Final Thoughts

My English adventure has finally come to a close. I wasn't expecting July to fly by so quickly, so my friends and family are going to have to put up with my constant reminiscing and stories beginning with "When I was in Oxford..." for a couple weeks now. Maybe a couple years actually. Well probably the rest of my life.

I could not possibly be happier with how my trip went. I made so many new friends, wrote papers I am very proud of and learned quite a bit writing, explored London, Oxford, Blenheim Palace, and Bath, shopped at Blackwells, went pub-hopping, and overall had a time I can only describe as "jolly good," or "spot on." I will never forget all the laughing and learning I experienced there, and will forever be thankful it was made possible for me by the English Speaking Union, my extremely loving and supportive family and friends, and my professors and mentors who wrote me recommendation letters or offered me constant words of advice and encouragement. You all are the reason I was able to do any of this, and if I ever stop saying thank you just switch mid-sentence to an English accent and I'll remember to start up again. That was a psychological development I had during the course of my stay. I have always been a fan of English accents, but now they remind me of my first trip to their homeland.

Blake, Joanna and I had a strange experience traveling back home. We had an overnight layover in Newark's airport, so we decided to camp out in front of the bag check counter all night. I slept for maybe 10 minutes on the floor there, which had to have been designed for sleeping because of how comfortable it is. Both our flights went very well though, so I can't complain that much. Still, never sleep on an airport floor. It doesn't feel, smell, or look nice in any way. I think I frightened a number of families as they walked past the window to see a disheveled looking bearded man positioning himself in an unnatural way to try and utilize his suitcase as both a pillow and guard against the festering bacteria in front of the bag check line.

Landing in Louisville was wonderful. As much as I miss Oxford and look forward to returning, there really is no place like home. Blake and Joanna were greeted by their welcoming parties and my lovely girlfriend Mollie met me with a hug, bag of Kit-Kat bars, and a welcome home balloon. We picked up our suitcases and started off towards home for a much needed shower/nap combo. Saying goodbye to Blake and Joanna after all this time was strange. There was nothing really too sad about though, I think it's safe to say we each (along with Alexis, who is currently exploring Europe after her successful studies at Cambridge) became wonderful friends. I hope we make time in the future to see each other and talk about our further adventures. They are a big reason my trip was such a success after all.

Thank you again so much for reading this blog. It has been an immense pleasure to write. If you ever go on a trip like this, as I very much hope you do, I recommend keeping a journal of some kind. Now I can always come back to the writing here and immediately be filled with the same thoughts and memories that I count among my most valuable possessions. Hearing from you all about my trip while I was over there was wonderful, thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. Again, a fair warning about my constant stories, but I can't help it really. My Oxford summer was too much fun not to share with you over and over again.