Two things that nobody has mentioned yet, neither of which has much to do with your trip:

1. Welcome to FT!

2. For your future posts, a thread title that describes your question more accurately will improve the chances that people who can help you will read it. "Wondering if anyone could help me" could describe about 25 percent of the posts here. Many active members select threads to read based on their titles, and don't have time to pursue every thread whose title is this general on the chance that it might be of interest.

Enjoy your gap year - it's a fantastic opportunity!