ISA Study Abroad in Thessaloniki, Greece

Thessaloniki is such an underrated city. It's located a short 30 minutes away from Mount Olympus on side, a short 30 minutes to the famous beaches of Halkidiki on the other. There is ALWAYS something to do. The American College of Thessaloniki offers excursions almost every weekend. Such excursions included canyoning the waterfalls of Mount Olympus to sailing around the Aegean for a weekend.

The campus is a small one, which made my experience that much better. The teachers are genuinely interested in making sure their students succeed in their studies. My best grades come from my semester in Greece and that's no coincidence. (Thanks, ACT!).

A typical day for me in Thessaloniki would include going to class for a few hours. Between classes I would hangout in the campus cafe with some friends and socialize with the multitude of international students that study there. After class I would head down to the city center and lounge at a cafe on the boardwalk and enjoy a frappe with friends for a few hours. After we exhaust ourselves with coffee, we would grab some souvlakia in the taverna square and listen to the live bands at dinner. I can not stress enough how good the Greek food is. The free dessert is a plus, too.

The Greeks, especially in Thessaloniki, have this relaxed lifestyle. The word for it is "χαλαρα" (ha-la-ra). I learned a lot in my studies at ACT but one of my favorite things I brought back with myself is how to enjoy life.

One of the best decisions I made was going to Greece through GlobaLinks. I would not have made it there if not for them! Before I left they kept me in a straight line to make sure I was getting everything I needed to in time and helped me get through all my visa applications and procedures. And when I got there there was someone to greet me at the airport and for the next couple of days they helped us get acquainted with the city. I am so thankful for this!

Thessaloniki is such a great city to live in. There is always something interesting going on and something to do. Almost daily there is some sort of cultural event, film festival, art exhibit, etc. to go see. There are several universities in the city and so students make up the majority of the population. This young population adds a unique and vibrant dimension to the community and city, providing ample opportunities to interact with other students both Greek and non-Greek. The American College of Thessaloniki is such an amazing institution. They go above and beyond in trying to make study abroad students feel welcome and comfortable. They plan trips and excursions to other cities, and if we ever want to go somewhere else, they are always extremely helpful at giving us information on what is the best (and usually cheapest!) way of booking such a trip. They are so fantastic, caring, and generous, all of the staff. I would highly recommend them.

The highlight of the summer program is definitely the weekends! There was a trip planned for practically every weekend. I won't forget visiting the royal family tomb of Alexander the Great in Vergina,jumping off of the cliffs into the clear-blue waters of Halkidiki,or the long weekend in the five star hotel on the gorgeous historical island of Corfu! We met so many amazing people on each of those trips. There was alway the option of making your own trip as well. My friends and I went to Mt. Olympus, Santorini, Mykonos, France, Italy, and even Turkey!! Thessaloniki is a good center point for travel through Europe.

The Greek people are really chill and welcoming. Mediterranean hospitality is like none other. We were treated with so much respect (and food) from our welcome dinner all the way to our final farewell. And the cuisine is superb. If you're into organic food, large portions, and bakeries on every corner then you'll definitely wanna go to Greece. I made sure that I bought a cookbook before I left.

The traveling is fun of course, but we were there for education as well. In the morning we would all meet on the corner of our neighborhood and wait for the shuttle to take us on the 20 minute ride to ACT. ACT campus is small, but really pretty. The walkways are lined with cherry-plum trees and there is no shortage of greenery. All of the professors spoke english and were really interested in hearing about our lives in America. The work is pretty intensive, but the professors offer constant support (mine even tutored us one weekend at Starbucks)!

School was only a 4-day week, so there was always time to shop, eat, and party after class and on Friday. It was so funny to realize that Americans are the only people that dance in clubs and everyone looks at us in amusement.

Thought the trip was a short five weeks, we all made so many friends that we wouldn't have met otherwise. People even traveled with eachother after the trip because they'd gotten so close. My group is actually planning a reunion already.
In short, if you like food, are opend-minded, love fun, and you don't mind the heat...you should definitely take this trip; it's worth it.

It was a great experience and I met a lot of new and great people. We saw a lot of great history and then social and political change in just the few weeks we were over there.