Today is the day. The day I finally set foot on American soil. A moment I have been working towards for months now. I leave Nijmegen on a ridiculously early hour. In the train, I feel excited. Finally. So many months of bureaucratic struggle, but now I’m getting through.

While the grasslands zip past the train window, I think about all the hours of waiting that are ahead of me. Boring, dull hours where I will have no internet connection. It’ll be hard to stay awake, sleep-deprived as I am. But it’s all worth it. I’m almost there.

I get out of the train in Amsterdam. Just a little bit longer, I tell myself. I check if my passport is still in my pocket. Of course it is – I’ve already checked this five times. I show my passport and my reservation to the guard, and then I walk through the metal detector gates. Touchdown. United States Consulate General Amsterdam, it reads on the wall. Now I just have to wait until it’s my turn to take the visa interview.

Months of preparations and endless forms finally culminate in this interview. ‘Number thirty-two, c’mon down please!’ I walk towards the counter. ‘So you’re going to Albany?’ Yeah. ‘OK, your visa has been approved!’

Slightly confused, I leave the building again. That’s it then. I’m all set to go.

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