Countdown.

There's less than a week to go. In less than one week I will be sitting at home in Boise.

Wow.

There are so many unfinished posts, with enticing titles such as, "Things that are hard to talk about," and "I LOVE YOU JAPAN." I have so many stories left to tell! And just a few left to be had!

There was a list I had at the beginning of my trip, not the one I blogged, but one in my journal. Without looking, I'm pretty sure I got them all done. Among other things, here's what I wanted to do, that I did:

1. Had an Italian cappuccino. (European / Mediterranean is good enough for me.)

2. Had a picnic, with wine, cheese and cookies.

3. Got a tan on the beach. Well, I went to the beach, and I also got a tan, but not at the same time. The tan came from Mt. Hum. At least it was on a remote island in the Adriatic. That sounds pretty exotic, actually.

4. Had a meaningful conversation with a new person at least once a week. Met a whole lot more people than I expected to, which was lovely.

5. Got to watch local TV in Croatia, Hercegovina, and Serbia.

6. Got to experience the cafe culture in all three, and people-watch to my heart's content.

7. Rode in public transportation: buses, trams, trains, taxis, you name it. I also got to ride in someone's car more than once, which is a real treat if you haven't for a while.

8. Swam in the sea.

Such was my modest list, and I hit it out of the ballpark, if one can mash such metaphors. Making lists seems so crude, but it really puts into perspective how much has happened in such a short time. Let's have at another one, while I reminisce.

- I can say that I've been hit on by a Croat, a Bosnian and a Serb at different times, although to varying degrees of creepiness. Which is to say: a bit, a lot, and not at all.

- I now own a nearly excessive (excessive? never!) amount of good Cro and Serb music. I am impressed by what I've found. And CDs here in Serbia (at least locally produced ones) are only about $6US a pop. A good feeling knowing that that will barely buy me a sandwich in London.

- I climbed two relatively big hill-mountains.

- I've eaten a plethora of good foods. And ice cream. Although I haven't had ice cream since I've been in Serbia; I should remedy that right away. I did however, only hours ago, drink the best cup of hot chocolate that has ever existed in the knowledge of man. Or Dot. W O W.

- I've gotten lost more times than I can count, and discovered lots of the randomest pockets of the world.

- As one of my travelmates pointed out, I now have a number of familiar homebases from which to travel if I'm ever traveling somewhere new or need to get to somewhere home-ish. I know a number of cities now. That's pretty cool. That list is on the left side of this page.

- I have four new stamps in my passport! That makes five total! I am a relatively well-traveled American. I've got Ghana, the UK, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. Not bad.

Originally this was supposed to be a sad post about how I'm almost done with my trip and I'll miss this place and that, but honestly this all feels just about right. I'll be ready to go home, but not any sooner than this. My trip wandered a bit here and there, but I don't regret anything. I've seen so much!

I'm not sad to be going home, either. I miss my peeps. I miss my apartment. And I'm getting ready to move on with the next step of my life: finishing my degree and then floating out in that big sea called post-graduation. I got bills to pay and a summer job to find.

So I'm good. Hang in there with me for another week as I bounce west to London and then skip home. And thanks for sticking with me for the ride. Even though this trip is solo, I'm happy to have you all along for the ride, even if vicariously.

Until next time.