Kiya's first impressionss

When I first arrived at the airport it finally hit me that I was going to be away from my family for 15 weeks. Initially the thought of not seeing my family, friends and the faulty at UConn worried me. I fear that things wouldn`t be the same in April when it was time for me to return and I wouldn`t be able to find my place. I was less worried when I realized there were 25 other individuals who were facing similar issues as me. For the duration of the plane ride, which happened to be my first, I had plenty of time to think and reflect. I was so eager to learn and explore. I wanted to jump right in to the culture here in Cape Town and take as much as possible from the endless experiences. I thought a lot about my purpose and why I had decided to study abroad to begin with. Other then my advisor and my SSS (student support services) family pushing me to go, I wanted to study abroad to prove that it was possible. There are many young adults in both Trenton, NJ (my hometown) and New Haven, CT that never get the chance to leave their birth place yet along leave the country. Before I left I was asked so many questions about where I would be living and what I was going to eat.  The more questions people asked the more I felt it was my duty to educate as many as possible on the politics and culture of South Africa. 

My thoughts continued to blossom as I got off the plane. Although I was drained both physically and emotionally just being on South African soil made me rich with opportunities. I wanted to do so much in so little time.  The first time I got on the bus and we drove to our house I thought a lot about what the next 15 weeks of my life were going to be. I knew there was a lot in store for me and I tried to quickly process those thoughts and enjoy the moment. Our first dinner was perfect. I was surprised. The food was good and I enjoyed getting to know everyone outside of the classroom. I found it interesting that we all knew of each other for many weeks before we left but sort of bonded on a different level once we finally arrived. Overall, I`m absolutely loving this beautiful place and look forward to what Cape Town has in store.