They think it's all over. It is now.

That's it.  Done and dusted.  This time tomorrow I will hopefully be sat at home in Essex, the sunny climbs of Spain far behind me.  My year abroad began 350 days ago when I set off for Valencia in July 2011, it seems like such a long time ago and yet only yesterday...  Since then I have spent around 300 of those days out of the UK, the rest have been split between Belgium and Spain (with a couple of weekends in France and Luxembourg!)  I don't think it will really hit me that it's all over for a while yet, although I'm going home tomorrow I am heading up to Lancaster on Sunday for a week and at the moment I think it will just feel like another one of my visits, not that I'm actually back for good.  I guess it will hit me at some point in the summer when I'm stuck in the rain that I won't actually be coming back out to Spain just yet.

If you'd have asked me a few months ago if I could see myself moving abroad I'd have said no, I think that was because I'd been in Brussels, in winter, speaking my weaker language.  Ask me that question now and I'd have something different to say.  Hard as I have found it this year I think a lot of that can be put down to things not being on my terms, studying classes I wasn't enjoying and finding little motivation for them.  If the right job came along one day then I would certainly consider coming back to live in Spain again, and I'm surprised to "hear" myself say that.

Contrary to what many people will probably believe I have actually enjoyed this year, in my own way, and I've still got something out of it.  I may not have made loads of friends from all around the world and had "the best year of my life" but that's not to say that there isn't a lot of value in the year that I have had.  I have learnt plenty about myself, and I think I've learnt a fair amount about other people too.

Tomorrow afternoon I will return to the UK satisfied with my year, I'm not going to let myself have any regrets or things I wish I'd done differently, because let's face it, who is that helping now?

As for what's next?  Who knows!  I thought that by the end of this year I'd have a clearer picture of what I want to do with myself this time next year when I'm all done at Lancaster (This year better not pass as quickly as the last one has...).  However, I've probably just ended up with more ideas and confusion!  Oh well, nice to have options right?

I reckon that once I'm back in rainy old England I'll realise how much I liked being abroad and probably want to get out and see more of the world, let's just see though shall we?

I'm hoping to keep writing these blogs, although my life back home probably won't be interesting enough to write about unless you want to hear about my dissertation, going to work and writing essays, so I'll try and do them on languages/translation sort of topics as and when I can think of any.

So, that's it.  My year abroad is over. Thanks to those of you that have been reading this all the way along, and I hope I've been of some use/interest/entertainment to at least some of you!

Going back to being Bex.

In less than 4 weeks time I get to go back to being Bex.  I get to go back to being the "normal" me, and not the "normal" that I've become over the last 10 months.  Over the course of this year I'm pretty sure I've been a different person, and not one I particularly like I must admit.

They say that you'll come back from the year abroad a different person, but that is because you're meant to be more confident and outgoing, better travelled and more experienced but I think something quite the opposite has happened to me.  Over the last two years at uni, and to an extent some of my time in 6th form, I have managed to shed the shy person I used to be, I am a lot more confident, will get stuck in and involved with anything and everything and really enjoy meeting new people.  Somehow over the course of my year abroad that person has gone into hiding.  I get wound up over little things, complain about things that would never usually bother me and get upset totally needlessly.  I've never been an unsociable person but I've certainly spent a lot more time on my own than I ever have done before, and I'm not even entirely sure why that is.

During the first semester I convinced myself that it was because I was in a French speaking country and that it was my weaker language and so I was bound to feel uneasy, but I realise now that was utter rubbish.  I was surrounded by Erasmus students that I didn't have to speak French to  if I didn't feel able to, so why couldn't I make myself do that?  Here I am coming to the end of semester two, in a country where I am a lot more capable of speaking the language and yet has there been any change?  No, it's been just as hard as the first time round.

This is one of the overriding reasons why I am looking forward to going home, I come home and start a new job for the summer, I go back to meeting new people and doing new things.  Then I go back to Lancaster where I am involved with societies and have a job which constantly has me doing new things and meeting new people, just the way I like it.

Why this year hasn't given me that I just can't explain.  I'm not saying the experience hasn't given me other things, and I'm sure I'll see these in hindsight, I've been to some great places and seen lots, I'm certainly a better travelled person, and have learnt things, but other than that?

Anyone that has met me for the first time this year will have almost certainly have met a different person, it's not a bad thing, but she's certainly not the person I know and won't have any problem saying goodbye to her at Malaga airport in just under 4 weeks...

