Seeing that it is officially Groundhog Day and I come from a state that typically enjoys an overdue winter, I have no regrets packing up a beach towel and swim suit to hop the ocean to Fiji. Yesterday I checked the weather...high of 84, low of 82 (talk about a climate that can really throw you for a loop!). It seems crazy to think that in one week I'll be sliding into that favorite pair of Chaco sandals, officially seeing each new day a full 18 hours before my family and friends.

But before I head off, I just thought I'd give the familiar faces the scoop on my whereabouts for the next couple of weeks. I officially leave Saturday, and with the time changes, Sunday technically will not exist. I'll spend four days at Fiji's Beachcomber Island (formally known as Tai) - the island for "the young and young at heart." Leaving my island bliss, I must spend a night in Nadi (which I guess might be the Chicago of Fiji...that is...one of its larger cities minus Michigan Avenue), to catch my flight over to Auckland, NZ. After a few days on my own in Auckland, I'll be meeting up with my study abroad group to head over to Rotorua, Waitomo and eventually my new home in Dunedin. Dunedin is one of the larger cities on New Zealand's South Island. I guess you could say I am "studying" at the University of Otago...though we'll see how that goes!

Just a few days before I head off for an incredible adventure, but to be quite honest, it hasn't quite set in. But I'm sure it will as soon as I set foot in that airport - - - I have to be one of the few people in this world that oddly takes a liking to airports and flying. As for now, my greatest task remains narrowing down my CD collection to a mere 24 CDs...this could get interesting.