Gringa : A Change of Plans

Hello World.

I had a plan;

It was a fairly good one too. Less than a month ago I believed I would be attending Depaul University to study literature, history, and ramen noodles along with the class of 2019. I was drawn to Depaul primarily because of it's optimal location in Chicago, but also because they offer study-abroad programs as early as freshmen year, and I'm absolutely devoted to discovering the world.

As a reward for graduating, my father recognized my passion for travel and awarded me his frequent flier miles to visit my life-long friend and pen-pal in her hometown over 4,500 miles away. What began as a summer vacation filled with strange chocolates and tiny monkeys, became a promise of an incredible experience: to live and work in a foreign country.

Having been a very happy exchange student during my junior year in high school (as you may see on my old blog http://americandreams-helsinki.blogspot.com), it wasn't a huge surprise to anyone that I was right at home in São Paulo. Once I got used to strangers kissing my cheeks to say "Oi!/ Hi," I fell in love with Brazilian customs, food, and her romantic language; Portuguese. Though I was too busy to look in a mirror, at the end of each day my cheek muscles ached from smiling so much. My friend Cynthia took notice, and invited me to stay with them for a year to learn Portuguese, get fat on "Bridgaderios", and teach English to Brazilians who will eagerly pay to learn from a native English speaker.

So that became my dream: to spend a year living with some people I love and teach English.

But it was just a fantasy. It seemed as unattainable as attending Hogwarts. I don't speak Portuguese, I know very few people in São Paulo, and school is starting in less than a month. Despite all that, I wrote out all the reasons I wanted to move to São Paulo, and sent it in the form of a Deferral request, promising myself if it was approved I would go. And by some miracle, my enthusiasm was enough for Depaul to approve my adventure,

So now a North-American girl who loves snowmen, skating, and winter is moving to South America, and I'm so excited to share all of my cultural observations with you. After a year in Brazil, I hope to enter DePaul with work experience, multilingual, and with more money to help offset my college expenses.

But, who knows? Plans Change, and I like it that way...