In twenty-seven days I’m going on an adventure. I’m getting on a bus, and then a plane, and I’m traveling across seven time zones to Alexandria, Egypt. I don’t know exactly what I’ll encounter or when I’ll be back, but I do know that in one way or another this will be a life-altering experience.
Let me back up a bit for anyone not entirely familiar with my situation:
I’m Jessie, a Junior at Smith College in Northampton, Mass. where I’m pursuing a self-designed major in Middle East Studies. In September, I’m going to the University of Alexandria through the C.V. Starr-Middlebury program in the Middle East to study (primarily) Arabic in an immersion-based environment. I will be staying for an academic year, or possibly a semester, depending on my experience there and any effects it may have on my view of my future, academic and beyond.
I’m in the midst of getting ready for this adventure by rounding up my best guess at culturally-appropriate clothing, getting my finances and paperwork in order, and collecting more vaccines than I’ve had in the past nineteen years. I’m also working as a sternman on a lobster boat out of Corea, Maine, as I have for five of my last seven summers.
Needless to say I’m a very busy, and very tired person right now. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to relax for a few days before I have to leave, because I certainly won’t be catching much rest in Alexandria for a while. In addition to the jet-lag, I won’t be flying directly into Alexandria, and will have to devise some way to make the two-hour drive from Cairo to the university. This may mean a taxi, a train, or a van provided by the Middlebury program. At this point, my mode of transportation, much like many other things about the next year, is uncertain. In the meantime, there is nothing for me to do but wait.
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