FINALLY! It’s the day!!! As a German student, I’ve dreamed of going to Germany to study for years. I first dreamed of studying in Europe when I was nine years old.

Right now I’m waiting for my flight from Gulfport to Atlanta where I’ll be catching my flight to Germany! I’m honestly pretty nervous. I’ve never left this side of the world and now I’ll be there for almost a year!

It seems that Delta Airlines knows I will miss my home so they’re hitting me with

Delay,

Delay,

Delay!

I’ve learned that if you aren’t prepared for delay, you aren’t prepared for flying at all! Make sure you have your toothbrush, toothpaste, a change of clothes, and any medicine you may need in the next 24 hours!

When I first heard about Subtropical Storm Alberto, I thought he might cause a mess here in Gulfport, causing me to be stuck here for a while. But I didn’t expect it to prevent me from going to Atlanta due to bad weather there!

These delays are giving me way too much time to think about all that I’m leaving behind in America. The University of Mississippi has given me countless memories and friendships to last a lifetime! I know I can count on all of my friends and family, but it’s pretty hard to count on someone when you’re 4,846 miles away!

This can be pretty intimidating, but I think I would be more concerned if I wasn’t nervous!

I can’t wait for the adventures ahead and I especially can’t wait to share the experience with every one of y’all! I hope those of you reading this who will be studying abroad do not have as much trouble leaving Mississippi. Saying goodbye becomes a lot more difficult when you do it while boarding the plane not once or twice, but three times!

I’ll leave you with a few words from a wise philosopher:

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

— Winnie the Pooh

Peace out,

Kristin