Looking back

As I'm writing to you now we are in 2015 and I currently have 4 days left in Argentina. I cannot begin to describe the mixture of feelings that I have at the moment. On one side I am full of excitement to see my family in New Zealand, I can imagine the airport greeting already and I start to get butterfly's inside. I never realised how much I loved and valued them until they were on the other side of the world and now I get to see them after 4 1/2 months. I also can't wait to just see all my friends again and be able to properly talk to them and catch up.
But then on the other I am really sad to leave Argentina and this different life I threw myself into. I will miss my host family very much, apart from my family, they are possibly the sweetest, kindest people I have had the pleasure to be around. I will also miss the friends I have made here and the ones that will be leaving to their countries soon as well.
 My time here has gone so fast but slowly at the same time. As I had a few complications that I couldn't control at the start of my exchange, I wasn't able to have the full 5 months so I ended up with just over 4 months here. Despite this I tried to make the most of my time here and I can't think of anything I regret.

Thinking back to when I first chose to go on an exchange my main reasons for doing it was to learn Spanish, experience life in another country and to learn more about that country's culture. But I never realised that I would gain so much more than just that. Things that money can't buy and that you would never fully feel or experience travelling as a tourist. I feel like I have changed as a person, I feel a lot more confident with in myself and more sure of myself. I also have learnt to appreciate my life more. There's that common saying "you never know what you have until its gone" and that's absolutely true. Even though I technically didn't lose anything, it was all on the other side of the world, too far out of my reach.

My exchange has been one of the most rewarding, most unpredictable, most difficult and most fun moments of my life so far. I never thought such a short period of time could have changed me so much and could have offered the most amazing experience that I was fortunate enough to have. I have never laughed, smiled, cried or been so out of my comfort zone so much before. I still amaze myself by looking back at what I have done and learnt, something that my 15 year old shy-self never would have been able to do. The sights and places I have been able to see, the incredible people I have became friends with, the cultures I have been exposed to and the experiences that I have been able to have. Something I will treasure and keep close to my heart forever, and also something that I will look back on forever and still be telling stories about when I grow old.


To end this blog post, I'm going to add some quotes that sum up my exchange :)

Very accurate!

♥Love my host family♥