Progress Update.

Today I thought I’d give an update of trip progress.  The countdown has crossed under 4 weeks!

After our visa application adventures, we were able to submit our missing insurance information by email and Amanda was able to send in her passport.  We waited fairly nervously, but our apprehension was unnecessary.  In less time than even the Spanish Consulate’s soonest estimate, we both received our visas, approved and ready to go!  I wasn’t sure what a visa even looks like, so I was surprised to find that it is not a separate document.  It’s printed on a page of my passport.

Registering for study abroad classes at UCF has been a multi-step process.  First we registered with Alcala, back in the spring.  Then, more recently, we registered for any four classes here at UCF.  I signed up for the classes I would have taken had I not been studying abroad.  The next step in the process was for the study abroad office to switch our classes to study abroad classes. This happened last week.  Now on our schedule, it looks at first glance like we’re studying on campus in Orlando, but upon closer examination, the section number is different, and when you click on the description, it reads “Study Abroad in Alcala, Spain.”

Amanda and I applied for scholarships earlier this summer.  The study abroad website is pretty vague about the application timeframe.  It is possible to apply at any time, up to approximately four weeks before departure.  We expected to have to wait at least a few more weeks before learning the results, but we received the good news a lot sooner.  Yesterday, we were each notified that we have been awarded Study Abroad scholarships from the Honors College.  Woohoo!

Six months ago, when we were still in the early stages of planning our semester abroad, Amanda and I talked about how we thought summer would feel like an age, since we’d be so excited.  I didn’t anticipate the way the months would fly by.  We leave so soon!