They Call It a Buggy

Talk about diving in headfirst. I have so much to tell and so little time. Essentially, I went in to work on Tuesday at 7am and worked until 5:30pm, when I got to jump on the course for 18 holes with Thomas. The course is absolutely gorgeous, with huge greens, thousands of olive trees, and spectacular sea views. Work was not quite so glamorous. I felt like a lost puppy much of the time, trying to figure out what I was supposed to be doing and trying to catch onto the Greek words that were flying about. I did discover a previously-unknown talent for rolling hand towels into perfect spirals for the golf carts.

The guys invited me to join them for dinner and we went to a local taverna— which opens right onto the beach. There are about a billion stars here and very few lights. The setting was simply amazing. We relaxed and talked until long after midnight, when somebody realized we had another early morning ahead.

Today, I was at work by 6am. There is a big Pro-Am tournament this week, sponsored by Aegean Airlines. It is the biggest tournament in Greece. And had no clue what to expect. The practice round was today, and it felt something like a ‘practice round’ for our staff as well. We shuffled golf carts and ran around doing little tasks. Thankfully, I was assigned one particular job for the day: shuttle the players from the Clubhouse to the driving range. It’s about a 3-minute drive so it gave me a little time to chat with the players. I had an absolute ball! Teams from all over the world had come to play in the event, so I heard dozens of different accents and was invited to come play numerous golf courses around the world. I made the loop enough times to create something like wagon ruts in the road.

It was a very long day, and I was completely exhausted by the end of it. However, I got some news from my boss that cheered me right up! Apparently, a player’s golf cart (they call carts “buggys” here… funny, right?) had run over his own foot! He was not going to be able to play in the tournament, and my boss asked if I would mind subbing in.

Seriously? Seriously!

I am thrilled, but also rather nervous. I played a fun round yesterday, but haven’t seriously practiced since leaving Indiana. I am feeling a bit of the pressure. My new teammates are quite wonderful, though. They are from Istanbul and I met most of them early today. Our pro is named Savaş and he was on the range for hours today, so I talked to him several times– great guy.

I need to get some rest… Wish me luck this week!