Sawatdee from Bangkok

sawatdee friends and family!

if you are reading this message, that means i have officially made it to bangkok. deep breath, exhale, good.

if you are reading this message it also means that you are aware of the big adventure i have just begun. just a few months ago i faced the daunting task of graduating and decided what to do with my life, not my summer vacation, but my LIFE. eekk. after much thought and hyperventilation, i decided that i wanted most to travel. to explore the world that i had spent the past 16 years learning about.

that's when i came across a program that allowed me to teach abroad. a beautiful concept! and after weeks of essays and applications came more weeks of waiting and waiting and waiting. then, in mid june, i found out that i had been accepted into CIEE's Teach in Thailand program for the fall semester. rejoice!

since then there has been a lot of emotions. excitement, nervousness, fear, sadness, sheer joy... none of these emotions have faded. as i sit on my bed in the hostel in bangkok, i feel as scared and exhilarated as the day i found out i was in, although the adrenaline/delirium of a 17 hour flight may be a contributing factor there.

while there are a lot of unknowns, i do have a few details to reassure those skeptical readers:
1. I will be in Bangkok for orientation for 10 days, including a 2-day excursion for elephant trekking and bamboo rafting yay!
2. There are approx. 80 others in the program that will be teaching across this beautiful country
3. I will be teaching at an elementary school in the Kalasin Province in the northeastern region of Thailand

so that's all for now. more to come very soon. i'm off to explore this crazy city they call bangkok.

thanks for all the loving send-offs! ill be keeping you all close to my heart!

xoxo
dena