Finally!

I finally found out when I'm leaving! My host sister was actually the one to tell me and she said that I'm leaving August 14th. I thought it was kind of funny that my country officer emailed her and not me, but I'm just happy to know. Now that I know, I'm all the more excited. Just about all the calenders in the house have countdowns on them, I've started organizing the things I need to pack, things are happening! Things are REALLY happening. With every second that passes before me, I grow more and more ready for this experience. This will truly be life changing and I can't wait for what's to come of this. Before I know it, I'll be sitting on an plane headed to Sapporo, Japan and that's when reality is going to slap me in the face and leave a mark that will never fade. I'm ready.

Whoa!

A lot has happened since I last updated! So I finally got my hosting and school guarantee forms back from Japan which is a HUGE relief. Now that I've received the paperwork, they can finally start approving my visa and I can finally stop worrying. I mean, not receiving these papers could put hold on my exchange! But no worries, they're here now. In other news, I'm leaving earlier than expected! Instead of leaving during the third week of August, they're now thinking I'll be leaving during the second week of August because my school starts so early (August 17th). This is both very exciting and very nerve racking. As my departure comes closer and closer, I find myself feeling... Hm. I don't quite know how to explain it. I guess it feels kind of like when you're a little kid and it's Christmas eve mixed with standing in line to go on a roller coaster. You're so excited and you can't wait, but at the same time, you're getting more and more nervous and you have no idea just what things are going to be like. Speaking of being nervous, I was recently handed the assignment of giving a 20 minute presentation about my life here in Oregon to my Sponsor Club. JOY. Let me say, I am not one for public speaking. I'll just have to get over that, though. Anyway, yeah. That's about it. Now, I tried to upload a part of my guarantee forms because they had all these cool stamps from my school on it, BUT my computer's being difficult so maybe later. If I find anything else out in the near feature, I will be sure to inform you. Update you guys later! 

Realizations and excitement!

Today, I finally got to kind of meet my host sister that I'll be with for a little bit! We Skyped which was really fun but really hard at the same time. I've always known that this will be a lot of work and is going to be really hard, but I think it's starting to really hit me just how challenging this journey will be. Yuri, my host sister, would ask me questions in Japanese which I'm sure were probably the simplest of questions but since my Japanese skills are sub-par, they ended up not being very simple questions. Even though I've been studying like nobody's business, I think I'm going to have to study a little bit more. Or a lot. Yeah, a lot. But besides finally being able to grasp just how tough this is going to be, this got me a lot more excited. Now believe me, I've been excited from the very beginning, but this puts my excitement on a whole new level.  It was wonderful seeing where I'm going to be living for a while and who I'm going to be staying with. I was able to say hello to my host mother and she seemed SO sweet. That, that right there, is very comforting. Not only did I get to fake meet some of my host family, but I was able to reply to a couple of questions they asked me. For example, when my host sister asked me what the weather was like, I was able to very confidently reply that it was indeed raining. So, yeah. Pretty dang exciting. Seriously, though. This is really exciting. This is big. 

Let's rewind a bit...

What made me want to go?

So, this whole interest for Japan like I said, started when I was 10. My family was visiting some relatives in California and that's when it all started. My second cousin Amber was showing me some pictures from her recent trip to Japan and it looked absolutely beautiful. Ever since then, I knew I had to go.

How did I get started?

I finally started the process of applying to an exchange program during my sophomore year of high school. If you're thinking of going on exchange you might be thinking "Ah! What program should I go with?" Well, I highly recommend going through Rotary International. Rotary has the cheapest program and it's definitely by far the best. They pay for a lot of my major expenses such as textbooks and school uniforms while at the same time, they give me a monthly allowance. Not only does Rotary pay for a lot of stuff, but I really do feel completely safe using this program. If you aren't doing well with one of your host families, they get you out of there and into a different home as soon as they can. Also, there are many people there to to help you at all times. They've got the art of going on exchange down to an exact science! Besides the wonderful prices and extensive amount of support from all the Rotarians, my absolute favorite thing about Rotary would have to be all the friends I've made. I have to say, we're a pretty incredible group of people. So choose Rotary! Once you've chosen your exchange program, apply and it all pretty much goes down hill from there. So please, if you have any questions about applying to go on exchange, ask me!

What happened when I was accepted?

When I was accepted, well, I pretty much freaked out. I've never been so excited about something in my entire life! But besides screaming and jumping up and down, I've had to do a lot. If you go through Rotary, you're going to be busy, busy, busy. There's a number of functions you have to go to and depending on your country officer (the person coordinating your exchange), you may have to do some projects on the side. Applying for your visa is also a big one. Depending on what country you end up going to, there will be different visa requirements. For example, some of my friends had to go and get FBI checks in order to be let into their host country. So please, be prepared to do a lot. Going on exchange already has and is going to take a lot of commitment. Now that it's summer, I'm studying like mad. Study, study, STUDY. But it will truly be worth it in the end. It will make going on exchange much easier and enjoyable. 

News!

So, I know one of my host families and I know what school I'm going to! Sapporo Higashi High School! ^_^ Unfortunately, my host sister will be close to where I live in America while I'm in Japan. Although, I will be able to spend a little time with her, so that's cool. Also, I ordered some Japanese books to help me study and one has arrived. I love, love, love it!

こんにちは！

Hello! My name is Hannah Garrett and this August I will be traveling to Sapporo, Japan. Ever since I was 10 years old, I've wanted to go on exchange to Japan and now my dreams are finally starting to come true. I will be there for one year and I'm planning on it to be a crazy one. While I'm on exchange, I want to blog about my adventures and inform people about what it's like to go on exchange. If you have any questions, feel free to message me. I'd love to help!