam to the beach, sat under a tree on a rock, and let the peace and serenity of the place seep into my veins. Elizabeth (another woman in the group) pointed out the shimmering water. It literally sparkled in the sunlight–truly magical.

---

We took a ferry to Santorini afterwards, and had an amazing dinner that night overlooking the most iconic part of the island. I did not understand until arriving what it meant when people said that the island was formed out of a “volcano crater” or caldera. The island went straight up, and the only way to get to the top from the port was on a zigzag road. Unbelievable!

A group of us decided to go on a kayaking tour to the black, white, and red sands beaches for our free day to explore. We visited the “Mouth of the Dragon” cave, and I began to understand why people love being on the water. It is a different type of freedom than on land. The sea — in Greece, it’s the sea, not the ocean — stretches out before you, the wind ripples the waves, peace abounds: it’s lovely, as my kayak buddy and friend Mandy would say!

That night, we had a cooking class, and it was so much fun!

---

On the last day of the tour, we took a six-mile hike from Thira/Fira to Oia early in the morning (to beat the sun). “Leveling up” yet again, the views were incredible. I was a bit scared of the height, but every time I felt anxious, I kept reflecting on what Aris had said.

You see, he told us that the Greeks have a “blind trust” mentality, where they trust that you are a good person with good intentions, and treat you with nothing but kindness — unless you disrespect them or cross a line. I could feel this goodwill and hospitality in every single one of my interactions throughout Greece. People weren’t nice because they were being paid to act that way for tourists; it came from their heart — the kindness was genuine.

So I was going to trust Aris that I would be safe on this hike, safe climbing up the steep cliffs without a railing. Safe jumping into the water off of a catamaran. Safe kayaking for the first time. Safe in a foreign land. And you know what? I really did feel safe the entire time I was in Greece.

---

That evening, we had our last catamaran sail and dinner. I had moussaka and fell head over heels in love with the aubergine lasagna–my newest favorite food. There was a beautiful tangerine sunset over the water; but Aris had to interrupt our conversation to point this out because we were all so absorbed in talking with one another that the setting had slipped away. Time had slipped away–but this time, in the best of ways.

As a linguist, I picked up a lot of Greek vocabulary while in Greece. Aris always said, “Σιγά σιγά/ sigá, sigá” (slowly, slowly), which is a great reminder to live life and not just rush through it. But my favorite phrase sums up my time there: Αυτό είναι ένα τέλειο όνειρο. / This is a perfect dream. (“af-TOE e-nay ena tell-E-oh oh-NEAR-row”)

Greece, I will be back. You can count on that. And in the meantime, I will make sure to take every day to the next level. “Τρία, δύο, ένα, πάμε!!“(“Tria, theo, ena, pame”/ 3-2-1, let’s go!).

P.S. I traveled to Crete after the OWR tour. Highlights included the Lighthouse of Chania, an ATV Quad Safari tour, and a day at Elafonisi Beach — you travel through a gorge to get to the latter, eek! But it was still awesome.