A New World

A new world shattering the silence
There's a new world I'm afraid to see
A new world louder every moment
Come to me, come to me!

~Jason Robert Brown, Songs for a New World

I don't think I could have said it any better myself. This is what I feel like at this moment in time. I'm in a completely different world than the one that I'm used to and it's exciting and terrifying all at the same time.

So, as I'm sure you all guessed, I made it safely to New York, made it successfully onto my plane and through passport control in Cairo...which is where I'm at right now. Cairo,Egypt.

The flight over wasn't all that bad. Egyptair is pretty helpful and they didn't lose my luggage, which is always a plus. The food was fine, I mean, it was airplane food...it was hot...and edible (I really loved the desert, it was a type of cheesecake with jam on top! YUM!). I watched most of (500) Days of Summer, which was an okay movie. I'm not quite sure why it was nominated for a Golden Globe, but whatever...I wasn't in-charge of that. I fell asleep right as we hit some turbulence. I know it's odd, but the bouncing of the plane was really wonderful to go to sleep to. When I woke up, they were playing Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,and I really wasn't all that interested, but I sort of paid attention before I put on my iPod and dozed back off to sleep.

Getting through passport control was no where near as bad as I thought it would be, however, the baggage claim took forever! I guess that's what happens when you are on a really big flight. Blah! So, after I finally retrieved my luggage, I found the gentleman who was to take me to my apartment...where a slight mix-up occurred, but it was only minor and is all straightened out now.

Anyway...this semester is going to be very different from the semester that came before this one. I can just feel it. Let alone the fact that I'm going to be working on actual academic assignments and not film related stuff, which I don't even really consider class.

But, just for the sake of everyone reading this post and for those who possibly just found my blog, I'm going to recap.

My name is Becky and I'm a student at American University. Last semester, I spent my time in Prague, Czech Republic studying film at FAMU. I had a whole lot of fun and I made a whole lot of friends with whom I'm still keeping in contact. While I was in the Czech Republic I worked on 4 short films and 1 independent feature. It was a lot of fun and I was excited to see my talents being to put to such good use. I'll never forget the adventures I had and the trips I took, they will be with me forever, shaping who I am and how I react to people and situations.

This semester, I have opted to study abroad once again. This time in a country that is drastically much different from the States. I'm pretty optimistic at this moment that my trip here will be just as fun, exciting and rewarding as my semester in Prague. But, as with everything in life, there is no way to be sure.

I am apart of 1 of 2 different programs going on here in Cairo...and I really don't know anyone here...so, I will be making lots of friends I'm sure. My program here is very small (2 people! The other kid, I sort of know, but not enough to call him my friend.) and is relatively new, which means I'm pretty much a guinea pig for this program...this will be fun! It also means a lot of one-on-one time with professors which could be very useful.

There will definitely be somethings that take some getting used to however. For instance, the fact that the work week starts on Sunday and ends on Thursday. This means, that tomorrow I start orientation for the program...wow! (This also means that I will be calling it an early night, not that I wasn't to begin with, but you know...)

Since I arrived, I haven't done a whole lot. I've managed to put all of my belongings away in my room (which is a single room...meaning no roommate. Also, I have a private bathroom...that's kind of cool!), and I managed to wander downstairs to buy some soup and a soda for dinner. I haven't felt the need to wander yet as many people are still arriving and I want to make sure I can find my way back to the apartment ok.

So, that's about it for the moment. More things will arise, I know it. It's a new city and a new world! I just need to explore and figure it all out.

Back in the States

It's official now. I've been back home in the States for approximately three days...and it's been an interesting three days to say the least.

Once Kris and I headed to the airport on Friday morning, everything about the entire semester in Prague sort of felt like a dream. I was waiting for someone to shake me and wake me up and then tell me that we needed to leave to head to the airport so that I could leave for Prague. It was extremely surreal. But, after checking in and having a hot chocolate and cinnamon bun from Starbucks, things started to feel like reality. I was leaving and the first half of my adventure was over.

Getting through customs was a load of fun...let me just say. Our visas expired the day before our flight and so the people didn't really want to let us leave. Guess I can cross be an illegal immigrant off my list of things to do. But, with some cooperation, we were able to leave just fine. Also, the people in security also loved us as we had the film canister and I had all of my electronics. I'm not sure what they thought about the two of us, but they didn't seem to like all of this.

But, beyond all of this chaos of getting to the gate, the flight home was rather enjoyable. I don't remember take-off as I slept through it and when I finally did wake up I was over Dublin. I read my book for a little bit and watched some of the movies on my iPod before having a three hour conversation with the gentleman sitting next to me about screenplays. (I promise he asked me to talk about it, I didn't just go off on a tangent.)

Once we landed, customs wasn't too bad. The only thing that bothered me was the line, but then again I just hate lines. I pretty much breezed through and met my uncle and Geoff at the gate, which was a wonderful sight to see. We then hopped in the car and headed back to Baltimore, but not before getting lost a little bit in Brooklyn.

So, the way home was pretty normal...and things here have been pretty normal, except you know the two feet of snow we got. I think all of us coming back from Prague brought the snow with us as it was snowing pretty heavily when we left...

Since I've been home, I haven't done a whole lot. Geoff and I attempted to go to DC in the snow the other day, which resulted in us turning around and coming back. I've watched a lot stuff on my computer and I've been overly excited to eat American food. So far I've had Chinese food, a burger and cheese steak sub. I'm well on my way to eating everything that I missed while I was in Prague.

And there you have it! Part of my adventure is over. I had an amazing time in Prague and I wouldn't want it any other way. I'm not going to go into reflections on my time in this entry as I did that a few times in the entries before this one and I don't want to make myself sad that I had to leave. All I can say is thank you to everyone who has been reading my blog, thank you to all the friends I made and everyone who made this experience one worth telling.

...Now, I'm going to finish wrapping all of the presents that I brought home from Prague, I'll begin to unpack my things and begin to settle into a new routine here in the States. I'm still trying to figure out where things are in the house and I haven't quite adjusted to the time schedule here yet, but I'm sure it will come.

But, don't think that just because I'm back from Prague means that there aren't more adventures to come. For those who don't know, I'm only back in the States until January 22, 2010. It is at this point that I will board a plane for Egypt and will not return to the States until May 27,2010. That's a really long time, but it means that there will be some awesome adventures to come! So make sure to keep looking for updates!

As of right now, I'm putting As Seen By Becky on a slight hiatus. The Christmas season isn't going to yield a whole lot of interesting stories...just the usual interactions with the family...which are odd to say the least. But, do keep a look out for an actual update around mid-January. That's when I'll resume writing about the adventures...and I'll catch you up to speed on how the holidays went.

So, without further ado, this is me wishing you a safe and happy holiday! I'll be back in January and I hope to see you all here along for the adventure as well. Čau!