Wrap Up of the Year

What a crazy year 2009 has been from starting B-school to preparing for and anticipating GLOBE to actually being in Denmark, and then four and a half months gone in a flash...It almost feels like none of it happened because so much has happened. Looking back, I wish I had blogged more, kept tighter accounts of my adventures, but it's also nice to just look back and see how I have changed in this year, mostly how I'm a different person now than the person I was when I first landed in Copenhagen.

In this year I've learned:
-Friends come and go, and then some stay forever. There are people who you meet and instantly bond with, and then never speak to again. There are people you never saw yourself being friends with and suddenly they are your best friends. Relationships change with the wind. Go with the flow or you'll be stuck in regret and disappointment.
-Cooking takes practice, but eventually you stop burning stuff. I went from the girl who couldn't match the right burner to the picture, who microwaves foil, and can't cook rice without a rice cooker to an oatmeal cookie expert who hosts fancy dinner parties every week. Ok, exaggeration, but my cookies and dinners are now edible, so I give myself props.
-I AM Asian. I like pictures, a LOT. They are my way of holding onto memories. It's hard to remember everything that happens in your life. GLOBE is going to be one and a half years of my, knock on wood, long life, so it'll account for 1-2% of my lifetime? That can't be right. There were too many amazing people, memories, experiences, learning opportunities that I want to remember. I want to remember my romantic weekend in Florence, or my Belgian waffle in Brussels, and exactly how my smorrebrod in Copenhagen looked. You can never regret taking too many pictures (but I do apologize for the bombardment on fb).
-In a snowstorm, ALWAYS hop on the next bus to another country. It took four and a half months and a snowstorm to make it to Sweden, the country 30 miles away. Everything close always seems insignificant, but what a waste if I never made it to Sweden. My 7th country, 1. Denmark, 2. Spain, 3. Germany, 4. Italy, 5. Norway, 6. Belgium, 7. Sweden. If I didn't make my goal of 10 countries in a year because I missed the daily bus from Denmark to Sweden I would've regretted it forever.
-Carlsberg is Probably the best beer in the world. Enough said.
-Americans dress like slobs. European fashion didn't mean anything to me until I came home and saw how terrible the average American choses to look in public.
-Americans can get fat anywhere in the world. It's not an America thing, it's an American thing. Where there's a will to eat fatty and sugary foods, there is a way! But seriously, we get what we want, when we want it. That's a good thing and a bad thing I suppose.
-Driving is a luxury I can't live without. Heels are gorgeous but they don't work well with cobblestone. And it feels much colder when you have to walk EVERYWHERE.
-Hi, my name is Jessica, and I am addicted to Facebook. I'm pretty sure you can trace my last 4 and half month journey just by looking through my fb status updates. I like staying updated on other people's lives.

Lastly, discovering new places and adventures is an addictive activity. I don't know if I'll be able to sit still ever again. I can't wait to go see and learn more in the coming months in HK. Keep you posted ;)