Well, 20 hours later, I am back in California and getting things ready to start my Ph.D. at the University of Tennessee! Fortunately, I won’t have to hurry on to Tennessee until about three more weeks. Thanks to my family, I already have an apartment and my stuff is moved to Knoxville!
I have arrived back in the States Monday afternoon in LA. We first had to fly to London from Joburg, which took about 10 hours. I basically slept on the flight, which was really good! 🙂 We arrived in London and had a few hours to spend. What is really neat about Healthrow Airport is the fact that they have a TON of shops! I got a lot of shopping done before my flight back to LA!
After spending a couple of hours in London, I had to get on my flight to LA, which was another 10 hrs of flying. Yikes! It was well worth it– I was really, really, REALLY excited to see my family again!
My first day back in California went pretty well! I would say that I have adjusted to the time difference for the most part. The only thing that has been hard is the morning and early afternoon (nine hours is a huge difference!). For example, I woke up with a ton of energy this morning at 3 am (I consider myself a morning person, but not that early!) and then after lunch, I was like– it is time for bed!!! I think that it will take some time to adjust, but I am working on it! 🙂
It was also my first full day back on Jenny Craig as well. After having braii, ostrich, biltong, and many other wonderful meals in South Africa– I knew that I had to go back on Jenny Craig. I actually weighed myself today, and I did gain a little weight, but it wasn’t too bad! 🙂
Living and working in South Africa was such a wonderful and exciting experience, and I can see myself going back to Cape Town in the near future. I met some wonderful people at Total Media (Tziona, Astrid, Michelle, Daniella, Kaz, Nicole, Anneke, Dan, and Garith), public relations professionals in South Africa (Nadia), and made new friends along the way (Karin le Roux, and Ethel Ramos & her family). Thank you all for making my time in South Africa so special! 🙂
Also, I have been busy today downloading all of my pictures that I have taken during my time in South Africa. I plan to put together all of my pictures from my trip — stay tuned! 🙂
What is up next for me? By finishing this internship, I have completed my Master’s Degree in Strategic Public Relations at USC. WOW! 🙂 Now, I am going to spend some quality time with Mom, Dad, Kristin, and Karla! 🙂 Also, I will be getting everything ready and set to start my Ph.D. at the University of Tennessee. I am really excited and look forward to getting to Knoxville! 🙂 Kristin says she will come and visit me down the road, so I know I will have a lot to show her when she comes.
Hope all is going well & have a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen 🙂
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