Edinburgh Exchanges

I’ve now been back in Scotland for almost two weeks and have moved into a new flat in the Grange, got a job, unpacked my umbrella and pretty much started my life the way it’s going to be for the next few months – with all of that in place it almost seems as though the last eight months didn’t even happen.

My last week in Dijon was stressful and sad – there were so many things to organise before I could leave and of course, admin is never painless in France! We spent a lot of time trying to find Erasmus co-ordinators to sign things and secretaries to give things to and collect things from, most of which managed to sort itself out in the end, which is also pretty characteristic of France – there’s usually not too much point getting stressed out about these things because everything does tend to fall into place at the last minute! As well as all of that, Sophie and I kept ourselves busy completing our list of things to do before we left and, among other things, took a trip to Marsannay, a wine-growing village just outside of Dijon. I think it technically counts as part of Dijon as the bus goes there, but it does seem like a tiny town on its own. There isn’t really very much there – just a church, a couple of museums, cafés and caves de dégustation which are basically just local peoples’ houses that you can turn up to and ask to taste their wines. We didn’t do that because there does tend to be an expectation that if they open bottles for you to taste and take time out of their day to take you around their vineyards and tell you about their produce you’ll reciprocate by spending money, which we couldn’t really afford to do. Nonetheless we spent a pleasant day in Marsannay – it was also the last sunny day of my year abroad so I’m glad I didn’t spend it inside!

My dad and brother came over for my last few days to have a bit of a holiday before helping me to take my almost 60kg of luggage (!) back to Scotland. It was unfortunate that they were there on a Sunday and a Monday – the two most difficult days to find shops, museums and tourist attractions that are open. Normally it wouldn’t have been too much of an issue and I had planned to spend a lot of time with them at the lake and the park, or just wandering around the town or going to some of the other wine growing villages around Dijon – as I said though, the weather took a turn for the worse and it rained almost constantly from the minute they set foot in France to the minute we left. We did go to Beaune though and I think they were impressed by how pretty Dijon is although also a bit bemused as to how I could have kept myself busy and entertained there for a whole year!

As I’ve said before, the process of leaving seemed to take weeks and weeks, but when it actually came time to pack up my room it sort of took me by surprise. I’m glad that I had family visiting because I didn’t have time to dwell on the fact that it was nearly all over. Sophie came out with us for a final meal, we went to bed early, caught a sickeningly early train to Paris and before I knew it, I was waving goodbye to her at the departure gates of Charles de Gaulle airport. And that was it. It felt very anti-climatic after the weeks of tearful goodbyes and discussions about packing and whether or not to take mustard home and whether or not we would still all be friends in a year, two years, three years.

So that’s my Erasmus year over now and I can’t believe that a year ago I was sitting in my flat writing out my very first blog, still three months away from actually going to Dijon, and trying to convince myself that I hadn’t made a grave error in agreeing to go through with this madness! I could never have imagined how the year abroad would turn out – for one thing I was supposed to be doing a teaching assistantship in Marseilles – but it exceeded all of my expectations and left me with so many fantastic memories and experiences that I would never have had otherwise. I did so much travelling, learned to ski and snowboard and kayak, discovered what it’s like to eat like a blind person, witnessed a parade of bikers dressed up like Santa Claus, spread the joy of Marmite to unsuspecting Europeans, fell in love with the colour orange, sang karaoke, found hundreds of new uses for mustard, learned about wine and how to pour a beer (after causing much hilarity with my pint glass full of froth on my first attempt), I learned new words in German, Spanish, Dutch and Polish and joined in with some traditions of my new home, I went on strike, ate snails, balked at trying frogs’ legs and yearned for roast beef. I made fantastic new friends and my French improved dramatically. In short, I had an absolutely brilliant year and I couldn’t have wished for anything better or more rewarding. I was sceptical when previous Erasmus students assured me that this would be the best year of my life, but as it turned out, they were completely right!

