Chicken Fingers

Off to Europe! Wow, I can really say that now. These last 10 months have all been full of anticipation and preparation, and it's finally time to leave! For a girl who's only left the country once (off a cruise ship for a few hours in Mexico - which I do not count!), this whole experience has been completely surreal. Even though we are sitting here in the airport, I still find it hard to believe that the plane will actually be landing in a different country.

This whole study abroad idea started back in September, when my friend Hillary and I got to talking about how we both wanted to live in Italy. Of course it wasn't exactly an option to pick up and leave, but we could take a semester to go experience real Italian culture! So we began narrowing down programs and decided on an amazing one in Viterbo. Now it's not exactly a well-known city, but it is this reason exactly that makes me even more excited about it. I figured a small town study abroad experience (especially in Italy) would be much more legitimate if we went outside the touristy places. Viterbo is a beautiful medieval town located just a 2-hour train ride north of Rome, giving us the best of both worlds. Our university (Universita' Degli Studi Della Tuscia) gives us 3-day weekends specifically to encourage traveling, which Hill and I plan to take full advantage of.

Packing - I must dedicate a section all its own to packing. It is a pretty big thing to ask of a girl when you are telling me to put 5 months of stuff into one suitcase weighing less than 50 pounds. I don't know how I did it, but the final product is currently being loaded onto the plane. That and a backpack are what I have condensed down to for the trip. I got a lot of new clothing, since I realized my soccer shirts would probably not be looked upon as very "fashionable" by the uptight Europeans (totally kidding - mostly).

So to quick explain the title, I have to admit that when it comes to food I may be one of the pickiest eaters out there. I literally have the taste buds of a 7 year old. You could take me to the fanciest restaurant and I would get myself some chicken fingers off the kid's menu - it's happened (more than once). So although I am going into this whole trip with an open mind, it's going to be pretty difficult for me to get used to all of the foreign cuisine. I feel like this kind of represents me and my experience abroad in general - I've grown up in a pretty sheltered American life, conquered it fairly well on my own so far, and now I'm opening myself up to all that the rest of the world has to show me. I'm definitely a little nervous, but mostly excited about everything about to come my way, and I know I'll be a better person for it.

So yes, this will be my gateway to home in letting you all know that I am still alive. I am out in the world, and learning from it. I know I am being ambitious when I say I will try to update weekly - but if you are ever curious, Hill's blog will probably be much more detailed on our adventure than mine will be. The first three weeks will kind of be all over the place since we are hitting up a grand total of 9 European cities before we arrive in Rome on the 30th, so whenever I can find internet is when I'll be posting. I've said most of my goodbyes and am currently waiting to board the first plane, so now it's off to Madrid! Craziness. See you on the other side of the Atlantic =)