'Cause I'm leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again... oh babe, I hate to go.

Alas, my time in London is very quickly nearing its end and every morning offers me a daily reality check. Bright and early. Some people dread evenings because that's when they reflect on things, but the morning is the killer for me. I can't help but have mixed feelings about moving back to Ottawa, maybe in part because it feels like I've moved on and it now feels like I'm taking a step back. Perhaps it's just because it's change, and lots of people will agree that change is hard (yes, that is coming from me!)

What can I say, these past 2 ish years couldn't have been better timing in terms of relationships, work experience, and just in terms of being in London!!

London has been AWESOME! I've witnessed the marriage of Prince William to Kate, I've celebrated the Queen's Diamond Jubilee as well as the Trooping of the Color two years in a row, was around for the scary London riots, got to be here for the 2012 Olympics, and I've celebrated the biggest Canada Day outside of Canada! I've made some great friends, have done some incredibly stupid things (good stupid) and I've extended my list of places I've traveled to. I've probably done a great deal of damage to my liver but it's all part of the cultural experience. Right?

It's safe to assume that most people who live in London for any length of time will go through certain phases in their acceptance of the city and its people. The cycle goes something like this: first you feel a certain amount of excitement mixed with fear, and this quickly leads to more excitement and more fear (this phase is dealt with through alcohol). Soon enough you start to feel a bit lonely in such a big city, and after a considerable amount of time (for me it was about 5 months) you start to feel frustration. This frustration then moves on to downright anger (this is when you might make some friends because complaining is the most common pastime here, aside from tea and drinking alcohol).

Then there's a breakthrough in the cycle and one becomes more and more understanding of this city. AT this point you've become a professional complainer, but things are no longer taken as seriously. You start to feel like a Londoner, have a huge hate on for tourists, but secretly really enjoy all the things that make this city. You travel the city with an umbrella in your purse at all times and with the general understanding that the trains will be packed and not always on time. But, you still keep calm and carry on. People start asking you for directions and that's when you know the city has done something to you. The coolest part is being able to give people the right directions (even though they look distrustfully at you once hearing your strange pseudo accent).

When you call home, your friends make fun of you for sounding British, and when you hang up, your British friends take the piss out of you for sounding American. You get very used to everything being put into the context of where you come from and how things differ. "Do you eat maple syrup on everything in Canada?" The answer must always be yes. We can't have them catching on to how we truly live.

And now it's time to say my farewells to this city and it chokes me up. It's been such an intense time that it's hard to fathom leaving such a fun, exciting place. Especially now that I've met such amazing people. But I suppose I've learned that good things must sometimes come to an end, and change isn't a BAD thing. I'll be back again someday, just don't know when.

Right. Time to pack 2 years of my life into 2 suitcases. No problem!