Happy Birthday!

I'm now officially old...aka 22! And I'm going to Paris in less than a month!

I don't really have any big information to update anyone on. I've already mentally checked out from school, which is making studying for finals a bit of a challenge. I'm just ready to be done with this semester's classes and spend my summer learning about French and French culture!

I've been browsing laptops, hoping to find a good one on sale somewhere because I don't want to spend too much money on one. So, if you have any info about good laptop deals, help me out! My new digital camera has been proving itself to be quite excellent. It takes great photos and videos, so I know it'll be an excellent asset to have this summer.

A few of you have been asking how you can get in touch with me this summer. When it gets closer to time for me to leave, I'll write out how exactly that will work if you want to talk to me on the phone. I will have some Internet access, but it won't be too consistent, so if it isn't urgent, email will work fine...you just won't be able to count on finding me on AIM too often!

That's my little update for now...off to celebrate my birthday =)

The Countdown

I have 33 days until I am leaving for Paris, and I have a TON to do in those days! First, obviously, I have to get through the last week of classes and finals week. Second, since all of my electronic equipment seems to be failing me all at once, I have a lot of shopping to do.

As far as things to buy go...I made my biggest purchase, my plane ticket, yesterday. The next-biggest purchase would be a new laptop. I was kind of undecided as to whether or not I was going to do that, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to now. My current laptop has a dead battery and a new battery will cost $250 (because Dell sucks), which is more than a third of the cost of a new laptop. I don't want to take a laptop that can't run on battery power, because otherwise I'll have to keep it plugged into both an electrical converter and an outlet all the time, which would probably ruin my charger (which would cost another $200 to replace). So, I decided that I might as well just get a new laptop since mine is outdated and doesn't work all that well anyways. I also want to get a new iPod before I leave, because my current one also has no battery life...and I know I'm going to want my iPod battery to last more than a few hours when I'm flying over the Atlantic for eight hours.

Some of the other things I'm looking into buying are new Chucks (my black ones are kind of falling apart), a backpack for weekend trips around Europe, and a light waterproof jacket. Basically, I'm going to be spending a ton of money in order to go to France and spend a bunch more money. But I'm excited!

Riley =)

A Fresh Start

So, a few of you have been reading this blog for awhile now and may notice a few changes. First of all, the layout has changed. Second of all, all of my old posts are gone. There's a few reasons for these things.

I started this blog with the intention of documenting my travel experiences and it didn't really serve that purpose before. Now, I have been accepted to a study abroad program in Paris, France, for this summer and I want to use this blog for its original purposes, but I wanted to get rid of all of the other, irrelevant stuff that may have detracted from that.

What exactly will this blog be documenting? On May 25, I will be leaving Indianapolis for 54 days and studying in Paris, France, through a program with IES Abroad! I will be studying until July 11, then staying in France (doing God knows what...I'll figure that out when I get there!) until July 18. I'll be staying with a French family, hopefully improving my French speaking skills, and taking classes in French culture and language. It's going to be an exciting experience!

So, I hope you all enjoy reading about my adventures and misadventures abroad! Please leave comments...I'd love to hear from you!

Riley =)