Since we last met, I have attended a blogging meeting for the university, finished up my semester, and moved back home for the summer. The blog meeting was informative, mostly because afterwards we got the office linked to my blog. If you look, you can see CMU Study Abroad in my contributors to the left. If you're interested in reading blogs of other students, you can click and find many. After the blog meeting I was thinking, "If only I had a study abroad shirt, I never did get one." Imagine my luck when I wandered over to Gentle Friday (activities organized by Program Board to promote relaxation before exams) and found the study abroad table giving away shirts. I got an orange shirt, and it was a medium when I would normally get a small, but that's okay. Also, I think I promised pictures of the empanadas that my partner and I made for our Spanish class, so those are below. If you have seen empanadas before, we baked ours instead of frying them. I think they turned out pretty well.
My crafty little title here may be unfamiliar to most of you, so allow me to explain. Julia Alverez wrote a novel on the the Mirabal sister during the time of Trujillo, the fierce and terrible dictator. En el tiempo de Las Mariposas, or In the Time of the Butterflies, is the name of this history turned to a book turned to a movie. I own the book in English, even though I was scolded for not reading it in Spanish and I'll admit I only got half way through it, but I intend to finish reading before I leave. At the very end of June, my program is showing the movie and the day after we will travel to the home/museum of the Mirabal sisters. More information on the background to come later, but that much is important to understanding the title of my blog. I am currently in my own time of the butterflies. My stomach does flips every once in awhile and while I am ready, I am also so NOT ready. I have been reading blogs of other students in various countries. Some of the bloggers I know, and some I know only through their stories. I am just absorbing as much information as I can. Some people are counting down their last few days abroad and I am clinging to the days I have, even though I haven't even started. Many of my good friends are either going abroad this summer, or already there. I heard from one friend currently on his trip, and that was exciting. Having never traveled outside the US and Canada, there's is so much I don't know about international travel! The butterflies are definitely setting in, as I leave for Boston two weeks from Tuesday!
So, I've had my travel itinerary for awhile now. Seven weeks, seven airports, the time of my life. I leave the morning of May 29th from Flint to Boston, where I will spend the better part of four days with my sister and her husband. On the 2nd of June my sister and I will be taking a bus from Boston to New York City to spend the day exploring the city. The following day, I have my flight from JFK to Santiago at way-too-early-in-the-morning o'clock. ISA has pick ups from the airport every hour from 2:00 PM-9:00PM, which is a little after my arrival, but by the time I go through customs, get my tourist card, and claim my luggage, I hope to be right on time for the first bus. The first week of my stay will be orientation and introductory activities followed by five weeks of classes. During my six week stay, I will be visiting Jarabacoa, La Romana, Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo, visit Museo Hermanas Mirabal, and hike in the Bosque del Cacao. I am so grateful that these opportunities have been organized by my program so that I am able to fully experience the Dominican Republic. On July 14th, I will be flying from Santiago to Miami to Detroit. I'm sure this day will be the most bittersweet time ever, because I have great things planned for July and August, but as I said, I'm already worried about my time abroad passing too fast. I used Priceline and Expedia to book my flights because of prices and trying to get the flights I wanted. As I said in a previous post, I booked the wrong flight back. I intended to book a later flight back so that I could catch the ISA shuttle (only offered at 6 AM or 2 PM), have more time to pass through customs in Miami, and my parents would be able to pick me up from the airport. Now, I have to find my own way to the airport at 5:00 AM, only have a two hour layover, and my friend who is currently studying abroad is going to pick me up.... I'll let you know how that all goes. I just need to have faith that it will all work out. It will work out.
As I look towards this amazing experience, I realize that no matter where or when I go, I'm probably going to miss something at home. I was cautious to go abroad during the school year because I am so involved on campus with many things I don't want to miss. That being said, there are some things that I am going to miss this summer. It's going to be odd not celebrating July 4th after working for a glow novelty company for the past two years. My 21st birthday is another big thing I will be gone for, but who can complain with three birthday parties? It would have been awesome to go to Warped Tour on my birthday, but instead I get to go horseback riding or white water rafting in beautiful Jarabacoa. It's difficult not having a job this summer because no one will hire someone who is only available for a month at a time. Along that line, this is the first summer in five years that I have not been able to spend it watching my cousin, and I am going to miss that. There are times when I think, "I wish I was going to be home for that," but overall, I can't wait for this amazing experience. And for so many things, there are always going to be times in the future that I will be able to experience them.
