Hakuna Matata: A tip for future travel students

The phrase above has been my guiding light throughout this trip. And, oh, what a trip it has been so far. First off, if you do not know this popular phrase, you definitely did not get the great chance to watch one of the greatest Disney movies of the 90's, maybe even of all time, Lion King. A phrase that was formulated using the Swahili language and translates to "no worries". For me, this is the first thing that comes to mind.

                Yes things won’t go your way, the people on the trip might be of a crowd you may not like, your expectations might not be what actually happens on any given day. It is at this point you take a step back and just say to yourself, Hakuna Matata, “no worries”. This might sound corny but this one phrase, this way of being has taken a stressful, emotionally draining but altogether fulfilling time in Crete as some of the best days  I’ve had.

                I find myself currently in a conflict of sorts. In less than 24 hours I will be leaving this island, leaving Tasula, Euyenia (it took me three weeks to figure its pronounce Ev-yen-e-ah, it will most likely take me a lifetime to spell it), both Cleos, Lia, and Eva. I will be leaving Mr. Kapsomenos. I will be leaving this

TA-SUUUU-LAAAA

The Man,the Myth the Kapso

family of friends I have made on this trip. Even though I knew them before I will never know many of my classmates as well as I know this bunch now. And like a family I love them all the same. Whether it was Ben who surprised me every day with his quiet outbursts of comedy that I find so funny, or Nick who quietly, literally as quiet as can be, became someone I believe I can call a friend. There was even the dastardly duo of Tamara, pronounced like camera, and little princess Marissa being so wild, crazy and fun. Then there was the prom couple Cody and Amelia, who honestly without their comedic performances I don’t think my time here would have been quite as memorable. Diane thanks for teaching me guitar. Alan thank you for my understanding of PERCEPTION, but really thank you for lending me your ears when I got a little frustrated. Kelsey our T.A made it even more enjoyable going to the restaurant and being able to mingle with the locals over a refreshing frappe. Or even Nate and his constant search for a cup of coffee. Buck the crazy adventure man good luck and safe travels in Brazil. DW and DA the best tandem of names. I could go on forever with stuff like Adrianna’s dinner table stories of her brother which were hilarious I must say, but to make this as short and sweet as I can I won’t.

I have loved this trip because the positives always outweighed the negative just because I always felt like there were no worries.  That is my only advice to future students, there will always be bumps in the road but even greater there is always that light at the end of the tunnel. What you take away from trips like these should be the positive moments, the great moments. Thank you to the island of Crete, the residents of Alikianos who may or may not have been able to hear us far into the night writing papers having singing circles or what have you, thank you to the superwomen of this trip who fed us full, who cleaned as clean as possible and loved us as wholly as they could. Thank you to Kapsomenos, you magician you, for always being so happy and making us feel welcome. Thank you to Theo for driving us around and making our group part of his blogpost. Finally, special thanks go to the Vamvakas family for this amazing program and their commitment to making this the safest, most productive and fun experience of a lifetime.