As I click my ruby red heels together tomorrow to come home, I feel it necessary to reflect upon the last year of my life, and les aventures de la vie française. My return will definitely be bittersweet. While I am incredibly excited to see my family and friends, it is still sad closing this chapter of my life. In the past year I,
- Learned to speak a second language fluently,
- Traveled to Spain, Morocco, Belgium, the Netherlands, Serbia, Greece, Monaco, Switzerland (3 times), and all over France,
- Made friends with French, Italians, Moroccans, Spanish, Mexicans, Finnish, Russians, Greeks, Germans, Swedish, Brazilians, Portuguese,
- Shared a room with another person (and we did not kill each other),
- Had a boy roommate (and didn't kill him either!),
- Ate escargot, oysters, mussels, cow stomach, pig brains, horse, kangaroo, cow liver, raw duck, and frog legs all for the first time,
- Learned how make French crêpes, Spanish tortillas, Moroccan tajines,
- Had my first real professional business experience,
- Figured out what I want to do with my life (professionally),
- Experienced being really really alone, and lived through it,
- Talked to my parents more than I do when I am at home,
- Saw a lot of castles and cathedrals,
- Drank a whole lot of wine,
- Ate a whole lot of stinky cheese,
- Averaged about 1 baguette purchase per day,
- Got kissed underneath the Eiffel Tower,
- Watched a lot of rugby (and still don't really understand it),
- Watched my first World Cup in Soccer,
- Rode on a motorcycle for the first time,
- Stepped in French dog poop,
- Got lost many times,
- Hiked through waterfalls,
- Hiked up volcanoes,
- Went to the beach,
- Skied the Alps,
- Helped a friend,
- Met a boy,
- Walked (everywhere),
- Was scared,
- Was uncomfortable,
- Was happy,
- Laughed,
- Cried,
- Danced.
- Lived in France.
