Well, maybe not quite yet. I’m a pack-at-the-last-second kind of girl.

But still, the subject is no longer avoidable. My time in Paris is coming to a close and it is just as hard as I imagined it would be. Not to get too nostalgic or anything, but on my very first day in Paris I remember waking up early (from the jetlag) and taking a walk down Oberkampf by myself, eating a croissant and admiring the blue sky at dawn and the street art on the walls. Later that day I signed off on my blog post by saying, “It is not going to take very much time for me to fall in love with this city.”

I also wrote about how friendly all the Parisians were. Oh, the naivety of that first Paris morning.  (Okay, they aren’t completely unfriendly. Just French, you know?)

It’s been quite a year, but my prediction came true. In nine months I have fallen in love with this city, from the bobo streets of Canal St. Martin, to the pretentious old ladies shopping on Rue de Passy, to the drunk homeless guy that sits next to my neighborhood grocery store. I love it all and am most definitely not ready to leave.

These days are filled with writing essays, studying for finals and saying things like “I haven’t been to see Napoleon’s tomb yet, I should probably do that,” or “Have you been to that one café in the Marais? I should go before we leave.” It’s crunch time, but even though I have some worries about not getting to see some things before I go, I find myself the most happy when I’m with my friends. Sitting and talking for hours at our favorite café, having rainy picnics at Jardin du Luxembourg, or even working on essays–or in my case, blogging–in complete silence, I am soaking up the time I have with these people, because even though most of us will be in New York next fall, it won’t ever be quite the same.

A rainy walk with Judy and Dana.

Today we had an end of the year picnic where some superlatives were awarded, and I was given the award for “Best Blog,” which I was quite happy about because it’s nice to know I have readers who are not related to me. (Not that I don’t appreciate you, maman et papa!) Afterwards, Dana, Judy and I went for coffee at Ten Belles, our favorite coffee hangout, and chatted for a while about all the things we want to do in this next week.

I can’t get too sad about leaving yet because there are final exams to be taken, new restaurants to try, and more blog posts to be written.

But eventually, I will have to pack.

XOLily