the beginning of the end

Approximately one week ago, the school suddenly became very quiet.
Everyone (well, almost everyone) was gone.

However, before the inevitable end arrived, we had a few events.
Namely, our 'leavers dinner'.
It is not formal by most standards, but it was wonderful. All of the second years yanks a dress or shirt out of their semi-paced suitcases, tames their hair and makes themselves presentable. Then we all gather outside the castle and take about a million photos before we have a lovely dinner in the dining hall.
Speeches are made, staff is thanked and the clapping seems to be endless. Our smiles and laughs echo together around the beautiful hall for one last time. It was a wonderful dinner full of wonderful people.
But it was bittersweet. Beneath all of our smiles we were tears. We all knew that in just over 12 hours we would all be gone.

Nevertheless, the sun was out and so we captured our friends faces in photographs so that we can look back on them and remember how much we love them.

All the girls in my house

Bubo and I

Sarah and I

(this photo is out of order)
This is two days earlier when a group of us went to the nearby lighthouse:

Another event is the 'leaver assembly'. This happens a day before the leavers dinner, while the first years are still on campus. We have a few more speeches, some music and then we all ate lunch outside in the sun.

Most of the Canadians:

Some of my physics class:

the group I went to prom with
Christian and Val, Tuka and I

and
My doormmates!

I miss them all

My co-years:

We are at the final hurrah.
I am sad.

This is a little late due to technical difficulties and a lack of Internet access...

I AM DONE WITH EXAMS!!!!!!!!

No more past papers,
no more sitting at my desk for obscene hours of the day,
no more guilty feeling when I do something other than study,
no more cramming of knowledge into my saturated brain,
no more panic about the things I have forgotten,
no more terror of looking at a question I can't answer,
no more stress-induced-grumpiness,
no more exams!

It is a very liberating and strange feeling. I have been working towards the ambiguous 'end of high school' for a long time and now that it is here, I am not completely sure what to do with myself. And my journey with the IB started almost 3 years ago.... so much has happen, so much has changed.

Unfortunately the happy end to exams means the very unhappy end to AC.
I will write more about that later, but for now I am going to lie on the grass and sign yearbooks and soak in the castle by the sea.

Trinity One

Yesterday I was accepted into the Margaret MacMillan Trinity One Program at U of T!!

This means that I will have two seminar classes a week in a class of only 25 learning about international relations.
The classes are based on research and discussion and we get to learn from some of the best professors and speakers at U of T.
http://www.trinity.utoronto.ca/Prospective_Students/trinity_one.htm

I can't wait!!

the countdown continues

Peace and Conflicts - done!

Math - done!

English - 1/2 done !

Seven days left

ONE DOWN

This morning I had my first IB exam (if you ignore the two french exams I have already done...)
I am officially finished Peace and Conflicts.
It feels wonderful!

But as exciting as it is to have finished one of my five exams, I still have four to go.
The real work begins now.
It will be two weeks of intense work.

Thirteen days left!!!!!!!

Last day of codes!

Today was my last day of highschool classes ever!

hopefully.


And in approximately 21 days I will be done my exams and finished with highschool!!!