We're Almost There

Today was the day that the Vanderbilt crew finally took off for their adventure to the South.

We met in front of the El Cerrito High School at 6 in the morning to pick up our loaner items from Don, which included laptop security cables and more. With a few parting words from Don himself and a group picture, we were ready to set off on our journey.

As we stood in front of the school awaiting a shuttle van to bring us to SFO, to our huge surprise, a gleaming white limousine pulled up. We stared in shock and let out squeals of excitement (well, at least I did), and climbed in. The inside was just as impressive as the outside—there were dozens of shiny glasses and bright neon lights that lit the automobile from the inside-out.

It was my first time riding in a limousine, and the experience made me realize what first-class really meant. We, at this moment, are being given an opportunity that some students could never even dream of having. This whole trip, from the college visitations to the actual summer courses, is truly a privilege, and that is why we are all here—to be the ambassadors of our community. Our experiences and our knowledge that we gain in this trip, which are to be recorded in our blog, serve as the eyes in which our peers and fellow students look through. It is our job, therefore, to learn as much as we can about these colleges in the South, and to gain as much knowledge as possible so that we may pass it on.

The plane ride to Chicago, Illinois was a rather uncomfortable one. I could not fall asleep and was too restless to read the book I brought with me, Elements of Style, by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White. In addition, I received a seat by the window of the plane, which at first I thought was very fortunate to have. However, the man sitting next to me fell asleep throughout the entire plane ride. I needed to go for a bathroom break, and I was considerate of him, waiting patiently for him to wake. I thought to myself, "I'll just let him sleep for ten more minutes, then I'll wake him up so I can get out to the aisle." However, I could not bring myself to disturb him, nor the lady next to him who was also in deep slumber. I hope next time, I get placed in an aisle seat so that I may move about as much as I please.

At long last, we arrived at O'Hare International Airport. Unfortunately, our plane was delayed for about one and a half hours because its air conditioner, apparently, was not functioning correctly. We began to fear that we would be stranded in the airport until the next day. With that thought in mind, I suddenly remembered that I had packed Colgate Wisps in my backpack, which are essentially mini travel-sized toothbrushes that are disposable. Aiyana and I decided to amuse ourselves and clean our teeth while Kye sat back and laughed at us all the while.

Finally, after a more pleasant plane ride, we stepped foot onto ATL in Georgia. It was dark out already; because of our delay, we were on the road to our hotel by 9:17 PM.

The beautiful Omni Hotel is connected to the famous CNN Center. I hope we will be able to visit the Center and tour it some day while we are in the city.

It was a long, exhausting day of traveling, and we have yet another important day tomorrow as well. We will be visiting a few local colleges right here in Georgia, which include the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory College.

I am tired, but am awaiting a less stressful and enjoyable day ahead.

From Luxury to Lingering

I was starting to think that this trip was not going to start off nice for me. This foreboding came from a problem with blogging the night before on my new laptop. I was worried that I would not be able to blog for the trip because my computer refused to let me post anything on Blogger. After an emergency trip to my house by Don Gosney at 11:30 or so last night, we figured out the problem: Internet Explorer. From now on, Google Chrome will be my source of internet in order for me to blog. All is well.

After a mere three hours of sleep, it was time to get up and get ready to meet at El Cerrito High School. Don weighed our luggage and gave us the borrower items we needed for the trip. Before we said our goodbyes to our parents, our ride to the airport arrived. No, it was not a large, bulky van like we expected. It was a luxurious, white limousine. We would be riding to the airport in style.

It was surprising how many people were flying out of SFO on United just like us. It makes me wonder where they’re all going, and what their story is. Though the check-in lines were a bit lengthy, going through airport security was quick, and I set off no alarms this time.

After a breakfast of Burger King, it was time to board the plane. All four of us sat in different rows, each granted with the pleasure of a glorious view from a window seat. However, the one flaw with that seating arrangement that Julia learned, was trying to leave your seat for a bathroom break. Since I didn’t have much time to sleep the night before, I was out in a heartbeat when I sat down in my seat, and didn’t wake up for a couple of hours. I honestly don’t even remember taking off.

Because we had a connecting flight to Atlanta after our arrival in Chicago, we tried our best to reach our next gate in time. However, there was no need to rush. We could’ve crawled on our hands and knees with all of our heavy luggage, and we still would have made it to the gate before our plane took off. We were supposed to leave around four, but our plane was delayed about an hour and a half because of a broken air conditioning system in the plane. As we sat, we talked to a business man waiting for the same plane. When we told him about the colleges we would be visiting, he congratulated us on our successes, and added in that he loves Georgia Tech (which we’re visiting tomorrow). Julia and I decided to pass the time by trying our her new transportable toothbrushes called Wisps.

Stepping off the plane at the huge airport in Atlanta, I was ecstatic. We are finally here. Our trip has finally begun! Driving around in our new rental car, staring and squinting at the buildings in the dark, trying to spot our hotel was an interesting experience. What’s cool about our hotel is that it’s attached to the CNN center, so there are newscaster signs and CNN logos everywhere. I hope we can tour the center before we leave Atlanta. We think we also saw Emory and Oxford colleges from the car. I thought it was strange to see them in downtown Atlanta, and not set to the side in a sort of suburban or less populated area. But we’ll see what the campus looks like tomorrow morning on our tour.

Though the time difference here in Atlanta is only three hours off from the time back home, I am utterly exhausted. Even though I pretty much slept through 90 percent of all the air traveling we did today, I am ready to sleep and awaken to a day of college exploring tomorrow.

