.: Past, Present and Future…and goodbyes…

Hello, Hello at the moment I’m am sitting in my room, just thinking of my journey thus far, of all the friends I have made, places I seen and things I have learnt. It makes your head spin when you realize how much there is out there…

Fernanda and I celebrating a friend's Birthday at an Irish pub

These last few months have been the months of ‘Farewells’, when you are an au pair you get used to meeting new people as well as saying goodbye to nearly everybody you met sometime in your year. And since I have chosen to extend that means everybody that was here when I arrived, I will have to eventually have to attend a farewell for. Anna (my Swedish friend) had her farewell dinner at Casablanca, which is a Middle Eastern cuisine restaurant, we even had a belly dancer come and dance at the tables…which really made me miss dancing! We decided on a few entrees, that we could all share. The meals came…with no cutlery. Being South African and having been to India I was like just eat with your hands, that’s the way it’s supposed to be eaten…Anna was shocked! Haha, apparently so was the waitress when she past our table she said, Oh my, did no one bring you silverware? When she brought it most of us were happy to use our hands and carried on…well all except for Anna. Anna also had a girl’s night out, which is always really funny as people get pretty confused with all the accents!

Za, Kor, Anna, Fernanda and I at Casablanca

My Brazilian friend Fernanda left in April, so we had a “Fernandii weekend” which involved, dinner at a local brewery/pub, a girls night out and dinner with her host parents…fun times!

I miss you Fernandii

Celine (France), Za,(Thailand), Aneth (Panama), Fernanda (Brazil), Vera (Moldova), Yady (Colombia), Tamara and Reiki (both Germany) and me (South Africa)

Then Vera (from Moldova) left, we had a big outdoor lunch, and later had a bonfire. That really made me think of home! Then a few of us went out to a dance club called Suite that night. It was my first time there, but we had a good time!

Vera and I representing Wisconsin

Hilde (my favourite and only Norwegian friend) left in May, so we had a simple dinner with her host family, with all her favourite meals (none of which were American)

Hilde and I having our last tea at Alterra (by the lake)

Audrey a fellow South African just had her farewell, and then left on South African Youth day (June 16^th) Hopefully I will get to meet up with these girls again, either In South Africa…or in their countries.

Saying goodbye...to Audrey (in the front, in the middle)

So with all those farewells my American friends keep telling me that I am going to run out of friends to say goodbye too, but then I tell them that’s what they are for!