Upon Arrival

One semester abroad, that’s all just one semester; it seems so arbitrary when you say it like that. But once you break it down, that’s 4 months away. Now I know I was abroad for 2 months this summer and wished I could have stayed longer, but it’s easier said than done. I guess I didn’t really think about the length until the night before I left. The nervous, anxiety, and jitters all suddenly kicked in. Don’t get me wrong I’m so excited, but 4 months away is quite a long time. Never once however did I think about not going, once I set my mind to something I want to go through with it.

Once I boarded the plane I suddenly had peace of mind. I got over the sadness of leaving and looked ahead to all of the amazing experiences that are awaiting me. There was only one thing between me and India…a 14 hour plane flight. I’m not one for long flights, but it wasn’t too bad. I sat next to an older lady who was convinced that if she spoke enough Hindi to me I would understand. Because of my previous trips abroad to places where I didn’t speak the language, I’ve gotten pretty good at deciphering words with body language and movement. I expect to be doing a lot of that on this trip considering I don’t speak Hindi or Chinese.

View from our hotel

Ready for a great 4 months!

We are now in a hotel in Delhi for the night. There are 19 students total in the program, but we are still waiting on about 8 people. Tomorrow we will all tour the city, and then take a 12 hour overnight train to Udaipur. (No, I am not excited for another very long trip, but I hope there will be beds on the train) From my room I can hear all the cars, trucks, and motorcycles driving past. Everyone honks constantly, it reminds me of Haiti and Uganda where signs and lines in the road are merely there and don’t mean much. So far the food has been pretty good, but kind of spicy. That’s definitely something I’m going to have to deal with since I have a hard time handling spicy food.

I’m still trying to take in the fact that I’m here and will be here for quite a while. My body is all thrown off with the time change and since I missed a whole night of sleep. Overall, everything is going well. I have so much to look forward to and I enjoy the people that I’m here enjoying this experience with. This is something the 19 of us will remember for the rest of our lives.

Until Next Time,
*Nicole