:D !!!! so its finally here... im leaving tomorrow!12:45 out of JFK! im so so so so so so so nervous! China has kinda been off my mind for the past few days. my mom and i have been in new york, playing tourist. we had a cameo on the today show and took pictures around central park. i rode in a taxi for the first time! (so scary) and we ate brunch next to the plaza hotel! it was a lot of fun, but very bittersweet because i knew i was about to have to say goodbye to her. We took another cab ( :O ) to the hotel where my orientation took place, and hugged goodbye!

I was trying so hard not to cry in front of the other china AFS-ers, but when i closed the door to my solitary hotel room, i started bawling. The other students going abroad are great. There are three boys (jennings trey and sam) and i, and we are all going to the same city and same school! They are all hilarious, and have decided to dub me their honorary mother during our trip. :) for the past two days the four of us have been walking around Manhattan, eating chinese food, watching lame movies and dipping in and out of orientation sessions.

Its been so fun, but with the looming thought that these were our last few hours in the US! seeing the statue of liberty at sunset today was kind of a defining moment for me. We had just stepped out of an orientation about culture, and seeing the symbol of our country for some reason made me feel very patriotic!

Ok so I need to go sleep, but I will hopefully post more in a few days! miss you all.

Hey Everyone! So I'm finally off! I can't believe it is finally happening. For those of you who don't know me that well, here is a quck summary of my life. I grew up in the Pacific northwest and spent most of my childhood running along the coast, camping, and climbing trees. I was kinda the craziest child you had ever met (I got kicked out of Pre-school and had to wear one of those child leash things) But I like to think that I grew out of it. When I was 11 I moved to the midwest because my parents wanted to be closer to our family. Although I missed the beaches and hated midwest winters, I met a lot of amazing people.
I went to a great charter school, loved math and Chinese and attended an alternative high school where I took advantage of acres of forests and lakes. My scicence classes were spent measuring trees and water levels, in english we took walks through the woods, and in gym we went kyaking. My family had to move for work and I had to attend a large urban public high school. I had the worst attitude. I walked through the doors on the first day with a grumpy frown and only knowing the girls on the golf team (all 9 of them). I had a terrible first semester, everyone was welcoming and kind, but I shut them out because I kept comparing my new school to my old one.
My second semester got better, much better. I started opening up, and I realized that the large high school was full of amazing people if I just gave them a chance. I still kept in touch with my old friends and tried to see them on the weekends as often as I could. During the summer, my mom suggested that I apply for a Scholarship to go abroad to China. It was a long shot that I would get it but I filled out the forms and hoped for the best. When I got accepted I felt scared but thrilled, much like I do now. I have kind of been in denial about my trip for the past few months, I have focused more on finals and friends, and it really didn't hit me that I was leaving until yesterday.

The last two days have been a blur of packing, crying and hugs. Its amazing that I could only be in my new high school for a year and a half, and yet have such amazing relationships with my friends. Leaving made me realize how much you all mean to me. I spent yesterday night last-minute shopping and franticly trying to pack everything up (I am the biggest proctastinator you will ever meet). I said goodbye to my family (my little sister started crying and wouldn't let go of my leg... I let her hold on... and then started bawling too) and flew out this morning. I am now sitting looking out at a river in Williamstown, Vermont at a family friend's house, listening to my mom talk about all of the colleges we are going to be touring in the next few days before I meet the rest of the exchange students in New York. Wish me luck! Keep in touch!

Figuring out how to do THis

I'm going to China!!!!