Au Revoir Switzerland…Hello USA

Me @ Mont Saint Michel w/ Quicksand!

 Tomorrow’s the big day; I’m heading back to the good ol’ US of A!!! Gosh, thinking back to my first blog posts I feel like I’ve gone completely full circle– I’m sad to be leaving where I am, but also looking forward to going where I’m going.

I was fortunate enough to spend my last four days here with my teammates up in Bretagne France, seeing the local sights and celebrating my coach’s 30^th birthday. We visited the town of Morlaix, walked along the coast of Finistere, marveled at Mont Saint Michel (which has quicksand around it– SO COOL), and sat on the beaches of Saint Malo. The places we got to see were so beautiful and well, European. I’m really going to miss it here.

At the same time…

Beach @ Saint Malo

While we were walking along the coast of Finistere, one of my teammates asked if we had anything like that in the USA. I couldn’t help but think of a hike I went on a couple of summers ago in Maine, which led out to the ocean. I remember thinking then how beautiful America was, and realized how in a few short days, I’d be heading home. Every time I see a place that’s calm and soothing, like the coast of France for example, I try to take a little piece of that silence, wholeness, and peace of mind with me when I leave. This year Europe has filled me with that kind of peace, and I’m so grateful it has, but now I feel like I’m ready to go home.

That being said…

My favorite part of the trip was really just talking and hanging out with my teammates. I think I learned more French in these past four days than I learned all year. Sure, I had to actively listen to understand what they were talking about (and sometimes I just zoned out and turned off my ‘pay attention’ button), but by the end of the trip I felt like I had successfully communicated with each and every one of them. Saying my goodbyes was really difficult; I feel like my Swiss teammates really embraced me this year. I don’t think I could have handpicked a better group of girls to spend my first year away from home and in a foreign country with.

My Swiss Team <3

In case you couldn’t tell, I’m having really mixed emotions about leaving. Part of me wants to cry, but the other part is so excited because I know that tomorrow I’m going to be home with my friends, family and of course, Dunkin’ Donuts coffee.

So where does that leave us, my dear blog readers?

I’m going to say goodbye to you too, since I’m heading back into work on Monday and will be back to my American routine. Who knows though, maybe I’ll let you know what’s going on from time to time this summer. Thanks for reading, and until next year, au revoir!