By Erica Thompson, News Correspondent

Somewhere between the clouds of cigarette smoke and the screaming gypsies outside my apartment, I fell in love with Thessaloniki. It is a quirky, sometimes inconvenient city and entirely different than my home of New York – but it didn’t take long before I gave up my fast-paced lifestyle for the laid-back mindset of Greece.

I traveled there in the fall of 2008 with the NUin (Northeastern University In…) program, which offers students who were accepted for the spring semester an opportunity to go abroad as “pre-freshman” and earn credits. It wasn’t exactly what I had pictured for myself when I originally applied, and the idea of leaving everything I had known for 17 years to travel halfway across the world with a group of strangers was daunting, but it was somehow intriguing.

But suddenly there I was, standing in the middle of Aristotle Square surrounded by an indecipherable language, cobblestone sidewalks and some Americans that I could barely call acquaintances. But it didn’t take long before I could call all of those things not only familiar, but comfortable.

Looking back, Greece made America seem materialistic. Unlike us, Greek people work to live. Coming from a city built around the notion of productivity, I was baffled to see bars and restaurants packed at all hours of the day. Lounging seemed to be the biggest pastime, rivaled only with eating and drinking.

And I grew to be fine with that. I had never traveled to a city that didn’t seem to be constantly buzzing with noise and a “go-getter” attitude. Thessaloniki buzzed in a different sense — one that was more concerned with embracing live street music or fried zucchini and tzatziki sauce.

But there were plenty of times when I was reminded of the convenience of the United States. A dryer was nowhere to be found, so even in December I hung my shirts on a clothesline. We didn’t have a meal plan, nor did we have a dishwasher, so I’ll leave what our kitchen looked like up to the imagination. Internet was scarce, and I didn’t see a television the entire time I was away.

Though it may sound like I’m complaining, I’m really just pointing out the things that I’d taken for granted. Although I felt like somewhat of an outsider when coming back to Northeastern, I couldn’t help but feel thankful for dining hall food (I know, right?) and signs I could actually read.

In a too-short three months, people that once seemed like strangers had become my family. It was my personal entrance into the overwhelming transition to Northeastern. The culture shock coming to Boston may have been even more prominent than entering Greece. In such a large school, and without the experience of living in freshman housing, having that core group was essential to maintaining a social life.

And that still holds true, even as a middler. Yes, I’ve branched out to an extent, but I can safely say much of my time here has been spent with my NUin group. Though we may not be sleeping on the boardwalk together anymore, or having family dinners in the Turkish quarter, my roommates and best of friends have all shared the experience of living at 124 Alexandrias.