Off to Champaign, Illinois...

Tonight I make my way to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the first step in my 5-week Russian odyssey. I'll be staying in a dorm building called the Illini Tower on the campus. With the exception of O'Hare airport, I have never really been to Illinois (well, I take that back...my family lived there briefly when I was a kid). For 4 or 5 days we will be attending pre-departure lectures on campus. I'm ready. Let the journey begin!