Tomorrow (well at this point, today) I leave to go back to IL. It's been a busy week since I've been trying to finish up homework for another class, pack for London and pack up my apartment. I'm moving about a week after I get back from Madison so I'm trying to make sure I'm ready. Since I seem to leaving for England in sections, I consider section 1 completed!

I'm going back home to IL so I can spend some time with my family and then my mom is very kindly driving me up to Chicago to catch the plane. It'll be nice to have my mom see me off, though O'Hare's Terminal 5 is not exactly conducive to long goodbyes. It's a very bare terminal; dozens of check-in counters, a small food court and then security check point. They really don't like you lingering.

I'm looking forward to leaving Madison for a bit even though I like living here. There's something soothing about taking a break from your life, despite the chaos absence tends to cause. Work, school and other requirements are all thrown into disarray when you take a vacation from everyday life, but there wouldn't be any fun if you didn't.
I decided to take this class not only because I found the topic extremely interesting and exactly what I wanted to do, but the idea of going on abroad to "live" was very appealing. It's not exactly like taking a break from your "real" life, but its more like choosing cover for the story (not the greatest analogy, I know). Regardless about how much I'm going to miss Madison, my friends and my family; despite the insanity and stress preparing for this trip has caused me, I really can't wait.

So Bye-Bye Madison! Hello London!