Bon Voyage!

Packing, packing, and more packing.  Preparing for this month excursion abroad has felt like one giant (and eternal) checklist:

• Apply for Visas: one (1) for India and one (1) for China
• Get the appropriate vaccinations and pills
• Visit the optometrist and dentist
• Sign up for health insurance abroad
• Register with the government and university for travel plans
• Make airplane and hostel reservations
• Plan communication strategies for keeping in touch with family and friends
• Meet with friends who have traveled to India and China to understand their experiences, their 'can't miss' recommendations, and learn any other helpful tips about cultural expectations and morays
• Search apps to aid in-country language, culture, and location identification
• Pack my life in two suitcases and a bookbag

...and now I've finished the list.  I'm ready to go, right?

Taking another glance at my trip, it just seems unreal that I'm actually going to begin this journey - tomorrow.

May 6, 2013 - June 2, 2013

I've always wanted to travel or study abroad.  I want to understand other cultures and ways of knowing the world.  I want to deeply engage the idea of humanity with those unlike myself.  And the time is now - my first abroad experience is here!

Part 1: India

Tomorrow I depart for Mumbai, India with members of the Buckeye Leadership Fellows Program.  I have had the pleasure and honor of working for this personal, professional, and leadership development program for Junior and Senior students at The Ohio State University for the past two (2) years.  There are 14 of us embarking upon this cultural exploration through India:

• 11 Seniors: most of whom graduated as of today - congrats!
• 2 Graduate Students: myself, and a graduated M.A. student the Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) Program I'm in
• 1 Program Director: the esteemed, Eddie Pauline

We will be in India from May 6 (really, May 7 with the time change) - May 15 (though I leave a day early for China).  We already have a full schedule!  We intend to gain a comprehensive understanding of India through the lens of culture and history, business, and government.  To do this, we'll visit:

India's Stock Exchange in Mumbai

Taj Mahal in Agra

We'll visit businesses like Accenture in New Delhi

India's Parliament in New Delhi

We'll visit those sites and many more!

Part 2: China

Immediately following this trip, I'll travel to Wuhan University in China to complete an internship in the student affairs department at their university.

I will be placed along with four (4) colleagues completing the Higher Education program at Ohio State.  Although I don't yet know where I will be placed for my internship, I hope to work with students in leadership development programs or student organizations.

I'll arrive to China on Tuesday, May 14 and stay in Wuhan until Thursday, May 30.  Over the weekends in Wuhan, I hope to travel to Shanghai and Xi'an.  If you're reading this and know a suit tailor in Shanghai, please leave a comment!  I've heard great things about tailors in Shanghai, and I'm on the hunt for a good suit :)

Shanghai, China

Old City - Xi'an

Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an

Once the internship is concluded, I will finish my stay in China by traveling to Beijing to see the Great Wall and Tienanmen Square.

Tienanmen Square

Great Wall of China

Then (and finally!) on Sunday, June 2, I return to the states.

...I realize that was a very long, logistically-focused overview of my trip.  Over the course of the next month, I will update this blog with pictures, facts, and anecdotal stories from my travels.  All I ask is that you please say a prayer for those of us traveling - that we may be safe and have exciting and transformative experiences.