Pre-Departure!

April 23, 2013
Pre-departure

So this is my first of many blog posts that I will be writing all throughout my journey to India this summer! In exactly 5 weeks I'll be traveling way half-way across the globe to volunteer at Parijat Academy in Assam India. I'll be going with one of my best friends as well as classmate LeeAnne Steers. We have mostly everything finalized, besides a flight from Orlando to Chicago, which is where we are departing the country from. 

LeeAnne and I were fortunate enough to be awarded the Undergraduate Public Service Research Fellowship Grant from FSU, and we should be receiving our funds sometime next week. We'll use that money to purchase our final flight as well as our camera equipment for our photographic essay project we have planned. We've been working on lesson plans for the kids, and have come up with some great creative projects that we think will really help us connect with the kids. I also have began preparing my anthropological research I'll be conducting while I'm there. My mentor as well as current professor Dr. Amy Kowal has given me some great ideas for questions to ask the people of Parijat, and ways to analyze and adjust to the new culture I'll be submerged into. I plan on meeting with her at least one more time before I depart to run everything by her, and I hope we get the chance to stay in contact while I am over there. We have no idea what to expect when we get there, but we did speak with a previous volunteer there named Chantel who gave us a lot of very insightful tips and information about Parijat and India. She informed us of our living conditions, which luckily for us we actually have our own little house with a western-style bathroom and shower (it's cold, but at least I can bathe!). She gave us tips about safety, and told us all about the kids and staff so we will have an easier time becoming familiar with everyone. When we are over there, we are planning on traveling and exploring the surrounding area on our down time, so we'll probably sit down and plan that out too. We really want to try and see the Himalayas and ride some elephants!

So far all we have left to do before we leave is purchase our final plane ticket, buy our camera equipment and familiarize ourselves with it, purchase some travel items, finish our second round of vaccines (which I'm doing next Tuesday), and then just pack and go! Of course, we both have finals next week we need to get through…

I am just so incredible excited to start my journey. This is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I’m so happy and grateful that I am having the chance to be apart of something so big. I have to give a big shout out to everyone at Global Scholars, especially Latika Young and Joe O'Shea who have been so helpful and encouraging since day 1! I'll post another update right before I leave, and while I'm over there I'll probably try to post every 3 days or so. 

Let the five week count down begin! :)