June 27, 2011
Today we started by going to the Greek Parliament. We thought we were going to observe a session of Parliament but it was a special event created just for us. We walked into this beautiful room and were invited to sit in the members of Parliaments seats. It was pretty amazing. When we sat, there was a program written in Greek and English for us to follow and let us know that this was a program solely about the Global Youth Summit. The President of the Hellenic Parliament, the Prime Minister of Greece, His Holiness the Ecumenical, the Minister of Education, Lifelong Learning and Religious Affairs, the Deputy Minister of Health and Social Solidarity, Tim Shriver, Stratigis Voukidis (Greek Youth Leader for the GYAS) and Mathew Williams (Global Messenger from Canada). The speeches were incredible and it felt amazing to be a part of it. Alli and Jordan have felt the need to do more to promote youth activism and this just intensified it further. They understood the weight of being part of moment like that. For Kim, it made her want to go back to the States and get our local government to wake up and start funding more programs like this and to finally take an interest in people with disabilities. It was a powerful program. Tim Shriver’s speech was the most incredible, inspiring and challenging speech that we have heard here. We are hoping to get you a link to it soon. Watch it…we dare you.
After we were finished we went to Mounstraki square and had lunch. We were on our own for lunch so we finally got our Greek Gyro!! Jordan and Kim had a chicken gyro and Alli had a beef gyro. It came with tomato, onion, tatzaki and fries in it if you wanted. It was amazing!! So amazing we took a picture!
Once we finished with lunch, we went for our tour of the Acropolis. Our volunteer guides for the whole starting at the Parliament were named George and Apollo. Our guide for the Acropolis was named Alena. She was excellent and we learned a ton from her!
Jordan and Alli wanted to give you their perspective on our trip to the Acropolis.
“In the United States, anything from before1800 is considered old. The Greeks would laugh at that. They have beautifully constructed buildings from BC times, such as the Acropolis. It is amazing how a building could still stand and look magnificent after wars, growth and time, along with a lack of modern technology. Although the once vibrant colors of the Parthenon have faded, its beauty remains and should be an example to modern architecture. The Acropolis provided breathtaking views of the city, ranging from ancient ruins to the modern Olympic stadiums, which our athletes are competing in! Seeing such a beautiful structure will be a moment we will never forget.”
When we came down from the Acropolis, we had a surprise waiting for us, Alli’s mom Karen had found us and wanted to say hello. Karen came to Athens to explore and to go on a five-day bus tour. She will be coming to closing ceremonies too!! It was nice to see her and spend a little time in Athens with her!
After our visit, we took the Metro (for the first time) to the Village mall to go bowling. Mattel is a huge sponsor for Special Olympics and specifically Project Unify and they wanted to host an event for the Global Youth Summit so they took us bowling. About 50 volunteers came and hosted us at Village Bowling. They provided dinner and drinks and about 3 hours of bowling. It was an awesome event that our group loved! It was another great day!!
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