May 6 - My adventure begins

First let me start from the beginning...This adventure began in the strangest way....with my being laid off from Waterfront Media.

I'd been at WFM for about 2 years and made it through a big round of layoffs. I thought I was in the clear. The day I got the big news, I was scheduled to have my 1 year review..instead, I was told that my position had been terminated. I was surprised by this, but somehow after I got over the initial shock(a few days later), I was relieved. Everything happens for a reason. God has a bigger plan...This was an opportunity.

I wanted to learn Spanish once and for all. I just had to figure out how to make it happen.

A few days later I made a call to Sr. Lois at St. John Villa Academy. She was the principal there when I was a student in the high school. I told her that I had been laid off, and I was thinking that maybe this would be a good opportunity to learn Spanish by being immersed in a Spanish speaking country. I told her I knew that the Sisters had missions in Chile and Mexico, and was wondering if she might be able to help me make some contacts there. My idea was to stay with the sisters or someone they could recommend) for a month. Sr. Lois said she thought it was a great idea and that one of the sisters, Sr. John Marie, had just returned to Chile, and that she could probably help me go there. She'd be back to me in a few days.

A couple of days later, I received an email from Sr. Lois and John Marie that said I was welcome to stay with the sisters in Santiago, and they would be happy to host me. They had a room for me and would pick me up at the airport. I booked my tickets ($880) using my Capital One Credit Rewards card miles, and purchased a copy of the Rosetta Stone program.

The next few weeks were filled with getting ready to leave Waterfront Media catching up with friends and family, getting my shots, packing, buying adapters, and studying spanish. I'd get up at 8am and be running around till dinner and sometimes late in the evening. The big day came upon me so fast. I had planned to be all packed and at my parent's house by 10pm, for my 3am trip to JFK. By the time, I cleaned my condo, cleared out perishables from the fridge, threw out the garbage, turned off the water (turned back on the water to flush the toilet) left my keys with the neighbors, and got my luggage in the car it was 12:30pm.




At 3:30 am, Mom, Dad and I were on our way to JFK. And so my adventure officially began.