the 'fax of life

okayyy...

i've been away from church point for just over a week now, but it feels like it was eons ago. here's a brief summary of my last little bit there:
-i spoke a lot of english. i didn't even try to hide it. i spoke it in the cafeteria, in the petit bois, on the beach, in my room, everywhere. and not one avertissement. woo!
-i ended up with 98% as my final mark in the course, which wasn't very satisfying because the course was so simple and just a repetition of what i learned a long time ago. i decided i WOULD like to continue on with french, though, because... i don't know. it's a good thing to have, and i like learning.
-a grammy-nominated creole fiddler almost kissed me, but i avoided it by delicately telling him i have a boyfriend.
-i loved someone faster than i have ever loved before, i think. her name is caitlan and she is lovely. our spirits like each other a lot. i think we broke my jessica-loving record, but maybe not. i sure loved jessie j. pretty quickly.
-i cried when caitlan left (she had to head out a few days early for a wedding in PEI). i have hardly cried at all in the last two years, and i used to do it all the time. i miss it. it felt really satisfying.
-i wrote a lot of letters. i sent at least 50 to friends and family. a lot of those were to jordan.
-i learned more than i used to know about mardi gras. it is neat, and i'd like to go sometime.
-i didn't end up loving the land as much as i thought i would, and won't be too sad if i never return there.
-i am confused. i don't know if it is good or bad. probably both. this summer has been quite a different experience than my usual summers up north. i feel like i still haven't had my much-needed alone time to decompress from the rest of the year and the summer itself.

now i am in halifax. i am staying with my friend erica, who just moved here from edmonton last month. we rowed together on the u of a team last fall, and now she's coming here for design school. before halifax, i was in PEI, where i absolutely fell in love. PEI is the first place outside alberta where i really feel i could live. i think that's probably because it is very similar to alberta, with its rolling farmland and quiet and unpretentiousness. charlottetown is beautiful and i hope that one day i can grow up and be quiet and make sweaters and crafts there. the hostel i stayed at was incredible, and my stay was made even better by the presence of caitlan, who stayed at her relatives' house during the night but came into town to hang out with me every day i was there. we ate some amazing meals, visited some small shops, saw the legislature and some amazing old churches, visited green gables in cavendish and hung out on the beach. so nice. i joined a tour group on wednesday the 13th, and we revisited cavendish, biked along the beach, drove across confederation bridge (which is incredible!) and stopped for pictures, visited some small towns and farmers' markets in nova scotia, saw the "bluenose II," camped overnight in a tipi in the rain, went for a wine tasting at a little winery, rode inner tubes down a beautiful river, and played in the mud flats along the bay of fundy. now i have just 2 more sleeps until i go home. i can't wait to be back home, but i wish i could have spent more time in PEI. (in case you're wondering, halifax is pretty great too. my qualms with PEI and halifax are these: PEI has no forests, and i need forests; halifax is a little too young and a little to art-scene for me. but both are definitely live-able for me. maybe i will move here sometime.)