I am finally back in Pittsburgh, and I am probably driving my family and friends crazy because all I can think or talk about is the last two months that I spent in Dublin. I miss my life in Dublin a lot, especially the friends that I made there, but I am very excited to reunite with everyone back at Pitt next month. 

I have a new phone and a new ID! I have a new debit card on the way and am working on getting a new credit card. On my long, long journey home without a phone, I was stuck in the Atlanta airport for close to six hours because my connecting flight kept getting delayed. It was here that I first opened my laptop, because, again, I didn’t have a phone, and it did not turn on. I recently learned that somehow, even though Europe hates water and so I was without water in my bottle the whole flight, between leaving Barcelona and arriving in Atlanta, my laptop acquired such severe water damage that I have now bought two new electronics this week. I thought I had beef with Barcelona before, but I now have even more issues with that city, and I think the ill will is mutual. I did think it was a beautiful city overall, and I will definitely revisit in ten years, just not a day sooner.

Since being back in Pittsburgh and seeing my family and friends for the first time in awhile, I have had a lot of time to reflect as I have to keep relaying all of my summer adventures. I think I can confidently say that this was the best summer of my life, and I will never forget my Dublin days. I got a lot more out of this program than I could have ever imagined.

I went into this with a number of goals. Professionally, I wanted to gain worthwhile experience while building on my communication, writing, and analytical skills, and I think that I accomplished this. I worked with a lot with different people on my team in varying capacities and on various projects, which I think strengthened my communication skills greatly. I also was given multiple data sets to analyze and write reports on, which I learned a lot from. I was very happy with my internship, and I definitely think I got a lot out of it. Academically, the credits that I will be receiving from this program are allowing me to have an easier year next year and to graduate a year early without too much additional stress.

I think my personal goals were all focused on getting out of my comfort zone. I wanted to meet new people, and I wanted to do as much as I could in my time there. I met some of the most amazing people who I am so grateful to have spent this summer with. I also think that my extreme lack of sleep proves that I did do as much as I could. A lot of nights, I was tired and my bed was very enticing, but I still went out with my friends, and some of my best memories come from those nights. 

I hope to bring all of these things back to Pitt with me. I do a lot of similar things in my job at Pitt as I did in Dublin, and now that I have more experience, I hope that I can improve my work here. I know that I will continue to hang out with the friends I made in Dublin, as well. I really hope to continue working to have more fun and to say yes more. I think that I can get really caught up in my academics, and I need to work on having a better work/school-life balance, but this summer has definitely helped me with that. Another thing that I think I gained from this experience is more confidence in myself and my future. I feel less scared to take risks and to do things on my own. I definitely want to consider going to grad school somewhere in Europe, and I think this was a really good taste of what that would be like.

Although I am happy to be home, I really miss Dublin, but I am sure that I will return soon. I really did have the best time and think that Ireland is an amazing place. I cannot wait to see all of my friends again, and I am excited for whatever future I may have with Dublin.