THE DAY IS FINALLY HERE---OFF TO BOTSWANA!!

I had two months to plan for this day, this moment. Everything in the last month, from packing my room, trips to the registrar, trips to financial aid, trips to the stores, packing my room to a number of boxes, making a folder for the Botswana documents, printing the documents- everything was leading to THIS moment. Except it is not as glamorous as I thought it would be; nothing prepares you for the emotions- nothing makes saying bye to your loved ones, knowing you won’t see them for almost half a year, easy AND I am stuck in Dallas, Texas for the next 6 hours! I am grateful for internet because there would be nothing to do because I do not feel like reading. My next flight, my flight to London, leaves at 4:50 pm. In London, if I am fortunate enough, I should be able to meet a couple of the other students on the program. I have already made friends with a girl from Ghana. Her name is Phyllis and she goes to Grinnell. I am excited to meet her in person. My flight was smooth but I regretted checking in two bags because I had to pay $50 for the second one. I usually fly Delta and I have memorized their luggage requirements so I just assumed American Airlines also has the same requirements for their international flights- a terrible blunder.

I was talking with friends over my 10-day Christmas break and I was talking about how I anticipate things to be like in Botswana. After the conversation, one thing was clear; I will be forced to appreciate how (relatively) easy it is to live here. For instance, doing laundry in a bowl (or sink- which would make it so much better) will be a challenge at first because I suppose it will take forever for me to wash a load of clothes. The other thing I am hoping goes well is safety. I realize that we can’t take a map of the world and point to a place that is safe but at the same time, after leaving in the relatively safe Singapore and living in Colorado, I am a bit worried about being careless and trusting too much. I used to be good at taking care of myself and my things when I lived in Swaziland but having lived abroad for 5 years, I am a little shaky in that department. I am bring a lock with me for my closet over in Botswana so that should help, right?

Next time I post something, I will be reporting from Botswana. Yay!