Hello ❤️,
Okay, so it wouldn’t be a model stay without a little chaos. Well, in my world, a lot of chaos, and my close ones know this. I’m that friend whose resilience is always tested, and I have a new story every day. So, it’s time to start documenting them in case you’re in situations like mine! I get through it by laughing it off and giving my loved ones a little extra entertainment. All in the space of a month, I survived bed bugs, being evacuated and moved, an earthquake, and ultimately pissing off the Airbnb staff unintentionally whilst trying to hustle in a new market.
Let’s get into it 🙂
Arriving in Greece:
Both my agent and I decided to try the end of the summer season. So I went to Athens in late August. I arrived in Greece, and as soon as I landed, I was told there was an issue with the apartment I was supposed to be staying at. So it meant spending a few days at the model apartment, which I didn’t mind as it gave me a chance to meet the other girls and make some friends. I arrived, and the apartment housed 4 of us girls, all part of the same agency. There were two rooms, a twin room and another room with a bunk bed and a single bed. All on a shared room basis. There was one bathroom and a living room, which was communal. It would do the job for a few days until my apartment was ready. The girls I shared with were so sweet, and I had made great friends with them. Everyone was in the same boat as me, in Greece to chase a dream of theirs.
The next day, we all walked over to the agency together to meet the agents and to collect our model cards. We had a day off before it got hectic, which meant we all made our way to the beach. Literally the best Monday ever, sat on a sun bed with a Greek salad and slushie, watching the waves and chilling in the sun. It definitely set an expectation for the trip, which was soon met with chaos lol.
Work begins:
After a fun day of settling in, the work began. The castings came flooding in; some days I’d have up to 5 and others 2. Athens is huge! And without a car, it takes a very long time to get from A to B. I did debate hiring a car, but then took a good look at how narrow the roads were, and I didn’t really feel like ruining someone’s day, so I stayed well off the roads (jokes I can drive). Within my first few days of arriving, I had booked my first job for a brand. It was a super fun day, and I had booked the job with a beautiful girl, whom I had met at a casting a few days before. We were shooting the A/W collection for a brand called Project Soma.
My new home
So, finally, after a long and exhausting few days, I felt genuinely happy to settle. To unpack my things, stop living out of a suitcase, and ease into some kind of routine while adjusting to life in Athens. As I’m unpacking, what do I see? A tiny little bug on the throw. My immediate thought was Oh lord, is that a bed bug? But then I thought no, it can’t be, it must just be a random bug, so I flicked it onto the floor and carried on. My new Airbnb was honestly perfect. I had the whole place to myself, in a safe but buzzing area full of cool cafés and restaurants, with the cutest neighbours. I even had a huge balcony that caught the morning sun. It was exactly what I needed. Plus, I’m a sucker for new pots and pans. The sofa, bedding, literally everything was brand new, so I didn’t get the ick sitting on it with bare legs. (The girls that get it, get it.)
Days went by, and I was running around casting after casting, booking jobs, and overall feeling so ready to create new habits and a temporary home.
Oh, it gets better… welcome bug family
Side note, my friends always tell me that I look like a bug, especially when I’m wearing sunglasses. It’s the small head…but hey, that small head gets me booked on album covers, so I’ll take it. Thanks, Mum and Dad.
I noticed I had been covered in massive bites, but I assumed they were mosquito bites. As I’m stripping the bedding for my mum’s arrival, I see that same bug that I flicked onto the floor scurrying towards the headboard inside my sheets!
At this point, with the help of Google, I knew it was bed bugs. So I messaged the host and told him. I was gaslighting myself into thinking it was just one, and maybe it was a stray. I trapped it in a baby pacifier container. Following the steps on ChatGPT. Washed the bedding on high heat and went to sleep. I was told the exterminator was coming the next morning, so I was terrified to sleep, but I had checked the bed, and it seemed clear. The next morning, I woke up early feeling itchy, but I couldn’t tell if it was just in my head. I go to make the bed and boom, right where I was sleeping, another little bugger scurrying along.
Boy, am I being tested…
I added it to my collection of bugs. Then the exterminator arrived. He flipped everything over, dismantled all the furniture, and only to tell me there were no signs of bed bugs. I showed him my collection, and he said it must be an early stage of infestation, meaning I needed to vacate the property immediately. I had a job booked the next day with early call times. STRESS. Thankfully, the Airbnb owner let me stay at one of his other properties. My mum was also landing that night and was meant to stay with me. I was told to pack everything straight away and put all my clothes into bin bags for washing. Then I was told to wait downstairs for a worker to help me move my stuff, because I was not about to go for round 2. So there I am, standing on the road with 20 bin bags.
