Yesterday I shared the sacred time I spend drinking my Starbucks venti Americano with a few of my favorite Dance UL friends. (A note about Starbucks – I still do not support this company, and as soon as I return to the States, I will refuse once again to give them my business. However, when I’m over here, I NEED a coffee that is larger than my pinky finger, and there is literally no other place where I can acquire that necessity.) Christelle is a French Canadian in her third year of med school. Elle is an Irish vocal major, and was spending this semester abroad in Mexico, but had to return midway through because the town she was in became too violent. We discussed our postgrad ideas, summer plans, Christelle’s volunteer work in Africa, and of course the Dance UL gossip.
After lunch, Christelle drove us into town, so Elle could get her visa pictures taken for her Summer in America. They took an hour to get developed, so Elle and I occupied ourselves with smoked salmon and dreamy strolls through boutiques in which we would never be able to afford anything. On the bus home, she invited me to dinner later that evening.
I forced myself to study (it’s getting REALLY hard at this point) for a while, but then walked (in the pouring rain) over to Elle’s house. She had made pasta from scratch, the way she was taught by her host mother when she spent time in Argentina.
We shared the meal with our friends Ariel, an American who spent the last semester studying in London and now studies in Limerick, and her visiting friend, Lisa, an Italian who is studying film in London. The food was delicious and the conversation was good, so naturally we decided to move the dinner party to a pub and continue talking over a few pints.
When I finally got home, I was ready to dive into studying again. But, as every college student knows, you have to check both your e-mail and your facebook before doing anything productive. To my delight, I had a message from a very good friend I met over here, who just moved to Melbourne, Australia over the weekend. It was really good to hear from him.
I always thought that I am extremely lucky to have grown up in such a diverse community and had a splendidly international group of friends. But, when it comes down to it, they all live in America now. The great thing about the friends I have met over here is that they actually live in different countries. What a fabulous excuse to visit!
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