Well I’m home, the last week over and gone and finished and here I am already wondering what to do next and how to carry on. This week went so fast in so many ways but also seemed to drag as saying ‘goodbye’ is always horrible. As I mentioned last week, we said goodbye to Rob on Sunday evening with vodka watermelon; Monday evening I was sitting in Rachel’s room watching her tidy idly wondering if we were really leaving. After the beginning of the year, one would have thought I’d learnt my lesson: Don’t pretend that things aren’t going to happen.

It was hardly surprising then that I was doing a great job of exactly that- I carried on as usual. The beginning of the week was just a blur of work and bad spelling, I worked every hour possible to get my report completely finished but by Wednesday it was pretty much complete and ready to print Thursday morning.

The evenings were anything but normal (or at least our concept of normal), Tuesday night Rachel and Andrew spent their hard earned Auchan points on expensive bottles of ‘bubbly’ and wine and we sat and chatted in our cleaning clothes- I think I was pretending to start sorting my room out (another symptom of pretending things aren’t going to happen.)

The ‘goodbye’s’ started in earnest on Wednesday, we held a ‘petit fête’ chez Andrew for all of our closest friends, Shusaku, Clara, Phil, Anne and Anna, Sana, Rachel’s sister had already arrived by this point (she came over to help Rachel and Irene to get all her stuff back) and she spoke to the Anglophones. It was nice to have one last French evening but Shusaku and I spent the evening chatting to each other as out of everyone I think I will miss him most because I don’t know when I will next see him.

On Thursday we continued the ‘aurevoir’s’ with a ‘pôt’ in the labs, that is to say a drink with everyone, I was glad we organised it, even though it cost us a small fortune in cake and Cremant d’Alsace, since we could say a proper thank you and goodbye rather than sneaking out the back door. It gave it a proper finish and felt final, I was worried it would be a non-event and feel odd but it was nice and yet horrible to have to ‘bisou’ everyone knowing I may never see them again. Still kissing cheeks with 14 people is not easy and I’m glad I won’t be doing that again for a while!

Lydie wasn’t able to come to our gathering which I was sad about, I gave Gabin his present but I had to leave Lydie’s on her table on Friday as she wasn’t there again. It was a shame because I had really grown to like Lydie and she helped me so much, I hoped she liked her present. It felt weird walking away from labs, after going in nearly every day, saying goodbye to Gabin was awful, it was surprising to discover how much I had grown to like him and how much I will miss him- I didn’t expect to feel so sad!

There was no time for sadness though as Irene was taking us out to the 3 brasseurs (flammekeuche place) for dinner- if you ever go to Lille I highly recommend this place, it is reasonably priced, they do amazing beer and flammekeuche are the next big thing if you ask me. It’s just off to the left as you come out of Gare Lille Flandres.

Anyway, we managed to get in the kettle again which was fun and afterwards we headed over to the Oz bar one last time with Sarah where, in a typical us move, Rachel and I decided we wanted the blue drinks everyone else seemed to have even though we had no idea what they were. So Rachel, with a coquettish giggle asked for ‘six of those blue drinks please,’ well, it was our last night- they turned out to be cocktails that cost € 8.50!

When we got in at 11.30 I finally realised that I was leaving the next day- I looked around my room, it was total chaos and no hint of packing. In a panic I started throwing things into bags and by the time I fell into bed most of my packing was done- I had about four hours sleep before I was up gutting my room and bleaching every square inch of it. A few tea breaks later and Rachel was leaving, it was odd because I know I will see her again, if I have anything to do with it I’ll be seeing her every other week! But it was still sad to know that it was the end of an era.

There was no time to dwell however as I still had a room to sort out, by one o clock I had finished all be it exhausted and with the migraine from hell! Sarah popped over to give me back my book and seemed reluctant to leave so we sat and chatted and waited for my parents. It was an ominous feeling, knowing it was the end and that I was going away for good.

As we packed the car (in record time thanks to all the help from Andrew, Sarah and Kalyleigh (Andrew’s friend)) I remembered back to my arrival and how it seemed only moments ago in time, but I don’t recognise the girl who arrived at Boucher and panicked about not having a washing machine.

In typical French style at half three my room was empty and spotless, my report had been collected and I was ready to hand over my keys and yet there was no one about. The office had been closed all day- this did not surprise me at all and I’d written a letter to post through the letter box just in case. And so came the final goodbye’s, Sarah and Andrew, we looked at each other as if we were doing each other a disservice and hugged for a while- words weren’t really enough by this point.

