Leaving for Spain tomorrow!

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I can't believe how fast this summer flew by. My flight leaves at 5:46 p.m. tomorrow and after that, I'll be in Spain for the following four months! I'm excited and scared, but I know I'll have a blast.

Six of us from CMU are going to Alicante this semester, and we made a Facebook group to ask questions and share information which has been very helpful.

I'll be living in Plaza de los Hermanos Pascual in an apartment-style building (un piso or floor). I'm about four miles from La Universidad de Alicante, which is very convenient! We are all also relatively in the same area, so hopefully I won't feel completely alone and helpless. One of the other students placed us on Google maps, so we can see how close we all are, which is really nice.

Google Map of our 6 different locations

Here's my trip itinerary: I leave tomorrow, I'll have a connecting flight in Paris (which is awesome but I won't have time to see it). Then, I'll land in Valencia, which is about 100 miles away from Alicante. I'll take a metro to the train station, then the train to Alicante and meet my host family there! The train is pretty cheap too, only $20.

My trip via train from Valencia to Alicante by RENFE

Here's a picture of part of the plaza by Google image search (it looks beautiful!): 

Right now I'm throwing some last-minute things together. This is my bag: 

I thought I would never get everything I wanted in this bag (especially under 50 lbs!!) but I somehow managed. Here's my tips if you plan on studying abroad:

1. Pack a variety of clothes and ROLL them. It saves a ton of space.
2. Don't pack your shampoo, conditioner, or tons of products because they take up space and limited weight. I packed travel-size products so I can have it in the beginning, but I'll just go buy that stuff once I get there. 
3. Stick to the necessities. Do you really need ALL of your jewelry or your iPad? 
4. Leave a little room. I plan on bringing things back and I need to fit it all back in this bag again.

Another thing that I know will be hard for me is not having my phone. I'm going to bring it and turn off all my data and hopefully find Wifi when I need it. This is a great site for explaining phone usage overseas: How To Use Your iPhone For Free Abroad

Finally, I'm excited to meet my host family and see what life is like in Spain! I'm going to try to post every Sunday about my experiences! Thanks for reading!

Only 19 days until departure to Alicante, Spain

Welcome to my study abroad blog! I hope my experiences can give you insight on what this magical journey will be like as I live with my host family in the foreign country of Spain.

I'm nervous, excited, unprepared and emotional. In just 19 days, I'm heading to Spain by myself for the first time. I've received my student Visa and have bought my plane ticket. So far, everything has been going very smoothly. All that's left to do is pack and prepare!

Stay in touch with my blog and I will post weekly about my experiences packing, leaving, living and returning from Alicante.

I have a personal page on Twitter if you would like to shoot me a tweet! Thanks for reading :)