Pre Departure

Studying abroad in Europe sets the precedent for me to tell myriad stories in my life beginning with, "Oh, well that one time," however the unifying theme that surfaces when all these thoughts run through my head is chance and adventure. 

I am fortunate to be spending my sixth semester of college in Sevilla, Spain, an Andalusian city rich in culture and history.
I have told myself and most of the people around me literally for the past 10 days that I think it's entirely normal to be anxious and nervous about this. Right? The responses I've gotten are as follows:

• What's there to be nervous about?
• Nerves will just turn into excitement.
• You are being so inappropriate. You're not allowed to leave. 
• Is there anything special you want for dinner?

Either I have great friends and family or no one thinks nerves are relevant. Which they probably aren't. It's more important for me to focus on confidence and stamina, things I will pretend to possess in these few days I have left in the U.S. 

I'll miss a lot of luxuries and trivial things while I am gone. What comes to mind is:

• Being in similar time zones as family and friends. 
• Walking down the stairs to a friend's apartment.
• Netflix. I just really love Leslie Knope and got into Downton Abbey a few weeks ago.
• Wisconsin microbrews. 
• That one day in Madison when it's actually spring; everything is green and Bascom is the most scenic. 
• So much more. 

Most of these things I can, and will live without. What I'll miss most are things that aren't actually things - like the feeling of ease and stability. I am elated to be leaving the country for a while, however. So much work has led up to this semester. It's about time I take all the Spanish and history I have crammed into my head and put some value on it.

This semester I promise to do my best, perfect my Spanish and not think twice. Here's what I'm looking forward to at this very moment: 

• Eating oranges right off the tree. 
• Reading books along the Guadalquivir River. 
• Wearing out my shoes on cobblestone. 
• Speaking Spanish like a fool. 
• Meeting up with friends far and near (except probably not Helsinki, sorry Elliott.)
• Settling down and relaxing.

 

With this generic initial blog post I hope you will vicariously join me for the next few months as I document what I see, who I talk to, what I ate (I'm a Jew, I just can't help it) and the places I discover along the way. You're sure to learn something new, smile and maybe even laugh at some of the inevitably silly situations I get myself into.  

And so it goes, hasta pronto y ojalá que te gozes este blog.