studying abroad in america

Five days.

The countdown starts now for D.C. but my body and stomach have succumbed to countdowns of their own intentions. My body screams, "only five more days with your flip-flops" while my stomach competes with "you have five more days to devour as much IN-N-Out as possible."

I leave for D.C. soon and although I have been planning to enter this grand adventure since before I applied to college, the reality of it is just hitting me now. My room is littered with packed and unpacked boxes and my closet has never welcomed so many long sleeve shirts. I am leaving. And the countdown is ever ticking.

For those of you who were unaware, I will not be returning to Azusa Pacific for the spring (as much as it pains me to leave my little Mod and friends). While other friends pack their bags to study abroad to Oxford and even Australia...I am taking a different approach.

I am studying abroad to, well, America.

The fact is, studying abroad is big on my campus and I always felt a twinge of awkwardness when asked where I would be going. "So where? South Africa?" they would ask. "Well actually, I'm going to the east coast...it's practically the same difference." Yes, I did enter college with the expectation that I would soon be strolling the streets of Thailand or sitting in old historic churches in Spain but that wasn't God's plan for me this semester and that's what I'm hoping to figure out.

The program is a collaboration of media classes, an internship with the Washington Examiner (who offered me a position last week!), service learning in local neighborhoods and a look at the connection of faith and journalism. I'll be living in an apartment located ten minutes from the Capitol with four other girls and I'll have to rely on public transportation (which in D.C. is like learning another language). I'll be living in a city thriving in history and taking trips here and there to discover the touristy and local hangouts. I'm excited....and nervous...and praying for patience. As I've explained to some, this is the semester that I pray will show me where God wants to use journalism in my life and if the plan is something else...well I might have to figure out some new classes. But for now, I'm sure this is the right step toward finding my passions.

I'll be updating this throughout the semester and can use all of the encouragement you can offer! Thanks to everyone for the support :)

More to come, thanks for reading...

Sidenote: As for the title of this blog, I will be perpetually "bundled up" for the entirety of this semester because A) I'm from San Diego and B) I'm a wimp when it comes to cold weather. For those unfamiliar with the phrase, try typing it into Google images and see what comes up. I did and here's what I found (below)...just insert my face and that's what'll I 'll look like everyday. And that's all the California banter I promise (for now).