This is kind of my catch up post, stuff I’ve written over the past 3 days, but I haven’t had internet to post. Enjoy!!

To start out, I’m Madison, mostly known as Maddy. I’m currently a sophomore nursing major at Valpo and a member of Pi Beta Phi.

Well.. The journey has officially begun. I’m off, and I can hardly believe it!! I feel like I have waited my entire life for this opportunity and it’s just started to feel real within this past 24 hours (as I am currently sitting in the airport waiting to board my flight). Packing was.. well as packing normally goes; stressful, procrastinated, etc. But hey, I made it! Imagine your most stressful 6am morning possible at an airport, that’s kind of how mine went. Ticket didn’t show up, bag was too heavy, no one to help, but I made it to my flight, even without sprinting through the airport in my flip flops. Now that all the stress is done, the nerves and excitement are finally kicking in.. Well the excitement has been here for months on end, but still.

For those of you who don’t know me or my story, I’ll give a little background. I have dreamt of going to Africa for literally as long as I can remember. Whether it was a mission trip, a safari or just to travel there, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. So when I found out Valpo offered an abroad program in Namibia & South Africa, I was sold. I began planning quickly after my freshman year begun, because I knew that the nursing program had strict requirements. The people and unfamiliarity is what drew me to Africa specifically. Everyone has an idea in their head of what it’s like, what the people are like, how they live, etc., but you never really know until you experience it. So that’s what I set out to do.

As I took my last views of the California coast and Pacific Ocean, reality began to sink in. This is real. The 17 hour flight to from Washington Dulles to Johannesburg begins now. Lets just say the flight consisted of constant rustling around, a few cat naps, sleeping limbs, 3 movies [42, Great Gatsby & Jobs], sudoku, and lots and lots of Solitaire. Nonetheless, it was a pleasant ride, and went by a lot faster than I thought it would. After we stopped in Dakar, I got to watch my very first African sunrise as we flew over the island of Senegal. It was beautiful to say the least, very lion king-esque. I was one of the few students who sat next to someone other than a fellow student on our flight. As i observed the man sitting next to me, I noticed his worn hands, and as he spoke I could hear his accent. I began to wonder what his story was, where he was from, how many times he’s made this flight, how often? But, he had his headphones in, so I guess I’ll always wonder!

7 hours later we start to make our descent into Johannesburg. As I stare out the window, I see the city pass below me and then open plains. I notice cars driving on the left instead of the right, and I just can’t help but smile as I realize one of my lifelong dreams is coming true in that very moment. And now.. it’s real.

As we waited in the customs line at the airport a 7-9 year old boy begins to walk by stopping at each and every individual in line, asking in very broken english “hi you, where you from?” and would move on to the next. We later found out he was from Zimbabwe, as he made his way back down the line saying goodbye to everyone.

This next week has many adventures and lots of learning about Johannesburg’s history in store. So stay tuned!

I promise the next blogs will have more excitement.

xoxo

Maddy