Five days of traveling, 27+ hours on five planes, and a night with no nighttime finds us on day two in Cherskii!

Going into the project I anticipated the amazing research and field experience that I would gain, and trust me I have in no way been disappointed, but already its turned out to be so much more. The research is one thing, it’s more exciting, invigorating and in depth than I ever imagined, but the opportunity and resource that comes from being in such close quarters with this kind of scientific community is something I think I’ve fallen in love with! My fellow students have a drive for common passions that is encouraging and driving to my own. And really it’s nerdy but awesome to go from chatting about the latest movie release to discussing the creation processes of the lakes we happened to be flying over! We’re all so different and from all over the US, but the Polaris Project has brought us together!

The connection with the PIs of the project was an aspect I never realized would be so life influencing. The extensive amount of down time while traveling and now the close quarters allows for almost constant conversation on everything from general science and current research to future schooling, and career opportunities. Their wealth of knowledge is eye opening and somewhat life changing (at least life plan changing)! Already the plans I thought I had for myself are shifting and I am beyond excited about it! Plus, all the PIs are really cool people and down time on the barge with this group is always fun.

And it’s only the beginning! Already I have experiences I’ll treasure forever and some silly stories to tell as well (such as my inability to read Cyrillic leading to yogurt in my morning tea!) and I can’t wait to present and share the research we do here as well as my personal experiences.

Melissa

P.S. It’s beautiful here