Harlaxton 2016: Finals and Packing

By:  Amanda Zahn

And just like that, we are packing to go home.

It’s unbelievable that our final day in England has come. These three weeks have truly flown by, leaving the majority of us exhausted and in a daze. We all pushed through though for our final day in the classroom. We showed up to class anxious to take our final examination, which covered the English poetry we had been studying these past few days of class.

Before our exam began, we took some time to have an open discussion about our trip and our opinions on the program as a whole. Personally, I really liked this, as the discussion also involved lots of reminiscing on the past few weeks. After our discussion, which was cut short at the one hour mark, we set to taking our exam.

Overall, the final was what I expected. As far as finals go, I thought it wasn’t as stressful as some of those taken on WKU’s campus, probably because we had all been immersed in the course for the duration of the trip. After the final, I for one was relieved. I think I can speak for everyone when I say it was such a wonderful feeling knowing we had the rest of the day to enjoy ourselves without the pressure of an impending quiz to study for or an essay to write.

Most of my classmates spent the rest of the day exploring the manor one last time, playing volleyball, or touring the gatehouse. After dinner, many people split off to pack and relax, and some played hide-and-go-seek on the property. With the extended curfew, a small group of students decided to take a midnight walk down the mile long driveway to view the façade of the manor house and look at the stars. Words cannot describe the view in the moonlight, and I feel that it was quite the experience spending our last night at Harlaxton like this. Truly it is something you have to experience yourself, as is the rest of this study abroad experience.