TIME CAPSULE LETTER
Written by Beth, Evi, Maria & Louis
Hi everyone! Wow, it’s crazy how fast the last year has flown by! It feels like yesterday that we were embarking on our Greek adventure together, with so many memories yet to be made. Just to name a few, let’s recap all the best moments together, this time last summer… 💭
We explored the ancient corners of Greece’s magically historical cities by foot and bike, including the Acropolis and many temples of Athens, the Venetian harbour of Chania, the Ottoman fortifications of Heraklion and the traditional white walled villages of Santorini. We went on guided tours of the “invisible” areas unseen by the naked tourist eye, including the mythical beginnings of Crete, the altitudes of Santorini, and of course, the more deprived areas of Athens that receive voluntary support.
We also got stuck into many enjoyable activities, to immerse ourselves fully into Greek culture, including dancing, pottery and cooking classes, flea market shopping trips, games on island beaches in the beautifully blue Aegean Sea, and so much more. And how can we forget the Greek food, with all the dolmas, Greek salad, souvlaki, gyros and ice cream… our mouth waters thinking about it!
We also dedicated ourselves to supporting local services in Greece, including the Other Person soup kitchen in Athens, which supports hundreds of displaced people every day. We hope that you are continuing to dedicate your supportive talents to local communities in the US today. With your enthusiasm for GLA activities in our evenings together in Greece, and your dedication to “being the change”, perhaps some of you are preparing now for another GLA summer.
Finishing our Greece adventure with the Santorini Caldera BBQ cruise, dancing as the sun was setting, and traditional plate smashing and dressup in the hills of Athens, was the perfect way to end this unforgettable experience. It’s wonderful to look through our photo album together, with Paddington popping up in many of them…
Your lives will have transformed a lot since we last saw each other, and we hope that your experience, dedication and learning in Greece contributed to the person you are now. We also hope you hold Greece in a special place in your heart.
Good luck for the future!
With best wishes
Beth, Evi, Maria & Louis 🌟🫒 🇬🇷
Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures program!
PROGRAM PHOTO ALBUM
Here are a few things you can expect:
- We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
- Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
- Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.
Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.
Cell Phone Policy: The GLA cell phone policy is currently in place this summer to help foster meaningful connections between students. This means your student’s phone will be collected every day and returned to them after activities are completed to have with them through the night. Actual tech times and regularity will vary greatly by program location and time zones. During designated ‘tech time’, your student may use their phones as they wish. Please note that your student may not always choose to use this time to get a hold of their parents. If you are not hearing directly from your student each day, you can assume that no news is good news! We strongly recommend you follow the blog to follow your students’ experience without talking to them every day. If you are a parent and would like to get in touch with your student directly, you can call us at +1-619-758-3031 and we can set up a formal time for you to connect with your student.
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-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team
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BLOG POST FOR JULY 8
Hi it’s Jacob and Alicia!
This morning we ate a very traditional greek breakfast and immediately hit the streets. We traveled all throughout the city of Athens by bike and saw famous landmarks such as the acropolis, and explored the different mini towns of Athens. The different views were breathtaking as most were overlooking the entire city. After this amazing bike ride, we were ravenous and ate at a traditional greek restaurant and ate, spanakopita, dolma, and many famous traditional foods. They were delicious.
The second part of the day was full of long walks and taking in the views, as well as taking in the interesting information from our tour guides. They provided us with a new perspective on the acropolis and toured us around the jaw dropping, historical, works of art. We finished off our day at the hotel eating dinner, swimming, and getting to know the individuals on the trip in our mentor groups. The goal of mentor groups is to make a tighter bond with a smaller group of people. In these groups, we discuss our interests, dislikes, and dreams in efforts to help give us confidence and boost us to reaching our goals. The night was completely with the stunning rooftop view of the acropolis!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 12
Hey everyone, it’s Olivia!