My parents and I wasted a few hours in Lille, buying some Macarons and having a final croque before getting in the car and heading to Le Tunnel sous la Manche. I was home by ten feeling sick, exhausted, sick and sad to leave, happy I went, relieved to have finished all my work and dreading unpacking everything.

I’m going to post one last blog after this one, I want to settle back into home and reflect a little on the year before writing a concluding piece but for now I’ll finish by saying that I wouldn’t have missed or changed this year for the world!

I've now been back in the UK for just over a week and yet Austria feels like a lifetime ago. I did jump straight back into life here, which was a conscious decision - I didn't want to be moping around thinking about life in Vienna when I should be getting on with life here, so after, what will hopefully be my last stop over in Heathrow for a long time, I arrived back in Scotland with my mum in tow. Our flight to Edinburgh had been a bit more exciting than usual due to the fact that we shared it with a number of politicians including Menzies Campbell, and BBC journalists, who I presume were on their way up for the European Elections.

As soon as I got to Edinburgh I immediately moved into my new flat, which I have my wonderful flatmate, Michael, to thank for finding it and sorting out all of the admin as the rest of us jetted around the world, and it is absolutely amazing! I started work again on Monday the 8th - in the same summer job at the National Wallace Monument, and it felt like I'd never left. Hardly anything has changed. I know that that unsettles a lot of people returning home as they feel that they've changed but nothing else has, but it was actually quite comforting. I think it helped that everyone there was really interested in hearing about my year abroad, it's good to be able to tell other people about it and realise just what a great opportunity it was. I sometimes forget just how much I've done while I've been away until someone asks me 'so, how many countries did you visit?' or talks about how they've always wanted to go to a Viennese Ball and I can tell them that I've been to one.

To briefly mention the European elections before I try and summarise this amazing year, I think that Erasmus has definitely broadened my knowledge about European politics and I couldn't believe just how apathetic the British people were and how little campaigning there seemed to be. In Austria there were posters everywhere and you knew exactly who was standing and what their policies were, whereas in the UK you had to do a lot of research just to see who was running. I can't say I was surprised when the BNP gained their first two seats but it did disgust me somewhat - especially as it was a pattern which was seen all over Europe. Austria is particularly conservative and their far-right party, which took an anti-Muslim line for the elections also gained ground.

It's really difficult to summarise just what I've taken from this year. It has definitely allowed me time and perspective to think about what I want to do later. It has also affected how I make important decisions; taking into account what my friends and family say but ultimately making an independent decision. Before we started our Erasmus year we were told all about the qualities we would gain and how we would be more independent, confident and open-minded and I was always a little doubtful as to what I would gain from the experience, but I have gained far more than I could ever have imagined. I've made some amazing, life-long friends, visited so many different places, experienced a completely different culture first hand and gained valuable teaching experience.

Erasmus has been one of the best experiences of my life and I think that everyone should take the opportunity to live and study or work abroad if they can.

I've been back in the UK now for a week and a half and it still doesn't feel real. Right now I feel as though I'm simply on holiday from Finland and I'll be going back there to resume my life in a matter of days. I can't quite get it into my head that it's over and my life in Helsinki is all in the past tense. I lived in Finland, I do not live there now.

It's been a strange couple of days because I went to Edinburgh directly after getting home, and that felt as though I'd never left. It felt as though I could simply delete everything which had happened in my life in the last year and pretend it never happened, almost as though the things I've been doing in Helsinki have absoultely no relevance to my life in Edinburgh. It was a strange feeling, don't get me wrong I love the fact that my relationship with my flatmates and best friends is still the same and we're still good friends, but at the same time it felt like they hadn't changed at all in the last year and I have. I've done so many things and met so many people that they will never quite understand because they didn't go on exchange.

