IT'S OFFICIAL- 72 hours from now I'll be touching down at Victoria International Airport! It's an early and rather dreary friday morning as I'm writing this but nonetheless the start to a very exciting last weekend (at least until next summer) here with my family in Ontario.

I've mostly been spending the days with family, trying to meet up with as many friends as I can (while staying a safe distance apart lol). It's a really strange and unusual time but I'm trying to make the most of it.

Last thursday, my NCC (National Committee of Canada 🍁) organized a welcome meeting over Zoom for all incoming and returning Canadian UWC students. I've already gotten to know quite a few of my Pearson co-years and second-years (Huzzah for video chat! Our first call lasted well over four hours 🤣) but it was really nice talking to UWCers from different campuses like Li Po Chun (Hong Kong), Adriatic (Italy), and Waterford Kamhlaba (Swaziland).

Everyone's a little bummed that we can't meet up in person over the summer like most years (yay 2020!) but I can't wait to meet my fellow Pearsonites (I think that's what we're called lol) once arriving on campus! Study permits for international students continue to be and issue but we're all hoping for the best.

As for my luggage, I've somehow managed to fit my belongings into two checked suitcases (one large, one medium) along with a hiking backpack and camera bag as carry-ons. I'll be travelling with two other Ontarians (both boys much taller than myself lol) so my heavy barely-within-the-maximum-weight-allowance bags won't be toooo much of a struggle...I hope 😂.

Surprisingly, we were never provided a full packing list from the school so I plan on posting one for y48 once I arrive on campus and figure out what I should've/shouldn't have brought :) I was, however, advised to bring a national outfit and plenty of snacks, hence why I now have ten packs of instant noodles at the bottom of my suitcase 🍜😂

*I've gotten some questions about what y46/47 means- it's just a notation used to identify each graduating batch at Pearson. The very first cohort of students graduated in 1976 and are known as Year 1, with the next cohort being Year 2, and so on…

Having never lived away from home (excluding the occasional overnight school trip), I'm not as overwhelmed with emotion as I thought I'd be. For now it's mostly the sheer excitement of starting something new but I'm thinking all the feels will hit when I actually arrive on campus. It's unreal- my next blog update will likely be from a hotel in BC! Stay tuned for more stories from Pearson "Quarientation" written by yours truly while in self-isolation :)

Ps. UWC applications (click the hyperlink) are now open in most countries! Further questions? Don't hesitate to reach out - I'd love to hear from you!

Until next time,