Acknowledgements

As with any epic journey, I have many people to thank who have helped me navigate my own through the classical world. That list is truly endless, but below is my humble attempt:

  • Thank you to my sister who taught me, when we were kids, of the unique importance of literature, the magic of mythology and the ancient world, and who has always served as the best classics discussion partner.

  • Thank you to my parents for inspiring a lifelong interest in mythology, through early teachings of the Mahabharat and Ramayan, reminding me of the value of stories and fantasy in a world that often dismisses them.

  • Thank you to Lucas Herchenroeder for teaching me mythology and how to deconstruct, interpret, and situate classical texts; for teaching me Latin and convincing me to minor in Classics; for consistently inviting me to weekly department teas; letting me perform/rap a parody of “Down” by Jay Sean to analyze the themes of the play Antigone in front of a lecture hall of 200+ classmates (example lyric: “Antigone defies the crown, crown, crown…”); and for being both a friend and mentor when I needed it.

  • Thank you to Zoie Petrakis, who was the most inspiring classmate and friend I could have had as a young Classics student and with whom I made some of my fondest memories in college (especially bothering her endlessly at the front desk of the Classics Department); and to Beau Henson, my favorite college TA, who entirely reaffirmed for me the relevance of mythology in the modern day and who brought mythology and classical texts to life in a way that I had never before seen or imagined possible. The list of people is longer than this, but collectively thank you to the rest of my university Classics Department, including every professor I had, the graduate students and TAs I conversed with, and the departmental workers who kept things afloat.

  • Thank you to my college roommates and Anushka, who all heard about this dream from the beginning and saw my initial wildly ambitious but unsuccessful attempt to obtain university funding for this trip; Big Boyz, who always supported my wildest dreams; my DOZ friends, who encouraged me to always follow my own compass; and every one of my other friends who have supported me through the years.