Then, on Thursday we had our first post Erasmus reunion in London. Basically, it ended up that coincidentally 5 of my best friends were all planning on being in London on 4th and 5th June. We'd all arranged this seperately and it just so happened - I was visiting a friend for example. So we all met up in Picadilly Circus (IN the fountain, as were the instructions from the Spaniard in the group) and then went for drinks and a meal. It was really really nice and I think we all realised that even though it's the end of erasmus and the end of our lives in Finland we can still be friends, and our friendship doesn't just exist in Helsinki. We were all really excited to see each other as there was a lot of catching up to do because the guys had left Helsinki earlier than me and our other friend, meaning we had to fill them in on everything. It felt so normal and natural, and saying goodbye wasn't hard - there were no tears unlike Finland - which means we all know that it's not the end of our friendship. The tears in Helsinki were for the end of erasmus, not the end of everything. Then the guys went home and I stayed in London until Tuesday with one of my best girl friends who is German.

Now, I've got loads of things to look forward to in the coming weeks. On Saturday I'm heading to Vienna to see one of my friends from home who is doing her erasmus there, but coincidentally, one of my best friends from Helsinki also lives there so obviously we will meet up. Then, on Thursday next week I am heading to Spain to see a friend from Edinburgh who is in Seville. It worked out to be 50% cheaper if I flew to Madrid and took the bus, meaning I also get to see one of my other best friends from Helsinki who lives there. I am so excited about seeing them again - more so than seeing my friends from the UK. It feels like as I've not seen my UK erasmus year friends in a year, then if I don't see them for another few weeks until they come home it's not really the end of the world in the grand scheme of things, whereas I've not got my head around not seeing Lisa and Javi yet. Meaning I really miss them!

Then, at the end of July, we've got a real test of everyones English skills - around 15 of my friends are coming to Edinburgh/Glasgow for our first reunion to go in time with the other Edinburgh Helsinki goers birthday. I can't wait although at the moment we're stressing out about where to put everyone as neither of us have flats as of yet meaning there is the potential that almost 20 erasmus students will be camping out on the Meadows! It's so cool that loads of people are coming, pretty much everyone who has been invited is coming.

So that is my life post erasmus!

The last fortnight in Finland was horrible, it really was because every single day someone else was leaving and we had to say bye. I've cried more times in the last few weeks than I remember doing in years, as it was pretty much every day there were tears. It was so emotional and also so horrible walking around my building because each day another room was empty, and because it is a hostel during the summer, the cleaners were straight in to de-studentify it and make the room look nice. If anyone ever asks me for advice on an exchange year my advice would be to not make friends. If you don't make friends then going home will be so much easier.

As one of the few native English speakers in Helsinki I am proud of how much my friends have improved in their English and I know that I have had a big part to play in this, which I like. Loads of them said that we were the best English teachers ever, and lots of people said that their challenge at the start of the year was to understand the native British speakers, and now they can. Even though I didn't really learn a language this year (although my French improved dramatically, especially when drunk) I've learnt an awful lot about English and second language aquistion, which as a Linguistics student, is incredibly interesting. When I listen to my friends speaking, I hear me and the other UK team in them, and now when I speak English, I hear my friends in my speech. They have influenced me just as much as I have influenced them.

In the last year I've changed a lot, my opinions about Europe have changed dramatically. When I first arrived I saw myself as different from the rest of Europe and I was fairly EU skeptic - well not skeptic, but I wasn't in a hurry to join the Euro put it that way! Now I can't understand why the UK aren't rushing to join the Euro currency, and I've realised that the UK have a ridiculous status in Europe. Why do we think we're so special and different from the Germans or the French?? Everyone else in Europe just laughs at us! I certainly see Europe to be much more a part of my life and combined in my identity as British - we're European and perhaps having done Erasmus gives you a shared identity there. As one of my French friends facebook status' said on his departure - I "was Erasmus, and always will be". I've learnt so many things about different countries, people and languages this year and as much as there is difference in the world there are also many similarities.

I'm now considering doing my Masters in the Netherlands as I've found a really good course that I'd love to do, so I will probably be applying in a few months. I would never have considered that this time last year and I will now be spending every moment I can getting into differnet countries in Europe and visiting my friends. Going on exchange in my 3rd year was one of the things I've wanted to do ever since applying to university and it was one of my priorities for choosing a university. Erasmus has been everything and anything I wanted it to be - I would never have thought that I would have ended up going to Finland for my year abroad, but it has ended up being the best year of my life and an experience that I don't think can be sumarised into one word or feeling. It's just simply "Erasmus"!

