I realised how much I'd left my old life at NTU behind when I tried to access my NTU email today. I haven't exactly been fastidious in clearing it and my mailbox is now closed, with 21 pages worth of junk I'd never even bothered to read.
The most obvious sign that I'd forgotten what it was like to be an NTU student was this. I actually forgot that before your login name you need to put a "STUDENT\". I spent 5 minutes trying to log in before I read the red text at the bottom that asked me to do exactly that.
After spending 30 minutes clearing my mail and cussing under my breath that the admin at NTU still hasn't figured out that they should give us a "check all" option so we can delete junk mails faster, I sat in my chair and this thought came to me. I'm sure at some point it comes to all exchange students.
That thought is, after exchange, what now? After experiencing exchange, which is possibly the most enriching experience as well as the longest break I've ever had from school not counting NS, I really don't know what school could offer that could top this. I'm not even sure I can settle back into the routine that was school. While I don't think exchange has dulled my ability to study, it certainly has increased my appetite for experiencing everything that is different. And knowing what NTU is like, it will never be anything else but more of the same.
If I could, I'd take a gap year right here after my exchange and go on exploring all the continents of the world. I'd take a road trip across America and traverse the desert sands of Africa. I really think that I'd learn and grow more out here in the wide world than I ever will being cloistered in the pressure cooker that is NTU.
Then I remember the reason why I want to go home in the first place. You could travel everywhere in the world, but you can't replace the people you leave at home, or how much they mean in your life.