And the countdown begins

My computer won't turn on again. That's why there's been so much time between my last post and this one. Here's what's happened since Mozambique:

• I was in a group that performed a folk tale in my African Oral Narratives class. I had four lines in Setswana. I had the role of one of two jealous sisters.
  
• A few friends and I rented a car and headed north to Victoria Falls. We went through the Zimbabwe side. It was gorgeous.
• Classes ended on Thursday.
  
• I took three Setswana finals on Thursday: two oral and one written.
  
• I went to a Gaborone United soccer game in Molepolole, Botswana's largest village, about an hour away from Gaborone.
  
• I have four finals this week, and then I'm officially done with my semester at UB.

I have 11 more days left in Gaborone, in Botswana, in Africa. Yesterday after all the CIEE participants presented our semester projects to each other and to Batsi, Batsi talked to us about wrapping up our semester, returning to the States and reverse culture shock. I think it's really starting to hit me how much I am going to miss this place. I have made a life for myself here and now I'm leaving and I don't know if I'll ever come back. And even if I do come back, it will not be the same.

Saying goodbye to the CIEE particpants will also be hard. The 12 of us have been through so much together, grown together and shared struggles and joys throughout our time here. We're from all different parts of the U.S. and will probably never see each other again.

One of the things Batsi touched on in his talk with us is, even though we may not realize it now, how independent we've become. We've had to do a lot on our own in setting far outside our comfort zones. I hadn't thought about it before Batsi pointed it out, but he's right. Going through a semester in a foreign country forces an individual to become more independent. Partly because there's really no one to be depeddent on here and partly because if you don't put yourself out there in a program like this, you won't get the most out of it as possible.

Also, there was so much build-up coming to Botswana from the States. But how am I supposed to prepare myself to return home, a home that will be different from the one I left 4 and a half months ago? It will be different for many reasons, but for me, I am especially worried about resenting aspects of American culture now that I've seen America from an outsider perspective.

I don't have a whole lot to do in my remaining 11 days, so that will allow plenty of time for self-reflection.