Farewell to Paris and most of all France

I am officially done with all of my obligations for Northwestern, hence I can enjoy these next few days in Paris to do some of the things that I never got around doing. For one sleeping into 1 PM, I haven’t done in a week…check that. Need to get rid of the excess wine I brought home from the vineyard, but I am sure it won’t go to waste. Looking back at the semester, I guess the only regret that I have had was that I didn’t meet enough French people. I guess it’s hard when you have a program of just American students with a few token French. Oh well I am leaving with friends that I can take back with me to Northwestern and I now have a few families I can stay with in France covering all corners of the country. I have lived it up here basically feeling like I have been on vacation for 4 months. I did have to work, but nothing in comparison to the hell I went through last year in terms of Northwestern science. I am taking a break from it this year and exploring other options. Regardless, my stay in France has opened me up to different ways of life and thinking. The things that I have learned from being here in France is really hard to put in words for a conclusion because I have written 30+ blog posts since being here, which probably equals out to maybe 100+ pages. I know that when I get back to the States I will be different, no matter how much I have tried to stay the same. The culture, language, and people will stay with me for a long time and I guess I will always have a soft spot for France. I hope to return and see cities such as Bordeaux as well as more castles and chateaus in the Loire, but that is for another time. Also someday coming back to Paris with a significant other would put me a great advantage, knowing where to go and what to do…

The biggest thing that I have learned since being here is that no matter how much I try to be European because of my identity crisis, I am American and will always be. The best thing that I can do here is take away aspects of the culture and thought and apply them to my life. I always associated myself to Illinois or Connecticut and never really to the US. When I flew across the Atlantic and stayed on a different continent for a third of 2007, I realized that no matter what city or state you are from in the US, there is an American culture and identity that is borderless across the 50 states. Even the near communist students in my NU program ended loving the US that much more by the end of our time in France. It’s not that France or any of these other countries are terrible countries, its just we all live a pretty comfortable and isolated life in North America. It is important to travel and experience the world, so that you can have your eyes opened like mine were. And now that I have done so much, I have realized that there are so many more beautiful places in the world that I can visit and there is such little time. I guess now I need to work on getting a job and making money so that I can do all that….

It’s sad but finally true; I am leaving on Saturday for the opposite end of Europe to the vacation town of Varna, Bulgaria where I will spend Christmas with my friend Ivy from Northwestern. Don’t worry blog doesn’t stop here because I will still be in Europe until January 4th! I am sure I will have plenty of things to talk about Central and Eastern Europe... Now I just have to find something to do with myself for the next few days before then.