All good things...

...have ended.  Well, so far as the 'being in Germany' section of 'good things' is concerned.  I can hardly complain about what's happended since, but they are for another place (plug plug).  That said one year and one month after beginning my adventure as a youth in Germany and I'm finally writing about what seemed forever away in sunny September - the end of my Erasmus year in Konstanz.
In my last blog entry I listed some of the things that were coming up, a few of them I will skip over as part of the process of attempting to erase them from my mind, for example eventually finishing my Hausarbeits, running around after signatures and the exam I failed did not enjoy.  Some of them,  however, bear a bit of retelling (surprisingly the ones I was looking forward to):

• Berlin:  We went to a bar at midnight, and left some people heading to a club as we were ushered home by the dawn light at 4am; we took the touristy pictures; found the Canadian embassy and made friends with Karl Marx.  Its a city that is swish and modern and anarchic and weird in equal measure and well worth any time you spend there.  I would go there again, and in the same company? Well, flights are cheap, that's all I'm saying.  The journeys there and back with its police operations and unexpected opportunity to drive a BMW on the Autobahn, however, was less of a fairytale, but that's enough about them.  

• Visits:   People are nice, and its especially nice when they take a lot of trouble to see you.  Even on top of that having the people closest to me in Konstanz (briefly at the same time) was great and a luxury which 'lucky' really doesn't cover.  I also got to exercise my inner tour guide and have an excuse to revisit all my favourite sights - something which may have been picked up on once or twice.

• Sun: Sommer am See; winter is pretty and has its markets, Fasnacht is a thing which can only be comprehended if its is experienced (and which I have just realised I've been spelling wrong since February) but summer in Konstanz is when the place thrives and truly comes into its own.  Swimming in the lake and drying in the sun and evenings sitting outside with a beer once the temperature became bearable really are tough to beat, even with the mücke.  

• Wine:  Just as it began with a Weinfest, so it ended with a Weinfest and some of the Bodensee's vineyard's finest.  Good drink, good company and aforementioned weather may not have been the healthiest sendoff but I can't think of one I'd rather.

And with that I said my goodbyes, packed up my remaining bag (parents are awesome) and left my freshly (re)painted room (cheers Seezeit and your oh-so-friendly Hausmeisters), the Altstadt and all the rest of Konstanz's charms, perks and characters and jetted of home.

The year was emotional, educational and everything else (apologies for the alliteration cop out) and I would fully recommend any opportunity to study abroad to anyone.  It gives you a network of great friends all over the world and will teach you something about yourself, the world and home.

Having surfaced briefly from final year to catch up (and avoid catching up on other things) I'm even more glad I had the opportunity to spend last year in a fantastic place with wonderful people.