Kate Ryan

Hi! My name is Kate, and I just finished my junior year at Furman. I'm from Birmingham, AL, and I'm studying biochemistry. In my free time I love to read, spend time outside, and go on adventures with my friends. I am so excited to get to travel across Greece with this awesome group! I was immediately drawn to the program because of its title, Know Thyself. I have always believed that knowing yourself deeply is the key to leading a fulfilling life and having meaningful relationships with the people around you, and I am super excited by this opportunity to get to know myself and the culture of Greece on an authentic level. I am looking forward to experiencing the country in multiple different locations, and I'm excited to be able to appreciate the rich history of the nation along with aspects of modern life in Greece. Some highlights on the itinerary I'm specifically excited for include going to the Parthenon, spending some time on the beautiful beaches of Athens and Crete, and exploring the monasteries in the northern part of the country.

    For one of our first activities as a class, we have been assigned to fill a cup with a few small items that represent who we are. While it was hard to find items small enough to fit in a singular plastic cup, I eventually landed on a few that I think represent some of the most important aspects of myself. Some of these items include:

1) A disposable camera: Throughout my life, I've gone through a ton of these cameras. I have a container filled with hundreds of pictures of my family, friends, and places I've been. While I can't fit every picture in my cup, the camera itself reminds me of my loved ones and all of the good memories I've had with them over the years.

2) A fortune I got from Fuji that says "travel often to see the world": Traveling has always been important to me. The fortune itself is kind of silly, because obviously if you travel you will see the world. However, I keep it up on my bulletin board to remind myself to keep my spirit of adventure alive. It inspires me to try my best to travel both physically and mentally out of my comfort zone in order to grow.

3) My lab goggles: If you know me, you probably know that I'm always in one lab or another. I'm passionate about my chemistry research, and hope to continue doing research after I graduate in order to make the world a better place. 

I can't wait to take off for Greece in just a few days!!