Cause I'm leavin', on a jet plane...

But I know when I'll be back again. December 21st, 2011.  That gives me roughly three and a half months to explore, learn, and hopefully grow while I study abroad.  In the grand scheme of things, this semester will be just a blink of an eye.  So I decided to keep a blog for two reasons: 1. I'll have a record of my adventures, and everyone who knows me knows I love adventures. and 2.  I'll hopefully be able to use this to keep everyone updated!  What I've learned so far?  It appears to be possible to pack for several months in one, hopefully not too heavy, suitcase.

True, I pretty regularly under-pack, but as my mother keeps saying, I think more to comfort herself than me, "Spain is not a third world country, you can find what you need."

Tomorrow, I'll be flying for about fifteen hours before finally landing in Malaga, Spain for a day of orientation where I'll meet the other people in my program.  The next day, I'll be on a bus to Granada where I'll be staying with a host family for the remainder of the semester.  Hopefully, they'll be super understanding and speak to me slowly.  I watched Shrek in espanol the other day, and let's just say it didn't go so well.  Don't worry, I've practiced my essentials: "No le entendi. Puede repetirlo por favor?" and "Lo siento, no sé."

I'm excited, but at the same time, sad, to be leaving.  I didn't anticipate how hard it would be to leave Chapel Hill, and my now possibly haunted house, housemates, and friends.  And while I'm used to being out of Ohio for most of the year, I'm already missing Akita and the people there, and my friends from Columbus. So to all of you: I'll miss you, and watch out, I'll be legal when I get back. :)

The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. -St.Augustine

Love,

Dani

PS- The picture slideshow on the sidebar will be my pictures after I take some, but for now it's flicker pictures tagged "Granada." Adios!