12 days away! I clicked on the purchase button. Whether I liked it or not, I now had a returning flight.
The approach of my study abroad adventure crept closer. I said goodbye to my university friends, inventoried my belongings, and checked and double checked all of my flight information.
I will be studying abroad in Germany from June 1st to July 6th with the Rutgers University Landscape Architecture Department learning about post industrial landscapes and studying German landscape history (among many other things). I am most excited for the design portion of the trip during which we will be studying a soundscape in partnership with TU Dortmund. I am fascinated with sound, indoors and out, intentional or unintentional, acoustically and musically.
I am still grappling with the decision of bringing my guitar with me abroad, or possibly my ukulele instead. One is certainly smaller and easier to transport. There are pros and cons to bringing an instrument with me and I am not sure yet what I will decide. I just can’t imagine 3 months away from an instrument.
Post Germany, I will be flying to Israel for 7 weeks to study community living and agriculture for my undergraduate thesis. I am excited to visit a place that I frequently call my second home, to study a topic within landscape architecture.
Post Israel, I will be flying to London for a day (it’s surprisingly cheaper to fly from London to NYC, than it is to fly directly from Israel to NYC).
Needless to say, I have a packed summer of travel ahead of me.
I hope to learn more about the cultures of the places I am visiting, and become adaptable to new environments.
The pre travel jitters have left me feeling a “FOMO” (fear of missing out) with my friends and family at home. I know that it will be hard to be away from the people I love, but I am excited to be independent abroad.
I still have to pack my suitcase, gather last minute documents, and mentally prepare myself for three months in three foreign countries.
Ready or not, here I come!

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