Having been home from Paris over a week now, I finally feel that my American life has returned to normal. I’ve re-habituated myself to air conditioning, large meal portions, and driving everywhere. I’ve had to stop speaking French to everyone (my real parents do not appreciate it as much as my host parents did). And I’ve gotten used to looking out at modern, recently constructed buildings, rather than the Renaissance palaces and gothic cathedrals of Paris. 

As the sun rises on my final full day in Dublin, I am feeling incredibly reflective.  My most overwhelming sentiment is that, while I'm quite sad to be leaving a city that I've grown to love a great deal, I feel completely satisfied with everything that I have been able to do. I truly made the most of this opportunity, and I want to help you do the same! Here are some of the words of wisdom that I have lived by throughout these six weeks.

1. Say yes.

I touched down in Christchurch almost two weeks ago, and honestly, it’s hard to believe it's only been that long. I feel like I have been here for months. In all of the best ways, Christchurch has begun to really feel like a (third?) home after my home school and real home.

The impending departure from Shanghai is starting to dawn on me. Although I have almost four weeks left, the majority of my group leaves in less than two weeks. Even though I have been having a ton of fun, I have mostly felt as if I won’t really miss China. Not necessarily in a bad way, but more so—what will I miss about China? What will make me wish I were still in China when I return to America? Up until this past Sunday, I had thought nothing.

A few of us decided to book a trip to the Amalfi Coast the second weekend we were in Rome. These are just a few highlight clips from our weekend, as well as some of our last nights in Rome. We stayed at a hostel in Sorrento, right on the water. On the first day of the trip, we went to Capri. We had to take a tram to get to the top of the mountain to take in the beautiful sights from the top of the mountain. We took a boat trip around the island and swam in the Blue Grotto. The next day, we traveled to Positano.

Me, walking into a room wearing sunglasses and a sports jacket: Hey, thanks for having me here today, Jacques.

Also me, already sitting in an armchair wearing a turtleneck, with pen and notebook in hand: Of course, Jacques! You know we always love to have you on the show.

Me, sitting down in an opposite-facing armchair in front of a low burning fireplace: Always a pleasure.

We have arrived in Rome! Our apartment was about a five-minute walk to Vatican city and centrally located. Our first week started off by taking a guided tour of the biggest sites in the city such as the Spanish steps, the Pantheon, and the Trevi fountain. We all threw a coin into the fountain to make a wish that we would come back to Rome. We got to meet our student companion, who showed us around her city and showed us a little bit of the night life. We danced the night away right into our first week of classes!

Though I am a bit delayed in the uploading/posting process, I promise I am going to take you all through a lot more interesting places. The next stop on my Italian summer landed me in Florence/Pisa for an incredible weekend. The art in Florence alone made the trip worthwhile. Pieces you never thought you'd see in person hanging in front of you is jaw-dropping. Florence has incredible landscapes and equally exquisite architecture! Then we spent the next day in Pisa. This was the highlight of my trip up to that point. I loved Pisa.

Thinking back on my time abroad, I am so glad I was able to participate in my program. I have not mentioned this before in any of my blog posts, but I actually was not super interested in going abroad. Weird, I know. I was super excited about the idea of my program when I first found it on the IES Abroad website, super excited when I applied, but the second I got in I no longer wanted to go. The idea of packing up and moving across the world, even for just six weeks, did not appeal to me anymore.