The not-so-fun Preparations

Getting ready to leave the country for a year can be a blast. There is shopping to do, things to get, and gifts to buy. You have to learn a new language, which is challenging but can be fun, and you also spend time learning about your new culture. Although all these things are fun, there are some downsides to prepping for a year abroad. The biggest downside is probably all the appointments that have to be done before leaving. For me, I have dentist appointments, doctors appointments, eye exams, and every other kind of appointment imaginable. Tomorrow, I have to go and get my wisdom teeth out. They have to come out at some point and it would not be good to be in Brazil next year and have to go into surgery from them causing problems. The process of having the surgery and being drugged up from it will knock out several days of my summer that could be otherwise used for doing things I see as "more important".  Something that may fall in my category of "more important" would be visa paperwork. Visas are an entire pain in themselves. It is not easy to just spend a year in a country. Not in the slightest. The paperwork is long and tedious, requiring many steps and many signatures. I had to request a background check this week and got a call from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to confirm that I hadn’t been born two days ago. I had to assure them that I am, in fact, 18 and not a two year old infant who has a cell phone and can speak fluid English. With the background check sent off, I have to find a way to get myself and both parents into one place long enough to sign papers in front of a notary (not a simple task might I add). When I finally manage for all the paperwork signed, photographs taken, bank statements confirmed and my certified background check returns , the second round of steps to get my visa will begin. Preparing and planning can be exciting, but sometimes it is just not-so-fun.