Expectations Were Exceeded!

I can't believe that tonight will be my last night in this room. I will never again sit in the chair in which I'm sitting right now, sleep in this room, look up at these walls, walk with Chloe to class, have dinner with Clara and Mariko at Houston Market, have late night talks with Anika (my roommate), but the most saddening part is that I probably won't see any of the people I met here ever again.

I thought class was going to be extremely sad, and that many tears would be shed. I wouldn't say it was like that at all. Well, okay, it was a bit sad but I felt lucky. Lucky to have met all these wonderful people, take this amazing class with Prof. Lamas, and had the opportunity to be a part of a program like this. We took pictures in the morning to be able to look back at this experience in the future, and remember who was there with us through the journey.

Prof. Lamas did lecture for a small portion of the class. He played a video about currency in different places. The video was made by a former student of his, and it was very interesting. I thought it was going to be boring, because money is what everybody talks about, and I'm tired of hearing about it. The video wasn't about U.S. dollars, it was about how cities have developed their own unique currency systems. An example would be in Ithaca, New York, where they use hours. I'm not referring to just an hour a concept of time, it is a paper just like our money is. One hour would be the equivalent of $10, and half an hour would be $5. It was so fascinating to learn about how all of these different communities came together to organize a whole new currency system that they would all benefit from.

The afternoon part of the class was set in a socratic seminar style. We all sat in a big circle so nobody had to look at the back of some one's head, we were all facing each other. We reflected on yesterday's visit to Juntos, and our overall day. Prof. Lamas wanted to know what we were thinking, how we were feeling, and if we had any questions about anything at all. At about 3, he allowed anybody who wanted to leave to do so at that time. I really had to go because I had not even started packing, and everybody was supposed to be packed by 5 today. I just couldn't say goodbye, so I left until the end of class which was at 5. It was sad saying goodbye to Professor Lamas and Michael. They have made such an impact on my life!

I wasn't expecting this trip to be as wonderful as it was. It has been an unforgettable experience, but it is time for me to go home. It's hard to imagine that by this time tomorrow I will be sleeping in my bed!