Summer '12

 Departure seems closer than ever, as I read through the "Adjustments," "Host Family Expectations," "Fitting in," and "School Life" in the Welcome Booklet for the Netherlands! Discussions at the dinner table these past few weeks seem to always end up with talk of preparation for my year abroad; what to pack, how we'll stay in touch, acquiring high school credits, etc. It seems as if until now, going to Europe had all been talk and excitement due to the fact departure seemed so far away. Now, the necessities that I’ll need to pack are already running through my head and the bittersweet reality of leaving is giving me the jitters. I'm anxious to meet new people and experience such a vastly different culture, but at the same time leaving my friends and family seems unreal. 

My summer goals consist of completing the first semester of a Language 11 course through BYU, and working nearly everyday to save up for spending money while I'm in the Netherlands. On the weekends I work across the bay at the Kachemak Bay Wilderness Lodge (http://www.alaskawildernesslodge.com/). In fact, I leave in less than seven hours to go across for a full workday...so I'll keep this first post short.

Although work and my online class have been keeping me exceedingly busy, I've somehow made time to hangout with my close friends, knowing these next two months will be the last with them for a while. Thank goodness for Facebook and Skype, or I wouldn't know how to cope without them while away for so long! With one of my best friends, Tiyana Hill, she'll be graduated and gone when I come back from Europe, so for our last summer we've created a Summer Bucket List, with about fifty weird and adventurous things we must complete before I leave...so far it's made for a pretty interesting summer.

I have yet to start really focusing on the Dutch language, which is also a priority on my to-do list. Everyone I've talked to portrays it as a very difficult language to learn and pick up, which is making me a bit nervous. I've been researching the Dutch culture, especially that of younger people. Tolerance is emphasized in most informative sites I've run across so far, and from what I've read it won't be too hard for me to fit in amongst their more common political and social views. 

Earlier today in Homer, the temperature got up to 59 degrees, which was i n c r e d i b l e. I'm hoping, more like wishful thinking, that these next two months will be filled with gorgeous days like these. Well, seeing as my alarm will be going off in five hours, I’m going to call it a night. Still waiting on my Host Family Information…the anticipation is killing me!

         -Molly