La Fin

my oh my, where does the time go? I leave tomorrow morning.... I'm excited to come home, I miss everyone so much, and Portland, but I know I will miss Strasbourg and my friends here just as much...
Let's see, what has happened since my bike trip?

I had lots of class, lots of studying, lots of finals.... but I finally finished it all! No more French school! Woohoo! In between all that I went to some good parties, some barbecues, made some friends, camped on a hill and was awoken by firemen and a helicopter... And I've seen a lot of thunderstorms! They come out of nowhere. Like the day Alla and I were studying outside a café, dying in the heat, when all of a sudden lightning flashed and it started pouring down rain and we had to run across town. We got drenched to the bone!
I also went rock climbing outside one day. That was really lots of fun, I can't wait to get back to the climbing club at LC. I just wished I had been able to go here earlier because there are so many different places to go around Alsace.

May 16 I got my tattoo! I've been wanting this tattoo since at least last year. Now I can always remember my time in France and what it means to me. If you haven't seen the pictures on facebook, it's the little prince being carried away by a flock of birds. I loved that movie when I was younger (still do) so it reminds me of the eternal child in me, my semester in France, liberty and initiative and not being afraid to do what I must to reach my goals.

The next day I went to Basel, Switzerland with some friends. We had a lot of fun walking around the town, by the river, and eating ice cream, oh and of course Bratwurst and beer! mmmm... delicious!

A few days later Isabelle Demarte, one of the French professors at Lewis & Clark, came to visit us in Strasbourg. I showed her my apartment here and we talked about the host families, school, and life here in Strasbourg. Then we had a fancy last dinner with Isabelle, Beth, and the whole group. It was the best duck I have ever had! And I've had a lot of duck here in France :)

The past week I've been relaxing and enjoying spending the last few days with my friends here. When it's been nice and sunny I'd just go to le jardin botanique or l'orangerie (two parks here that I love) and draw and write.

May 23 I went to Haut Koenigsbourg, a castle about half an hour away from Strasbourg. That was really fun to see! Although, the tour was a lot shorter than I thought it would be. But we saw old cannons and a dragon! (Okay okay, it wasn't a real dragon, but I like to pretend)

Last night I went to Happy Hour at Le Brasseur for the last time, then went to a friend's house and joined a little party they were having. Now all my stuff is packed, and my room is almost clean. Tonight I might go to a movie with my host sister, then we'll have a nice dinner and champagne with my host mom and tomorrow I'll be back in Portland!

I can't explain how much of a wonderful time I've had here, though there have been some difficult times, I've learned and grown so much. Sorry, I'm getting a little mushy here.
See you all back at home soon!