Spare Time Activities

More than a month has passed since I arrived in Athens, and so far I am very happy here. I have settled into a basic routine of classes, homework, other everyday-activities, and fun activities. Besides classes and homework which are really giving me a lot to do right now, there is plenty to do on the Athens campus.

I went to my first basketball game ever with some of the other international students. We arrived two hours before the game started and found that the Convocation Center was distributing free chicken sandwiches and drinks. The OU Bobcats were playing the Akron Zips. I should have cheered for the Bobcats but Akron is the sister town of a city called Chemnitz which is located close to my hometown. So I rather quietly cheered for Akron. Akron won, and I won a cookie in the process because I had made a bet with somebody else on whose team would win.

I enjoy the cultural events that we can attend here. I attended the Chinese New Year celebration. The technology broke down several times during the event, but half of the time I could not understand what was being said even with the microphone working because it was all in Chinese. There were several music performances, kids from the local elementary school showed off their language skills in a short play and some college students acted as actors to guide the audience through the show with a funny story. I am good with languages but I believe that it would take me a lot of effort to become fluent in Chinese. I know several Americans who are fluent in Chinese. At the latest when an American friend who was sitting behind me started translating all that was being said, I felt a little inadequate. The "traditional" food at the event made me conclude that I would starve in China because I really did not particularly enjoy any of it. I was assured that it was not “real” Chinese food and that I'd be fine should I ever go to China. I am not sure if I ever want to find out. There will be an Arabian Night in about two weeks and I have already bought my ticket for that.

MardiGras at OU

I had sworn to never enter the Ping Recreation center to work out; I simply enjoy outdoor activities more than going to a gym. I have not followed through on that. When I was invited to try a Zumba class, I was not sure if I should go. I am very glad that I did. After an hour I was rather out of breath but also feeling very relaxed. I hope to find the time to go back again soon.

Finally, I found a dog to walk. I was feeling somewhat sad without having a dog to walk. Not anymore. Kirsten lives with a woman who has two dogs, and she agreed to let me take her dogs for walks if I want to. One of the dogs, a black lab named Stewie, turned out to be a fun partner for a walk by the Hocking River.