A Stretch Limo is What They Deserve

Today was a rarity in that our Vanderbilt cohort was able to gather for their departure while the sun was up.  It may not have been up very high in the sky but, unlike most of our departures, at least it wasn’t in the middle of the night (or, as our military people refer to it as: “O dark thirty”.

Our three Vanderbilt team members—Kye Duren, Julia Chang and Aiyana Hedeen-Garrett from Pinole Valley HS—arrived early and ready to get down to business.  Their chaperone, Pinole Valley HS Assistant Principal Yolanda Bulls, joined in and we were good to go.

As a precaution we always weigh the luggage so no one is surprised once they get to the airline gate and are hit with the $50 overage charges.  It took just a little bit of shuffling but everyone’s bags made the cut.

Unlike the previous day’s airport shuttle—which proved to be too small for the group (one of the group had to be driven to the airport)—this time a shiny white stretch limo pulled up so our Vandies could arrive at the airport in style.

Before settling in at Nashville for their Comparative Religions course, though, our rising stars will stop off in Atlanta for some site tours of the local colleges.

Before that, though, our intrepid travelers all told me how anxious they are to start their blogging because they know that’s what their fans are looking for.

Preparing for Adventure: On the Eve of Exploration

I simply can’t wait for our departure to the South. There are so many different emotions running through my mind. I wonder if this is how the great explorers, adventurers, and conquerors of old felt the day before a trip. Did they have the same feeling of confidence that I have seeing that they would represent their communities? At the same time do they share with me the feeling of humility in taking on such a task? Were they too anxious to sleep that night? Were they as curious as I am to learn about their destination? Who they might meet, what wonders they may see, or even what dangers may await them? Were they thinking about practicalities and being comfortable, or going forth, headstrong, to complete their mission, gather information, and bring their findings back to their community?

Even though these men and women are long gone, I can learn from their accomplishments because in this moment I am like them. We share a connection in the fact we must venture into the unknown; yet no matter how mesmerizing the experience may be we have to focus on our mission. Going out to the world, in this case Vanderbilt University, and introducing them to our school, our district, and our community, while at the same I must absorb the Vanderbilt Environment and project the image back to my community so that we can all grow in knowledge. It is a large task, but far from impossible, especially because I have a great team to work with in my cohorts: Julia and Aiyana.

No matter how anxious I may be for the trip, no successful voyage can begin without a good amount of rest. With that said I shall begin my adventure now with a decent amount of sleep, and a wake up scheduled for 4:30 AM.

Ready, Get Set, Let's Go!

I do not know exactly how to describe my emotions at the moment—I believe it is a blurred medley of excitement, angst, and, particularly, hope.

I have just finished the last of my packing, after having gone through the arduous task of stuffing the last item, my pillow, into my brimming suitcase. Everything seems ready and set to go; all that is left is a few more hours of sleep to prime us for the long day ahead.

I will admit that I am nervous—this is the first time that I will be absent from home and my family for such a period of time. However, I truly hope that this experience, being away from the comforts of all that is familiar to me, will allow me to mature and develop into the independent, perceptive young woman that I long to be.

I want to learn about college—what I am looking for, which one I want to attend, what I want to get out of it, and who I want to become.

I have been struggling with determining whether I ought to study humanities or science when I attend to college in two years, and this trip, I suspect, will aid me in my decision. Analyzing and comparing the world's major religions at a prestigious university such as Vanderbilt will allow me to explore my interests and assist me in my search of the things I am most passionate about.

I have high hopes for our trip, and I hope we all take away something invaluable from it so we may bring it back to share with our schools and community. It is genuinely an honor to be the ambassadors of the West Contra Costa Unified School District, and to be the first ever from the ILC to travel to Vanderbilt University.

I have five more hours of sleep until I, along with my cohort, must beat the sun to Georgia.

Ready, get set, go!

Bon Voyage

I have been waiting for this trip for months now. Anticipation, nervousness, and excitement are just a few of the feelings I am experiencing right now. Anticipation for the adventures at the colleges; nervousness about the class and fellow students/roommate; and excitement for the entire summer excursion and the opportunity we are given.

Though I had finished packing a few days ago, I keep finding things in my room that I could shove into my already bulging suitcase. I'm not sure if it's a good thing that I keep remembering/finding items to bring along, or if it's bad that I am bringing so much stuff. I suppose that as long as I stick to the weight limit, who cares how much I bring.

Today was not just spent inside packing for the trip to Georgia and Tennessee though. I decided that for my last day here for the rest of the month, I would get out of the house and hang out with at least one friend before I leave. My close friend Jennefer and I hung out around town, and had a much needed summer treat on this hot day: Popsicles.

My mom on the other hand, worked her last day of summer school at Lincoln Elementary, before coming home to finish her own packing. My mom thinks that my leaving is the perfect opportunity to go on her own trip. So she is off to Thailand tomorrow to make some adventures of her own. I dared her to eat a fried cricket or some other strange food while over there.

Also today, after five years, I finally got a haircut. I figured that since we were going to be in muggy weather for three weeks, I might as well not be weighed down by my heavy and thick hair. To all my surprised friends reading this, yes, I finally chopped some of that curly mess off. And I love it.

As for this trip, I am so thankful and ready to take the World Religions course at Vanderbilt University. Though it's not your typical Ivy League College, Vanderbilt is considered to be the Ivy League of the South. This school brings southern flare and style, and I am glad to be part of the first group of students representing the school in the ILC program.

Our first stop is Atlanta, Georgia. We will be visiting Emory and Georgia Tech colleges first.

I hope you all enjoy reading my, Kye's and Julia's adventures this summer. We will be giving you all the information and our opinions on the schools and cities we visit. Hopefully it will inspire some of you to visit these places or maybe even attend one of these colleges or programs in the future.

Wish us luck!