Oh the Places We'll Go!

I could feel my ears popping as the airplane touched the asphalt in a harsh, jerking motion. Attempting to peer out the tiny windows, I could barely make out red roofs and green mountains as the couple beside me shifted in front of my view. However, I couldn't be upset. I was in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina. After months of applications and interviews and waiting, I had been accepted for a full scholarship abroad for my senior year. The seat-belt light flickered off and I heard the flight attendant give the final word -- except in Bosnian, a language I still didn't know. My smile widened as I found my traveling companions a few rows in front of me and mouthed, "We're here!"
Slowly (at least for an over-eager teenage girl), everyone made their way off the plane, feeling the blast of hot summer wind on our skin as we breathed in the new air, even if it did smell like cigarette smoke. Our passports were stamped, our luggage pulled off of the rickety conveyor belt, and with a final deep breath, we made our way through the gate to our long awaited host families. The moment my host mother saw me, she wrapped her arms around me, speaking in rapid Bosnian and all I could manage to say was, "Dobar dan!" which was a mere "hello". My host sister then greeted me, speaking in English, telling me how excited they all were that I was here. After saying goodbye to the girls I traveled with, my host family and I made our way to the car. The ride was no longer than half an hour, but I felt like I could have driven forever. Everything was new and I felt like I was in a daze. The old skyscrapers with bullet holes from the Bosnian War, the government building from the Austro-Hungarian period, the modern malls, and Ottoman Empire buildings were at every corner and it was all so entrancing. By the time we reached the home at the top of the mountain, I was beginning to realize that I was in Sarajevo. I crossed an ocean. I was on solid ground and I was so ecstatic to begin my journey here.