Today, we leave one of the most beautiful places I have had the pleasure of traveling to. The last few days I have been mentally preparing for this final day, trying to make every single moment count. However, as I have learned, it is impossible to make the time stop, or even slow down. I knew this trip would go fast, and I was right. On the bus to the Larnaca Airport, as well as the countless hours on the plane, I had a lot of time to reflect.
On the first day in Cyprus, just hours after we landed, I recalled getting slightly emotional at dinner because I was homesick and felt like I had no control in the completely new country. To make matters worse, I was under the impression my data plan covered texts and calls (which it did not), so after failed calls and texts to my parents I was scared I would not be able to contact anyone for two weeks, which as a very isolating feeling. (However, when we got to the hotel I realized everything worked on wifi, don’t worry!)
12 days later, leaving these same streets that seemed daunting at first, I could only think of the amazing memories I had made. From rushing to the cafe we ate breakfast at about 5 minutes before we were due to leave because a few too many alarms were snoozed, to dancing on our way back from dinner out of pure love for the city. Even though we were there for less than 2 weeks, we did so much that it feels like we were there for much longer.
As for traveling back home, the 4-hour flight to Germany felt like an eternity. But, the fact that I slept for a good half of the 8-hour flight to Newark made up for that. I was lucky to be in a large group going to Newark, which made the long travel day a little less boring. Saying goodbye to everyone was sad, but the fact that we will all see each other in a few short months lessened the blow by a considerable amount.
On the drive out of Newark, I saw an MSC container on a truck going in the opposite direction to the shipping port next to the airport. I got way too excited about seeing a shipping container, telling my dad how we had just visited their offices in Cyprus. This just goes to show how wide of a reach these companies that we visited have, and how lucky we were to have the opportunity to meet with them.
More than anything I am grateful to have had this indescribable experience. If you are reading this and have the opportunity to go to Cyprus through the Plus3 program, I would HIGHLY recommend it.