Getting Ready To Go

Well, as of today, I have 63 days left until I get on my first flight for Chile. Isn't that exciting?! I'm not sure yet, it's slowly becoming very nerve wracking.
Last week, I took final exams for the end of my second year at Central Michigan University. I also finished my first year of working at the Math Assistance Center on campus. As I said good bye to my friends and coworkers, I realized that I would not be back for 8 months. Probably the most bitter sweet moment I have had since I started at CMU.
Anyhow, I am getting ready to pull out clothes to see what I should and should not pack for the long trip. I'll be back in a few short weeks with my progress on packing and coping with the nerves and excitement of the trip. Hopefully I will have some suggestions on how to deal with the nerves.

Why Study Abroad? (blog application)

Hi everybody! The lovely lady in the picture? Yeah, that's me, Samantha Falsetta. Some of you may be asking, "why is this girl starting a blog?" Well, the answer is simple, I was accepted to study abroad in Valparaíso, Chile. Where is that? Let me show you. See the map? Good. So, you can probably, quite clearly, see Santiago, which is the capital. Well that is just south of Valparaíso. (Maybe you can see it in the smaller font just above Santiago.) It is right along the cost of Chile. That sounds nice right about now, doesn't it?

Anyhow, maybe I should try to get a little more on topic. So, why am I studying abroad? I am a double major in Mathematics and Spanish and getting a minor in History. All of these topics are going towards a Bachelor's degree in secondary education, which means I will be able to teach grades six through twelve. Since I am majoring in Spanish, I need to go to a Spanish speaking country to help increase my fluency and help me to pass a lot of competency exams that I am required to pass in order to teach Spanish. Also, I have hosted six exchange students of my own. Having experienced other people from other countries in my home has made me curious about other cultures. I chose Latin America because I have already traveled to Europe and wanted to see and experience something new.

I am super excited and super duper nervous for this trip of a life time. I hope to make lots of new, and long lasting, friendships while abroad. This trip means the world to me because I get to learn more about other cultures and experience a completely different realm than what is available to me in the United States. When I come back, I hope that I will be more open minded and know more about the world. Those may seem like huge goals, but I will be spending over four months studying in Chile, which should be plenty of time to learn all of those things, right? Well, I think so.