This week I finally received the email I have been waiting on for months! I got my host family in Nata, Panama! Nata is a small town with only about 6,000 residents. I can't find much about the town online other than that it is the oldest town in Panama, and was originally colonized by Spanish settlers when they invaded Central America.
My host family is much bigger than I'm used to, but it will be a good experience! I will have a mother, father, two brothers (19 and 10), a sister (24), and my sisters children live there too. I think she has a girl and boy, around 4 and 5! They also have three dogs and a cat! Definitely gonna be different from what I'm used to with my two sisters and outside pets.
I have talked to my host mother, brother, and sister and look forward to meeting them in two weeks! It's been hard to communicate since my spanish isn't so great, and none of my family in Panama speaks english, but I'll make it through. Since I leave so soon I've been rushing around getting immunizations, having doctors appointments and making sure my passport and everything is good to go! I have to finish my online english class this weekend, and then I'm in the home stretch, packing and saying my goodbyes!
Friday, August 24, 2012
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Firsts and Lasts
Hey everybody! Sorry I haven't blogged in a while, things have been crazy!
From here on out I will only be home in Oregon about a month! I fly out of Medford September 5th, and wont return until next July. As excited as I am, I'm also kind of sad. Only one more month with my friends and family!
Though I still haven't received my host family placement in Panama I am getting more and more prepared for the trip every day. Whether it's shopping, packing, seeing friends and family, working on my spanish and online classes, or just reading up on Panama online, I hope that when I get on the plane I'll be as prepared as I can.
August and September will no doubt bring many firsts and lasts. The last times I will see my friends and family, the last time I will walk out of my home in Oregon, the last time I'll be able to drive! There's a lot of things I'm going to miss, but I know all of the firsts in Panama will be even more rewarding. The first time I meet my host family, or am in a Spanish speaking country, or leave my home and family for more than a few weeks at a time. It's kind of surreal, being fifteen and moving farther away from home than many adults ever do.
Sorry for the delay on this blog, I hope everyone's having a great summer and staying cool!
-brelyn
From here on out I will only be home in Oregon about a month! I fly out of Medford September 5th, and wont return until next July. As excited as I am, I'm also kind of sad. Only one more month with my friends and family!
Though I still haven't received my host family placement in Panama I am getting more and more prepared for the trip every day. Whether it's shopping, packing, seeing friends and family, working on my spanish and online classes, or just reading up on Panama online, I hope that when I get on the plane I'll be as prepared as I can.
August and September will no doubt bring many firsts and lasts. The last times I will see my friends and family, the last time I will walk out of my home in Oregon, the last time I'll be able to drive! There's a lot of things I'm going to miss, but I know all of the firsts in Panama will be even more rewarding. The first time I meet my host family, or am in a Spanish speaking country, or leave my home and family for more than a few weeks at a time. It's kind of surreal, being fifteen and moving farther away from home than many adults ever do.
Sorry for the delay on this blog, I hope everyone's having a great summer and staying cool!
-brelyn
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Europe!
Tomorrow I will be on a plane headed out of North America for the first time! We fly out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, have a brief layover in Detroit, then on to Frankfurt, Germany. While in Europe I will get to see Trier, Saarbrucken, and Heidelburg in Germany! I'm excited to see Trier especially, because there's apparently Roman ruins that are still pretty well preserved there!
We also get the chance to go to Amsterdam, Paris, and Strassburg, France! I'm SO excited for my first international adventure and will post pictures as soon as I am home.
Though this month of traveling and seeing family has been, and will continue to be, really really fun, I'm sad that I will only have one more month with my friends and family back home before leaving for Panama! I am still waiting on my host family and my definite travel itinerary, but I will be leaving the US in the first week of September, just under two months away. The Chip-In widget on my blog doesn't work anymore, with the trip so close. However, if you are still interested in donating, or have any questions about my trip, please email me at brelyn.rose@gmail.com . Thanks! Hope everyone's summer's going as good as mine :) I've got to go get packed!
We also get the chance to go to Amsterdam, Paris, and Strassburg, France! I'm SO excited for my first international adventure and will post pictures as soon as I am home.
Though this month of traveling and seeing family has been, and will continue to be, really really fun, I'm sad that I will only have one more month with my friends and family back home before leaving for Panama! I am still waiting on my host family and my definite travel itinerary, but I will be leaving the US in the first week of September, just under two months away. The Chip-In widget on my blog doesn't work anymore, with the trip so close. However, if you are still interested in donating, or have any questions about my trip, please email me at brelyn.rose@gmail.com . Thanks! Hope everyone's summer's going as good as mine :) I've got to go get packed!
Monday, June 25, 2012
Summer!
Since June 21st passed, its officially summer! For me, this summer started off early with traveling to see family, and next month traveling to Europe!
We left Oregon the seventeenth, and loaded in the car to head to Michigan. On the way we got to see the Grand Canyon, which was really really cool. We finally made it to Michigan the 21st. Another super exciting trip is going to be going to Europe in July! We get to see Germany and France, so it'll be really cool! I'm hoping this international travel will prepare me a little more for Panama!
Earlier this month, there was a conference call with the rest of the students who are going to Panama, and a few returnees. Even though I have done a lot of research online, I didn't know anything about most of what they said. It's making me even more excited!
The Chip-In widget for my blog stops working two months prior to my departure, and since I am leaving two short months after July, you can no longer donate online after the first week of July.
Hope everyone's having a great summer!
