“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end”

Well, ladies and gents, we’ve come to that time finally where I must bid Italia farewell. I have less than two days to go, but figured I’d write this now since I’m probably going to be losing my mind tomorrow wondering if I packed everything (one suitcase already weighs 65 lbs… can’t wait to lug that one on the train/bus). But I digress, where was I? Oh yeah, final abroad thoughts.

Graham and I went to Amsterdam over the weekend for our last trip abroad. Red light district, coffeeshops, museums, Heineken factory, parks… we basically saw it all. We also went out to this greenhouse-converted restaurant in a park that served us only organic and homegrown dishes. But probably the best thing was renting out an apartment for the weekend. Don’t get me wrong, I love touring around and seeing the sights, but it’s the alone time that I really cherish. We were at liberty to do anything we wanted, and that’s exactly what we did. We relaxed, watched Lord of the Rings (I still don’t know why), and cooked our own meal (salmon and veggies). It felt like real life, like we were living on our own. After an amazing weekend, we parted ways at the airport, realizing the next time we were going to see each other was back home in the states. Which now brings me back to my current thoughts on leaving.

I hate to say this, but the ending is a bit anti-climatic. The Thursday before I left for Amsterdam, we had our final dinner together, which was really nice to have something that we all got dressed up for and were enjoying together. But after that, it’s been pretty low-key. People have already left for home these past few days, like Liana. Some I wasn’t able to say goodbye to, some I was. Frankly, I’m not that upset. I know this is the end of a period of my life and that I will never be in Italy with these people again, but that really doesn’t bother me. I know we will see each other over the summer and at school. I mean, I’m going to see Caroline this weekend down the shore. So I’m really not that emotional for once in my life. I’m usually very anti-change and anti-endings, and my history certainly proves that. But this time I’m very content with what I’ve experienced and am ready to return home. Actually, now that I think about it, it still boils down to the whole anti-change thing. This whole time here has been sorta chaotic with no real schedule or any routine. In a way, I’ve never really settled because I’ve been on the go since January. So returning home in a way allows me to stop the madness and return to some form of normalcy.

Home. Ah, I cannot wait to get home. Absolutely positively CANNOT wait. I cannot wait for sushi, soy milk, green tea, nature valley bars, TiVo, cable, driving, and a million other things. Oh yeah, and my family and friends ;] Everything I’ve said before in this blog still remains true, so I don’t have much more to add to that. I love Italy and it’ll always remain a very important part of my identity, but I’ll be back here in August. Right now, I need me some America.

You wanna know one of the things I’m looking forward to the most when I return? Getting called up by the customs officer, having him look at my passport, smile at me, and say “Welcome home.”

Wow, so that’s it. I’m just about done. Maybe I’ll keep this up, maybe I won’t. But I sincerely thank you for following me on this journey. Hopefully there are more to come. As always, Faithful Readers, I bid you farewell and will see you stateside =]