Reflections on Week 2

 Early Saturday morning, we departed for the Samaria Gorge which is arguably the most challenging excursion within this program. Setting off with a quick pace and lots of jokes, we enjoyed the cooler weather which was a Godsent especially after the three day heat wave in Chania that kept us in the classroom. Time flew by and before I knew it we were already at the exit about to enjoy some orange juice and ice cream. My favorite part of the trip was seeing the pink oleanders in full bloom crossing the bridges and near the river at the end. After our break, about half of us waited for the bus to the beach and the other half left for the Ottoman Ruins. The second optional hike is a more demanding and vertical trail however, it is also a very rewarding exercise as well. Looking up to the top where the Greek flag is stationed, it looks near impossible (and pretty much feels that way the entire trek up) but as you exit the gate on the other side and look back up to ruins you just stood in, you feel a sense of pride and self-confidence having just done something physically and mentally really difficult. In the U.S. those opportunities feel few and far between unless you purposefully seek them out. 

Early into the hike

Aforementioned pink oleanders

This year, at the top, I noticed graffiti etched into the corner back of the inside structure. It is unfortunate to see a piece of history deliberately vandalized but, it is also in its own way beautiful too. It’s cool to think of all those that have traveled up before us and those that will after. Its ironic that those expressions and names on the ruins stem from a desire to not be forgotten and to leave (literally) a mark of where you’ve been yet, one day that structure will inevitably collapse and just become a memory in history itself. 

Lilli, Thalia, and I at the Ottoman Ruins

On Sunday, we had a lazy morning resting before our trip to Malta in the afternoon. Our tour of Valetta on the second day demonstrated what an amalgamation of culture Malta is through the architecture, people, and different languages as a lingua-franca. In the Lower Barrakka Gardens there is a sculpture of Enea (Aeneas) pointing to both the left and right on a bended knee symbolizing Malta as the bridge between Europe and Africa. I remember discussing countries like Malta or Cyprus in some random building of admin at Emmanuel as mere names -  Places that felt about as proximate to me as the moon. However, traveling here unlocks an ability to conceptualize the theories and policies that dominate our political science discussions. It also gives you greater perspective on how unrealistic the solutions proposed by our Western mindset are in the wider world. As political scientists, we know perspective is everything so being able to have preconceived notions and assumed comfortabilities challenged is priceless.