I wrote this at the end of June. Obviously life is a little different since I last wrote this, as I've now been back in the US for over 4 months. But here ya go:
I've been home for just over 2 weeks now! I can't believe it - that I was in Brussels for almost 5 months AND that I'm home. Time is weird.
I spent my last 2 weeks in Europe just in Brussels, hanging out with friends and exploring the city as much as possible. In this time, there were more bar crawls, more rainy days, more discovered restaurants, more. And lots of lasts - last friday night together, last night at Ebrius, last seeing someone for who knows how long. Although it was all very bittersweet, I was ready to come home. Brussels made it easy to come home too; the day I left for the airport, it was pouring rain and like 55 degrees (just imagine me struggling with my huge suitcase, a backpack, a duffel bag, my purse, and a canvas bag...in the pouring rain....yeah that was a fun morning).
My whole family came to pick me up from the airport. It was so nice seeing them again!! I actually came home on my parent's 26th wedding anniversary, so it was a nice little gift for them of me coming home (not to toot my own horn or anything). We went to TGIFridays for dinner (me)/dessert (them) before heading home and getting to see my dog!! Such a good night.
Since being home, I've been busy relaxing, working out, and getting back to work as a supervisor at the waterpark. I really haven't been too jetlagged; I was pretty adjusted within 2 days honestly. My goal is to be all caught up on my blog posts and picture posting by the end of the summer before going back to school - between working and hanging out with friends and some traveling. Feel free to check out my other blog at www.emmbeanphotography.com to keep up with all my other adventures and thoughts and photography.
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I posted this caption on my Instagram just days after coming home, and I think it sums up my experience pretty well:
It's honestly impossible to put last semester into words and just how much it meant to me. I've been dreaming of living and studying in Europe since I was 14 years old. Whenever I was going through a tough time, I'd constantly just remind myself that in four years/two years/one year, I'd be in Europe. Seven years later, and it finally became a reality. And then I blinked, and now it's all over. While my biggest goal before coming here was to travel as much as possible (I traveled to 15 countries and 27 cities!), it's the friendships I made here that I'll cherish forever. Never in a million years did I think I'd become good friends with people all around the world - Germany, Denmark, France, Russia, Norway, China, Peru, Moldova, Finland, Canada, etc. -- I'll miss happy hour at Ebrius, traveling, our deep talks and learning about/comparing our countries, eating dinner together, going to different events about Brussels together, etc.. I'll miss it all. Thank you for being apart of truly an unforgettable semester. Brussels...you were too good to me (but maybe have less shitty weather). You'll have a piece of my heart forever.
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Now, 4 months later, I still miss Brussels. I REALLY miss traveling almost every week. I miss seeing everyone everyday. It was honestly kinda hard coming back to North Carolina in the fall and having to readjust to American college life.
But dang, I'm so proud. As mentioned above, I had wanted to study abroad since I was 14 years old and I worked my ass off to go to Europe since then. Even then, I knew I wanted to travel as much as possible. And I worked hard to make it happen. In high school, I would baby-sit and ref soccer games. In college, I was resident assistant for freshman during the school years and would lifeguard at a waterpark over the summers. Since I was a freshman in college, I've been planning out my schedule to make sure I could study abroad my junior year in the spring. I did everything I could to make sure I'd be able to come to Europe, and I wouldn't change a single thing. Basically, if you're even thinking of maybe studying abroad, DO IT. You will only regret not going!! It will be one of the best experiences of your life, I promise.
And the travel bug hasn't gone away for me at all. Not even a little bit. I'm already planning my next adventure! Thanks for following along on my semester of living in Brussels and traveling around Europe.
-Emily
