Right now I'm back at good ole Camp Skyline Ranch for Girls, a home away from home where I've spent most of my summers since I was little. It's that awkward break between staff orientation and the first session of the summer (the rest of the counselors return to camp this Saturday, and campers arrive the next morning.) I'm super excited for things to get going here in Mentone, but Florence is never far from my mind (obviously, since it's June and I'm already posting on here). When I get home from camp on August 6, I'll have just 10 or so days to make any final preparations before boarding my flight across the pond to LONDON-I'll get to spend 4 days there before eventually heading to Florence, my home for the following 4(ish) months!! I'm excited for that short bit of time in London. I actually took a 2-week trip there when I was 14, so it'll be exciting to return unaccompanied by grandparents and armed with a little more experience and education. Ha. And Florence itself is going to be unreal. I can't wait.
I've already had an adventure or two in preparation for the trip-just 2 weeks ago I flew to Miami to apply for my visa (talk about an unforeseen curveball), and that was quite an experience in itself. My first flight out of Memphis got delayed, so I ended up having *5* minutes to make my connection to Miami after landing in Atlanta. White knuckles. I barely made it, but I did, and then bummed around the Miami airport from about 3:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. Semi-sketchy, yes, but I was wide awake in a well-lit area, and honestly, it was one of those fun "I-feel-independent" kinds of nights/experiences. Lame, yes. True, yes. I then caught a cab to the Italian consulate and upon arrival immediately felt like I was dealing with the mafia. I'd felt this way all along when dealing with them online-everything they say in their emails is along the lines of "Do not contact us in advance. Do not bring children to the consulate. Do not list the consulate's address on any envelopes. Do not bring your cell phone inside." The waiting area was an all-white room with a super-long '70s leather couch. I had to be escorted to the elevator and everyone spoke in hushed tones. Hushed tones in Italian, I might add. That complicated matters for me a little more. When I got to the correct floor I had to wait outside these huge (arched and opaque-glassed) doorways, buzz the desk and wait for what seemed like an eternity to be welcomed in (with a whispered "Come in.") It turned out I was lacking an important document so I'm having to mail that in and then hopefully this process should be complete (finally).
While in Miami I got to hang out with my adorable and wonderful roommate Stephanie, who took me to get the MOST AMAZING SUSHI I HAVE EVER EATEN IN MY LIFE. We wandered around and shopped (sort of) for a little while before I had to catch an 8-passenger Disney shuttle van (yeah...this one's going in the memoir) to Orlando, where I met up with one of my camp besties, Katie. I slept through most of the shuttle ride, thankfully. It was 4ish hours but felt closer to 24. I was exhausted and hungry, too worn out to put my Spanglish semi-skills to use. It felt like we made about 800 stops. I can't complain, though, because we eventually stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts and I never knew a toasted multigrain bagel could taste so incredible. Katie and I played at Disney World the next day (lesson learned: If you ever go to Disney World, have an Orlando native or former Disney employee take you. Katie is both. She knew all the tricks of the trade and the only thing we paid for ALL day was food. Holla). Epcot was a highlight for me. I loved the ride in the ball because I'm a nerd. It was like going on a quick comprehensive review of Humanities, the 4-semester sequence I took at Sewanee that covers most of the big players in Western Civ.
Katie and I drove to Gainesville the next day to attend her crew banquet. She's a men's high school rowing coach, which I find both funny and fitting. She's obviously very good at it. Modified Mary-Kay Letourneau behavior didn't seem out of the question with some of those graduating rowers. Just saying.
After Gainesville we spent the two following nights with two different camp friends, Marie and Maddie, whose houses were along the route to camp. We eventually ended at camp orientation, and now I'm here, blabbing on and on about the past 2 weeks and why I'm excited about the fall. I'm excited about tonight too-I'm heading to Atlanta to stay with Marie before first session starts, then we're road tripping to Savannah tomorrow to see the Avett Brothers. We're going to be exhausted for opening day Sunday, but it's going to be totally worth it.
Updating this blog about the specifics of camp is probably a contractual no-no so I won't be doing much (or any) of that, but I'll probably stop by periodically to gush about Florence. CAN'T WAIT. Promise some of the later posts will be more exciting.
Ciao!
