Building Relationships - by Eugenie

"Part of growing up is realizing you learn to love so many people.  It's about forming those relationships and finding what will last forever." - Dylan O'Brien

Truthfully, I absoutely loved Florida.  Every second of it.  The parks were awesome, the food was great, and the weather was magnificent.  There were moments when I was a little exhausted and overwhelmed, but I knew that every single one of us felt that way at one point or another.  I didn't expect anything less that that; we were marathon 5000 km away from home, walking for most the the day, whilst constantly being surrounded by a sea of people.

Throughout the trip I was always reminding myself of the main reason why I decided to go in the first place.  Yes, I love science and travelling, but I chose to go on this trip because I had a mission.  And that mission was to build relationships.  I wanted to meet new people and have genuine conservations with people I've never really talk to before.

Luckily, I got to do exactly that.  I went into those trip knowing that I had no obligation to only sticky with certain people.  I floated from group to group and I learned tons about these people that I once knew nothing about.  I ate tons of super wicked food with different people, I explored the parks with different groups, and the best part of it all was the conversations I had with these awesome human beings.

I've made some pretty rad friends o this trip and I'm so thankful that I was fortunate enough to have done on this amazing adventure alongside 26 stunning individuals!  At the end of the day I know that the chances of these friendships lasting is unknown, but one thing is for sure, the memories I have made with these wonderful people will last a lifetime!