Holland or bust! | Briana

So school started back up on January 9, and for the first time since January 1994, I was not going back. And even though most people might be over the moon about the chance to extend their holidays, which for me means only working a full-time job, not balancing that with full-time school, I was not so excited. I miss school.

Luckily, my trip to Mexico with my best friend made up for that. We went to Playa del Carmen for a week from the 10th to the 17th. We did a lot of tanning, a lot of eating, a lot of taste testing different slushie drinks and we took a tour of Ek Balam, Mayan ruins that have been recently opened to the public. That same day, we rappelled into an underground cave filled with icy water, did some ziplining and slept in hammocks. We had an absolute blast! The downside was that we left Lethbridge at about +6 degrees… and returned to Calgary at -46 degrees. That was the sad part.

But the real point of this post (hence the title), is that I came home on January 17, knowing full well that I had to leave the country on January 26. All the preparations and all my packing had to be done in less than a week, so I could spend time with my boyfriend in Calgary before I left, as well as see my family in Red Deer. I had a nice little going away shindig on Saturday night, which was awesome of my friends to stop in and say goodbye, and then I left for Calgary on Monday morning.

I packed in about two hours. If you ever leave on exchange – don’t do this.

So now all that’s left is to buy a backpack at Mountain Equipment Coop, MEC, (for weekend trips), find some converters (for European plugs), and leave my straightener here for my boyfriend’s sister, because they won’t work over the pond (see, I’m European already!!). Then head to Red Deer, where my awesome parents couldn’t decide who would take me to the airport, so they both are. I’m their favourite daughter.

The truth is, I’m excited beyond belief. The other half of that truth is, about half the time I’m also having anxiety attacks that require me to curl up in the fetal position and focus on my breathing. I know Europe will be an amazing adventure. I do. It’s just that right now I’m terrified about half the time, and I will be until I step on the plane. 🙂

Well I have to finish my preparations, but the next time I blog, I will hopefully be telling you all about the wonderful start to my adventure in the Netherlands!!

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