Bad Romance - Eventually Breaking Up With Greece

It seems really unfair when you realize that you’re going to eventually leave a place that you have fallen in love with. Since the beginning of this trip, the idea of leaving has kind of been tickling the back of my head, and as our time left in Greece continues to shorten, it becomes more and more uncomfortable.

Today was plagued with the realization that we are in fact going to leave. The past several days in Rhodes have brought with them a feeling of integration and acceptance into the Greek culture, which subsequently urges me not to leave (the Kodak Man, as we called him, made this very clear today). I just can’t get over the fact that it has been three weeks; a weird fragmentation of my sense of time has ensued, making some experiences from a couple weeks ago feel like they happened yesterday, and yesterday feel as if it happened months ago. This drawn-out string of time makes it even harder for me to say goodbye, as I feel like I’m leaving a place  that has been my home for years.

One might even be able to label my experience here as a “bad romance” (check out the heart-shaped cove to the right). Let me first begin by clarifying that this does not mean the last three weeks have been bad; rather, this experience has been the most identity-shaping and most memorable on record. Said differently, the eventual “badness” of a romance is dependent on its initial state, just as breakups are always harder when one remembers how intensely love-ridden they once were. A similar idea is applicable in my situation. A “bad romance” is generally only considered as such after the romance is ended. Thus, as we are nearing the end of our stay, I can half-jokingly call it a “bad romance” because I’m having to leave something so good behind. 

Talk about a forceful breakup; we even know the day that it’s going to happen.  

But the point here is that I can’t let it get me down, because doing so means jeopardizing the last few (and possibly most memorable) days of my trip. This blog post is going to act as my own little therapy session; its just not fair. A good romance is inevitably going to turn sour (because we have to leave), however I will always be able to reflect on it positively. Tell Lady Gaga that for the time being, or at least until Wednesday, my romance is looking pretty good.