And the Countdown begins...

I've got an official departure date. June 13th. At 7:55pm two Sundays from now, I will be embarking on the biggest adventure of my life (excluding my birth of course, since obviously that was important, and I couldn't go to Botswana if I wasn't born. But I digress. Shout-outs to the mama and pops!). I definitely wasn't expecting to leave so soon, I had somehow convinced myself that I had at least another week, if not a month. But lo and behold, I get an itinerary from Sylvie, the lovely logistics coordinator at World University Service of Canada, with whom I'll be interning. June 13th it is.

I'm flying British Airways (which is currently on strike) through London Heathrow, which has had volcano issues for months. That WOULD happen to me of all people. It should be okay though. The flight to London is a bit over 7 hours, and I've got an over 10-hour stopover. YESSSSSSS sexy times in England for me! Well, hopefully. It'll be 2 in the morning Canadian time so I'll probably be exhausted, but I really want to take advantage of the opportunity to see my friends Big Ben and Harrods. Then it's an 11-hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa. 3 days into the World Cup. Oh boyyyyyyyy, we'll see how that goes. I am preparing myself for utter pandemonium and lots of security screenings... and I've only got 2 hours until my flight to Botswana. It might also be really cool though. I don't think I'll get to make it back to SA during the World Cup, but I definitely plan on going at some point. I will finally reach Gaborone on the 15th of June. I'm not exactly sure where I'll be staying, but hopefully that all gets worked out soon.

Getting a departure date is finally making it all real, and not just a vague idea in my head. I thought I was pretty ready, but once I saw that I only had two weeks, there was suddenly 2 million other things I had to get done. I also had my first mini-freakout in my head about going. There are a lot of things I'm not sure about and that I'm worried about. And I'm not super sappy or anything, but there are are a lot of people that I'm gonna miss here. My friends and family, especially my little sister, I'll miss her so much. But a part of me is definitely ready and excited.

I'll write again just before I leave. Until then... shine on, my friends!

P.S. Setswana is one tough language. It is impossible to read. The number eight is "borobabobedi". The number eighteen is worse.

P.S.S. Yes I realize that Hridi's blog far surpasses me at this point, but my exciting stories will come. Knowing that I beat her in life will have to satisfy me until my adventures truly begin.