I have less than one month left in Poland, and daily I question where the time has gone. Thinking of all of the people who have grown into family, and all I have felt and witnessed during this time I am memorized that it has been just 9.5 months. My mind, comfort zone, and heart have grown through places and experiences previously unrecognized. During my time abroad, I have gained a sense of comfort in realizing that there's a reason for everything and everyone in my life.
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Due to various holidays, events, and program led trips, I haven't spent too much time in school these past few months. Neverless, I enjoy my time there. My classmates and I have accepted my role as an exchange student. I am very grateful for the family feel the classroom holds, and am rather proud of the friendships I have established. They share the same excitement for sunshine, tongue twisters in a foreign language, a good party and laugh, and of course free days. I have learned so much from the development of these friends. I am surprisingly well on my way to completing the school year given the amount of suduko puzzles I have finished. This is all my classmates think I do, and they're not entirely wrong.
I am grateful and amazed by my host families ability to understand me and my experience. Their flexibility has allowed me to take advantage of every opportunity this year has provided. With 3 sisters close to my age, life at home is never dull. We have more than our fair share of sarcastic comments, arguments over food, and pestering, but they have added an incredible amount of entertainment, laughter, and thought to my life. I know that they have my back should they need to. I can always count on Daga's singing, Kasia's kindness, and Magda's criticism, and having something consistent has been beneficial. Conversations with my host mom and her very apparent care for me have helped me to process my progress and growth in each aspect of my life. I am forever indebted and intertwined to those who have so graciously allowed me to make their home my own and have shown me family and love in what was once such a foreign place.
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For the first three weeks of April, I traveled with my 54 member exchange family through 7 countries. We hit nearly every noteworthy European landmark: Amsterdam canals, Atominium, the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame cathedral, Lourve museum, palace of Versaille, Chambord castle, mid-evil walls of Carcassonne, mile viaduct bridge, Sagrada Familia cathedral, Barcelona beaches, Gaudi park, bridge of Avignon, cliffs in Monaco, the leaning tower of Pisa, the Vatican, the Colosseum, and Venice canals. It was a dream, and to say we weren't all singing Lizzie McGuire's this is what dreams are made of would be a lie. Having never been to Europe before this year, my bucket list is much shorter after this trip. Even more than the obvious moments I will remember the random moments which we stumbled upon together. Evenings spent on the beach, joining in a pillow fight on the streets of Amsterdam, bus breaks filled with volleyball and food, eating pizza on the steps of a restaurant in Rome, "gelato" runs, being woken up at 5 by people jumping on our bed, and the endless dance and pillow parties.
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I have been fortunate enough to see most of Poland and much of Europe during my time abroad. Recently I traveled to the north of Poland for my final rotary weekend with all the exchange students. We spent our time together remembering how far we have come in our relationships, saying goodbye for what for some was the last time in Poland, and promising our plans to meet again. A trip to the baltic isn't complete without a "swim" and we found ourselves on the beach any opportunity we had. 20 of us also traveled to London. This trip held the perfect balance of tours, sight seeing, and playing London local. We visited the Big Ben, Buckingham palace, tower bridge, the prime meridian, platform 9 3/4 quarters, and the London eye, but we also had enough time to wonder the streets of London, get a little lost, and discover some of the "hidden" treasures of London. The free time throughout these various trips holds some of my fondest memories. Something I appreciate most about exchange students is their ability to appreciate the moment and place. During this free time we split up following the street that looks the most inviting, turning left or right or stumbling into restaurants or shops of interest. Somehow we all make it back to the meeting place, sometimes on time, usually not, full of food, drinks, gelato, and stories from our hour in two in an unknown european city. There is so much beauty in this being our reality.
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I truly don't know where I would be without the exchange students unwavering love and support. We share a kind of love that no distance, judgement, time, or rough night could falter. I have never felt more accepted and wholey loved for me than I do amongst them. Through their open hearts and minds they have allowed me the oppurtunity to grow into myself. For this I am forever thankful to every single one of them. I am extremely hopeful that these friendships will follow me back to the states and through the future. We have shared the hardships of polish winter, scowling strangers, and sauerkraut. These have bonded us forever and given way to incredible unexpected experiences like watching the sunrise over the baltic, getting stuck at the top of the London eye, train parties, testing Italy's gelato, and sitting in the sunshine on the shore of the wisła. These are the moments and memories I will miss the most and hold dear forever.
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Three of us have already returned home. It's the beginning of the end. I remember so vividly when it was 9 months till I could hug my mom, and now that day is 2 weeks away. This year is the best decision I could have made for myself. I am endlessly grateful to those who pushed me here and who have supported me through this year. The little things mean so much more when you're half way across the world. This year has shown me true friendship beyond belief and unknowingly sorted those who will be there and those who aren't. This experience has shown me more than anything how much beauty there is in the world and taught me that it's our job to love each other.
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Poland will forever hold a special place in my heart for all it has taught me and allowed me to discover. For all the places and kinds of people it introduced me to, for the hardships it gave me, for the lessons I learned from it, and for all the beautiful souls and moments it led to my heart. I will be sad to say goodbye to Poland, the people I shared this time with, my city, and the person I am here. As all exchange blogs read, I am leaving my friends and family to return to my friends and family. I have many conflicting feelings about my approaching departure, but I hope that within the next month I will find the closure I need. All I can be certain about is that this is a good long life.
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http://maggieinpoland.weebly.com/blog/category/all