Blessed, thankful and glad to be here

My travel day(s) from Rome to London to MSP was long and tiring. The flight from London to Chicago went pretty well. I was able to sleep and watch some movies during the flight so it really didn't feel too long. I didn't sleep well at our hostel the night before so I was running on about 4 hours of sleep - which if you know me, that is not nearly enough! Once we got to Chicago we had to rush to make our flight. We were supposed to have two hours at the airport but our London flight got in 30 min late and the line for Passport Control was long and moving slowly. We got through that line with about 20 minutes before boarding began to collect our bags (which weighed a ton!), go through customs, re-check our baggage, go through security again and find our gate! I'm not sure how, but we got there with about 2 mins before the plane was scheduled to leave. We were sweaty and so hot when we clambered onto the tiny plane. I sat down and the woman next to me said, "Whoa...tell me your story!" She new I was beat. She was shocked to hear all that we had done in the past 22 hours! Fondly called The Windy City, Chicago didn't want us to get to MSP easily. The winds were so bad we didn't leave the runway until 6:30pm which was an hour late. At that point though, I didn't care as long as I was on that plane! We got to MSP in no time (comparatively) and I was greeted with big smiles and beautiful flowers. Am I really home??

I don't know where to start to begin to end this experience. I have to say, it sure feels odd being home although it's exactly what I wanted. They say I will experience "reverse culture shock" and I think it's already beginning. I am so happy to see my family and friends but my way of living here is different than the last 4 months so some adjusting will definitely need to happen. I've been enjoying time to myself this morning because I think the only time I've been alone in 4 months is during visits to the loo. There are things I will miss greatly about London, and other things not so much. I've missed the comforts of home. As cliche as it sounds, all good things must come to an end. I thank God every day for the opportunity to see the world. I have honestly learned more in this semester abroad than I will in all 4 years of college. I've learned so much about myself through others. I had some struggles with one of the girls on my program following my every step and clinging to me but I looked at it as a way to grow and learn from her craziness. Other than that, I wouldn't have changed anything about my experience abroad. I hope I've become a more confident, independent, open-minded, worldly person. Thank you all for coming on this journey with me - I can't wait to share all the stories that didn't make the blog!

Cheers!