The last week in Nantes I found myself on a boat along the Erdre River, in a room filled with host families, and in a University professor’s office, offloading all I knew about women in politics in the modern era. It was—you guessed it—finals week, and our last week here! The last week of the semester in college is a notoriously stressful and complex time—you’re bombarded with papers, tests, or presentations; you’re preparing for all these; and you’re trying to see all your friends one last time.

My program ended a few days ago, and there are so many aspects of my time in Siena that I miss with all of my heart. Here are a few.

1. My friends. Since my program is small and there are only a few classes, it was easy to get really close to the other students. We were with each other for almost four months, seeing each other almost every day and traveling together on weekends. We ate together, studied together, went out on weekends together, and I miss them all so much. We had inside jokes that people at home just don’t understand.

My semester is nearly over, and I pack up to leave Berlin in under a week. I’ve used the last few weeks to explore Berlin, fit in some last-minute museum trips, and I took my final weekend trip. Last weekend, I met my friend Sierra in Barcelona for three days of anticipated sunshine and fun.

It has almost been a week since I returned to New York City. I miss Freiburg and my friends that I made in the EU program, although I am glad to be back at home. As promised, here is my final blog post discussing the benefits I obtained from participating in this program.

Hola, chicos!

Two years ago, I made quite possibly one of the biggest decisions of my life: I enrolled in a university that was 484 miles away from my home. Looking back on it, the decision to go out of state for college changed me to become the person I am today, someone who is more independent, confident, and adventurous. As my sophomore year has just come to a close, I can safely say that my life in Lincoln is greater than I could have ever imagined.

It has almost been two weeks since I arrived back in the States, and I thought it would be the perfect time to share some important travelling, safety, and general advice with you guys that the video below does not include. 

1) Get your school work done in advance.

What I Miss Most About Abroad: 3) the nature. Being from California, I felt most at home by the beach, so naturally while I was abroad, I seized any opportunity to be by the water. It was nice getting outside rather than being cooped up in a classroom all day. In fact, IES Abroad's Barcelona Center was only 30 minutes walking distance from the beach. Some of my favorite days of the semester are featured in this video.

Number 2 in the Series: The Architecture. I'm actually surprised at the lack of footage of architecture in Barcelona. I think that during my field studies and the times I would play tourist, I was genuinely busy taking everything in. In my Barcelona and the Cosmopolitan City class, we learned a lot about the Catalan Gothic style of architecture throughout the city so I became a total nerd for architecture this semester because of it. I found myself constantly being in awe of everything around me. 

As my time in Barcelona has comes to a close, I want to share with everyone a list of what I will miss most about studying abroad. Number one on the list? The sunsets. Not to be dramatic or anything because I know I can watch the sun set anywhere in the world. However, there is something cathartic watching the sunset with people I had only met a few months prior taking in the most surreal views thousands of miles away from home. To be traveling the world at 21 with incredible instant friends is such a gift.