This week, I’m in Greece at Chautauqua. Chautauqua is an event where folks from all over the world come to talk abour personal finance, goals and dreams in a spectacular setting.
Since I’m pretty busy, I’ll throw up some short reports this week with random pictures and thoughts.
Planes And Plain Tired
Getting to Greece isn’t easy. First, Mrs. 1500 and I flew from Denver to Chicago. After a mad run to get through O’Hare airport, we boarded our next flight to Istanbul. From Istanbul, we flew to Thessaloniki. We were traveling for almost 24 hours and since our first flight left at 4 pm, we had been up for almost 36 hours before we finally got to our hotel.
Sleep deprivation sucks. I cannot sleep on planes. I bought one of those neck pillows. Nothing. Next I tried an eyeshade. Still nothing. So, I gave up. On long flights, I work or read until my brain can’t take it anymore. Then, I watch mindless nonsense on the in-flight entertainment system. On the way back and forth to the bathroom, I jealously sneer at all of the plane sleepers. Jerks.
Thessoloniki
It’s the little things that amuse me. In Greece, the ground floor is known as 0. The basement is -1. In America, the ground floor is 1 and the basement is B. The European system makes more sense to my mathy mind.
On Saturday, we took a walking tour of the city.
One of the awesome aspects of the Ecuador Chautauqua two years ago was the food. This Chautauqua is every bit as good:
Cavo Olympo
On Sunday, we moved on to Cavo Olympo, a resort on the Aegean Sea at the base of Mount Olympus. This place does not suck:
More updates coming when I catch up on my sleep…
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Dave @ Accidental FIRE says
I’m really jealous, Greece is one of the only European countries I have yet to visit. Keep posting updates!
Mr. 1500 Days says
Holy cow man, this is more fun than a human should be allowed. Money + beer + great conversation. And I’m an introvert!
Mr. Tako says
I have serious doubts about the truth of your introvertedness Carl. (is that even a word?)
You go to all the cool events these days,.. I don’t think you get to be a card-carrying introvert anymore. 🙂
j/k! Have fun in Greece. I’m sure it’s a hell of a lot warmer than here!
Mr. Tako recently posted…Famous FIRE Blogger Tragically Dies Falling Off Boat
Team CF says
Oh, that looks good! Have fun you two 🙂
Only been to Greece once before, still have good memories of that place!
sendaiben says
The thing that transformed flying for me was over-ear noise cancelling headphones (like the awesome Bose QCs). You have no idea how noisy planes are until you cancel the noise.
Since I got them I can sleep for a few hours on long flights. Very much recommended!
JRobi says
I love the pic of the cats! Be safe and enjoy the beautiful scenery and incredible glimpse back into time.
JRobi recently posted…Chipmunks and Investing….
freddy smidlap says
do they still have police with machine guns in public squares and buses, etc.? my buddies went to italy and greece and were a little taken aback with that at first. have fun.
freddy smidlap recently posted…Market Blood Bath Reflections
EsqFireNYC says
You don’t have to cross the pond to see policy/military with machine guns. Come to NYC and take a stroll through Grand Central Station or Penn Station.
Mr. Tako says
I have serious doubts about the truth of your introvertedness Carl. (is that even a word?)
You go to all the cool events these days,.. I don’t think you get to be a card-carrying introvert anymore. 🙂
j/k! Have fun in Greece. I’m sure it’s a hell of a lot warmer than here!
Mr. Tako recently posted…Famous FIRE Blogger Tragically Dies Falling Off Boat
Susan @ FI Ideas says
I’m flying out tomorrow for the week 2. If I’m lucky, I’ll somehow cross paths with you before you head off to another long, long flight. Mine from San Francisco is 13 hours. Oh well, the price of admittance. It’s great to get a sneak peak of your photos!
Mrs. Wow says
I am a plane sleeper and proud of it. Doesn’t matter if it is a 45 minute flight or 14 hours, I am out. If you’re lucky, maybe I’ll share my secrets one of these days. Enjoy Chautauqua and Greece!