Anticipation

Today is May 5th. To some, this is Cinco De Mayo and there is a huge celebration. For me, there is a celebration, but for another reason. Today is the day that I leave for the country of Chile. This trip is going to have so many firsts for me! This is the first time I have ever studied abroad and this is the first time that I have traveled to the continent of South America. As an 18 year old college student of the United States, I hope to be treated as, and act as, an 18 year old Chilean college student. I do not want any special treatment and would like to live the next few weeks as any standard Chilean university student would. To be fully involved in something means a lot to me and this is the way that I would learn the most about a completely different culture than ours. Speaking of different cultures, something that is different down south is that they are very personal and get close to others while talking and even in their greetings. Even though at some points I can be an awkward person, I hope this will help me grow as an individual and make me feel more comfortable in group and even one-on-one settings. Another thing I find interesting is that there is no time difference. If I sleep on the entire plane flight I should wake up feeling completely refreshed and ready to start the day. This is something that I have never done before in traveling due to the jet-lag. Something that I am going to miss is my family and my friends, but meeting new people for a couple of weeks should be a nice change of pace. So far, all of my fellow plus3 members seem to be very nice and I have connected with a few of them. All in all, I am very excited for this trip and can't wait to study abroad in the South America country of Chile!

Here is the first picture! It is me at the airport checking my computer.