1 week. 7 days. 168 hours. 10,080 minutes. 604,800 seconds.
Alright, I’ll stop.
But still, as the big day approaches, I can’t help but count down the days, hours, and even minutes until I leave. Right now, I feel like I’m trapped in some weird time sphere, where time seems to move impossibly quickly and impossibly slowly all at once. It’s hard to explain, but I think you get the general idea of what I’m talking about.
Anyways, there’s a lot to catch you up on, so, for the sake of readability, I’m going to divide this post in neat little sub-sections.
Visa Update
After shipping off my visa, I got a confirmation email a few days later saying that my stuff was received and it was just sent to the consulate. I waited for about a week and a half before I started to get paranoid. Other kids were receiving their visas, but I hadn’t heard a word from CVSC. Just as I was about to email, a delivery person just showed up at my door and handed me a package with my visa in it. I was a bit confused because I expected CVSC to notify me, but I got my visa no issue, so whatever. I also finally sent off my expense report, although I just put it in the normal mail and now I’m kinda paranoid that it’ll get lost or something. Yeah, I’m a bit nervous about this entire thing, in case you couldn’t tell.
Language Learning
I just recently completed the assigned language preparation materials, so I’ve been doing a bit of self study. I really want to improve my pronunciation a bit more before I leave, so I’ve been trying to do a bit of language shadowing. I’m also thinking of putting together some “survival phrases” flashcards. That way, I won’t show up in China and not be able to ask someone where the bathroom is. We also received a pre-program language test that involves reciting a passage and recording a short clip about a topic of our choice (fun!). Like I said about the OPI, I’m not expecting that I’ll do well, but at least it’ll be a good experience (I think).
Host Family
In the most exciting news, I got my host family information! Some kids were already getting emails from their host siblings, but last Thursday, we finally got some official information (well, some of us did, others still haven’t received anything yet). When I first got the email, I was super excited and quickly logged onto the AFS portal only to find nothing there. What gives AFS! You can’t hype me up then let me down! Then, one of the other Chengdu kids helpfully informed me that the information was in a PDF attached to the email. Oops. I guess I was so excited I forgot the read the email in full.
Once I realized my mistake, I quickly opened the PDF and carefully read over all of the information. I won’t give out too many details (because of privacy and security issues), but I will tell you that I have a younger sister (about 14) and a younger brother (about 3). For the first time in my life, I will be the “older” sibling! Their house isn’t too far away from the school, so I could walk there if I wanted. I have a pretty standard curfew (8 on weeknights, 10 on weekends), but I know a few kids have a slightly stricter curfew. They might be able to negotiate that curfew with their host family, but in the end, it’s important to respect your host family’s rules.
A few days after getting the information, I was emailed by my host sister. I got to learn a bit about her hobbies and interests, which was nice. I also tried to ask her what kind of gift she wanted from the US, but I worded it poorly and didn’t get the desired response. Oh well, I better get used to stuff like that happening. Just the other day, there was news of an earthquake in Sichuan province near Chengdu. I emailed her to make sure that everyone was alright. Fortunately, she replied and said that they all were okay, but I know that it was devastating for many others.
Packing
On a lighter note, I’ve finally begun the arduous task of packing. Okay, well I haven’t started the actual packing part, but I’ve been creating my packing list, gathering all of those TSA-approved containers, trying to diversify my wardrobe, and so on. I still need to finalize my host family gifts, and I still have a few more things to buy for my trip. I’ll probably share a more finalized packing list later on, but this is the general plan:
Final Notes
Like I said in the beginning, there’s only one more week before I leave for PDO. I feel totally ready and completely unprepared at the same time. It kind of reminds me of a dream I had the other night. I was just about to board the plane to New York, waving goodbye to my friends and family. As I stepped onto the plane, filled with excitement and determination, I realized I didn’t have any luggage with me. Hopefully that wasn’t a prophetic dream or anything.
Well, I’ll probably write one more post the day before heading off to PDO. See you then!
The Moonlight over the Bridge 
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