I was a little worse for wear last time I wrote- suffering the consequences of an ‘all-nighter’- but now I am fully recovered from that, just suffering the consequences of a hectic weekend and lots of work. It’s Monday night- I’m not at Japanese because the classes have turned into ‘stage prep.’ and since I’m not going away there’s no point in going, so instead I am trying to remember what on earth I did last week. Rachel is currently furiously cleaning her bathroom as we are leaving on Friday- just five more days. I keep hearing Rachel making funny noises as the tap drips on her head and Andrew doing the washing up- I’m going to miss this.

But that is this week and for a while I’ll live in last week so that leaving isn’t so close. Lydie read and corrected my report this week, it was highly embarrassing when she came in, sat next to me and said ‘your English isn’t very good.’ I have to be honest- it really isn’t very good, you have probably noticed the deterioration, it is directly linked to time spent in France and was worst whilst writing my literature review in French. I am surprised quite how much my English has been affected, I wouldn’t say my French was great, it’s better and I can easily get by but it’s not fluent and yet it seems every new French word I learn I forget an English one! Apart from my atrocious English my report was alright I think and I am now working through the changes.

Monday was the bank holiday and bar a bit of tidying I pretty much laid about, we had our last big Sunday meal (stuffed mushrooms with ‘spicy lentils’, and a cheese pie) and then in the evening Rob and Sarah came over to watch Howl’s Moving Castle. I have probably already mentioned that film- it is no joke that I watch it at least once a week- the book was better but the animation is superb! Rob and Sarah seemed to like in anyway. We met up with them again on Wednesday to spend a fortune (67 euros) for our farewell to Rob meal.

Thursday we started with aperitif at six and had kir (wine and syrop), it was a bit of an odd meal with French wine, nachos, fajitas and a Normandy tart for dessert- not very matching but it didn’t matter. It was an odd night, Rob was a bit out of sorts due to having to take oral exams- he had organised everything to go home then the exam dates changed, the only other option was oral exams in French. I cannot imagine they were fun, and some of the lecturers were really not very nice about it but he got through it (by skipping one) apparently. He was much happier Sunday night. We managed to avoid the goodbyes that particular night by deciding to pop round theirs when we got back from London.

On that note, the weekend finally came, possibly too soon but I could barely contain my excitement about going to see Wicked. We got the late train Friday night and my Dad picked us up, my boyfriend was already at mine, it was nice to be there with Andrew and Rachel. It was a flying visit, Saturday morning we were up early to get the train to London (forty minutes) one short tube trip later we were standing in the rain outside Topshop telling Adam and Andrew to meet us at half twelve. Rachel and I proceeded to get very excited and spend a small fortune! Lunch and a few gifts for people in the lab later we were on our way to the theatre! Rachel had never seen a London musical and Andrew loves the music for Wicked so we couldn’t wait. I cannot speak for everyone but I thoroughly enjoyed it! We spent the evening in the Mexican in Leicester Square drinking margaritas and chatting.

Sunday was spent lounging around at my house but I had to take Rachel to see the horses and we had a paddle in the river and a walk around the farm. It was a nice leisurely morning which turned into a gloriously sunny early afternoon- so much so that we could sit in the garden with our wine thinking about leaving and how we’re going to cope. We had a BBQ before my parents dropped us back off at the Eurostar- it felt like we’d only just arrived!

No time to relax we headed straight over to Rob’s for the real goodbye- he left this morning so last night really was the last night. Anne and Anna made a vodka water melon and quite a few people turned up to say goodbye, we couldn’t stay long since we had work this morning but leaving was not easy. It left a sort of hollow feeling as we hugged Rob and Vicki (Rob’s girlfriend) goodbye for the foreseeable future, and not knowing whether we would see the others again was bizarre, I don’t know them well enough to ever see them again but we’ve seen them so often this year... I cannot sufficiently explain it, it’s odd. I didn’t think about this part, at the beginning when I just concentrated on getting through each day, then when time passed so easily I thought it would never end and now I’m trying to pretend it won’t end...

