two of a kind

Setting sun over the Parthenon on the Acrpolis in Athens

Instead of Cancun or the Caribbean

I imagine what Greece used to be like.  I picture Aeschylus’s Agamemnon performed at the Delphi theatre, and how the Agora used to look: the bustling marketplace full of women buying ingredients to make baklava and mousakka for their families.  Women with a purpose.  I buy hologram postcards so I can see more than just the skeletons of these places.

It’s our last night of spring break, and we lounge on the rooftop of The Heroidion in Athens.  I say to Max, “This trip has been like a weird, lucid dream.”

Her response: “I’ve eaten enough garlic to turn into a clove.” 

This is the kind of talk between best friends: disjointed and comfortable.

During the last 11 days, I’ve learned that my skin turns glossy from Mediterranean olive oil; that in touristy areas, the Greeks serve Americanized gyros with oregano fries piled high; and I learn to downplay tripping on the cobblestone streets.  I am a step away from grace.

“Yasa!” we shout as we tip back our last ouzo shot and cheers to this trip.

We sit, stargaze and feel the soft spring breeze. 

“We have a better view of the Parthenon, up here, than we did paying admission,” I say. 

Max nods and jokingly says, “Wish Rula was here to describe this.”

Rula is our Greek tour guide, chain smoker and professional espresso drinker, who has a knack for saying English words in a dirty way.  “Olympics” becomes O-limp-piks and “fortress” into four-undress.  Imagine her description of this postcard worthy view: “marble” to ma-ball, “temple” to tim-pile and “rubble” into rawr-bull.

Max trickles off to bed but I stay up. 

I look at the Parthenon with the scaffolding illuminated by construction lights.  It is old juxtaposed with new.

Then I see a single shooting star fly above this ancient temple.  It reminds me that just like a human body, the bones outlast. Life swirls around us, even as we struggle, always evolving.

- SRM, 2013 ©

I've written about Greece before (found here and here), a very special trip that still inspires me.  This is the piece that I submitted to the World Nomads China Scholarship about Catching a Moment.

Tell us: How does travel inspire you?

-SM 

(image via pinterest) 

 

 

 

1. Stay in touch with professors 

• I heard about this scholarship from a college professor.

2. Attend writing workshops

• This can be a weekend conference like this one or looking at a local community college for their semester workshops.

3. Submit to an alumni literature journal

• If you are unsure if your school has one, or what the name is, then google " your school name literary journal" so I would search "Richard Stockton College literary journal".

4. Poets & Writers has a great listing of submissions in their Classifieds section here

5. Join a mailing list like this one

6. My friend, Meghan, created an awesome magazine called The New Megaphone

• Accepting submissions for their second issue! 

-SM

Today, I applied for a travel writing scholarship to China through the World Nomads site!  Thousdands of people applied, but I still feel confident with my piece.  

This contest gives the winner a chance to travel to China and see what life is like for a travel writer.  It is an incredibly competitive field and I think it's a really cool opportunity.

Fingers crossed! 

-SM

photo source: worldnomads.com

Don't we all want to make enough money to just do what we love every day?

As a writer, part of what I've always been told to do is publish. This is one of the first steps to trying to "make it" as a writer, but figuring out how to do this is not easy. 

Before sending out work, my advice is to revise, revise, revise. I will write a post soon about my revision strategies.

Where to send work:

1. Send work to alumni literary journals

2. Send to a friend's or acquaintenance's literary journal .

I've been struggling with how to get my work out for the last few years, and I recently remembered that starting small is best.  So, my goal for this week is to send to my alumni literary journal, Stockpot, and a friend's literary journal, which I will post more info about soon.

Tell us: How do you get your work out?

-SM

image via pinterest