There are many, many reasons I am so grateful for from my study abroad experience, but one of the things I am most thankful for is being able to meet my best friend. Last spring I spent the semester in Athens, Greece at CYA (College Year in Athens). In late January I left for Greece and had a connecting flight through Frankfurt, Germany. Little did I know that it would be that flight that would introduce me to Tizi, who over the coming months I’d come to call my best friend.
Funnily enough, I was never actually supposed to be on that plane in Germany. A last minute snowstorm in Boston caused me to switch both of my flights the day before I left, and now looking back to that (very stressful) change of plans, I thank God so much for that divine intervention. Once I was at baggage claim in Athens, a group of us who realized we were all going to CYA came together and started talking amongst ourselves. It was then that Tizi and I were introduced to one another and through a stroke of luck, we were put into the same orientation group for the next couple days. We clicked instantly and became inseparable from the very first week.
Over the next four months we shared so many unforgettable memories, laughs, and adventures. We traveled around Europe and island hopped around Greece, exploring cities and villages alike. We shared many late nights, criminally early mornings, and one exceptionally awful ferry ride from hell. We laughed, cried, and enabled each other’s *questionable* shopping habits. We discovered our lives had almost unnerving similarities and talked about everything and anything.
I honestly never thought I would be lucky enough to have a friend who fully gets me and I had given up on having a true best friend after feeling let down one too many times, but then I was fortunate enough to meet Tizi. I’m beyond grateful to now have a true friend for life and I owe it to study abroad which brought us together.