I don’t even know where to begin. How do you possibly sum up what has potentially been the best four months of my life? How do you even come close to putting into words how amazing and unforgettable this semester has been? Truth be told, I don’t think you can. But like I’ve learned about a lot of things while studying abroad, it’s worth a try.

Living in England was a dream come true, it is as simple as that. With that being said, everything I’ve experienced while being here has been beyond my wildest dreams. The amount of pictures I’ve taken this semester is a testimony to how much I’ve enjoyed Europe and how much I’ve been fascinated by what it has had to offer. I’ve never really possessed an obsession with taking pictures, but with all the incredible places I’ve been and the astounding things I’ve seen, I ended up collecting 7 gigabytes of pictures, some 2,306 photos in total. Uncountable stories are hidden behind these photos, so many of them representing a unique memory not soon to be lost from my mind. I probably would have taken even more pictures to look back on had I not opted to make an effort to avoid being labeled as a tourist.

I am anything but a tourist in Cambridge. Was I one in Madrid? Without a doubt. And in Amsterdam? Absolutely. Cambridge became my home though. It rapidly became my home away from home and, to be honest, by the end of the semester it was a little bit more than that. The more I explored Cambridge, the more I liked it. The more I conversed with the people, the more I felt at home. I may not have lived in Cambridge anywhere near as long as anyone I met around the city, but I somehow managed to feel like I was one of them by the time I left. In their eyes I may have still been a foreigner they had come to accept, but I couldn’t help myself from feeling like a ‘local’. It can even be said that my own self-entitlement provided me with a sense of fulfillment.

I did more than just see the sights in Cambridge. I embraced the city for everything it was and I made it my home, which in turn allowed me to gain the most out of my once-in-a-lifetime experience. I leave with no regrets, just memories and a feeling of satisfaction that I was fortunate enough to accomplish more than I ever sought out to. I leave knowing I am going to miss Cambridge, but also that I will one day make a return in the future. I leave knowing I did everything I possibly could to gain the most out of this experience. I’m thankful for all of the people who helped enhance my experience in Cambridge, whether they meant to or not.

Dick and his girlfriend Alyssa, the owners of Sir Isaac Newton’s pub, and the numerous servers there made it my favorite place to hang out or watch sports in all of Cambridge. Then there was Silo, owner of a small Kebab trailer and one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. It’s surreal how much I learned from him and countless others about their native countries. Worth a mention as much as anyone, if not more so, is Mark Farmer, the director of the Cambridge Study Abroad program, as well as his wife, Sarah. They quite possibly had the biggest influence over making this an unforgettable semester for everyone in the group, and everyone in my program will undoubtedly agree with me that they certainly succeeded in helping us enjoy Cambridge as much as possible. I could go on and on about all of the people who helped make this an experience I’ll never forget, but the list would end up being longer than Santa’s to-do list on Christmas Eve.

All I can do is reflect on what an extraordinary and unforgettable semester this has been as I take with me all the lessons I’ve learned and insights I’ve gained. So much of that I owe to Cambridge and the incredible place that it is.

My home for the past four months