good lord this globe is TINY!

Kaitlyn Hamilton just posted this on my Facebook wall:

I'm hanging out with your cousin, Rushith, at the University of Melbourne! How crazy is that?!?

This world is miniscule, I tell you, miniscule. I don't know how many Sri Lankans Kaitlyn knew already (I think it's safe to assume she knew just me) but she had to decide she wanted to spend a semester in Australia (I think?) and she had to choose the University of Melbourne, which is swimming in Sri Lankans, and she had to meet my cousin, out of all the thousands of people there. And conversely, it's really interesting that out of the many people that attend Princeton, Kaitlyn is actually someone that I do know. It wouldn't have been so phenomenal had she not known of my existence. Sometimes this world shrinks so dramatically in size that I feel mildly claustrophobic.

These are interesting times. I want to play globetrotter myself, and I'm getting ready for a semester abroad of my own (provided my visa comes through...if everyone would say a small prayer for me/make a small gory sacrifice for me/generally send good vibes my way I would be infinitely grateful). I chose Denmark, partly because I had little choice in architecture programmes with a junior studio, partly because I've never been to Europe, and partly because Denmark is so random. I don't know a single soul in Copenhagen, or have any family anywhere close to where I will be. I will know no one. It will be completely different from Princeton. The only similarity is that this is specifically a programme for students wanting to study abroad, so during classes I guess I'll be hanging out with Americans. But I plan to flee as soon as classes are done and get to know as many Danes as possible, although after December I will most likely never see them again. I just like the thought of all this immersion, all this randomness, and all these people. It all sounds so far out and so far away, but this incident where Kaitlyn met my cousin made my little Adventure seem less, well, adventurous. There's always Skype, there's always my credit card, there's always a ton of modern conveniences that will bail me out no matter what obstacle I run into. It's not like I'm making a journey into outer space and might run out of oxygen.

And I even found out a few weeks ago from Dr. G - the former vice-principal of my school - that her family spent a few months in Denmark and that she would try to contact some of the friends they made during that time. It seems I will never ever be completely alone, even when I try to challenge myself and attempt to find that place where I must completely fend for myself with no one to depend on. Clearly, not only is no man an island, the reach of the men and women of this particular island extends far beyond the confines of the Indian Ocean.

Mind-boggling.