LESS THAN 15 HOURS TO GO UNTIL THE ADVENTURE BEGINS!

Less than 15 hours until my plane leaves for DC....

Holy bizoli.

I am in the middle of a packing frenzy and am not having tons of luck in that department: hence, I am typing away.

Among the most bizarre/random things accompanying me on my journey:
- Bug repellent with permethrin--so intense that it cannot make contact with my actual skin, and if it does, then I need to get a hold of the nearest poison control center.
- Scott wipes. (I am so prepared for any bathroom that comes my way!)
- Tums. For calcium.
- A wide array of the antibacterial products.
- Oatmeal and fruit strips. Just in case Indian food is not jiving with me, I've got back-up.
- Host gifts including a North Dakota mug, Nebraska decorative plate, strawberry-rhubarb jam, and a North Dakota magnet.

I've also had four shots (against typhoid, influenza, polio, and tetanus) and received a malaria prescription.

It's just so crazy-- I LEAVE TOMORROW AT 5AM FOR DC!!!! GAH!!!!

Last night was my last official night in my hometown since I'll be up at like 3am tomorrow, so I invited some pals to meet me at a downtown coffee shop for a last minute gab fest. SO FUN. About 10 people or so were able to make it, and it was one of the best nights I've had in such a long time. I have really fantastic friends, friends who laugh with me and support me, and I've been really grateful for them in light of everything that's happened in the past few weeks. I forgot how blessed I am to have such great people in my life--really genuinely blessed.

So, since my bedroom literally looks like some sort of clothing volcano--a very rare specimen indeed--native to wherever it is that I am at any particular point in time--erupted, I should get back to the task at hand.

I will be posting as time allows.

Peace!

Two Weeks To Go!

It's getting closer! My program starts in 12 days, and I leave for INDIA in 14!

It's starting to finally sink in that I am leaving--and am leaving soon--for India and for a such an intensive language program in Urdu.

I'm getting my malaria prescription and a typhoid vaccination Monday, and I learned too late that I could have been vaccinated against other "prevalent" diseases in India, i.e. rabies and Japanese encephalitis. A nurse I spoke with yesterday really, well, freaked me out about the fact that I don't have time to complete the 30 day process for getting vaccinated for Japanese encephalitis. Japanese encephalitis, a relative of West Nile, is transferred via mosquito-to-human and can cause result in permanent brain damage, coma, or worse for a severely afflicted victim. Annually, 50,000 people in Southeast Asia are afflicted with the disease, and of those, 15,000 die. However, some other research of mine indicated that only 5 Americans have contracted the disease in India since 1981. The program I'm going with assures me that I'm safe in terms of many of the diseases, like Japanese encephalitis and rabies. So, fingers crossed, I'll be good, but it's things like that that I've got on my mind these days....

I'm still not sure what my housing situation will be once I arrive--and apparently, I might not know until I land in Delhi, and that's certainly not a lot of notice.

Overall, though, I'm excited for this experience, but it doesn't seem possible that it's already time for me to be going!