Last Week at Home

There are officially 5 days left until I leave Austin and head for New York/ France!!!

The packing has started and my room is an organized disaster. But there is a buzz of excitement that comes along with the mess, because it means my adventure is about to begin!:) My mom and I are spending this whole week shopping and getting all the little details finished and all the loose ends tied up before I leave, so it is going to be a very busy week.

On another exciting note I took my last test for my summer school today. It was such a relief that I almost had to lay down and take a nap afterwards! LOL!

In terms of things I'm packing for France.
I can only pack 1 checked bag and if my information is correct it can only weigh 45lbs.
1 Carry on bag and a back pack or purse. -.-
Luckily my fabulous host mom told me it was totally fine if I shipped a box of stuff to Whittelsheim before I arrived. Which I think will be very helpful.

I am packing lots of sweaters and long sleeves. leggings and jeans. like 2 dresses. workout clothes. Pjs and just some comfy clothes to relax in. Basically a full set of outfits for all sorts of occasions. However when packing I did have to keep in mind that I will more than likely do some shopping once I'm over there, so I had to really think about what clothes I was going to bring.

I also found out today that cellphones can be taken care of in a lot of different ways.
1. You can just buy a prepaid cellphone with a SIM card once you arrive in France. (most kids do this and I'm pretty sure it's one of the cheeper ways you can get a cellphone)
2. You can get an international plan through your US carrier and just buy minutes, texting and data each month. (My carrier is AT&T and after going to the store today I found out that this way can be very expensive and is not a very good choice, for me.)
3. (This one is the one I believe I am going to use. It can also be a little more difficult.) If one of the phones on your families plan or your own phone's contract is up/ expired. You can request to have your phone unlocked. Meaning you can take your phone over seas and then get a SIM card from one of the carriers in your host country and buy a phone plan that will work in whatever country you are in. But you are still able to use your cell phone from home.
In my case my dads phone contract was up so we are having to switch the SIM cards on our phones that way I can take his to France with me and he can use mine. (I'm sure all of that seemed very complex and confusing and at first it is. But it is a very good solution to any Cell phone problem when going abroad for extended amounts of time, at least it was for me.

I have also met 3 other super amazing and funny exchange students that are going to France this year and we have been talking basically non stop all day. hahaha. I can't wait to meet them in New York in a couple days!

Well that's all I can think of at the moment!:)

Avec Amour,
Grace