Я в москве!

Привет!

I've arrived safely to Moscow! I thoroughly enjoyed my time in D.C. Taking advantage of the two hours I had before my orientation, I walked the town, 7 miles in total! I headed straight for the monuments. Arriving at the Washington monument, it was to my dismay to find that you could only ascend if you had gotten a ticket at 6am that morning. Given that I was sitting in an airport in North Carolina at this time, that was not an option. Walking around, I asked a nice Texan couple to snap a few photos of me. Circling the monument, the park ranger whom I previously asked about ascending the monument, inquired as to how many were in my party. I replied just me and guess what, she let me go right in! I took some awesome shots from the top of the monument. I'll be sure to post them as soon as I can get internet access on my laptop. Right now I am using a public computer at an internet cafe. While in D.C., I had the pleasure of meeting up with Laura, a study abroad friend of mine with whom I studied in Spain. We went out to enjoy the sights, catch up and walk the monuments at night. The monuments may be even more amazing to look at, illuminated in the night. The following day, we woke up early and departed for the aiport. First, flying from D.C. to Moscow, we didn't make it out of the U.S. until nearly 4:30pm EST! The flight from New York to Moscow was quicker than expected, only about 10 hours. Arriving in Moscow, I was only more than excited. Getting in the van to go to my temporary dorms, the driver turns on the radio and what do I hear? Techno dance music, my favorite! After a lesson in what Moscow traffic can be like, we made it safely to our dorms and headed out on the town to exchange money and to make it to the very internet cafe I am typing this blog post from right now. I'll be sure to post more as soon as I can!

Пока!

Departure

Tomorrow I depart for Washington, DC for my orientation preceding my study abroad summer semester in Moscow. While I may be nervous about my trip to Moscow, I find comfort in my previous study abroad experience, having already spent a week in DC and studied abroad in Seville, Spain, for 5 months previously. Orientation should be relatively painless, just a quick, one-day session and then we fly out of Reagan National to Moscow. For the first few days, I will be staying in the dorms and then I will be staying with a host family. I can't wait to find out what they are like. As for now, I'm wrapping up a few final things at home before I go. My bags are packed. The bank has been informed that I'll be making purchases outside the country. I've said goodbye to friends. Now I just have to wait these last few hours before I can actually depart....