Anyway, I had better stop rambling about endings and concentrate on pretending it never will- before Friday I have a million and one things to do- not least finishing my report, our final fête, our last night out... To make matters worse after Rob’s farewell thing on Thursday my computer decided to give up the ghost, and I think, this time, it’s for good! I am writing this on Rachel’s computer and I don’t know how I’ll write next weeks’! Oh well this time next week I will be home...

I am now officially, academically free!  Today I had my last exam, a gruesome half hour Norwegian oral about a pious childrens' book from 1851, and having completed that, and all my other exams, with what I consider to be general success I feel free free free, it's lovely!  I have been so busy of late, but it has been good in a number of ways.  First and foremost I attended the translation conference that I was invited to:  it felt quite wonderful to spend 3 days or so outside of the city in a charming hotel, eating delicious meals, meeting other translators, attending seminars and meeting some of Norway's foremost authors.  (Even sweeter than all this was the knowledge that the Norwegian government covered the entire cost, hurrah!)  For me it was also lovely to see friendly faces from the department back in Edinburgh, 3 of whom came along.  Upon return I was faced with a mountain of revision and two more exams, but having now come past those, it feels joyous.

Back to reality, and I am slightly saddened to have to face the prospect of packing up my room.  It is very nearly the end of my ERASMUS era! Just a week or so more and I am off to an array of things, most of which, interestingly, would never have come about had my year abroad not happened. Next week I return to Edinburgh for a fleeting 3-day visit: I have been invited to attend a second Scandinavian translation conference, this time being hosted by the University, and am combining my flying visit with seeing family, my lovely friend V who has been stationed in the Mediterranean all year, and picking up a wad of summer reading recently ordered on Amazon and currently awaiting me back at home. Following my quick stop in Bonny Scotland I am then heading out to Denmark, to a rather remote wee place marked below:

I have secured a summer job (together with my Swedish kompis, luckily enough) on the island where I'll be au pairing and working in a Nature Reserve and Cafe, which ultimately sounds like a busy way to spend a summer, but is exactly what attracts me to it.  As a Scandinavian Studies student my interests reach beyond just the Norwegian language, and so spending a few months in Denmark will be a lovely and fitting way to round off my year, I hope!

Actually, on that topic I have to say how worrying it is to be out here when news of the funding cuts for language students are dominating back home: so many of us are unable to have our say, away on exchanges that prove exactly why Modern Languages are so vital!  My own department are suffering a lot (despite the many protests that nobody will be adversely affected) and already my Option Courses for fourth year are looking to be becoming less 'Option' and more simply, 'Courses', myself and friends are partly dreading the return to whatever the department manages to offer (and I know they are trying very hard to accommodate us as well as massive cuts in funding, which is a nightmare for them as much as anyone).  I can only hope things start to look up in the near future, though am not terribly hopeful and quite honestly, rather afraid of what my Honours year might amount to.  Not a comforting thought whilst stationed abroad and unable to do much at all to combat such scary prospects.

Anyway, on the bright side I am now looking forward to my final weekend in Oslo!  A party on Friday, some friends from Sweden on Saturday and early on Sunday we are setting out for an adventure on the Hardanger plateau: a few days of camping, and rumours of snow still in some parts!

The last week has gone by incredibly quickly and been filled with literal and metaphorical sunshine! Last Monday was absolutely boiling – it got up to 36 degrees and so we headed, sweating and gasping, for the lake where they have a fake beach, complete with volleyball nets, sand and ice cream sellers. The plan was to sunbathe but it was far too hot to actually sit in the sun, so we found a shady spot under a tree (the good thing about fake beaches is that you can find shade without trying to force a massive umbrella to stand up in the sand!) and ate ice cream. We also went swimming in the lake itself which was a fantastic break from the heat – the water was cool and there were floating ‘islands’ – basically huge plastic platforms – that you could swim out to and dive off or sunbathe on. It was a really good day and I really want to go back before I leave – a date which is approaching far too rapidly.

