Wattwanderwhat?

I absolutely cannot believe that I am leaving for Germany in three days. As everyone else will agree, it seems like only yesterday that we were attending our first induction meeting. The semester ends, a few lazy summer days roll by, an OChem class comes and thankfully goes, then BAM! There she is, July 1st, sitting pretty on the next page of my planner. One ticket to Germany, bitte.

The past month of my life has been a somewhat voluntary, yet particularly unpleasant, sacrifice to the OChem gods. Daily four hour mini-marathons of note taking, lab work, and turtle time (Bailey LeConte, Drew Bedgood, Lisa Clayton and I have become very fond of spending our break time with the turtles that reside in the tank at the end of the hall. We are quite positive they will miss us once we embark on our great adventure. Especially The Brain, he seems to be the odd-turtle-out.). The only thing that makes completion of my summer course bearable is the knowledge that Germany awaits. Because Drew and Bailey are also traveling to Germany, class time evolved into “plan Germany jaunt” time at a very early stage in the curriculum (around when Dr. Miller handed out the syllabus). Thank goodness I have had these two around. Without them I would most likely be hostel-less on the upcoming weekend trips and would probably be in a slight state of panic. Bailey, Drew, for all of your help, my sanity thanks you.

Next on the list, packing. It is quite literally next on the list because the process itself has yet to actually begin. I will be carrying, on my back, everything that must accompany me on the trip. For this reason, I figured I would attempt a minimalistic approach. I know what you’re thinking. “Female. Europe. Five weeks. Good luck with an essentials only concept.” Well thank you for your support. Considering the fact that I only have one day to pack, I figure I can’t overdo it by too much anyway. Tomorrow morning I will take my final, deflate my air mattress, throw it in my car, and drive home to Dallas. I am hoping that spending a month on inflatable bedroom furniture will have conditioned me for the “mattresses” that await at hostels.

What will I miss while I am away? Well, I am not quite certain. Though I am not one that is generally ailed by homesickness, I am sure I will miss friends and family more than anything else. Honestly, the excitement of being in Germany will probably drown any possibility of sorrows for the first five, or so, weeks of the trip. What do I most look forward to? Everything! Sightseeing and people watching. Obviously, tours of facilities and insight into medical history. Maybe some morning jogs through the parks in Bonn (a preemptive measure to combat the beer belly).

Well, since the only words my spell check is flagging are German, I guess this post is blog-ready. Until Bonn everybody!