December was primarily writing exams and doing finals. Due to the strange way of doing exams here on Saturdays and Sundays I was saying goodbye as early as December 6th, starting with people at church.

As I reflected on my time at Western I became incredibly thankful for the opportunity to come out to Canada, experience the culture and ultimately grow as an individual. I reflected on how considerate, caring and people-focused society is here (from what Iā€™ve experienced) and itā€™s amazing to have been witness to. I was so thankful to my floor and the people Iā€™d met, I decided to write Christmas cards (ended up being 44 of them!)ā€¦which turned out to be very time consuming. However, Iā€™m glad I did it, it was a great way to go over what Iā€™ve experienced at Western, what Iā€™ve learnt and how Iā€™ve changed.

I wonā€™t go into all the details of how Canada has helped me grow but I will say that if you get the opportunity to go on an exchange, whether it be Western or elsewhere, definitely do it. Itā€™s only a semester so you donā€™t miss anything back home, but you get to meet so many new people, make new friends and experience a new culture.

ā€˜Just do itā€™ ā€“ Shia LaBeouf

After finishing exams and moving out of residence at on the 22nd December Iā€™ve headed to New York City for Christmas with my brother whoā€™s flown out to meet me. After weā€™re heading to Toronto for New Yearā€™s, before he flies home. I have 10 days to explore the rest of the Canada (probably go and check out Vancouver or Montreal) before heading home to England. Ā Itā€™s great not to have too much work of Christmas too (although I have to finish my literature review for my dissertation stillā€¦).

One thing I would note, however, that most of the international exchange students Iā€™ve met were assessed on a pass/fail basis which doesnā€™t count towards their final degree, whereas this semester is 1/3 of my degree. This means Iā€™ve had to stay at university and work, whereas theyā€™ve been off exploring the country. If you have the option of a whole year, do that. However, it has meant that Iā€™ve spent more time in residence with the Canadian students, which I guess has meant I have got to know my floor-mates slightly better, perhaps. Basically, go on an exchange, youā€™ll love it!

University of Western Ontario: 4

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