An accidental holiday in Magaluf.

This was the week that we had been looking forward to for a long time.  Booked at the end of last year we decided to spend our holiday in Mallorca, it was somewhere we could all get to from 3 different airports, it was a good price and it is a nice place.  We booked a hotel called TRH Palmanova (remember this, it is going to be important...), booked our flights, and all we had to do was wait, so wait we did.  A quick read up on the internet suggested that the hotel wasn't quite in Palmanova like the name would suggest, and on a steep hill, neither of which really caused us a problem.  Easter week rolls around and off we go!  Charlotte and Vicki arrived first having flown together from Manchester, and get told we've been moved hotels as there had been over booking with ours, not a problem, it's just  even further up the hill!  Now I'll take you back to our location, we were basically on the end of the strip in Magaluf!  Not quite what we'd intended, but oh well!  Palmanova itself, when we actually did go there for a wander, is a lot bigger than we had realised and we'd certainly go and stay there again.  The only problem with the location we ended up in was that there was a Spanish festival of some sort on for a few days and there was a huge group of people staying in our hotel, and they weren't the quiet type!  But when this is the view from your balcony, you really can't complain:

The very first time we took a walk down to the beach we realised that we would have to find another route, it is impossible to walk down the main strip without getting stopped at least every 5 or 6 steps (and I'm not even exaggerating) by some promoter or other trying to get you to stop in their bar for a drink.  It doesn't matter how clear you make it to some of them that you're not interested, they'll engage you in conversation, physically block the way, try and split up the group and even try pulling you in by your hair!  It's a bit of a laugh but certainly gets tiresome after a while.  We instead tended to go to places along the beach front or walk over to Palmanova where there are still plenty of lively bars but without the hassle.  We did cave into them once or twice though, the first time was at 4 in the afternoon when we bought beer and sangria and got given free shots of Sambuca, only in Magaluf...

Because we're so cool and so mature we bought a bucket, spade, rake and some little animal shapes, oh and a sive!  We spent quite a while on 2 different days making these creations:



And on a sand related note, the girls buried me in the sand and sculpted me into a mermaid.  I didn't get the best photo of that though!

In general we spent our week wandering, eating, drinking and laying in the sun, so I'm not going to give you a diary entry style blog of what we did for fear of boring you all so much that you never come back!  However, we did go to Palma for the day which was nice, other than paying €4.50 for a Fanta!  We had intended to see one of the Easter parades for Semana Santa but by the time we'd spent the day there we were getting tired and ready to leave so we didn't get to see it.  I just see that as an excuse for me to get back out to Spain another Easter and see it all though!

We also did one of those holiday essentials and played mini golf which was a lot of fun.  Especially with holes like this one where the water gets in the way some what:

I didn't do very well, lets just say that I lost by a long long way and leave it at that shall we?  Whilst we were there Katy and I had our photo taken with a snake, it was pretty scary and we weren't really expecting it to happen, but we had to buy it just to prove we've done it! Apologies for the quality, it really needs to be scanned in at some point.

That  is about it really!  I came back this morning fairly early, I've unpacked, done 2 loads of washing, uploaded my photos, done my photo of the day project and now I've even written this!  Will be an early night for me tonight though, and hoping for my first totally uninterrupted nights sleep in a week! Got a day tomorrow to catch up and maybe do some work before classes start again on Tuesday which feels really odd.  I'm glad though, because I'd quite like the next few weeks to pass, it's been hard knowing so many Erasmus students that have been home and seen their families this week and I haven't.  Oh well, one blank weekend, then Cordoba, then Seville and then my parents are here with my Nana for a whole week which even includes my 21st!  Can't wait!

Did the last 4 months even happen?

I realise it's been quite a while since my last post, but seeing as I've been at home there hasn't been anything year abroad related to write about.  I had a lovely Christmas and then for New Years Eve 4 of my friends from Uni came down and we went into London to see the fireworks which was nice.  Since then I've been quite unfortunately revising for the exams I have to take when I go back to Brussels, and my return to Brussels is what I want to write about today...

