Checklist!

Jul 24,2015

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela

    

    So with only 1 month left before I board my plane for Paris I only have so much time to finish my preparations. I’ve made 2 To-Do lists: one for before I leave, the other for after I arrive. To-Do lists are extremely important when one is leaving the country for an extended period of time, especially as long as a year. Don’t want to forget anything but even if I do, I can always have someone mail it to me. So no worries.

Checklists…

    So what have I done so far? Starting back in March I got accepted and started planning. I am lucky that my sister, Autumn, is already in Paris because she was getting a Masters in Amsterdam this past year and hasn’t come back to the states yet so I get all the stuff from her apartment. Yay!! That is more help than you will ever know! Everything from towels and sheets to power converters, a panini maker, smoothie maker and hang dry clothes rack. That will save me a lot of time and money when I get there. Plus, she’ll be at the airport to greet me when I arrive.

Campus France…

     As well, a few months ago I had to start the process with Campus France. Campus France is a government corporation that you have to go through to study abroad in France. In order to go to the American University of Paris, Washington DC has to approve of you going along with the French government. Simply being accepted is not enough. So I had to start that process of applications and essays months ago because they take forever to approve you. 

    Along with Campus France I had checklists from AUP that I had to start checking off. Like they wanted to know if I needed an airport shuttle, do I need help setting up a bank account, do I need help finding housing, etc. So by this point, the only things I have not done are set up my bank account because you can’t do that more than a month before arriving and then getting a permanent place to stay with my cat Dazie. AUP will help me set up my bank account and find a place once I get there. I just have to find somewhere temporary to stay until I get somewhere permanent. 

Student Visa and summer reading…

    I booked my Student Visa appointment with the French Consulate in Houston (the one for my southwest region) for July 27 as soon as I got the all clear from Campus France. You have to have your student visa appointment a few weeks before you leave so it has time to process before you leave the United States. I have been doing my summer reading and I love the books they’re having us read! “Authentic: the politics of ambivalence in a brand culture” is fantastic! I’ll get my iPhone here unlocked before I go so I can just have them switch on the service when I get there. 

Amsterdam, Ecuador and then Paris…

    I booked my flights last week. I still have to pay for Dazie and extra bags but that is not a big deal. I’ll be in Ecuador the 2-10 of August seeing my best friend before I head to France for the year. Cannot wait to spend a week on the beach in Montanita! I am so pumped and ready to go! Ecuador and then Paris! I spent a week in Amsterdam earlier this summer so it’s safe to say I am ready to start seeing the parts of the world I have yet to see! :)

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Checklist!

 Checklist!

Checklist!

Checklist!

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela

    

    So with only 1 month left before I board my plane for Paris I only have so much time to finish my preparations. I’ve made 2 To-Do lists: one for before I leave, the other for after I arrive. To-Do lists are extremely important when one is leaving the country for an extended period of time, especially as long as a year. Don’t want to forget anything but even if I do, I can always have someone mail it to me. So no worries.

Checklists…

    So what have I done so far? Starting back in March I got accepted and started planning. I am lucky that my sister, Autumn, is already in Paris because she was getting a Masters in Amsterdam this past year and hasn’t come back to the states yet so I get all the stuff from her apartment. Yay!! That is more help than you will ever know! Everything from towels and sheets to power converters, a panini maker, smoothie maker and hang dry clothes rack. That will save me a lot of time and money when I get there. Plus, she’ll be at the airport to greet me when I arrive.

Campus France…

     As well, a few months ago I had to start the process with Campus France. Campus France is a government corporation that you have to go through to study abroad in France. In order to go to the American University of Paris, Washington DC has to approve of you going along with the French government. Simply being accepted is not enough. So I had to start that process of applications and essays months ago because they take forever to approve you. 

    Along with Campus France I had checklists from AUP that I had to start checking off. Like they wanted to know if I needed an airport shuttle, do I need help setting up a bank account, do I need help finding housing, etc. So by this point, the only things I have not done are set up my bank account because you can’t do that more than a month before arriving and then getting a permanent place to stay with my cat Dazie. AUP will help me set up my bank account and find a place once I get there. I just have to find somewhere temporary to stay until I get somewhere permanent. 

Student Visa and summer reading…

    I booked my Student Visa appointment with the French Consulate in Houston (the one for my southwest region) for July 27 as soon as I got the all clear from Campus France. You have to have your student visa appointment a few weeks before you leave so it has time to process before you leave the United States. I have been doing my summer reading and I love the books they’re having us read! “Authentic: the politics of ambivalence in a brand culture” is fantastic! I’ll get my iPhone here unlocked before I go so I can just have them switch on the service when I get there. 

Amsterdam, Ecuador and then Paris…

    I booked my flights last week. I still have to pay for Dazie and extra bags but that is not a big deal. I’ll be in Ecuador the 2-10 of August seeing my best friend before I head to France for the year. Cannot wait to spend a week on the beach in Montanita! I am so pumped and ready to go! Ecuador and then Paris! I spent a week in Amsterdam earlier this summer so it’s safe to say I am ready to start seeing the parts of the world I have yet to see! :)