After waking up around 3 AM, I quickly got ready as to be
sure I would arrive at ECHS on time. I woke my dad up, made sure I had
everything I needed, said goodbye to my mother, and hauled my suitcase into the
car.
Arriving at El Cerrito High while it was still pitch-black
outside felt like I was in a dream, my lack of proper sleep did not help. Don
weighed my suitcase, which surprisingly amounted to less than 35 pounds. It was
freezing cold outside which kind of helped me forget how tired I was.
He also went over a couple things, and gave us luggage tags
and some more information. Ms. Neal packed us little snack bags filled with an
assortment of goods such as granola bars, chips, and fresh fruit. We took some
photographs and waited for the shuttle to arrive.
Once it did, we stuffed our bags into it and said goodbye to
our parents. We started towards SFO, cold and tired, but very excited. Inside
the airport it was warmer, and we stood in line to check our baggage in. After
proceeding through security we went looking for our gate and waited to board
the plane. Ms. Neal gave us some money to buy lunch and I got a Chicken Caesar
Salad.
Our first flight was from San Francisco to Charlotte, North
Carolina. I sat in the middle seat, with Wendy to my left and Gabi to my right.
It was when the plane started taking off did it really dawn upon me that this
was it, the day I had been waiting months for.
I had planned to get some sleep on the flight, which I did, but
it wasn’t great. Instead of getting any real rest, I slept lightly and kept
waking up. While it was only about a four hour flight it felt like much longer.
I spent most of it looking out the window and listening to music.
We arrived in Charlotte after a short delay due to weather
problems, I got to eat my salad, which tasted delicious, while waiting for our
next flight. Charlotte to Providence was much shorter, and the plane was smaller
and more comfortable. I sat next to Gabi again, with her to my right. We
chatted about various things through the flight.
Before I knew it we had arrived in Providence, Ms. Neal drove us to the campus, where we got info and our keys. We also met our RA and chatted with her. We then met up with Komal and Ms. Maher at Kabob and Curry, a delicious Indian restaurant. I ordered a chicken tikka masala, which in all honesty made me feel homesick.
We rushed back to campus to make curfew and the cohort disbanded into their rooms. I started unpacking and face-timed my mother. It feels great to be here, Providence is a gorgeous city and I am looking forward to exploring it more.
What a glorious adventure you’re embarking on. I’m so excited for you all.
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