So far, I have been able to make some generalizations about lifestyle and the culture over here. There are always things that stand out in your mind and are easily recognizable when you go somewhere outside your everyday life. Greece is no exception to that. I have been around enough people to get a glimpse into what their everyday life is like and what their demeanor is like. 

One noticeable habit that is very obvious is that it seems almost everyone over here smokes cigarettes. I am not sure what the age limit is to purchase tobacco, but it appears that people of any age are smoking, from teenagers to senior citizens. Not only that, but smoking is permitted in many places that I am not accustomed to. When I went to inquire about a mobile phone over here, the customer service representative lit up a cigarette right in the store while he was explaining the different options to me. 

Also, people smoke in the arenas during our games. I guess people used to smoke in arenas back in the U.S. as well, but not in my recent memory so it is certainly a new experience to me. My dad told me that there was a bluish gray haze throughout the whole arena in my game against Olympiakos. I can't understand why they wouldn't at least have a designated section so that the arena would not be so hazy. It doesn't exactly make for the best viewing experience at the game, I don't think. 

It seems that there has been such a massive effort to restrict smoking in public establishments in the United States over the past few years that it is easy to forget how things used to be. Even the newly established law that restricts smoking in bars is already something that you tend to take for granted. 

That is just one of the differences that I have noticed while I have been living here. I am sure over the course of the season, I will see a lot more. That's it from my world right now. 

Go, AEK!