A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for
I write this as I take my first flight on a 787—this puppy is huge! Although this isn’t my first transatlantic flight, it’s still a little unnerving to look at the map on the screen in front of me and see that we’re in the middle of the Atlantic. Luckily, Nick, Soren, and I were able to work it out with the people around us so that we could all sit in the same row. Nick tested out his language skills on the flight by watching The Revenant completely in Italian.
I got like 1% of it” -Nick
It was an early morning this morning! My iPhone’s alarm gives evidence of that. Rome is +9 hours from the west coast and +6 hours from the east coast. Total travel time for me today will be 17 hours.
Lots of emails, meetings, news articles, and a couple of sleepless nights together (literally 2) have brought us on our way to Rome now. We’re trying to learn more about the European Migration Crisis and produce a short-format documentary about the children who are affected—what are their stories? We’re going to meet with Frontex agents, Syrian students in Germany, Greek locals, Swedish church leaders, and Italian volunteers in Lampedusa, among others, to better understand what needs these refugee children have and how we, as college students, can address them.
S o our current itinerary is to spend 2 weeks in Italy, a week in Greece, 2 weeks in Germany, 10 days in Sweden, and a final week in Washington DC. We’ve only got our travel for the next week and a half booked though, so we’re hoping we can benefit from some spontaneous meetings and explore a little of Europe while we’re at it.
Part 1: Migration
The first half of our trip takes place in countries touching the Mediterranean: Italy and Greece. These two countries have received over 89% of the fleeing refugees. We hope to learn about border control here during the months migration substantially increases.
Part 2: Resettlement
The second half of our journey deals with the two countries who are resettling the most refugees: Germany and Sweden. There, governments and local communities have welcomed hundreds of thousands of families fleeing their homeland.
I agonized over bringing my slipper socks on the trip specifically for the flight and did not regret it. The flight was pretty comfortable actually and I swear we received drink service like 7 times. I have a pretty boring palette, so I’m actually a little nervous to try some new foods, but I want to.
It’s such an exciting time right now because we don’t know exactly what to expect next. Sure, we’ve read a lot about and watched some documentaries about this issue, but when it comes down to it, we’re just three American students who want to shed a Christian light on a difficult issue.
I hope this blog can be a place for family and friends to follow our travels and that I can jot down my thoughts as I see the world. Thanks for taking the journey with me. I want to end with Pope Francis’ words, which have been particularly influential during our preparation:
For those suffering the tragedy of violence and forced migration, we must be resolute in making their plight known to the world community, so that as they lack the strength or ability to cry out, their voice may be heard in our own.