Everything we do at the moment is sort of coloured by the fact that we’re leaving Dijon next week – each time we do something, we know it could be the last time. The last trip to the lake, the last visit to Carrefour (it’s just a supermarket but for some reason we always get really excited to go there…), the last time we go to Café Gourmand or see our French classmates. The act of leaving France has seemed to drag on and on, so much so that part of me wishes I was leaving sooner while the rest of me screams that it never, ever wants to go! I’ve felt like I’m just about to leave ever since Megan went back to Scotland almost two weeks ago, at which point I still had three weeks to go.

Leaving soon isn’t stopping us from trying new things though and we were excited when we discovered that one of the many free sports that the university offers the students is kayaking. We decided to go along last Thursday and we turned up all excited and enthusiastic – feelings which quickly turned to fear when we realised that everyone else there were fairly proficient kayakers, having been doing the sport three times a week since March while the three of us had never done it before. They all knew each other really well and had lots of in jokes and banter but they also seemed genuinely pleased that we had gone along and they made every effort to include us. We went to a lake about half an hour away from campus by minibus and basically just messed about in the kayaks for a pleasant couple of hours. The others practiced capsizing and then righting themselves – something which looks difficult and terrifying – while we got the hang of going in a straight line, which is a lot harder than it sounds! After a while, Yves, the instructor, got out a plastic ball and split us into teams to play ‘passe a dix’ – basically it was just catch in kayaks; you had to pass the ball ten times between your own team member without dropping it and you couldn’t throw it to the person who had just thrown it to you. The fun bit was that when someone did drop it, everyone else had to kayak towards it and try to poach the ball for their own team. As I said, we were only out for a couple of hours but we had such a good time that Sophie and I decided to go along on the group’s excursion to the river Doubs on Saturday. We met at 8am and drove two hours to the river, where we donned our extremely unflattering wetsuits, slathered ourselves in sunscreen and gaped at the map on the bank of the river as Yves showed us where we would be going and how long it would take (8 hours to do about 23km!!) At this stage I was seriously doubting my ability to propel myself forward for that distance and was starting to brick it a little bit! Yves had a sore shoulder so he and Sophie were going to be in a two-man canoe rather than a kayak so she was feeling more confident than me, but once we’d set off I forgot about how far we had to go and once I’d got the hang of going straight I started to have fun. The water was quite calm and we were going with the current, which wasn’t too strong but had enough rapids to make it fun! It was so pretty as well – I think it must be one of the best ways to see the countryside. At the start we stopped fairly often to look at chateaux on the banks and jump off various bridges, which was fun! We stopped on a little beach for lunch, which was strapped to the big canoe in a waterproof barrel. The other instructor, Anna-Sophie, lives on a farm and had brought a 4kg drum of freshly picked cherries for us, which we devoured in minutes and then spent a pleasant half hour spitting the pits at each other. Incidentally, Anna-Sophie caused some name related issues as the three girls kept answering to each others’ names all day – French people always pronounce my name as ‘Anna’ because they have problems pronouncing the ‘h’ so she basically had both mine and Sophie’s name – it was very confusing! In the traditional French fashion, lunch took around two hours – after we ate we swam in the river and skimmed stones and chatted before we emptied the water out of our kayaks and continued on. It was a long day and by the end I was really exhausted but it was so much fun and felt like a real achievement as well. It was good to be outside in the fresh air all day and to be doing something more energetic than rolling over every fifteen minutes to ensure an even tan!

Towards the end of the week Sophie N and I were trying to spend as much time with Sophie M as possible as she was leaving at the end of the week. Her family drove over from England to pick her up, and we said our tearful goodbyes yesterday morning. It’s really sad to say to goodbye to everyone, because although we all live in the UK and will definitely see each other soon – probably within a couple of months and in the case of Megan and Sophie V, as soon as I get back – we’ll never all be together again at once and certainly never in Dijon. In some ways leaving Dijon to go home is proving harder than leaving home to come here because back then we knew it was only a temporary situation whereas now it’s permanent. That sounds depressing but obviously there are so many good things I’ll be taking from this year and so much I’ve learned – but I’ll talk about all of that next week when I’m back in Edinburgh. I still can’t believe it’s so soon!

Until next time!