I just came home from the YES Abroad PDO (pre-departure orientation) in Washington DC, and all I can say is that I'm really tired. Oh and I didn't really take any pictures...oops. Sometimes I just feel like it's better to live in the moment than to bring a camera into the picture. With that said, any pictures I use will be taken from other people, so thank you to anyone whose pictures I put in this post.
Tuesday, June 24th (My Birthday!)
I was supposed to leave at about 1 PM, but I ended up leaving a little later because my train kept being delayed. I was with Helene (a fellow Indonesia YESer) though, so we got a chance to get to know each other! When I finally got to DC, I met up with Union Station was super busy. The cab line was kinda annoyingly long, but it went much faster than we thought it would. Once we arrived at the 4-H Center, we put our bags in our rooms and went to dinner. The welcome session was after that, and we got to sit our country tables for the first time. It was great to meet all my fellow Indonesia goers. I'm so excited for August!
First Indonesia group picture!
(L-R; Top row: Sara - our awesome group leader, Aiden, Baillie, Helene, Madison
Bottom row: Victoria (me!) and Lindsay)
Wednesday, June 25th
Wednesday was FULL of workshops. Starting right after breakfast and ending quite a while after dinner, the workshops seriously did last all day. There was a lot of information given to us at once, but we all survived and will hopefully remember the things that we need!
Thursday, June 26th
Thursday was the day that some country groups went to their embassies (not including Indonesia),and we all went to the U.S. Department of State. We were a bit disappointed that we didn't get the chance to visit the Indonesian embassy, but we went to see some Asian art at a museum instead. Even though there wasn't really any Indonesian art at the museum, there were some pretty interesting pieces of art. Once we left the museum, we took a few pictures with our country groups and headed over to the State Department. Since we were early, we sat down and talked for a little while. At the State Department, we heard a few people and got to ask some country or region specific questions. I wasn't feeling very well while we were there, so it honestly wasn't the the most fun experience. I was really out of it. I think I was just really tired and a bit dehydrated though. After the State Department, we went to the Lincoln Memorial and took some picture. Once we were done there, we went back to the 4-H Center for dinner and another session.
YES Abroad 2014-2015
Friday, June 27th
Today went by pretty fast. We ate breakfast, had a closing session, and said goodbye to friends. I'm sad to know that I may not ever see some of them again, but I'm very excited for each and every one of my fellow YES Abroad participants. I think it's pretty cool that we'll be on three different continents for a year, and I cannot wait to hear about everyone's experience!
That's all for now. As I said before, I'm super tired. I have some school stuff to do and a concert to go to tomorrow, so I better get some sleep!
Selamat tinggal!
Bahasa Indonesia word of the day: hari Jumat - Friday
P.S. Now that PDO is over, I have a new countdown on the side of the blog. I only have about 51 days left out home! As weird as it probably sounds, this whole thing somehow still doesn't feel real!
Also, shout out to Sarah (IPSE roomie!), Katie, and Kennedy who are leaving for the Philippines on Sunday. Have a safe trip! I wish you all the best, and I hope (and know) that you will have an AMAZING year!
This post's song is Afire Love by Ed Sheeran
(I've decided to make the songs an official thing because I can't seem to stay away from posting them!)
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