Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Preparation

Hello,
This is my first blog post. 
     I will be boarding my first plane on the way to Jordan one month from today.  I am required to arrive in Amman, Jordan on January 20th so I have to fly out on the 19th.  I will drive up to St. Louis and fly from there to Charlotte, NC and from there to New York City and then from there to Amman, Jordan.  
     I just finished up with finals last week and got back home last Saturday.  I did not take any Arabic classes this Semester at Mizzou so I am a little rusty.  So I have been reviewing all the Arabic I had previously learned since I have been home.  I want to be prepared as possible when I arrive in Amman. I study grammar and vocabulary for two hours every day.  I have also been working out to stay in shape.  I have read recommendations that say being well conditioned helps with jet lag.  I also want to stay in shape because I plan on joining a gym over in Jordan.  
    My plan is to just do a lot of last minute research before my departure date.  I am going to start reading a lot of material concerning the culture of Jordan and just some general study abroad tips.
The question I get most is "are you nervous about going over there?' My response is always "not yet but I probably will be on that long plane ride over there". I honestly am not a bit nervous about going over the middle-east.  I know I have God to protect me and that it is safe over there as long as I don't do anything idiotic, which I don't plan on doing.  The only thing that I am mildly concerned about is the language barrier I will have.  I have not faced many failures in my life so I feel like I will get frustrated when I will not be able to communicate very well.  
    Thats all I have to say about that, I will blog again on January 18th. 

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