Abroad in Baltimore #30
Drawing to a Close
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It’s impossible to avoid it anymore. We can no longer deny the fact that the school year is drawing to a close. It’s the end of many things, my classes, the semester, my exchange year at MICA, and my 3rd year as a college student. Despite the joy surrounding the end of finals and classes, the end of the school year is always a bittersweet time for me. Amidst all the final project frenzy, it’s beginning to sink in that there’s only one week left of classes. It’s hard saying goodbye to friends and teachers that have made my experience here at MICA so enjoyable.
On the other hand, I can really only feel celebratory that I’ve made it through my junior year of college. I’ve climbed a mountain and can now look out and see how far I’ve come. One door closing means another opens (if it’s not too cliché) and I can’t wait to return to Paris and PCA for my senior year, it’s time. I’m really proud of how far I’ve come in the space of a single year. I had very specific goals for my exchange experience and I’m wrapping up the year feeling more than satisfied.
Emma and I went out to a local restaurant on MICA campus to celebrate our summer internships over dessert, literally called “damn good pie”, a crème brûlée tart in a cookie crumble crust. It tasted even better than it looks! We’ll both be staying close by for our summer internships, so hopefully we’ll have more fun times before we return to Europe.
To motivate myself to look forward to summer I’ve compiled a list of all the things I want to do. Books I want to read, shows I need to catch up on, weekend trips I want to take. The one thing I am looking forward to without a doubt is the freedom to do whatever I want with my free time. As much as summer is a time for rest and relaxation, it’s also a time for exploration. My summer internship promises to be just that, and I’m excited to start and apply the skills I’ve gained in class in the real world!
However, summer break isn’t only a time for play, there’s work to be done, internships to start, and (yikes) for those of us returning to Paris, student visas to acquire. In my experience, the key to surviving French bureaucracy is starting early, reaching out to your fearless student life coordinator, and wishing on a shooting star that everything goes smoothly. With time, effort, and a bit of luck, you’ll come out on the other side relatively unscathed.
In the meantime, all roads lead to finals. It’s crunch time for almost all students around the globe. Fortunately, the worst seems to be mostly behind me. My professors have done an admirable job of splitting up the assignments and structuring the class so the work winds down instead of heats up. Still, things can quickly devolve if we’re not careful, so I’ll be keeping my head down until all the work is well and truly done.