By Canaan Sellers
This trip has been the most important experience I have had in a long time. I originally did not want to go on the trip. I convinced myself it was because of financial reasons, but deep down I was just too comfortable living in Indianapolis and didn’t want the challenges that come with such a big trip. So far, I can confidently say the trip has been more than worth it. I have never been able to fully submerge myself into another culture, but I feel like I have been able to here despite how fast the days go by. We have the luxury of hearing many perspectives on social and cultural topics from different people because all the interviews we have been working on here. I think that’s something special about this experience that people don’t normally get on a regular vacation. It isn’t just visiting another country, but examining and researching specific topics within the culture, and I find that part deeply gratifying.
Something I noticed a week into the trip is that I hadn’t put on my headphones once while going out. Day-to-day life didn’t make me want to listen to music or a podcast. I looked forward to hearing the ocean, greeting the same cats that hung out in their usual spots along our route to class, and getting a pastry from a pastry cart down the street from our workspace. I realize I need to take time to appreciate nature and life outside of just work.
Along with this, the project I am working on for the class has been a blast. I absolutely love that I get to work on a project focused on an extremely relevant social issue. The project that was assigned to me and a few of my peers is the Reclaim the Beach movement here in Paros. Business men and women are crowding the beaches with umbrellas and sunbeds and charging crazy rates for it, despite the beaches legally being a public space. The people of Paros are taking this issue into their own hands and peacefully protesting, especially because the authorities aren’t doing anything to enforce the lease agreements. Being so involved with a project like this has been extremely rewarding and exciting for me. I hope I can work on similar stories, in a similar way, in the future.
