Odysseus & the Trojan Horse - Jacquelyn Engel

There once was a city, Troy. It was a grand city built with 20 foot walls that provided  an outstanding defense and security.  It resided across the sea from Sparta and maintained cordial relationships with the other Greek city-states, but over time attitudes changed. Greece wanted to conquer Troy, but because of Troy’s high walls, it was difficult to achieve. The Greeks nearly succumbed to their plan since they could not conjure up an idea, but the Greek general, Odysseus, had a cunning idea. His idea was to give a gift to the Trojans. The gift would be a huge, hollow, wooden horse where the Greek military would hide inside of it, but this gift was a ploy to hoax the Trojans into thinking that the Greeks gave it as a symbol of defeat. The Trojans willingly accepted this gift and brought it into their city and celebrated all night. When all the Trojans fell asleep, the Greeks attacked, and this ended the Trojan War and ultimately the Trojans.

 

Once on a plane, the passenger next to me seemed like an average business man. He carried a messenger bag, wore a collared shirt, and wore glasses. Little did I know, he was commencing his journey. He was backpacking on the coast of the Mediterranean and visiting the different tribes or communities that lived there. I’m not sure what specifically he was doing since it was so long ago, but he was for sure backpacking on the Mediterranean coast. The idea immediately captivated my interest, and I wish to complete a journey like that. I believe it would be a very cool and rewarding experience. I know there are many tours that hike across Western Europe, and one day I would like to do that. But I also want to do more than that. I would love to immerse myself in a different country, community, and culture and in particular help them. I think that participating in the Peace Corps would be the ultimate experience and journey. If I was able to join the Peace Corps, I think that it would be a rough adjustment but the reward in the end triumphs it. Overall, I want to travel all over the world because the many different cultures intrigue me.