While an undergraduate at the University of Washington, I was offered an opportunity to study Spanish abroad. It was to be my first proper trip outside of America, notwithstanding an occasional Mexican beach vacation. I mean, I actually needed a passport for this trip.
A professor was running an intensive Spanish immersion class in Guatemala. She had arranged with a local language school in Antigua to host approximately thirty students from the university. We were to take classes at the school, with one-on-one instruction, and be accommodated with a homestay family in the town.
I had hated taking language classes at the U, cramming and conjugating verbs out a book, being taught by an American graduate student who had spent a total of three months in Spanish speaking countries, then walking out the door and forgetting everything between classes. The thought of learning a language in-country, walking around town using what I'd learned in class that morning, and living with a family who would force me to practice the language every evening sounded like just the kick in the pants I needed to focus.
Being a broke college student, I begged and borrowed (no stealing necessary!) until I was able to find a benefactor to loan me the cash for the trip. To this day, I feel in debt to my friend- I repaid the money shortly after I returned from Guatemala, but that small loan got me started on my world travels and has changed the course of my life.
During the pre-departure orientation for the trip, I met a girl whom I made instant friends with. We immediately decided to room together (one of the host families needed two students to share a room). We were inseparable during the trip itself, and even now, ten years later, we are extremely close friends.
Going through the motions of applying for a passport, filling out papers, buying airfare, finding financing and arranging to leave the country for three weeks seemed overwhelming. There were a million little things to do, and I felt like I would never get them all done. Not to mention finishing out the term I was in, completing projects and studying for finals.
But my persistent nature and near-obsessive need for organization saw me through. I look back now and realize how easy it all was, but the first time you go through the process, it can seem like an overwhelming endeavor.
With all my ducks in a row, as it were, I was finally ready to get on the flight to the grand adventure of my life. Then a friend asked, "Is Guatemala safe?" Hmm, I hadn't thought of that. I had heard that Guatemala City, the capital, had its fair share of muggings and other personal crime. But our plan was to fly in and immediately get out, down to Antigua. And would the university really sanction a trip to a dangerous location? Putting my faith in the system, I shrugged my shoulders and went with it. When else would I ever have an opportunity like this?

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