June 2016

Hello! Did you come from my Athens blog? If so, hi again. If you didn’t, you should check it out! This is a continuation of my study abroad trip.

Day 1:

We were on our way to the cruise ship to go to Lesbos and we stopped by to see the Temple of Zeus for $4 euros.

This was my first time on a cruise ship and it was awesome!! I was surprised that the cruise ship had an escalator, trucks, cars, etc. on it too! It was better than I expected! #suitelifeondeck

Day 2:

We arrived to Hotel Votsala, settled in, walked around the town, swam, etc. The hospitality here was incredible. The beach was literally a 2 minute walk from our place.

The hotel lobby. So cute. They even had a mini library too.

This looked like a classroom/meeting. It was behind in our backyard/patio of our rooms. Super cute!

Lunch time outside with the beach nearby, how amazing!

The water wasn’t that deep. There was a diving board and boats to use. I got stung by a sea urchin here LOL. It was painful. My professor took a look at my foot and Renee helped me pick it out with a tweezer. Definitely get water shoes!

Literally.

We took a walk that evening and I saw this. How fitting 😛

Day 3:

 We went to Light House Refugee Relief Lesvos. This is an organization that support refugees that sails in from Turkey. I am not sure if I can share my photos, but let me tell you, I commend the volunteers for helping out the refugees.

In the photo below, Turkey is about 6-10 miles away. I couldn’t believe that we were that close to Turkey. The refugee arrives on dinghies. The volunteer told us that there are about 18-30 refugees that squeeze themselves on the dinghies and sail over; not all make it. The volunteers hear stories from the refugees told them there are smugglers in Turkey that sells the refugees fake dinghies, life jackets, and tell them they’ll make it over…but sadly they don’t 😦

Once the refugee finally arrive after being in the super cold water, they are welcomed by the volunteers with donated clothes and space for comfort. Then, they continue their tough journey.

Day 4:

We went to Pikpa Solidarity Camp. I would love to share photos and stories but out of respect, I am following their policy. To sum it up, at the camp, there are shelter, food, art, healthcare, activities, and love to help the refugees live peacefully after their traumatic experience. This was the most heartfelt and life changing experience I’ve ever had. The stories from the refugees reminded me to not take life for granted. Life is too precious. I just want to say thank you to Pikpa Solidarity Camp for the work that they do.

Day 5:

It was our last day in Lesbos, Greece. We had breakfast by the Agean Sea (this is at our hotel – so pretty), packed up, then sailed back to Athens, to go to Munich, Germany.

Thank you again to my professors for giving us this exposure to learn about the refugee crisis. The experience was like no other and can never compare, because no one should ever go through what the refugees have gone through. I am truly grateful and humbled for this experience. #vivianventures

As always, thank you for visiting Vivian’s Ventures. Have you been to Lesbos? If so, tell me in the comments/reply section of  your experience. What should I do there if I go back? If you haven’t been, tell me what you are planning to do there. Any questions or comments, let me know. Let’s chat!