Cherry on top, my agent calls asking for an immediate self-tape of me running for an activewear campaign. They needed to see my facial expressions in motion. My inner hustler had me lining my bin bags up in the middle of the road, since you couldn’t run on the pavements, and I just started filming. The worker then arrived and insisted I jump on the back of his motorbike to the new place. He started loading all my bags onto the bike. My phone was on 1% and I just stood there laughing, speechless, and thinking WTF. For context, this was the same worker who’d throw things up to my balcony and yell ‘Hello’ instead of knocking. Funny guy.
I stayed in the new apartment for 2 nights while mine was exterminated and deep cleaned, waking up at 5 am daily to do laundry before work. Proof that if you really want something, you push through. Oh, and I booked the campaign in the end. Wooohoo. It’s all in the Model Mindset.
The trip gets smoother…so she says
I had a Sunday off, and I felt like an ‘Asha day’, my version of self-care days, was calling. I wanted to do something a little out of my comfort zone and slightly challenging, so I booked a last-minute boat trip to visit three nearby islands. I’m talking 10 hours with a bunch of strangers, completely alone, spending the entire day exploring solo. The idea sounded fun, but still a little scary. When I tell you, I had the best day ever. It was easily a highlight of my trip to Greece. One thing about me, I love sailing and cruising the ocean, especially in rocky, rough water. It’s my inner adrenaline junky coming out. I arrived at the harbour and somehow got the best seat, feet dangling off the side. The sea was so rough that you could barely stand. People kept asking why I was alone, and my answer was always ‘Why not?’. We visited Agistri, Aegina, and jumped off the boat near Moni. So much fun, even if getting back up the ladder was a struggle, haha. I read in the sun, explored, sipped wine, and felt exactly how I needed to feel.
Living the life
Everything had settled down, and I was getting into a great habit again of making yummy breakfasts, doing my morning rituals outside (if you’re new here, click here to learn about a morning ritual that will change your life), yoga in the mornings, and taking 1:1 Model Mindset calls with my gorgeous girls.
My mum came out, we explored the Riviera, then my best friend Jade came, and we had so much fun messing around at the beach on inflatables, cheesecake nights, and cute dinners. Finally, my boyfriend came to visit, which was the best! We played paddle; I won, of course, he won’t ever admit that, but we’ll just go with it. Tried water skiing and explored more of the city.
We go again…
Then bam, of course. It’s 12:30 am, I’m rolling over to put my book down and switch off the light, when all of a sudden everything in my room starts shaking. My bed felt like it was on jelly. And I could hear people nearby shouting and awake (I lived in a very quiet, family-oriented area). So I jumped out of bed, panicking, thinking it was an explosion, until my brain woke up and told me it was an earthquake. I called my mum panicking, and she confirmed there was one. Everyone was on their balconies with windows open, on phone calls, listening to news channels. It didn’t last very long, but you could definitely feel it. Now, as someone who lives tucked up in the Midlands, UK, I have no idea what an earthquake feels like or what to do. My brain said to jump off the balcony, good job I didn’t do that lol. That shook me, but all was well.
I grew a grey hair
This trip really challenged my life outside of work; it taught me even more resilience. Especially dealing with this on my own, in a foreign country where I am not able to speak the language. Thank god for Google Translate. Having family and friends visit, as well as spending time with new friends, really made me realise, you have to leave the nest one day. You have to leave things that are familiar because, somehow, if they are meant for you, they will follow you and support you no matter what. Every time I get called away for work, I worry if things will change at home or if friends and family will be okay. So anytime someone left, I definitely got a little homesick. But I reminded myself how lucky I am to be able to live in Athens for a season. I used to dream of these days, and now it’s my reality. To experience all of these crazy things, including the stressful stuff. I know now what to do in those situations. I grew a grey hair with how wise I got. But it was worth it, and I wouldn’t change how things played out.
Reflections, lessons and takeaways
This month away in Greece taught me resilience, it taught me my power and courage beyond what I even knew I had or was capable of, and it reminded me of how grateful I am to live this life, no matter how challenging it can be at times. Also, for all of the wonderful people I have around me and those I get to meet along the way. But most of all, it taught me not to give up. I could have cracked and gone home when I had my meltdown 4 days in. I could have given in to all the stress and tiredness, feeling like it’s never-ending. But instead, I pulled through. I embraced the chaos and actually learnt to love and enjoy the unpredictability of life. Because at the end of the day, everything is temporary. Things work out, so you pull through and work on them. Work itself was so amazing, and it was a successful trip. I did a campaign for Cosmos, worked with BSB, and some really incredible designers. Yet this trip taught me something much deeper.
If you find yourself in a challenging situation, just remind yourself of why you boarded that plane in the first place. There’s a dreamer inside of you; if you don’t work much, you’ll gain a hell of a lot of life experience, and that goes a long way. Count your blessings and listen to the lessons. This is what having the Model Mindset is all about.
I hope you liked this blog. Let me know what you think in the comments below.
Love,
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