Am I there yet?

Hey all,
I'm writing to you from, unfortunately, still my house in NJ. My long-awaited but too soon departure date is this Tuesday and, while I've gone through the up's and downs of excitement, fear, and everything in between, I just want to go already! Many of my other friends who are studying aborad this semester have already left and are having AMAZING times, which alleviates a lot of my stree and worry and just builds on my excitement. I've been doing reading and research all about Florence and other places I want to go, and now I'm ready to ship out.

Of course, I did have to pack before I left. That was fun. In just about every piece of literature we get for study abroad we are countlessly reminded to PACK LIGHT, PACK LIGHT, PACK LIGHT. Though I'm not really the best at this (I ended up with 30 pairs of pants at the conclusion of freshman year) I do think I've done a good job. I've got all I need packing into 1 large suitcase and 1 medium suitcase, plus a backpack, though there are a few things I've forgotten that will have to get put in there somewhere. As for things I plan to buy while I'm away? I can either ship them home or send them back with my family, as they plan to visit at the end of November.

Moving to that, they're not only visiting me because of the Thanksgiving Holiday (it's not celebrated in Italy anyway, so I'll have class). They're also coming to watch me run in the Florence Marathon. I'm officially registered as of today and have the information I need to go for runs while I'm away. I know it sounds crazy to commit to a marathon while going abroad, but I thought it was one of the best ways to stay in shape for swimming, have fun, not get fat, and immediately immerse myself in the city and it's surroundings. The marathon course is gorgeous and runs past many of Florence's biggest monuments. No worries, I'll keep you updated with more than enough information about how that's going. Plus I can't wait to start taking and posting pictures and video from Italy.

So, this might be my last post before I arrive, unless I can figure something out during my 5 hour layover in Germany. Either way, check back soon to hear how my first week is going. I'm so excited and hope everyone moving in this weekend has a great time. Good luck with the first week of classes, especially to the class of 2013!

-Christine