In this talk, I will discuss a series of works on Gromov's p-widths, $\{\omega_p\}$, on surfaces. For ambient dimensions larger than $2$, $\omega_p$ morally realizes the area of an embedded minimal surface of index p. This characterization was historically used to prove the existence of infinitely minimal hypersurfaces in closed Riemannian manifolds. In ambient dimension $2$, $\omega_p$ realizes the length of a union of (potentially immersed) geodesics, and heuristically, $p$ is equal to the sum of the indices of the geodesics plus the number of points of self-intersection. Joint with Lorenzo Sarnataro and Douglas Stryker, we prove upper bounds on the index and vertices, making progress towards this heuristic. Along the way, we prove a generic regularity statement for immersed geodesics. If time allows, we will also discuss the isospectral problem for the p-widths and how surfaces provide a convenient setting to investigate this.