I will be bouncing back and forth between blogs over the next two and a half weeks, so be sure to check back for posts here and there. Adios, friends!
My crafty little title here may be unfamiliar to most of you, so allow me to explain. Julia Alverez wrote a novel on the the Mirabal sister during the time of Trujillo, the fierce and terrible dictator. En el tiempo de Las Mariposas, or In the Time of the Butterflies, is the name of this history turned to a book turned to a movie. I own the book in English, even though I was scolded for not reading it in Spanish and I'll admit I only got half way through it, but I intend to finish reading before I leave. At the very end of June, my program is showing the movie and the day after we will travel to the home/museum of the Mirabal sisters. More information on the background to come later, but that much is important to understanding the title of my blog. I am currently in my own time of the butterflies. My stomach does flips every once in awhile and while I am ready, I am also so NOT ready. I have been reading blogs of other students in various countries. Some of the bloggers I know, and some I know only through their stories. I am just absorbing as much information as I can. Some people are counting down their last few days abroad and I am clinging to the days I have, even though I haven't even started. Many of my good friends are either going abroad this summer, or already there. I heard from one friend currently on his trip, and that was exciting. Having never traveled outside the US and Canada, there's is so much I don't know about international travel! The butterflies are definitely setting in, as I leave for Boston two weeks from Tuesday!
So, I've had my travel itinerary for awhile now. Seven weeks, seven airports, the time of my life. I leave the morning of May 29th from Flint to Boston, where I will spend the better part of four days with my sister and her husband. On the 2nd of June my sister and I will be taking a bus from Boston to New York City to spend the day exploring the city. The following day, I have my flight from JFK to Santiago at way-too-early-in-the-morning o'clock. ISA has pick ups from the airport every hour from 2:00 PM-9:00PM, which is a little after my arrival, but by the time I go through customs, get my tourist card, and claim my luggage, I hope to be right on time for the first bus. The first week of my stay will be orientation and introductory activities followed by five weeks of classes. During my six week stay, I will be visiting Jarabacoa, La Romana, Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo, visit Museo Hermanas Mirabal, and hike in the Bosque del Cacao. I am so grateful that these opportunities have been organized by my program so that I am able to fully experience the Dominican Republic. On July 14th, I will be flying from Santiago to Miami to Detroit. I'm sure this day will be the most bittersweet time ever, because I have great things planned for July and August, but as I said, I'm already worried about my time abroad passing too fast. I used Priceline and Expedia to book my flights because of prices and trying to get the flights I wanted. As I said in a previous post, I booked the wrong flight back. I intended to book a later flight back so that I could catch the ISA shuttle (only offered at 6 AM or 2 PM), have more time to pass through customs in Miami, and my parents would be able to pick me up from the airport. Now, I have to find my own way to the airport at 5:00 AM, only have a two hour layover, and my friend who is currently studying abroad is going to pick me up.... I'll let you know how that all goes. I just need to have faith that it will all work out. It will work out.
As I look towards this amazing experience, I realize that no matter where or when I go, I'm probably going to miss something at home. I was cautious to go abroad during the school year because I am so involved on campus with many things I don't want to miss. That being said, there are some things that I am going to miss this summer. It's going to be odd not celebrating July 4th after working for a glow novelty company for the past two years. My 21st birthday is another big thing I will be gone for, but who can complain with three birthday parties? It would have been awesome to go to Warped Tour on my birthday, but instead I get to go horseback riding or white water rafting in beautiful Jarabacoa. It's difficult not having a job this summer because no one will hire someone who is only available for a month at a time. Along that line, this is the first summer in five years that I have not been able to spend it watching my cousin, and I am going to miss that. There are times when I think, "I wish I was going to be home for that," but overall, I can't wait for this amazing experience. And for so many things, there are always going to be times in the future that I will be able to experience them.
I will be bouncing back and forth between blogs over the next two and a half weeks, so be sure to check back for posts here and there. Adios, friends!
