I’ve started a travel blog before. I did this exact thing eight months ago when I left for London. At first, it seems like there’s nothing new here. But it’s different this time, I swear!
1) I haven’t really written in a while. Sure, I’ve written a few papers and magazine articles this year (including two Spanish papers that received grades of 98%, which is much better than I ever expected!), but I haven’t written as much as I did last year. Most apparently, I only wrote seven FreeWrites this semester, and the large focus on taking and teaching photos has gotten me a bit out of practice with wordsmith—
::sigh:: :-D
Sorry for the pause. I set my laptop desktop (oxymoron, isn’t it?) to change photos every fifteen minutes, and one from London just popped up. This brings me to the next difference between eight months ago and now:
2) I’ve lived out of the country before. Last year was a completely new experience: my own money for food, travel to three different countries where before I had only been in the U.S., foreign accents on the phone… I didn’t know what to expect. Everything seemed new and exciting.
Now, that doesn’t mean I’m not excited this time around. I’m more than excited this time, in fact. I’ll be there SIX months, not two, in a country I’ve wanted to visit for four years. This is an opportunity I’ve wanted to take since I gave up a spot in the IU Honors program junior year of high school to take a research job. (Sure, I got a paper published, and another one is in the works, and I’m pretty proud of both of them, and I made money. But I can’t deny myself that opportunity again.)
At the same time, the simple thrill of being out of the country for the first time won’t be there anymore. I’ve lost my foreign-travel virginity, if you will. I’ve used Euros before, I’ve shopped for my own groceries before, and I’ve had to learn the layout of a major world city before. After the thrill is gone, I don’t know what I’ll do to make everything seem new.
...Except, y’know, do it all in Spanish. Which brings me to the final huge difference:
3) I need a translator. Eventually, I’ll be able to hold natural conversations in Spanish and give no thought to the fact that I don’t speak Spanish naturally. I’ll think in Spanish; I’ll dream in Spanish; I’ll even write papers in Spanish without writing them in English first! You, guys, however, won’t be growing in your level of Spanish along with me. (Well... maybe you will. Check out the procedural note.) As such, the entire blog venture gets thrown into relative chaos. I want you to know what I’m thinking and doing, but my writing does no good when the audience can’t read it. Again, though, check the aforementioned note, because I may have resolved that issue, at least to some extent.
Plus, I’ll post a lot of photos. Everyone can understand images.
If you want some extra background reading, check out the pre-departure posts from my London blog, especially this one. Ignoring the details, the same general sentiments apply to this semester. Facebook and Skype and e-mail are great, but they are sorry substitutes for talking and having fun with all of you face-to-face. But don’t worry. I’ll find enough friends here. They can replace your physical presence temporarily so I don’t have to feel lonely. :P
¡Hasta julio!
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