In the morning we packed our bags and left the hotel in Zaros, before heading north to a nearby farm. Tired, we were greeted by Michalis and Melina, (owners of the farm) who took us on a bumpy truck journey down the rural track to the farm. We spent the morning dancing, learning how to make bread and phyllo pastry. After that we milked and fed goats, held chickens and bunnies, as well as watering pigs. Then we tasted the food we made in the stone fired oven, (which was delicious) finally we danced to traditional music with a traditional dance.
Hi guys, this is Nolan! After the farm we took a nice long bus ride to Heraklion, then took a nice long time to rest in our rooms. Then we took a tour of the village, exploring all of the old churches, and the old Venetian spots from their previous occupation, seeing the fountain of lions and so much more. After that we went shopping for a while then went out for a nice long dinner with some very interesting conversations. The last stretch of the day we went back to the hotel to reflect on the day and went to bed. All in all it was a great day.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 13
Hi I’m Anika!
To start our day, we drove to a local beach and spent a couple hours swimming and building sandcastles. The water was so clear and it felt so nice to get in. After a while, we got hungry and went to a small restaurant for a snack. I really enjoyed hanging out with friends and eating ice cream. After one more quick dip in the sea, we drove to a restaurant and had a delicious Greek lunch.
Hey guys, it’s Inara and I’m here to discuss the animal shelter in Heraklion! The animal shelter is a nonprofit organisation that brings homes to injured animals in Crete. Part of the deal, was us having the ability to choose between bringing the animals food or medicine and we chose medicine because we thought it would benefit the animals more. We unfortunately couldn’t walk the dogs due to the weather but we had plenty of fun playing with them and the kittens in the shelter!
Hey guys, this is Alvie! After some fun group games run by our mentors, we were treated to a city tour of Heraklion by our local guide! We stopped off for some gelato to rejuvenate us before heading off to the old Venetian port, fortress and dockyards. We saw a mural of Icarus and learnt about that myth. We then walked up to the flea markets, where we had an hour of free time to explore and go shopping! We concluded the evening with a delicious Cretan dinner which included a birthday celebration for one of the mentors. We finally went back to the hotel where we had our Olympic circle and reflected on the day.
BLOG POST FOR JULY 14
Hi it’s Charley and Lukas!
We are in Santorini! We took a short walk to a burger restaurant only a block away from the beach, called “Juicy Burger”. We sat at a long table and enjoyed talking with one another while having some delicious burgers, fries, salads, and onion rings. After eating, we hopped back on the bus and drove to Oia, the biggest city on the island. There, we walked around the city center and took some beautiful photos before getting free time to explore the little shops. After that, we hopped on the bus and traveled to the second city on our afternoon tour, Megalochori. There, we explored the ancient cave houses that were once used to store wine, as they maintain a constant temperature year round. Then, we traveled to our last location, Profitis Ilias, which is the highest point on the island. Finally, we went back to the hotel, changed, and had dinner there. And to finish our day, we ended with our mentor groups and other team bonding games. Overall, it was a very fun day with lots of traveling, pictures, and fun!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 15
Hi it’s Ben, Alexa and Andrew!
We woke up and went to breakfast and went to the town of Fira and went shopping for 2 hours. After Fira we went for lunch at a restaurant with a stunning view. Then we went to the Old Port of Fira to take a wooden boat to sail around the Caldera. On the boat trip we had a great time conversing with each other. After that we jumped in the water x2 then we got nutrients for fuel🍗.
Danced we did!?
Signing off!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 18
Hi everyone! Beth and María here, your International Director and Mentor, to summarise the final few days on this wonderful Greek adventure.
After our brilliant time in Crete and Santorini, and a day’s ferry back to Piraeus, we enjoyed some closing GLA activities together before our final day volunteering in Athens at The Other Person community centre and soup kitchen. We are so proud of you all for socialising with local displaced peoples, working as a team to prepare and provide them with hot food, and leaving a positive impact on your last day in Greece. We finished our adventure together with a traditional dance and dinner in a family restaurant nestled in the hills of Athens, with more beautiful views of this ancient city. A few Greek surprised were in store, with smashing plates and dressup in traditional costume!
Good luck for the future and we hope you will all take the lessons you’ve learned into your journeys beyond GLA!
Efcharisto and Yasas! ❤️
