Kickin' it at Gate A4

I'm currently sitting at my gate staring at the plane that is about to take me half way across the world. So many things are running through my head: excitement, nervousness, uncertainty, and a healthy dose of worry. My dad and I arrived at Philadelphia Airport almost five hours before departure. We wanted to be sure to arrive before the snow and long lines that come with snow. Well, we pulled up to the US Airways International terminal and within five minutes both my bags were checked, I had my boarding pass, and directions to security and my gate (thank God for friendly people who actually know what they are talking about!). Man, I’m glad we got here earlyJ! I was happily surprised that I didn’t get pulled aside by security. I did set off the metal detector the first time through with my belt, but luckily I made it through the second time and didn’t even lose my pants! In all seriousness though, I’m glad I had time to get to my gate and relax before boarding the plane.

After arriving at my gate I sat down with not a person in sight, and for the first time in probably a month I actually had nothing to do but wait. A little while later, Lacey got here. (Lacey is my roommate from college who is also going to Florence with me) We hadn’t seen each other since we left for winter break so chatted for a while and exchanged Christmas presents. After a few unsuccessful attempts at accessing the “free wifi” I finally got it to work (ok maybe I had a little help from Lacey). We are killing time right now on Facebook, saying our last goodbyes to friends at home, and blogging (calling myself a blogger still makes me giggle). The gate is beginning to fill up and I think I see other study abroad students at the other side of the gate. Can’t wait to actually get on the plane and take off! Don’t know if there will be wifi in Brussels, but if there is, I’ll post again. ‘Til then, ciao!