Pre-Departure

I am about to study abroad in Melbourne, Australia. I leave tomorrow (yikes), which is July 11th, 2011, and I will be returning on November 26th, 2011. Nearly five months living on the other side of the world, which is really pretty amazing and I'm quite excited about the whole thing.

I'm going to be a direct exchange student at La Trobe University, which means that I go to the university and take classes and my credits transfer over directly. It also means that I have an exchange scholarship that makes my tuition free! La Trobe University is in the suburb of Bundoora, which is a 20 minute drive outside of central Melbourne. Melbourne has approximately 3.6 million people (much larger than Seattle) and is the second largest city on Australia. I went there once before (on a Northwest Girlchoir tour in June 2009) and I adore it. It's known as the cultural center of Australia.

Beyond that, I don't know a whole lot about my program. Stay tuned!

I have no major reservations so far, but I've decided to make a pro/con list about leaving Seattle.

Pro
- I'm ready for an adventure away from the city/country I grew up in
- I get to start buying my own groceries again, which means I'm going to buy juice
- My car is out of gas and now I don't have to fill it
-My wonderful boyfriend John is in Melbourne, not Seattle
- I get to avoid that awkward time in September when I start feeling like there's nothing left for me to do in Seattle and I'd really like to go back to school
- I get to pretend I'm 21 for five months
- Seattle doesn't really have muesli in grocery stores...

Con
- I will miss my friends and family and my cat
- No more Than Brother's Pho
- I'm leaving summer behind
- Most of my wardrobe has to stay at home
- My brother Nick has to continue driving lessons without me (although it's partially his fault that my car is out of gas)

Everything I'm taking for the next five months is in one suitcase, which is currently 54.5lbs. It needs to lose 4.5lbs so that I don't get charged anything extra. My total travel time (one way) is going to be 27.5 hours. I fly from Seattle to LA, have a two hour layover, and then make the 22.5 hour flight to Melbourne.
Don't worry... I have three novels in my carry-on bag.

AHH EXCITING. See you after Thanksgiving, America.