Brelyn
We left Oregon the seventeenth, and loaded in the car to head to Michigan. On the way we got to see the Grand Canyon, which was really really cool. We finally made it to Michigan the 21st. Another super exciting trip is going to be going to Europe in July! We get to see Germany and France, so it'll be really cool! I'm hoping this international travel will prepare me a little more for Panama!
Earlier this month, there was a conference call with the rest of the students who are going to Panama, and a few returnees. Even though I have done a lot of research online, I didn't know anything about most of what they said. It's making me even more excited!
The Chip-In widget for my blog stops working two months prior to my departure, and since I am leaving two short months after July, you can no longer donate online after the first week of July.
Hope everyone's having a great summer!
Brelyn
Friday, June 8, 2012
Pomp and Circumstance
Tonight was graduation for the senior class of 2012 at my high school! Graduations always make me sad, because it's the end of something, and seeing all my friends move on with out me is tough. This year, though, I have something new coming as well! Sure, the class of 2012 might be going off to college all across the country, and moving out of their homes to start their own lives, but I am moving to Panama! A whole year away from my family, my friends, and the comfort of my home. It's crazy to even think about. At fifteen years old, I am travelling farther away from Oregon than most of the students that graduated tonight will ever have the chance to!
Another reason that this graduation was so sad for me is because it was the last one I will see before my own high school graduation in 2014! It seems so far away now, but time flies, and it's only going to fly by more once I leave on this exciting adventure. Here in Oregon, there are things I would be able to count on doing next year. My junior prom, spirit week, getting my license, and playing soccer would be a few of those things. In Panama, I am not even sure where I will be living! I could be with a big family, or a single parent. I could be in a city, or a town even smaller than the one I live in now. It's weird to think that the kids I have grown up with and am lucky enough to call my friends will all be back in Oregon, going to junior prom, and celebrating homecoming week, and I will be living in a different country with a family that is not my own (though I am sure I will love them!).
I leave for Panama in early September, and don't return until July of 2013. I wonder what will change here while I am gone? But more than that I wonder how much I will change. Next year at this time I will be in Panama. One more year, and I will be walking across the stage getting my diploma. A year later I'll be completing my freshmen year of college. Even though graduations are the end of something, they are the beginning of something else. This year, I may not be leaving high school forever, but I am graduating my sophomore year and moving on to Panama, and I have never been more excited for anything.
Also, a side note, my fundraising dinner Tuesday night went really well! I raised just over 1000 dollars! Thanks to everyone who came and supported me.
Another reason that this graduation was so sad for me is because it was the last one I will see before my own high school graduation in 2014! It seems so far away now, but time flies, and it's only going to fly by more once I leave on this exciting adventure. Here in Oregon, there are things I would be able to count on doing next year. My junior prom, spirit week, getting my license, and playing soccer would be a few of those things. In Panama, I am not even sure where I will be living! I could be with a big family, or a single parent. I could be in a city, or a town even smaller than the one I live in now. It's weird to think that the kids I have grown up with and am lucky enough to call my friends will all be back in Oregon, going to junior prom, and celebrating homecoming week, and I will be living in a different country with a family that is not my own (though I am sure I will love them!).
I leave for Panama in early September, and don't return until July of 2013. I wonder what will change here while I am gone? But more than that I wonder how much I will change. Next year at this time I will be in Panama. One more year, and I will be walking across the stage getting my diploma. A year later I'll be completing my freshmen year of college. Even though graduations are the end of something, they are the beginning of something else. This year, I may not be leaving high school forever, but I am graduating my sophomore year and moving on to Panama, and I have never been more excited for anything.
Also, a side note, my fundraising dinner Tuesday night went really well! I raised just over 1000 dollars! Thanks to everyone who came and supported me.
Friday, June 1, 2012
A Taste of Panama
The coming Tuesday, June 5, I am holding a fundraiser dinner! "A Taste Of Panama" will take place at Going Deep Sushi in Cave Junction, with two seatings; one at 5:30 and one at 6:30. I'll be cooking traditional Panamanian foods to raise money for my exchange. Tickets will be ten dollars a piece and will include dinner, dessert and a beverage. Come check it out! Good food for a good cause :)
Hope to see you there!
Friday, May 25, 2012
Connections
This school year is drawing to a close, and as exciting is that is, it makes me nervous as well! I won't be returning to high school in the US until my senior year! That's September of 2013! I'm more excited than anything to go on this exciting adventure and study in Panama, but I'm so sad to be leaving my friends and family for a whole year.
As scared as I am about leaving everyone I know at home, making new friends and having my host family become a second family is something I'm really excited about! So far I have met about fifty other students who are also going to Panama with AFS this year. Though I won't meet any of them until September, it's still really nice to talk to them, and be able to learn not only about the Panamanian culture but a little bit about where all the other kids are from as well! So far I have talked to students from Belgium, Amsterdam, Germany, and Thailand! It makes me smile to know that even though we are from all different places and backgrounds, we have a lot in common.
It's great to know that wherever I want to go in the world after Panama, I will have these connections and friends to see!
As scared as I am about leaving everyone I know at home, making new friends and having my host family become a second family is something I'm really excited about! So far I have met about fifty other students who are also going to Panama with AFS this year. Though I won't meet any of them until September, it's still really nice to talk to them, and be able to learn not only about the Panamanian culture but a little bit about where all the other kids are from as well! So far I have talked to students from Belgium, Amsterdam, Germany, and Thailand! It makes me smile to know that even though we are from all different places and backgrounds, we have a lot in common.
It's great to know that wherever I want to go in the world after Panama, I will have these connections and friends to see!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)