So Long, Farwell...

Well it's less than 48 hours before I leave, it still seems pretty surreal that I'll be in Spain so soon! I've been planning this exchange for 4 or 5 years now, I can't believe it's finally here! Feeling pretty nervous and excited at this point, although not so stoked for the 15 hours of flight/traveling stuff. Surprisingly -or maybe not so surprisingly- I'm still packing but I'm almost done I swear! You seriously don't realize how much work it is to travel until you have to get ready for it yourself, between student visas, figuring out how to get 9 months worth of all my prescription drugs, finding a place to stay, dealing with university tuitions and travel heath care, and just figuring out what to pack it's definitely been quite the (exhausting) adventure already. But here I am, almost ready to go. I'm pretty nervous, I don't really know what to expect, although I guess it was the same way when I first moved to UBC, that time though I at least had the comfort of my parents. But now I'm older and -somewhat- wiser so here goes nothing! It's been pretty hard saying goodbye to everyone, I know I'm only gone for a year and that I'll be back but it's still hard every time I leave. This year I won't be home at christmas which is pretty weird and means I won't get to see all my family and friends in Ontario so saying goodbye to all of them has been kinda hard. I'm seriously missing UBC people already and it's gunna be another year before I see all their lovely faces again, does seem like a lon time but that's just how it goes. I really will (and already do) miss all of you! I just want to say thank you and I love you all, I wouldn't be where I am today without all of you, friends are one of the most valuable things you will ever have in this life, I wouldn't trade them for anything. You guys have taught me so much over the years and put up with all my craziness and  ridiculousness, the whining, the complaining, the crying, the loudness, and everything, so I just want to say thank you. Thanks for being there when I needed your help or your advice or just being there to listen, thanks for thinking much better of me than I usually think of myself, for being there to support me and calm me down when I freak out and for being there even when I mess up and do stupid things. Okay, I'm almost done with all the cliché, sappy crap I swear, I mostly just to say that my life wouldn't be the same without all of you and that I'm So grateful you've all been apart of my journey thus far. So all my dear people, Hasta Luego! (See you later!) Miss and Love you all! <3

Preparing To Go

Traveling is an amazing experience, it's always something new and exciting. It gives you the opportunity to experience different cultures and ways of life and to just expand your views and knowledge of the world. Moving to a new place is a little bit different then traveling, it's of course exciting but also kind of nerve-racking and a lot more preparation work. But that's okay, it's totally worth it, even if it's only for a year like my exchange, I'm not too sure what to expect but I know it's going to be amazing. Some people would never move away or even go on exchange because they can't bear the thought of leaving home or being That far away from family or whatever attachments they have...but that's never been me, I moved to the opposite side of the country for university and that was nice and far away, to be honest, it was the best decision I've ever made to date. Being independent brought so much more to my life, it's hard to go back to being dependent and living within restrictions again being home for the summer. I love traveling and moving because it gives you a fresh start, you can begin again, and the only thing that stops you from doing that is your own attachments to your old place/life/city. I'm not saying I left home cold-heartedly with no attachments or anything; my family and closest friends were still there but that didn't stop me from leaving, those attachments were part of me and of course I missed all those people, but they were attachements that I could live without seeing for awhile and still be completely happy and functional elsewhere. Coming home is still the best thing in the world, but as I'm slowly discovering, "home" is not necessarily where you grew up. As the years have gone on, my attachments to my home town have grown fewer and fewer, my parents don't even live in the same house I grew up in anymore, so really, what is "home"? Soon enough my friends will graduate and probably move else where and in time my parents will probably no longer be living in the same city at all, so this place is becoming less and less like home. Maybe I'm starting to get to that point where I'm trying to figure out where I feel like home is, going away on exchange definitely won't help that situation but's okay, for now, and kinda like always, I am a free spirit full of wanderlust and I now have the chance to see the world, have a fresh start, be whoever I want to be. I have no idea what the future holds, but I'm excited to find out. Leaving is always hard, but I will be back again, hopefully happier and wiser.