This first week in Cape Town has been non-stop with activities, orientation and sightseeing.

Over the weekend, two of my flatmates were visiting friends in London. My other flatmate and I had the place to ourselves and decided to make a cake on Friday night. We ventured out into a rainstorm to our local Tesco to purchase the necessary ingredients. When we arrived back home, we mixed the batter and preheated the oven to the best of our abilities—neither of us really understood how Celsius worked on our oven, and the settings were very strange.

Today marked a small victory towards blending into the London population—if only just a bit. After three weeks here (boy, does it feel like longer), I am still reminded of the fact that I’m American on a near-daily basis. Sure, I can navigate the buses and Tube (quietly), weave assertively through pedestrians on sidewalks, and fish out the appropriate coinage to pay for my fish and chips, but any time I go out with a group of other Americans, it’s no use; we stick out like a sore thumb. Easily and always the loudest in every restaurant or pub.

Classes started last Thursday.
The classes are really interesting, but really intense.

Strategic Packing

“I’m free as a bird, lost in the stars and waving down to earth. Don’t know where I’m gonna land, but you gotta wobble before you stand…” — Sydney Forest, “Soaring”

(Italiano)

Abito a Milano da due settimane! Mi piace molto questa città, però, l’inverno di Milano è più grigio persino di Ithaca, una cosa che non pensavo fosse possibile.

Well, two more days until I depart for Morocco. My bags are packed, my preparations are made, and I’m ready to go. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit nervous, going to a new country and a new culture, but I’m also excited. I have experience living abroad in France and traveling extensively, so that part isn’t as nerve-racking to me, it’s just going to a totally unknown place that is a bit anxiety producing. But at the same time, it’s very exciting and I can’t wait for all the new experiences I will have.

Finally made it to Siena, Italy after two days of adventures and mishaps. After a successful, albeit emotionally exhausting departure from Grand Rapids, the other Hope College student who is studying in Siena and I had a smooth flight to Chicago and a subsequently smooth flight to Frankfurt. After a 5:30 a.m. arrival in Frankfurt, we hung out in the near-empty airport for our 8:55 flight to Florence.