Siya Joshi, Plus3 Greece, Summer 2026
We started off our day at UNIC to learn about polypeptides with Dr. Sarigiannis where he shared intriguing ways that scientists are working on healing illnesses based on the chemical compounds of various venoms and poisons. This was of extreme interest for me, so he told me about his current project. He is working on studying specific molecules that will inhibit the HER2 expression that causes breast cancer. I spoke to him after the lecture and got his contact information to have him as a research contact. After this, I got a delicious pesto linguine pasta in the same neighborhood with some of my friends. One of my favorite aspects of the trip was eating meals with fresh local produce. Afterwards, we headed to a museum guided tour, where I learnt about how Greek culture has transformed from the Archaic times to the modern day Greek Orthodox culture we see today. This transformation through Egyptian influence, Ottoman conquer, Oriental fusion, Christian influence, and the Greek revolution shows how much the culture has been molded through the people that have had the land. Seeing some of the old traditional jewelry made me realize the similarities Greek culture has to my own Indian culture. Specifically, older pieces from donations to the museum are embellished with vibrant stones and ornamental gold, similar to the jewelry worn by modern day Indian brides. This made me feel more connected to the culture, realizing the influence various cultures have on one another. After this museum, we hiked to the top of Lykavittos Hill, taking in the beautiful scenery of Athens. The most interesting part was seeing the Parthenon and Olympic stadium from up high. One of my program directors was even able to point out our apartment complex in the Omonoia burrow of Athens. Even the walk back down was lovely as Dimitri kept me engaged by pointing out the cacti forest lining the mountainside and the Agave plants framing our view of the city. After this experience, we headed back to our apartments before a period of free time that I spent with all of my friends. We made pasta and chatted on the rooftop of our apartment. Almost every day of my trip was filled with excursions that helped me connect with my peers, Greek culture, and bioengineering
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