Since I was eight years old, I had always wanted to travel to Japan. 

One day I'll go there!

I began reading everything I could about the country, even writing down places I wanted to go to. 

After many years of dreaming, my time had finally come. I was going to study abroad!

You're going to Japan!

I had recently turned 18 and was about to spend six months in a foreign country... by myself.  I was excited but worried at the same time.

What if I miss my plane? What if I end up hating it there? What if I can't reach my parents? What if I don't like my host family? What if...

I remember feeling so nervous and sad that day at the airport. I had never been apart from my family for that long or that far away. Starting that day, everything was up to me. 

The plane ride was 14 hours! As time passed I began to get less nervous and more excited. 

Finally I was actually in Japan! It was September 17, 2017 and the weather was much warmer than I thought it would be. Sitting in the taxi driving to my host family's apartment I tried to imagine all the cool adventures I would have. 

As I unpacked in my new room I suddenly started crying. The excitement had gone away and all the anxiety came rushing back. I went to bed determined to make the best of my six months. There was no time to cry, my first day of language school was tomorrow!

Orientation day went pretty well. Since I had never studied Japanese before I was put in the beginner classes. The first day was a whirlwind of activity but was incredibly fun. 

I went on a tour of the city where my school was located with my fellow classmates. Everyone was from a different country and it made me realize just how big the world was. I was given a schedule of the next six months and tired to prepare myself for all the assignments that lay ahead. 

I quickly established a routine for myself. During the weekdays my time was consumed with my language and culture classes but on the weekends I would go exploring. 

Going into October I would go into periods of homesickness. Some days it was even hard for me to get out of bed, but I was able to talk to my parents every night even though our timezones were different. 

The feeling of homesickness started to fade and I began to fully enjoy myself in Japan.