Sunday, end, thanks

It is a tranquil Sunday in Bordeaux, sunny mixed with intermittent rain. I woke up at 11am, rolled around in my bed for a while, and finally got up at noon feeling like I caught up to all the sleep that I had missed during the past month. It’s been a crazy month of preparing for my PhD defense, doing the actual defense, spending time with my dad and traveling around Europe, indulging in Christmas meals, and visiting friends in other cities. An afternoon spent all by myself is almost like a luxury, the calm after the storm – a very enjoyable one, albeit.

I sit here marveling at the fact that I’ve been in Europe for three years and three months, finished my PhD, and am preparing to go back to Canada at the end of January. Going back maybe just for a little bit. Maybe indefinitely. Who knows. All I know is that I should go home and rest a bit before continuing. “Continuing” may mean finding a job, doing a postdoc, or travelling more – at the moment, I don’t know.

At the end of the year 2013, which also happens to be the end (supposedly) of my journey here, I contemplate writing a “reflection” post, but I realized that I struggled with words as I tried to begin. Forcing it out would be more of a burden to me than anything. Three years is a long time to fit into one post. So, there goes that idea.

However, I do want to thank the people, whether I know you or not, who have read, commented on, and supported this blog over these years. I may not be an expert with words and photography, but it gives me great joy to share with you my experiences and emotions through the blog, using words and photography as a medium. I am grateful for every reader that took the time to go through what I had to say. I also want to thank the people whose blogs I regularly read for providing me with my daily dose of insight and inspiration. I learned so much from reading lovely blogs on a variety of topics (food, travel, life, photography, to name some), and each of them gives me a view of the world from its author’s point of view that I could virtually experience through the screen. I appreciate your contributions to the blogging community – never stop writing!

Sneak peak of posts to come: 2013 in pictures, Italy with dad, Christmas in Tarbes, City of Lights, and trips to Austria and Iceland (neither has happened yet…but they will!) Until then, happy new year 2014 and I hope that your days are filled with peace, joy, and blessings ❤ À bientôt!