Little questions strike me, for instance; Paisley? Knit? Polka-dot? How many of my dozens of ties will I NEED? Well, really the answer is likely one or two, but this little dilemma is representative of the  wider debacle that presents itself in preparing for 4 months studying abroad.

My name is Gregory Maher, and I will soon depart for the city of lights, oui, c’est Paris! Yes, France shall be my home for a semester, and my program, Paris Internship, is coordinated through Boston University. In France I will take classes with professors from local universities for the first half of the semester to prepare me for the second half, ze internship. My placement I know not, BUT I’m interning in Paris, so how could I lose? Well, back to the present . . .

. . .  I am in the midst of preparing my bags for departure, which means I’m making numerous piles of stuff that I “need,” only a portion of which I can actually take. Oh lordy, how’m I to fit my life in these few bags for a whole semester??

As I’m attempting to reserve a shuttle from the airport to my host family’s apartment, my mother tries to convince me I need a passport wallet to wear around my neck at ALL times, while I’m still pondering that eternal question . . . what could Indiana offer that my host family could ever desire as a welcoming gift? Oh well, amidst the tying up of all my loose ends in America, I’ve surely knotted a few in the chaos of preparation. Among the lessons I learned through this process is this:

Truly, it is so easy to get lost in the momentary stresses of packing and preparation- to worry over my ability to revive French vocab long-buried in the recesses of my mind, to wonder if I’ll really be glad I’ve gone when all of my friends and those I hold dear to me are miles and miles away, across the ocean and horizon. I really just have to slow myself down and truly realize the incredible opportunity I’ve been afforded. I smile as I pack away the last of my things, thinking of the new experiences and people I will encounter, and the chance to truly come face-to-face with zis place called Paris. Au Revoir les États-Unis! À Paris!

Do your research: the Boston University website for the Paris Internship program actually contains practical day-to-day info (seems obvious after the fact) from obtaining cell phones in Paris to the location of the closest chocolate shops. And yet I did not discover this until perusing the site a week before my departure. Know that there are resources available to you for every question your (at this point, probably neurotic) mind can come up with. How else might I learn that public restrooms may in fact contain a doorman to assist me in my toileting process!