Pre-Departure: T Minus Two Days!

Before I know it, I will be boarding a plane to begin my very long but rewarding excursion to Cape Town. It feels truly surreal that I will be kicking off this once in a lifetime adventure in just a few short days. My feelings about leaving are difficult to put into words, mainly because of how excited and ready I am to go. I get the anxious-but-excited butterflies every time I think about it. Any feelings of stress and nervousness I have about studying abroad are taken over by feelings of pure excitement and disbelief that I have this opportunity. Considering I have never been abroad before, let alone all the way to South Africa completely by myself, this is definitely going to be the biggest adventure of my life thus far.

These past few days have been filled with preparations for my departure. Meeting up with friends and family members to say goodbye, getting my fill of all of my favorite foods, buying things I need for the trip, and packing...sort of. Okay maybe I haven’t started packing yet, but I’m getting there!

One of the many things that attracted me to Cape Town specifically is that there’s so much to see and do! I’ve come up with a little “Bucket List” of things that I plan to do during my five months in South Africa. This includes:

• Climbing Lion’s Head to watch the sunset on the night of a full moon
• Going on a wine tasting (or two...or ten) in the Cape Winelands
• Going to Robben Island to see the prison where Nelson Mandela was held
• Riding an elephant!
• Seeing a concert at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
• Taking a weekend trip to see Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe
• Going to tea at the Mt. Nelson Hotel (pinky up!)

Hopefully I’ll look back on this five months from now and be able to check every one of those items off!

I am going to miss my friends and family so, so much while I’m abroad, but I hope that these occasional bouts of homesickness will be overwhelmed by amazing, once in a lifetime experiences. I am so excited just to finally get there after all of these months of preparation and anticipation. I’m excited to meet my housemates, see where I’ll be living, and establish a routine as a Capetonian. I have so much to learn and so much to experience in this city and I can hardly wait to get there. Only a few short days stand between me and one of the most beautiful places in the world!

See you soon, Cape Town.