Sunday, December 9, 2012

Study Abroad: Part 27 [And So It Goes... The Final Countdown]

Six.  That is the number of days left in Morocco.  Right now, I'm back at Hotel Velleda, the hotel where I started this crazy adventure.  Before I met everyone, I was worried.  After all, I hadn't met them before or gone onto their Facebook pages before I arrived (thank you China for internet censorship).  And now, I kinda don't want to say goodbye.

But in six days, I hop onto a plane at 6:40, the morning of December 15, and head back to the States.  At that point in time, I then have approximately 23 days to finish my Belgium visa application process before I go study abroad in Belgium... They told me to plan for four weeks to process my visa, but I have to apply for the visa in the United States.  Also, I didn't have access to the necessary paperwork until I got to Morocco.  Therefore, oops?

So anyways, that's what is ahead of me.  What lies in the ruins of last week: edit upon edit upon edit, my completed ISJ, finding a printer, participating in the mad dash of rabble-rousing and farewell parties, and moving out of the medina apartment.

To be honest, I regret nothing. Sure, there have been a few hair-raising moments (like witnessing a fight outside a club), moments where I wanted to scream (like arguing with our former landlady who swore she'd make us pay 2000 dirhams and would call the cops if we didn't leave at 11 in the morning, even though we told her we would leave at noon), and moments of pure apathy and exhaustion (where I essentially feel like I'm experiencing finals from across the world: sleep deprivation, frustration, and wondering where I went wrong with my life choices).

But it's been worth it.  My soundtrack has been: laughing, crying, shouting, screaming.  I've been sick, been homesick, been (almost) lovesick, and been cured.  I'm looking forward to fast internet connection, hot water showers with high pressure, walking down the street without harassment and eating Chinese food.  I'll miss couscous on Fridays, two or three hour long coffee/tea breaks, feeling salt spray on my face, and my friends.

And despite everything that's happened, I can honestly say that, when I'm looking back on my Facebook photos and everything else, I can say that "Yeah, I totally did that."

Moi and my final project (in a pretty blue folder).

No comments:

Post a Comment