The idea that I'm going back currently seems very odd to me, I think the problem is that this is the longest amount of time I've been away from Belgium for, yes I've been away for 3 or 4 days travelling or visiting Lancaster but never for more than that, now I've been here for 2 weeks and I'm not leaving until Monday.  I think I've got used to being here, it's not that I don't want to go, it's just that the whole idea feels very odd!  I think my mind has decided that I've moved out of the flat in Ixelles and won't be returning to ISTI again, especially not to take exams, and that the next move for me is to Granada.  In fact, to be totally honest, coming back here has just totally wiped my memory, the last 4 months seem so distant that it's hard to realise I've not just imagined the entire thing!  I think it's just because the time is passing so quickly, and it is only now that I am beginning to wish it would slow down a little!  When I go back to Brussels I will be there for just 12 days before my parents come out in the car to take me and all my stuff home, at that point I really won't be going back...! (Well not as part of my YA anyway, I'm not psychic, who knows about the future?)

Being home has given me a chance to have a good think about the last few months, what I wish I'd done differently etc, but I'll tell you all about that later, I'll write a Bye-Bye Brussels blog or something and bore you all with it then.

Whilst I've been home I've started up on the 365 (although this year 366) project, which means taking and uploading a photo every day for a year.  I have no idea if it will last but I didn't think that I'd manage to keep up this blog and well- so far so good eh?!

Here is the link to the project-
Facebook
365

Just 6 more sleeps to go.

Being just 7 days (and 6 sleeps) away from heading home for Christmas I thought it was about time for a blog. Since getting back to Brussels from Lille nothing particularly noteworthy has happened other than having now got everything lined up for Granada, the deposit is paid for the room, the flights are booked and Mum is coming with me for the first few days.  One of the best things about having the room sorted is that I have a nice 3 weeks to spend at home after my exams are over in Brussels and before I head off to Espana.  (Lancaster, beware, I'll be heading up on the last weekend in January!)

The weather here has been terrible for the last few days, and it's a great time to discover a lack of shoes that are watertight, indeed it was actually my Uggs that kept my feet dry the most effectively, but I'm not sure the rain did them much good...I'm not actually sure where the rain is worse, Brussels or Lancaster, either way attempting to use an umbrella is futile.

Tomorrow sees me once again making the epic journey out to Charleroi airport and I'm not even leaving the country.  Please cross your fingers that the weather will be ok tomorrow because I really don't feel like hanging round in an airport that is pretty much just a shed on the edge of a field.  There is only so much reading I will be able to get done and work I will be able to do sitting at arrivals.

Today all the students in my now to remain unnamed department (although it hardly takes a genius to work it out) received a Christmas Greetings email.  Two problems with this, one was that they actually managed to get our departing Vice Chancellors name wrong, he is no longer Wellings but Wellington it seems, he has clearly had a great influence on the staff of the department.  They also mentioned a piece of work this is apparently optional but they say they advised us to do- no one has a clue about it, interesting!

Any work that hasn't been done and doesn't get done tomorrow will now have to wait until Tuesday afternoon (and lets face it, with only 2 sleeps until home at that point nothing particularly productive is going to get done) as I will be spending the weekend showing Henry the sites of Brussels, although if the recent weather continues we may have to swim everywhere.

Sorry that this post hasn't been very interesting, I'm sure I'll have another one or two posts to share with you before I head home for Christmas, then I'll go quiet for a while as I presume you don't want to hear all about my Christmas/New Year celebrations, revision and essay writing!

6 sleeps until home!

The 40th Post

I feel that reaching my 40th post should be some sort of momentous occasion, but quite frankly there isn't a whole lot to write!

I know those of you that are not equally counting down until "home time" will be quite bored of this but -

I'M GOING HOME IN 2 WEEKS FROM TODAY!

Ok, it's out of my system now...

Tuesday was Saint Nicholas Day and as he is the saint for children here in Belgium we were paid a visit by him and his little helpers in one of our classes giving us fruit and sweeties, slightly random but another "cultural experience" I guess?!  Talking of cultural things, I understand it's nice to say bon appetite to someone when they start a meal, and my flat mate always says it when she sees me eating, by the other day I was walking down the street taking the very final bite of my croissant when a random passer by wished me bon appetite, I was a little bit confused... maybe I'm the only one that finds that slightly odd?

A box of M&S, yes, you heard it, M&S Mince Pies has turned up in my kitchen, I want to know where my flat mate got them from! Ahhh it's the simple things you miss...!

This weekend Jenny and I are off on our very last weekend away, this time to Lille to see the Christmas markets and just to generally be able to say we went to France for the weekend.  Once we get back I'll have been to Luxembourg, Spain and France as well as having seen various places in Belgium and having popped back to England for the weekend.  I some how don't reckon I'll be travelling as much from Granada but I am hoping to see as much of Spain as I can.

Oh and this is about as productive as my lecture got today: