I woke up this morning and took my time getting up, enjoying the feeling of sleeping in my own bed for more than a few nights at a time. As I lay there, I started thinking about all the good things planned for this summer. And then it hit me - today marks one full year that I've been in Paris.

On May 28, 2008, I arrived at the Gare de Montparnasse, trying to figure out how the hell I was going to get to my new (and supposedly temporary) lodgings. The mom had talked about taking a bus - but what did I know about taking a bus in Paris? Little did I know that the trajet would soon become so familiar that I would be able to do it blindfolded and walking backwards.

But up until that point, I'd just been going and going and going. Trying to keep moving so that I wouldn't break down. But once I finally got here and was able to breath and set my bags down for more than a day, I was suddenly hit with panic. I thought to myself "What are you doing here? You've never lived on your own before. You don't know really anyone in Paris besides Kendra - everyone else is just from the internet. And besides, you don't even like France". I felt so alone, thinking about how my whole life had done a 180 in just a matter of a few weeks. Still not believing that I'd gone from living in a lovely stone gîte with all my nice stuff to a tiny chambre de bonne with practically nothing. And I cried myself to sleep that night, fearful that I'd made the wrong decision.

But the next morning, I woke up, opened the curtains and saw this:
And I said to myself "Suck it up, there are worse places in the world to pick up the pieces and mend a broken heart." Sure there were a few rough times, namely in January when I wasn't working much and the weather was terrible. But I have to say that Paris has been good to me. I feel like myself again, and am no longer the shell of a person that I was in Bretagne. I've made a life for myself here. And I'm oh-so-very happy I stuck it out and that I've been able to get to know another side of France. On my own terms.

Tonight is girls' night out, so I will toast to that - and to all the lovely ladies I've met in the past year!