Farewell, Dear Readers...

After being read thousands of times by hundreds of people in a third of the countries in the world, I have come to my final post, sitting outside my gate at Dulles International Airport.

This morning I woke to pack up the last of my things, have breakfast and ensure that I had all the necessary paperwork in order. At 1:00pm I left Arlington with Caitlin's brother, Shane, who kindly said that he would drive me to the airport to save me lugging two bags in nice clothes throughout the metro and onto a bus. In plenty of time and running smoothly, I transitioned air side and grabbed a bite to eat before coming to my current chair, looking out at the 747 that will carry me home. 

I have enjoyed writing about my time in America and the amount of attention the blog has received has surpassed my highest expectations. So, it is with a heavy heart that I must bring it to a close at post 233 - not a particularly meaningful number, but perhaps this will give it some new meaning. Sadly, all good things must come to an end and I will return via a new blog once I am home, after a period of rest. It will not necessarily be a day to day account, but I will post the link on Facebook and Twitter (@BJpowell93) when I kick it off. 

So, despite my melancholic tone I am writing this post with a smile, thinking back on all the great times we have had this year. If you had asked me to describe my best case scenario of what this year could hold, it would not have come close to the real thing. It sounds cliché to say that this has been the best year of my life, but I must be trite. I could not have asked for more out of these nine months at Washington College, and I thank everyone here and at home who made it all possible. It is because of all of you that I had the chance to study abroad and that I had so many great times to write about here. 

Once again, I thank each and every one of you for following my international year and experiencing all it had to offer with me as I went: Crickets and routine shakers in the shower, day trips and road trips. Late nights and drunk nights, early starts and lazy brunches. First Fridays and farmers markets, fundraisers and family dinners. Coffee at Sam’s and drinks at JR’s, drinks at O’Connor’s and drinks at the Blue Bird. Drinks at Kent Crossing and drinks at the German suite…sorry, a slight tangent. Snow days and slow days, classes and deadlines. But most importantly, an endless number of amazing memories.

So, dear readers, I bid you farewell.

Mr Powell Has Gone to Washington.