229 days, 5496 hours, the equivalent of nearly 11,000 episodes of friends. That’s how long it has been since this photo was taken, when I waved goodbye to my rather tearful mum and dad at Gatwick airport security, and went through the gates to start my year abroad in Canada. In a few days, my family will touch down at Vancouver airport and I’ll pack up my room and all the things I’ve collected over the past eight months, eventually flying back to the UK, unsure of when exactly, if ever, I’ll return to a part of the world that I’ve truly fallen in love with.

I wish I was as tech-savvy as fellow exchangees who have created amazing video compilations from GoPro cameras that sum up perfectly what the year in Vancouver has been like. But sadly I’m not, so I’m going to wrap up my year abroad in this blog post.

As I sit in the library, attempting to build up the motivation to study for exams which I’m well aware count for very little, I can’t help but be extremely jealous of my friends at UBC that have finished for the year, and are currently busy drinking under the sunshine at Wreck Beach. But more than anything thing, I’m jealous of all the second year students around the globe that are preparing to start their own year abroad. Because If I could put this year on replay for the next five years, I would.

If I did replay the year, it’d look a little like this:

It’s been a year where academic responsibility has taken a backseat (thanks again Edinburgh, for ensuring we only have to pass our courses while on Exchange), while exploring a completely new place has taken priority. When I look back on this experience, I won’t remember the night before cramming sessions for midterm examinations in awful study rooms situated within the laundry area (there’s something uneasy about working next to washing machines), but it’ll be the sunsets, the snow covered mountains, the kayaking trips around beautiful bays, and the hikes (OK, there was only one ACTUAL hike, but it was great).

Although the scenery of this beautiful area of the world will stick with me for life, I wouldn’t have been able to explore it in the same way if it wasn’t for the group of friends I’ve found. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have had the constant motivation to try out new things while I was out here, I wouldn’t have anyone to crash into me on beginner ski slopes with, nobody to take trips to the US with, nobody to moan about the severe lack of drunk food available past midnight in Canada, and nobody to skip class with and spend the day on the campus beach, with just some speakers and the sand “beer hole” for company.

In spite of all the amazing trips and drunken evenings, Universities are definitely right when they explain the “ups and downs” of exchange before you depart. Losing a family member while being so far from home has got to be one of the most difficult things I’ve had to deal with. In spite of the initial shock and upset, the fact that I wasn’t surrounded by family who were grieving meant I was still caught up in the usual whirlwind of exchange activities, leaving me in a constant state of disbelief that anything had actually happened. It wasn’t until I received funeral services and picture slideshows via email that the reality sunk in that I’d lost my Grandad, and suddenly all I wanted was to be on my sofa with my mum, a cuppa, and some crappy TV to forget about everything for an hour. In spite of a wobbly week, the amazing support system I have around me (thanks for the cups of tea, trips to the pub, and harry potter audiobook evenings- you know who you are), meant I came out of the other side, with a strong belief that there is no way my Grandad would have wanted me to mope around during my final months in Canada.

With this belief in mind, I ensured I took advantage of the last of my time in this part of the world. I took a trip to Portland, where I felt like I’d stepped back into 1960s “Mad Men” style America, watched the sunset at the beach after class, cheered on the Canucks at my second NHL ice hockey game, night skied down Grouse Mountain with sunset views of Vancouver city and the Pacific Ocean, found gluten free poutine (best night of my life – not even joking), and enjoyed my last few ski season days on the slopes at Whistler.

Although those experiences were unreal, there’s undoubtedly a few things about Canadian culture that I won’t miss (sorry Mr Trudeau). Firstly, the extreme friendliness. I know that sounds crazy, but there’s some days when waiters won’t leave your table because they’re too busy cracking jokes and you’re in a rush, that you wish you were in a UK pub again where the restaurant staff just take their tip, leave, and get on with the day. Secondly, the all round “keen” nature of Canadian students, only here is there a queue for the treadmills at the student gym at 7am, and people begin stressing about exams that start in three weeks. I will happily return to Edinburgh student life where the majority of students on campus stumble into 9am lectures still fairly intoxicated, in sweatpants with their “Hive” stamp showing proudly on their wrist. Talking of intoxication, the last thing I won’t miss – the drinking culture (or lack thereof). I quite frankly cannot wait to be able to buy a cheeky bottle of wine at Tescos instead of having to pay group visits to the “Liquor Store”, and not needing to pre drink at 6pm due to the early queues for clubs here will be greatly welcomed when I’m back at the UK. Saying that, I will miss chuckling to myself as I walk past the Frat house on the rare sunny day we get here, as they crowd topless around a canadian flag and blast out music out while carrying out their bench press reps in front of passers by.

When you’re considering going on exchange, you get a lot of professors and family members (general adults) telling you how good it’ll look to employers to have experienced a year abroad. Regardless of how much this is true, I think the most important thing about exchange is not how you look to graduate firms, but how your own outlook on life changes. I realise that line is pure cheese, and I do apologise, but it’s the absolute truth. This year has taught me that I can adapt to new situations, regardless of how terrifying they appear at first, and that bad feelings, regardless of the situation, are always temporary – and if you just get up and go, things will get better. My time at UBC has taught me that despite still loving my degree course, there’s so much more to life, and especially your early 20s, than academia.

So, in summary, I’d like to an extend a huge thank you to you Canada. I’ve found a real home here for a very small period of my life – I’ve met amazing people, and seen some beautiful things – but more than anything, you’ve motivated me to get out there and travel – because there’s so much more to life than studying.