T-minus 15 days until departure! I have my flight, my host family, and my school. I even have a room mate from Germany! There are 2 legs to my flight. I will leave DFW around 12:30 and will arrive in Chicago at 3. I'll have a 5 hour layover in Chicago then it's on to Dublin. I'll get into Dublin at 10am Irish time, but it'll be 4am in Texas. When I get to Dublin I will probably be bussed to Smithboro which is a small village in the county of Monaghan, where I will be staying for the next 9 months. I will be staying with a family of 6, they have 3 kids that are younger then me and 1 that is older. They have been hosting students for 10 years and I am super excited to get to know them. I will be attending Monaghan Collegiate School. While there I will be a 4th year, which is equivalent to a sophomore in America, but a lot more fun. 4th year is considered the transition year in Ireland so they are less focused on academics and more focused on life skills. Next on the agenda is to finish packing. It has been difficult to decide what I will and won't be needing and even more difficult to make it all fit in one suit case. I am looking forward to getting started and seeing the beautiful country of Ireland. Stay tuned for more 🙂