Oxford, the end (for now)

Just like the snow which melted this week, and the rain which came and went today, everything has its time. Today it was time for me to leave the place I have called home for the last month and head to London for one last weekend of freedom from the parental units, before flying home. I actually started to feel bizarrely emotional yesterday when I said goodbye to my team. I nearly cried when I had to bid the cath lab people goodbye, because they were the ones who made me feel so welcome in my first week when I was just floating around without a supervisor, and put up with my really dumb questions. Oh, and when saying goodbye to the other elective students? Particularly the other Aussie? Definitely a heart-wrenching moment (it was at Christ Church too, i.e. Hogwarts). And OMG the Quidditch team! I had to write them a little note with a loaf of bread asking them to please feed the ducks in my absence. 

 

In some ways though, the thought of leaving makes my heart soar. For example, things I miss about Sydney:

• The weather (Me: I wish I could send you some sunshine {from Australia} Dr D: That sounds like the beginning of a song. Me: Oh okay, maybe I'll write one!)
• Mr Ravenclaw
• Yum Cha, cheap Thai food, my kitchen (especially my nonstick wok and endless pile of tea towels), Mr Ravenclaw's cooking, mum's cooking
• Having a towel rail, a shelf full of my toiletries, a bin, mats, and a dual flush toilet in my bathroom (and a shower not covered in hair). Also mixer taps! You have no idea how annoying it is when there is a hot tap, and a cold tap...so you either freeze or scald yourself. Also, can I just say that European showers are the most confusing things ever?  
• Having a mirror in my room. 
• Not having to wear shoes everywhere around my house. 
• My giant bed and nice pillows and plushie collection
• The beach
• My PLC girlfriends, uni friends, the whole gang...
• Flip-flops and open-toed shoes and shorts and short skirts
• My clothesline (and the ability to do free laundry)
• Mr Ravenclaw
• Photoshop 
• A medical records system which I can access, printers that work consistently, and stable wifi (though the unlimited 3G is AWESOME)
• My car
• Mr Ravenclaw

But jokes aside, Oxford has been extremely good to me. I've had all the ward time, theatre time, clinic time that I wanted. I've been to the gen med ward. I've watched a pall care discussion. I've seen emergencies. I've been to an audit (yuck). I've gotten a lot of free food from journal club meetings and JMO teaching. I've even helped out at the final year exams! I am so grateful for the opportunities I've been given. I think it says a lot about my team that I didn't constantly feel the urge to skip class like many other people on elective...on the contrary, I genuinely wanted to go into hospital to learn and spend time with my team. 

And yeah, I'll just never be an Oxford student again. This is why I actually avoided going into London every weekend...I feel like I can be a traveller in London and go to shows/museums/touristy things whenever, but college-hopping/bopping/etc can't be done when you don't have a Bod card. 

And speaking of London, I'm there now! And I should get an early night as I plan to go to the zoo tomorrow, among other things!