Pictures

I've started adding more pictures now that I'm back home.

Hawaii

After spending four very relaxing days in Hawaii I am now officially back in Texas. It's so good to be back, but I still haven't seen most of my family. At first I wasnt looking forward to being in Hawaii, but it turned out to be a very nice break between Samoa and home. I did a little bit of shopping, rode around the island on the busses, went to the beach, watched some surfing, and basically just chilled. It was wonderful, although a tad bit cold.

I came back to Houston on Saturday and have been staying with my sister at Rice until she finishes her finals on Tuesday. It worked out perfectly because this way I've gotten to say hi to all my friends back here before they leave for the holidays. Next semester is going to be so awesome. I've decided however that I really prefer just hanging around with no work, so I think that maybe I should just crash on campus next semester and not take any classes. That would be a lot of fun. However, I dont think my parents would be amused. What a shame!

As for culture shock- there hasnt been much. Wandering Ala Moana mall on Tuesday I kept wanting to speak Samoan, and it took me a little while to realize that I could actually call people on their cell phones, but mainly I'm just glad to be back. Yes it was a wonderful experience, but I'm not ready to give up everything here to move back and live on a tropical island. I realized that I'm not quite who I thought I was. Then again, I suppose that's part of what studying abroad is really about- discovering yourself. Hopefully I managed to do that. I think I have.

Coming home

Last night was our farewell dinner as we leave tomorrow afternoon. One of the boys left this morning. I can't believe how quickly time has flown. We spent the night at on a small private island Friday night, and I went back to Palolo Deep yesterday with a visiting SIT student. I'm so glad we went because I hadnt seen the giant clams the first time and they were gorgeous. I'm on borrowed internet time at the moment so I cant say much more, but I will be seeing everyone very soon. I have four days in Honolulu due to the flight change so I wont be home as early as I thought, but by this time tomorrow I will be in route. Love you all!

Presentations

Yesterday and today were our final presentations. I wasn't really looking forward to them, but I was very pleasantly surprised. They were all really well done and very interesting. I didn't feel the need to keep looking at my watch the whole time. For better or worse I drew the last time slot. I hadn't realized how nervous and just generally feeling stressed I was until it was over and it was like this huge wave of relief. I'm done!!!! Well, almost. We still have to fill out a few evaluations and write up a one page paper, but that shouldnt take more than thirty minuetes max. Tomorrow we are going to Lotofaga to say good-bye to our home-stay families. Friday is our free day and I'm planning to head up to the Robert Louis Stevenson museum. Saturday we have our final program evaluation and good-bye dinner, and then Sunday evening we get on a plane to head home. Somewhere between now and then I have to pack, which will involve sorting through the mess that is currently my desk, chair, and floor. I'm normally not this messy and disorganized, but with all the craziness thats been going on lately I just havent had a chance to put stuff away. I think I'm going to end up leaving a lot of the stuff I brought with me here- especially the clothes because they've just become stretched from all the hand washing. Plus, there are some stains that are just not ever going to come out. It's really amazing how dirty things become here.

I know I haven't posted pictures in a while. I'll probably go back and add them once I get home, but I'll be honest. I'm feeling a little lazy and just a tad bit burnt out right now. The semester's been incredible but intense. Anyways, I probably should get going...we're planning on going out tonight to celebrate being done. :)

Big day

Happy Birthday Robert! I don't think its quite midnight in Texas, but by the time anyone sees this it should be your birthday. I can't to see you and everyone else. I'll be home in one week. I finished my paper last night and will be doing my presentation tomorrow. After that we just have a few more things to do.

Counting down the days

I will admit it. I am counting. Yes I love being here and I know that I will miss it once I get back home, but I also just cant wait to see my family and friends. Tonight I had dinner with my first Samoan family. I'm glad that I had a chance to see them again. It's hard to believe that its already been three months since I was last at their house. Monday nights are always family nights- something I did not know until it had actually started. Before dinner the entire family- about 20 total including all the young children who live with them while they are in school- sat in the main fale, prayed and sang, and then began the talent portion of the evening. Apparently every Monday of the month is different- lesson, talent, service, and games. Everyone, from the 2 year old to the mother/grandmother got up and had to do something: a song, a dance, a poem, a story. I did my Samoan dance while everyone sang. It was really quite nice. We ate dinner and then I had to come back to campus to start working on my presentation.

I turned in my paper today. It was quite a fiasco trying to get it printed. Jackie wanted double-sided but after an hour of wandering around town I gave up and did it single. I'm glad its done. My goal is to finish the power point tonight so that tomorrow I can hang out with the group that presents tomorrow. My presentation is the very last one on Wednesday...ick. I feel like this week is going to fly by so quickly.

I should probably say something about Manono before too much time passes. The 24 hours that I spent there were very relaxing, restful, and definitely what I needed to take my mind off of the stress that was surrounding me with the paper's deadline looming over everyone. I spent most of the time reading or sleeping in the little cabin. I think I would have enjoyed it much more if I'd had more time or if I'd gone with someone else. As it was, it was a little wierd being pretty much the only girl around the place and feeling like a tourist for the first time in a very long time instead of a guest/family. I walked around the island- it took two hours. No cars, no dogs. Snorkeling was also nice, mainly because it involved going out in a boat to the reef. In terms of the actual underwater scene, Palolo Deep was so much more spectacular. All things told, I'm glad I went but Apolima was about ten times more awesome. :)

Back

I'm back from Manono, but not feeling all that well so I'll have to tell you more about that later. :)

*yawn*

It's almost midnight and I should be in bed but my mind does not want to let my body sleep. I dont really feel stressed but I think that on some level I must be. Last night Michaela, Heather, and I went out for dinner to get away from things for a little bit. It ended up being really nice, and when we got back we sat around in our common room and talked until 2am. Afterwards, instead of going to bed, I stayed up until almost 3:30 working on my paper. I finally crashed only to wake up at 5:30 unable to go back to sleep. I sat on my bed and wrote for the next four hours, knocking out the second half of my paper. I was honestly quite proud of myself. I've spent the past few days staring at a blank screen in the computer lab unable to get motivated so this morning's sudden burst of productivity was quite nice. I am now done with my rough draft and am only missing my bibliography. Tomorrow morning I plan to wake up early and head to Manono for about 24 hours. Hopefully the weather will be nice and I'll be able to hike around the island and do a little snorkeling. Heather and Niko might join me later in the day which would be really nice as it would mean that I wouldnt have to spent the night by myself. Not that I would mind, but company is always fun. When I get back Sunday the plan is to take a second look at my paper and begin work on my presentation. It's hard to believe that my time here is fast drawing to a close. At this point there is barely a week left. I won't lie- I am starting to get excited about going home. :)