Was this all a dream?

The countdown to go home has started and I have mixed feelings for that day. On August 13, I'll be in Chicago with my family. I really can't wait to hug my siblings and my mom. But once I'm home, the long break and vacation will be over. I can't really say I'm ready for that. Being in Europe has felt like the longest vacation of my life. Why is that? Well, compared to my life back in the U.S., here I have little responsibilities. I have the chance to travel (for cheap) to other countries. I have enough free time to exercise as much as I want without having to be anywhere or complete a long assignment. I can make plans to go out with friends and stay out as long as I want. I can get more than 8 hours of sleep if I really want to. Overall, I can do whatever I want without feeling bad about it. God, it's been great!! Just enjoying every day, whether it has been traveling, learning or just laying in the grass reading a book. I don't know how long it will take me to get back to my normal life and the routine of hard work and the pile of assignments I have to do once I'm back in the U.S. I sure am dreading that. Although it hasn't been easy to be so far away from the people I've known for the longest, I met new and great people as well. I've had some amazing, fun, relaxing times with all of them. I'm also not ready to leave them behind. In addition, it wasn't easy to come to a new country, education system, culture and society. But I have learned about it and now, I'm used to it. I'm going to miss the typical phrases that I know how to say in German. I'm going to miss being able to take long walks and bike rides while admiring the beauty of nature that Heidelberg has. These next few days won't be easy. I have a lot of plans still. I want to accomplish many things and most importantly, I want to enjoy every single day I have left here in Europe.