The Countdown

As far back as I can remember, I have wanted to visit Australia.  However, when I was a child I never watched the famous 'Australian' shows like the Crocodile Hunter.  I am drawn to the continent for many other reasons.  I learned through science and geography classes about the nation's beautiful wildlife and striking environmental problems.  Fast forward to Junior and Senior years of high school, I only seriously considered schools with developed study abroad and science programs.  At Kalamazoo College, I was accepted to the study abroad program at Curtin University in Perth, Australia.  It is important to note where Perth is.

It is nowhere near Sydney or the Great Barrier Reef.  Australia is a huge continent.  Although the exact numbers are debated, Australia is slightly smaller in area than the United states.  I intend to travel around this huge island quite a bit, in the water and out (SCUBA diving paradises abound).

Even though I believe my whole life has led up to this great adventure, I started counting down six weeks ago.  Since then, I have bought lots of comfort items (toiletries and music, ex.: the new Fleet Foxes and Eddie Vedder albums), read about assimilation, looked at orientation information, received housing at Vickery on the Bentley Campus, signed up for many monetary options and eaten at all my favorite restaurants.  Besides making copies of paperwork, packing and a few strained goodbyes, I will be as ready as I can be.  I will depart two weeks from today.