Business and Late Night Thoughts

Well, the last few weeks and days have been spectacularly busy preparing for my departure and next year in general.
Sunday I went to one of my best friend's dance recitals.  She dedicated one of her dances to me.  :)  It's reasons like this that I will miss my friends so much next year, but I also know I am blessed to have had her and so many others in my life.  Our relationships will change, but will grow stronger.
Monday my mom and I visited a college a few hours away from my house.  We met with two professors in different departments, one of which was International Studies.  After talking with her, I don't know if that's a degree I'd like to pursue, but I'm definitely keeping my options open.
Tuesday I had a doctor appointment to fill out my health form required by AFS.  Thank goodness I did not have to get any more shots.  I already had to get three two last week which was pretty painful and involved me passing out in the parking garage elevator... yeah, real fun.  But it's all worth it for Thailand!
Then my older sister (who is going to college next year) and I had 12 friends over at our house for a going away party/sleepover which was extremely fun!  We ate a whole bag of jelly beans in 10 minutes, went on a walk/run around our neighborhood, and stayed outside until past midnight.  Then some brave few - about seven of us - stayed up late (or early, I guess) in my room talking about everything you could imagine.  I'm not going to share our exact topics because it rambled all over the place but it was an extremely deep, lovely conversation and debate and I don't regret only getting two hours of sleep because every moment spent with these incredible ladies is precious and it was definitely a powerful night.  :)
And then I crashed the next day.
I also have my host family, which is extremely exciting and requires its own post, coming soon!  I have been messaging my host sister and she could not be any sweeter.  I can't wait to meet them!
This post is already very long and I definitely need some photos, so I'll wrap up by saying that I am scared.  Yes, even though I have this incredible opportunity that I may never get again and I finally achieved my dream of being accepted to YES Abroad, I am experiencing feelings of doubt, anxiety, and reluctance to go.  My fears are numerous and mainly trivial, and I've been told that every exchanger goes through a roller coaster of emotions both before and during their exchange.  I'm supposed to be getting lots of sleep every night but I end up reading very late and then lying awake thinking about my exchange and all my worries about it.
Despite this I wouldn't change a thing and I can't wait to be there.  To any future exchange students reading this - know that fear is completely normal and absolutely OK.  Letting it overwhelm you and ruin your enthusiasm and your experience is not.

Thailand Bucket List!

I love lists.  Check lists, to-do lists, shopping lists, packing lists, lists of my goals and dreams - I have an entire journal dedicated to lists!  So it seems only fitting that I should make a bucket list of my what I want to do and see next year.

1. Be fluent, or at least conversational in Thai.  This could be hard since Thai is a tonal language without a Romanized alphabet, but I will try nonetheless.
2. Complete my senior year so I can walk with the rest of my homeschool class next spring when I get back!
3. Eat some Thai street food (haha, don't tell anyone!)
4. Visit Chiang Mai.  I've heard that that AFS Thailand does a mid-year camp in Chiang Mai, so I want to see the city and the beautiful mountains and temples in it!
5. Visit a Buddhist temple
6. Visit an Islamic mosque.  This may be hard since Thailand's Muslims are mainly in the south and I may not get to go there, but I want to try!
7. Get a traditional Thai massage!  Or, better yet, become certified in Thai massage.
8. Do lots of volunteering in my community, hopefully with children.
9. Go to the beach.  And therefore, swim.
10. Travel in a tuk-tuk, the traditional Thai "taxi."  And not get scammed by my driver!
11. Be on a sports team at school (hopefully soccer!)
12. Participate in Songkran (Thai New Year) festival.
13. Take Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) lessons.
14. Do a project photographing and cataloguing the temples of Thailand.  This is a possible capstone project!
15. Help someone here at home apply for YES Abroad!
16. Touch/ride an elephant.  A girl can dream!
17. Cook American food for my host family.
18. Keep this blog updated!

That's all for now, but it's already kind of long! I might add some things later, but I think that's a good place to start, don't you?

Emily