Panteleimon Melissinos (also known as Pantelis, "the poet's son") at work.

We started Wednesday with our Greek class with Angeliki, which focused on food and reading the menus in restaurants and tavernas. When we asked about sugar substitues and low-fat options, Angeliki gave us a completely incredulous look. “This is something you can not find here,” she informed us, a little shocked we would even ask. While Angeliki claims prices for produce and fresh goods have skyrocketed over the last decade, they seem pretty reasonable to kids who grew up in a culture where manufactured food is far more readily available, and we prove it by showing up to class with breakfasts of fruit bought by the kilo from street vendors in Monastiraki Square or freshly baked bread from the bakery on the way to CYA. After class, several of us made our way back towards downtown Athens on a mission – sandal-shopping.

Pantelis Melissinos is a third-generation sandalmaker, and his business is now in its 92nd year. He studied at Parsons in New York and worked there for years, but America, as he said in an interview, felt empty – “I thought to myself: ‘Who am I going to be in five years? A success story running to my shrink and my guru?'” He returned to Athens to immerse himself in culture and theater, reflected in his storefront, where his art is on display alongside his shoes and the autographed photos of his more famous customers (including Jackie Onassis, Sophia Loren, Barbara Streisand, and the Beatles.) While we had a long wait as all our sandals were adjusted by hand, it was a lovely place to spend the early afternoon – and in case we were missing New Jersey a little too much, a woman from our favorite state came breezing in as we were packing up to go and began ordering the apprentice around in the requisite Jersey accent. Home sweet home?

Since Wednesday is our weekly beach day, we spent the rest of the afternoon soaking up the sun on a beach at the edge of the city before returning to the Pangrati neighborhood for dinner, card games, and rehearsals. Tonight we’re headed to the theater and tomorrow we’re off on more weekend adventures – even though we’re in a country where life moves slowly and takes nap breaks, there’s never a dull moment.

Till next time!

Annika