Illinois Wesleyan

Day 1&2: See You Later USA - Raegan Watts

Airplane dinner	Dinner at rooftop	Snacks at rooftop	Sunset, finishing the night

First day in Greece!! 🇬🇷✈️ It was definitely a long travel day to get here, consisting of two flights (about 8 hours and 2.5 hours) along with a few lengthy bus rides on top of that. After what felt like a full day of traveling (it was), we finally arrived and were all excited to start exploring.
After departing the airport, we walked around the town for a bit to stretch our legs and take in our first sights of Greece. Even though we were tired from the travel, it was really cool to start seeing the city, the architecture, and just getting a feel for the atmosphere.
Eventually we made our way to the hotel and got checked in. One of the best parts of the night was heading up to a rooftop restaurant where we were able to relax, share some snacks, and take in the beautiful view overlooking the city. As time passed and the sun began to set, the view somehow got even better. Watching the sunset from the rooftop with some of my teammates was the perfect way to end our first day here.
We’re excited for everything that’s ahead and can’t wait to experience more of Greece together! 🇬🇷🏐

Day 3: 3 Islands Boat Ride - Shelby Sennett and Carly Whitaker
 

Today we went on a boat ride to three different islands where we were able to walk around, shop, get gelato, and see different parts of the islands. A lot of us ended up riding on donkeys on the first island, and on the second island we all went shopping. At the third island, a lot of us did a guided tour around the island while the rest walked around. On the way back there was a show/performance put on by some of the employees where they showed us some Greek dance moves and performances. Then they invited a lot of our team up with them to dance and to teach us how to dance like them. When the performance was over the whole team got up and started dancing to Cotton Eye Joe. Then we went back to the hotel for dinner where we had pasta, salad, and chicken.

Day 4: Athens - Cailin Shannon and Sophia Feeney

Today the team had lots of free time to explore Athens! We started the morning with breakfast and then took the bus to the city center. Lots of shopping and sight seeing. Some of the team ate local food and had a taste of Greece! After a few hours of walking around, we drove an hour and a half to Cape Sounion. We g

Day 5: Athens City Tour & Match #1- Hailey Rak and Vanessa Stasieluk
Today the team went on a guided tour of the Acropolis along with Central Athens. We then had some free time to shop and eat some authentic Greek food! On our way back we stopped at the Olympic stadium. To end our day we played a local team. We got to play in their gym, trade gifts, and meet the team!

Day 6: Meteora & Greek Orthodox Monasteries - Alex Bardouniotis & Alysa Lawton
Today was an early morning as we departed from the hotel at about 8:30 a.m. and started the journey to the city of Meteora! The drive through the Greek countryside and the mountains was absolutely gorgeous. We stopped around 1:15 p.m. in the city for lunch and a quick break, and then resumed travel to two Greek Orthodox monasteries. For the first monastery, we trekked up a mountain with about 200 stairs, and the view was breathtaking. For the second, definitely not as many steps but a gorgeous view nonetheless. After the monasteries, we got back on the bus and drove the rest of the way to Thessaloniki!

Day 7: Thessaloniki & Match #2 - Paige Peterson & Audrey Chizzo
We started off the day with a bus and walking tour of Thessaloniki, and looked at some churches and ancient buildings! We had some free time after to have some Greek food and look at some shops around the area. Then we went to the gym and played our match against Aias Evosmou, and it was a very competitive match! The girls on the other team were very kind and welcoming, too! We went back to the hotel after and had some dinner before calling it a night.

Day 8: Edessa & Match #3 - Eleanor Palmer & Kannyn Boyd
We started the day on the bus headed to the village of Edessa, where we visited the town and its natural waterfall. We were able to individually explore the town and get up close to the waterfall, as it had many trails and passageways. We had about two hours to then grab a bite to eat and shop with the local vendors. After those two hours were up, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for our final match.

Day 9: Thessaloniki - Lauren O'Brien & Addi Hale
Today was our last day in Thessaloniki and we had the whole day to explore the city, shop, and eat. We ended the day with a nice dinner with good food and lots of dancing!

Day 10: Back to the States - Ashlyn Rager
What a way to end our trip! If anyone thought that it was going to be a chill travel day, they were mistaken! Our day started early to go to the Thessaloniki Airport to check bags and wait for our first flight at 10:55. As soon as our flight landed in Zurich, we rushed over to find our next gate. Our luck, it happened to be the longest line ever. Many more long lines later, we ended up being able to hold our plane for an extra 30 minutes so everyone could board. But that was after we had to sprint across the airport, literally. We had a smooth 9 hour flight with good food and some Swiss chocolate! After landing in Chicago, the rest of our traveling was very easy. We made it home around 9:30pm!

We’re so grateful we had the opportunity to tour Greece while playing some volleyball! We made some great memories!!