Studying in Japan was the best thing I have done. From the friends I met to learning the language and exploring regions of Japan, I do not regret one thing I did. The experience was extremely worthwhile. It's not the same as travelling to Japan on vacation. I get to live with Japanese students and working professionals, experiencing their way of life, going to school with college students, and so much more. This is not something I would be able to experience if I had just come for a short break.

Two weeks left before going back home, my friend and I decided to take a trip to Hakone. A trip to relax, take our minds off of finals, and to enjoy one of Japan's most famous areas. Hakone is located in a mountainous region and is mostly famous for its onsens, or hot springs. We actually didn't go for the onsens although we wanted to try one, but our funds were running low so we decided to explore the area instead. Our first stop was of course food.

Only one month left before I depart back to California. It feels surreal like I have so much more I want to do but so little time left. This whole month is going to be pretty hectic for me as I have a lot of presentations and reports due as well as finals. I want to spend my remaining time making precious memories with my friends and seeing more of Japan. Did I miss home while I was away? Not really. I get frequent calls from my parents almost every day so it doesn't really feel like I have been apart from them.

This weekend was the first time I had traveled outside of Ireland. I went to England to visit a good friend of mine, Elliott, who lives an hour or so outside of Birmingham. Traveling makes me nervous to begin with, but traveling alone is even worse, for most of my flight I was wreck of emotions, both excitement and nerves.

For my six credit class, we have taken a couple field trips. The one I want to talk about is the trip to Brick Lane. Only two classes got to do this, so if you're from a class that didn't get to go, I suggest you go when you have the chance.

Over the past weekend my friends and I took the DART train to the coastal town of Dalkey. Our adventure was so much fun that I haven’t stopped dreaming about it.

A little fun fact about Dalkey: Famous Irish singers Bono and Enya both have homes in Dalkey! If you have been following my previous blog posts, Dalkey was probably the most likely place for me to find famous actress Hilary Swank, but alas I was unsuccessful. Nevertheless, Dalkey is officially on my list of one of the most magical places in Ireland.

Greetings from my last week in Santiago! I can’t believe that we are getting towards the end of my experience here. It feels like just yesterday I was living in three worlds: a world in Bloomington, IN where I go to school, outside Chicago where my family is, and then a suitcase filled with all the things I wanted to bring to Santiago. I was honestly a mess because I didn’t know what to expect once I arrived and I was extremely anxious about the whole trip.

It’s Saturday morning. My flight back to New York leaves in about eight hours. I’ve put off writing my last city blog because I really don’t want to face the truth— it’s really over. My exams are in, I’ve said goodbye to my professors, and there are no more class visits to museums planned. Soon, it will be time to wave a slow, sleepy goodbye to Madrid…

The studying part of studying abroad kicked in recently, and I’ve been pretty busy writing my final paper for my Area Studies class and studying for my Spanish final. I’ve had so much work to do, the last day really snuck up on me. Now, before I know it I’ll be heading to the airport and saying goodbye to the city that’s been my home for the past seven weeks.