Ready for Take Off

In less than 24 I'll be boarding my flight to Philadelphia which will then lead me overseas for four months. Shouldn't I be freaking out about now?! Oh wait, I kind of am! AAAHHHHHH!!!!

Thankfully I have finished packing, so that's one thing less to worry about. Let me tell you that packing for four months was very, very difficult and the start this adventure. At first I began by throwing every article of clothing I owned in the "going" pile. When I realized this wasn't going to work, my friend Jessica came over and forced me take out about 75% of the things I thought were essential ("No, Angie you really don't need 20 pairs of shoes and 28 dresses!"). Finally, after going back and forth about what to leave and take, I actually put everything in my suitcase and miraculously it all fit! And just so you know how difficult it was to narrow down, let me show how my room/suitcases started out :

But in the end, I managed to make it work:

So with that done, it's been a matter of preparing myself mentally to leave tomorrow. Even though I'm leaving in about 12 hours, it still hasn't really hit yet. The packing was a wake up call, but it still doesn't feel real. I will be honest though and say I have had butterflies (or possibly Hungarian Horntail dragons) flying around my stomach. I can't decide whether they're from nerves or excitement, but I'm hoping it's the latter. My Italian skills are still seriously lacking, so that's causing some anxiety. Hopefully, once I'm there it will pick up. I know that the language is only of the challenges I'm about to face in the coming months, but I am looking forward to it all. I am not expecting to come back a whole new person, but I do hope to experience everything I possibly can. My mission is go everywhere and try everything I can, in hopes that I will learn something out of it and be able to bring it back with me. I know it won't be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.

So here I go, head first, into my adventure abroad! Ciao! 

Two Weeks Notice

So here we are two weeks out from departure date. This first post makes everything seem more real. I am actually going to have to pack my things up in two suitcases. I am actually boarding a plane in two weeks. I am actually going across the Atlantic. I am actually going to live in a country where I don't know the language or anyone. I really must be crazy. If this hadn't been done before, it might have made for a good book or movie deal. Too bad Diane Lane's character in Under the Tuscan Sun beat me to it.

But since it has been done before, and millions of times at that, I will survive. I will somehow manage to squeeze the essential 20 pairs of shoes I need along with my entire closet into two suitcases. I will board a plane and land safely in Florence. I will begin a new adventure abroad.

Up until this week I had been pretty calm about everything. I wasn't worried about anything in particular.  Then suddenly it hit me like a ton of bricks-- everything to do before I leave! Priority number one now became how will I fit everything in my suitcase (refer to 20 essential pairs of shoes above)? I've travelled internationally before, before never longer than a month. Now I'll be away for five months during which I be attending school, working as an intern, and traveling around Europe on long weekends. That's too much clothes to even consider. This dilemma is sure to cause me more stress in the next couple of weeks once I actually start putting things in a suitcase, instead of just thinking about things to put in a suitcase.

So next on list of things to do before I leave? Cram the Italian language into my brain in the next two weeks. Still working on that one... anyone know any short cuts for this?

As for everything else I need to, it's all little (but important stuff) like exchange currency, make copies of important documents, research places to visit, and other miscellaneous things that are taking up about 8 pages of notebook paper. It will all get done in time, right?

One of the things that really needed to get done before I left was my Italian visa. Thankfully that came in just before Christmas, so that was a nice early gift! I also received my Italian cell phone number yesterday which was exciting. However, I am still waiting to hear where I will be living and with whom. Hopefully that piece of information will arrive shortly.

For now I will sit here and patiently (or not so patiently) wait until the 24th arrives and I board my plane.  I'm going to miss everyone so much, but am very excited about the opportunities that await. I'd love to hear from everyone while I am away, so facebook me, email me, skype me, or snail mail me with any and all updates you may have! Also if you would like to receive a post card, I'd love to send you one! Leave a comment with you address or message me via facebook.

Until next time, arrivederci!