Hello all!
Well as I said on my last blog post I would talk about the closing out of a semester abroad in Strasbourg France and also touch on the return to the United States.
April was a weird month because for the first two weeks I only had class once a week. Most of my classes ended the last week of March actually. So for Easter weekend a group of us traveled to the south of France to Nice and Monaco. It was absolutely beautiful and I highly suggest visiting here when it is warm! After finishing my last real classes we had one week off for spring break before our “Finals Week” began. For Spring Break I took a solo trip to Cork and Dublin Ireland. As scary and intimidating as that may sound, Cork was probably one of my most favorite visited places all semester. It was absolutely beautiful and I really enjoyed my time alone to explore and reflect on the semester I have had.
Returning from Spring Break I began to study for the two finals I had left later that week. In total I had 5 finals I believe. But my 3 business finals were honestly quite easy, two of them being 10 multiple choice questions and a short answer. My 2 french language finals were the hardest, but even then definitely manageable. Once finals were completed I had about a week left before leaving to return to Texas so a lot of exploring was done. It is crazy how I lived in Strasbourg for four months yet there were still so many places I had not visited or seen. I strongly suggest taking the time to become an expert in your own hometown and focus a little less on all the extravagant adventures. I was able to do all my gift shopping for friends and family, climb to the top of the cathedral and enjoy one last gelato cone at our favorite spot. Saying good bye to friends and Strasbourg was definitely hard, but I try to see it as a “Till next time” instead.
Returning to the states was actually A LOT easier than what I was lead on to believe. My biggest fear was driving my car again but it really is like riding a bike. Walmart seems SO SO big in comparison to Simply in France, but it is nice to have everything you need all in one place. I also managed to remember to tip my server the first restaurant I went to; which is mainly what my past week at home has consisted of: visiting friends and eating well missed food.
This experience is one I am beyond grateful for and so glad that I did. I ?was able to learn so much more than I ever imagined in and outside of the classroom, as well as learn a lot about myself and where I want to go with my life. I hope everyone seizes the opportunity to study abroad!
Thanks for following along this semester and best of luck in your future adventures, whatever they may be!